Why do people dance?

[pinkglitter12]

There wasnt a category for this to go in so apologies..
Ok i know I'm going to sound a little bit weird now, but its been bothering me.
Why when people hear music do they start waving their arms and legs around?
Is it a mating ritual still? Do people want to be admired for their dexterity?
Does dancing make people feel a certain way?
Why?

I love to dance because it makes me feel happy. I have no coordination and no skill but I enjoy it. And it’s a good workout!

I love dancing, I started dance classes last year in swing jive, Lindy hop and rock and roll. It's so much fun

Also grinding is one particular kind of dance. Kind of silly to ask why we don’t see royalty grinding. I’ve never ‘ground’. It’s not a favourite dance for most people.

Ive seen Prince William and Harry dance though. They’re certainly up for a bop and can feel the beat.

It’s a good observation OP. I also wonder why being tickled makes you laugh. Genuinely, it’s crazy that a finger in the ribs would lead to a physical reaction like that!

I think we dance for social cohesion. Music transcends all races, religions, cultures. Dancing bonds and binds is further together. It’s the physical outlet for musical energy and emotions that build up inside us.

I love to be in boogie wonderland. I dance until I drop if the occasion calls for it.

Horses ‘dance’. They’ll regulate their stride to the tempo of the music without being asked.

I dance because I love it. I’m a good dancer, but I’m now too old to be trying to impress anyone with my moves. 🙂

I’ve just been reminded that nothing’s more cringe inducing than seeing members of the royal family dancing.

I can remember feeling horrified as a child at footage of Charles and Di twirling around a dance floor. I can still see it now. Her face was scarlet, possibly with horror. Also William and Kate awkwardly dancing on some foreign tour. Why do they agree to it?

I don’t think I go a day without moving to music. It’s like a parallel universe and as someone else said, has no boundaries. I think the occasional song and dance through life is one of life’s survival skills. It replenishes the soul.

We were talking about this at home yesterday while watching our 16 month old break it down to the hold music on my call to the GP surgery!

Because you only live once and why the hell not. You should be dancing, yeah - Bee Gees

There's likely deep beneficial brain mechanisms at work, linked to music. There's some evidence that movement drives and develops brain activity particularly consciousness, particularly in early life. It's fundamentally linked to survival and development. Rhythmic movement and dancing light up multiple parts of the brain, as music does. Music also drives brain development, and playing music stirs the amygdala. Certainly both feature in many of the brain processes that make us intrinsically human and also make each of us, ourselves.

We've been dancing for at least 40000 years and we "sang" (as in, we vocalised pitched sounds) before we spoke.

Royalty don’t dance? Yes they do and badly too. Megan Markle and Harry…

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DaTNMa-2PDU

Royalty do everything badly though. It's all the inbreeding..

When younger I travelled the UK going to Northern soul niters round trip journeys of 800 miles in a weekend were not unusual.
The joy of dancing to great soul records was shared by many.
Still love Northern soul but dancing days are gone old and knackered knees.

Aw, that's a shame. Great tune btw!

If it helps, making movements in response to music is one of the last things to go, in the very elderly and very sick. Residents in nursing homes will move their fingers and feet and heads when they hear music, long after they can no longer verbally communicate or do things for themselves. So we still have many years of being able to appreciate music, once the dancing is over.

Joy! Thankfully that still exists.

It's a response to the music. It isn't just about moving your body it's about the rhythyms and the timing and the feeling of the music and connecting to that.
Dance for some people can bring a feeling of joy and freedom

I feel most alive when I dance and it makes me feel a connection to the music -and I always have loved it.

I love dancing and still do, but sometimes when I sit and watch people just dancing (not a show) I feel the same, I actually laugh to myself at how silly people can look dancing, including me

I think dancing is a form of self expression and a way to connect with eachother. I watch my baby dance and find it fascinating how he claps his hands and moves around to a song, and how he has the power to make those in the room join him - it’s infectious and brings joy.

I know in operation it’s a form of release. I know when there is trauma it’s a way to release together - I saw somewhere that the one thing that increases during hardship are races/clubs and music events - go figure.

I think it’s also a form of story telling through movement.

I don’t think it is for everyone though - some have this gift some have others.

It’s like singing. I can dance the night away but can’t hold a tune - how I wish I could sing!

@Screamingabdabz "The vertical expression of a horizontal desire" - George Bernard Shaw... think he was talking about partner dancing, though, not shoegazing!

There was a 'survey' done years ago which reported that the intimate activity that married women missed the most was kissing. I'm inclined to believe this could well be true, and if it is, could it be that once intercourse is on the cards men can't really be bothered with kissing? When I've found a man attractive enough to have sex with, I have wanted and enjoyed kissing, however long we've been doing it.

is this free training for someones ai ?

Megan’s probably the only member of the RF with any sense of rhythm, tbf. I saw her dancing when they went to Africa and she can move!