How much intention do you put behind the music you move to, expose yourself to, and daydream with?
As I was prepping my playlist for The Creature Within workshop, I noticed that I had to go on a bit of a journey to find the kind of atmospheric and textural soundscapes that I was desiring for the class.
This led me down many rabbit holes as I walked around outside in crunchy leaves with headphones seeking the right sounds … but I arrived back in m house with my hands full of new options.
This process of deviating from the music I’m moving to normally, and the habitual music choices I make lately, and it asked of me to make a fresh choice.
To go seeking.
It led to more presence and sensitive listening.
Which opened up this feeling of wanting to be delighted by sound and their landscapes.
It led to an increase in energy. A feeling of enjoyment. Anticipation.
This then became different decisions in terms of moving tasks, and the way of approaching the movement.
And I realized in that moment and all through the next day… I need to date my music more.
I need to stop taking the connection to what I hear from granted, get a little flirty, take a risk, dose even more curiosity, and get out of the metaphorical (and literal) house.
For example, this morning while making eggs I was singing to an old EP of The Phantom of the Opera. For real.
Sure, corny. But my senses and my body were RESPONDING. And that matters.
My invitation to you, if this resonates, is to go take yourself on a little music date.
Even better if it’s not a task you need to complete, although sometimes that can be a great motivator.
Go find something new sound ear jewelry— take a journey into a new genre, or pull something out of time. Jump in on someone else’s curated playlist and make it your radio, or listen to a new song you love you Shazam’ed from that show on repeat.
How can you get a little romantic with those tracks? Allow yourself to fall in love, even though maybe it is way outside of your dating preferences?
We need to nourish our ears to encourage our tissues to wiggle. I assume as movers we all kinda know what we like to move to, or we know songs we love. But, like our movement patterns and our freestyle toolbox, that familiarity can ultimately dim our responsiveness, lacking the surprise we need to open anew.