My introduction to contact improvisation was as an under graduate student of dance. I have practiced the dance form in classes but have had limited exposure to written information, or recordings of performances on contact improvisation. In producing this bibliography plan I hope to learn more about what materials have been written on the topic of contact improvisation and what aspects are commonly discussed. In addition I would like to become more familiar with the performances that have been recorded and the variety of styles, performers, and content that exist within these recordings.
I have chosen the topic of contact improvisation because of my own personal interest in the subject, but also on account of the need for information on contact improvisation to be collected and combined into a format that is succinct and lucid. Dancers have many obstacles to finding information. Firstly, dance is a field that does not rely on technology. To practice dance a person only needs a space with a wooden floor. More technology may be used for sound and lighting in performances but this is not a critical part of dancing. As a result people who practice dance are not required to have any contact with technology and therefore may not have finely tuned computer searching skills. Secondly, dancing requires a different type of knowledge than that which is used in researching. Researching requires a logical plan for collecting and evaluating materials. Dancing develops a kinesthetic sense of ones body and relies on a spacial understanding of the body and surrounding environment. Although in choreographing a person plans out what movements are going to take place, these movements usually are a result of the process of improvisation and can not be planned ahead of time. In dancing, changes of the body position and qualities take place very quickly and this “body” thinking often takes place on a subconscious level of which conscious attempts at thinking about where the body is going do not have a place. While dancing, there is no outlining of objectives, talking about the process, or conscious thinking. The skills developed by dancing are not usually used in the search process.
Thirdly, the placement of dance materials within the Library of Congress classification scheme does not reflect the dance communities ideas and belief. Most dancers would consider dancing to be an art but the Library of Congress classifies dancing in the GV section which is for recreation. The G schedule also covers topics of geography and anthropology. The dance materials, cataloged in the recreation section are usually located next to the materials on chess or card games. The arts are classified in the Ns, a section that is not in any proximity to the GVs and therefore it is unlikely that someone looking in the arts area for dance materials is unlikely to locate it through browsing. In addition in my searching I found materials that I would consider to primarily address dance, to be in a location other than GV. For instance Contact Quarterly , a contact improvisation periodical, was located at RM 695.c63 which is the call number for physical therapy. Similarly, a book that uses Laban Analysis (a means to break down movement into a notation form) to discuss movement, was classified at BF295.B37, which is in sensation and aesthesiology section.
The intended audience of this bibliography plan is people who dance, or are interested in dancing and would like to locate information on contact improvisation. The writing level of the print materials I chose was suited for adults. The videos that I chose for my annotations would be appropriate for someone of any age level, but might be most interesting to someone who has either watched dance before, or has danced before. The annotations are divided into two sub topics that I felt were relevant to my interests of my target audience. The first category is contact improvisation videos, films, and photographs. The second category is contact improvisation history. Kate Turabian’s Manual for Writer’s of Term Papers, Theses and Dissertations was used as a citation style guide.¹
The bibliography plan is organized as indicated in the table of contents. The paper begins with the introduction in which target audience, need for the bibliography, citation style, and search strategy are discussed. Following are summaries of the searches conducted for each database and the relevancy of the findings. These databases are separated into two groups, one with electronic sources and the other with print sources. Next, are the results and the conclusion, which discusses success of certain terms, recommended terms, and what was learned from this experience. A table which displays the search vocabulary used in each database and the relevancy rating of each search term is directly after the conclusion. Only terms that retrieved results are included in the table. The search terms are evaluated using the vocabulary provided in the instructions for the bibliography plan, which are “highly relevant”, “useful”, and “not relevant”. A key is provided on the table. The last section of the paper is the sample annotations.
 
 

Before starting my search I decided that it was necessary to find out more about my topic to enable me to search more effectively. I browsed through the reference section for dance, which is in GV 158-1799.3. I found the International Dictionary of Modern Dance, International Encyclopedia of Dance, and Fifty Choreographers to be very helpful in providing a concise description of what contact improvisation is and who practices it.² Contact improvisation is a form of dance dueting “that emphasizes the qualities of mutual trust and interdependence by requiring ongoing contact between the two participants. It has a relaxed, sustained, athletic quality and a noncompetitive nature”³ . The official beginnings of contact improvisation was in 1972 when a group of dancers participated in an experimental group called the Judson Dance Theater. This group consisted mostly of white, college educated dancers who were either part of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company or a dance company started by Yvonne Rainer called the Grand Union. Steve Paxton, a dancer from the Merce Cunningham Company is considered to be the creator of the contact improvisation form and spent most of his life performing contact improvisation dance pieces.⁴ This form of dance is always referred to as contact improvisation but some sources considered it to be a form of modern dance while others considered it to be a form of postmodern dance.
 
 

I began my search by first looking at the Library of Congress Subjects Headings to determine the appropriate controlled vocabulary for this topic.⁵ I consulted Robert Balay’s Guide to Reference Books and Guide to Reference Material to determine some reference sources that could be used as databases to search.⁶Guide to Dance periodicals, Index to Dance periodicals, New York Public Library Dance Collection, Bibliographic Guide to Dance, and Dance on Disc were suggested indexes.⁷ I next used the Library of Congress Classification Outline to identify the primary call number area for dance materials which was GV 158-1799.3.⁸Dance materials were also located in the BF (psychology) and RM (medicine). I identified which resources that the University of Hawaii owned and examined the sources. I also browsed the shelves in the GV reference section and located Videotapes on Dance and Dance Film and Video Guide.⁹ I decided to use the New York Public library's CATNYP and LEO since the New York Public Library is known for its extensive dance collections.¹⁰I also used the UH Voyager catalog database and indexes topic menu to identify sources where I might find information on contact improvisation. I chose to use Art Bibliographies Modern because it was the only database that did not specifically say that it did not cover dance.¹¹ The call number areas of RM (psychology) and and BF (medicine) lead me to believe that Pub Med and PsychINFO might have information on contact information.¹² For the final two databases I chose to search internet using the search engines Google and Ixquick, which I was familiar with and deem to be of good quality.
My controlled vocabulary search terms were determined from using the Library of Congress Subject Headings.¹³ The other terms that I chose were concepts or terms that I considered fundamental to contact improvisation. Contact Improvisation was the most important search term. The dance form was referred to as contact improvisation in the sources the encyclopedia and dictionaries that I used early on in my search and therefore I assume that it is an accurate description of the form and will be the most effective search term. However the Library of Congress Subject Headings¹⁴ does not use contact improvisation as a cataloging term, which complicated my search considerably. Postmodern Dance was included as a term since this is what several of the sources I viewed considered contact improvisation to be. Postmodern Dance was not included as a controlled vocabulary in Library of Congress Subject Headings so it was included as a natural language term.¹⁵ I had originally included MODERN DANCE as a controlled vocabulary heading but after some exploration on UH Voyager, decided that it was too broad of a subject heading to use effectively.¹⁶ Judson Dance Theater and Steve Paxton were included because they were fundamental to the creation of contact improvisation and would be useful in locating contact improvisation in sources that did not use dance cataloging terminology and also to identify sources that are cataloged under Library of Congress topics of psychology and medicine. The search terms which I chose to use are listed below.

IMPROVISATION IN DANCE
POSTMODERNISM (DANCE)
Contact Improvisation
Postmodern Dance
Judson Dance Theater
Steve Paxton

I searched in each database using the terminology listed above unless a thesaurus for the particular database was available, which I explored to determine related terminology. In addition if the standard set of terms did not yield very many results, I would attempt to explore the database to establish alternative search terms that I could use. I also explored any cross references or subject headings that I came across during my search that appeared as if they may be relevant. I looked at items that I thought could be relevant on the shelf after I searched each database. However not all of the items which I found in the databases were owned by the University of Hawaii, nor were available at the Hawaii State Library System, or through electronic full text services. Almost all of the relevant sources which I discovered on The New York Public Library’s CATNYP were not owned by University of Hawaii and could not be obtained. I did not consult a reference librarian for help in my search strategies. I found no bibliographies addresses the topic of contact improvisation.
 
 

I first searched using the controlled vocabulary IMPROVISATION IN DANCE. I was taken to the subject heading page and noticed that there were two related subject headings following IMPROVISATION IN DANCE. I noted these subject headings and decided to explore them after my initial search. The IMPROVISATION IN DANCE subject heading included eight titles. None of the titles appeared particularly relevant to contact improvisation. However, after looking at these materials in the library I am certain that none of these materials were relevant. Because the Library of Congress does not use contact improvisation, which is the standard term for the movement style within the dance field, for the subject heading and instead uses a much broader term, the subject heading tended to bring up material with a low relevance. None of the books within the IMPROVISATION IN DANCE heading included an abstract and therefore I was not certain if they would pertain to contact improvisation. After looking at these materials on the shelf, I ascertained that IMPROVISATION IN DANCE did not retrieve any relevant results. I returned to the subject heading page and tried the headings which I discovered earlier. The first one was IMPROVISATION IN DANCE HISTORY which only included one title. The item was a book titled, Sharing the Dance: Contact Improvisation and the American Culture, by Cynthia J. Novack. This book is highly relevant. The other subject heading which this book was cataloged under was DANCE-UNITED STATES-ANTHROPOLOGICAL ASPECTS but upon exploring this subject heading discovered that there was only one other entry, which was not relevant. I then went back to the subject heading page and tried the second of the two heading s that appeared related to my initial search which was IMPROVISATION IN DANCE STUDY AND TEACHING. The subject heading contained two entries both of which were clearly not relevant indicated by the titles. I then searched using POSTMODERNISM (DANCE) and retrieved one result which was not relevant. I then searched using Steve Paxton and retrieved four results. Two of the entries were written by Steve Paxton and were very relevant. I searched using Contact Improvisation and retrieved four results. Two had been previously retrieved, one was relevant and the other was not. I searches using Postmodern Dance and retrieved one entry which was not relevant. Finally, I finished by searching with Judson Dance Theater which yielded one highly relevant result. The UH Voyager Catalog search proved to be a successful search allowing me to explore different Library of Congress Subject Headings and also to locate four highly relevant sources. However, I decide not to add any of the explored Library of Congress Subject Headings for use in other searches.
 
 

I first looked in the thesaurus to determine if the controlled vocabulary that I had chosen was terminology used for descriptors in this database. I discovered that IMPROVISATION IN DANCE, and POSTMODERNISM (DANCE) were not descriptors. I then checked to see if MODERN DANCE, DANCE, and IMPROVISATION, CONTACT IMPROVISATION were descriptors. DANCING and DANCERS were the only descriptors that I found. I searched using the term DANCING and retrieved approximately three hundred results. I browsed through these results and found that they were reviews or discussions of dance pieces as art installations. None of the results that I looked at were directly related to contact improvisation. I then searched with the descriptor DANCERS and retrieved approximately three hundred results. I refined my search to try to narrow my number of results by using DANCERS and Modern. This search retrieved nineteen results. Approximately five of these entries were about modern dance, the rest discussed paintings of dancers, or dancers as painter’s models. One of these articles discussed a dance piece, Trio A, choreographed by Trisha Brown who had been a member of the Judson Dance Theater, but this piece does not use contact improvisation and so is not relevant to contact improvisation. I then searched with the natural language terms Contact Improvisation which retrieved one record that was relevant. Unfortunately the journal that the article is published in was not owned by the University of Hawaii. A search using Steve Paxton retrieved three results, two of which were relevant and a third that was a review and which would not be useful in my bibliography. The searches using Judson Dance Theater and Postmodern Dance did not retrieve any results. I was surprised that I found such a variety of information in this database. The description of Art Bibliographies Modern describes the database as covering all aspects of contemporary, 20th century modern art, which does not indicate whether dance is included. I only found three results that were relevant to contact improvisation, but I did find some other interesting information on dance that I did not expect to find in this database, such as articles discussing the tango, Buto, and Modern dance.
 
 

I began by exploring the thesaurus and found some subject headings that might be applicable. I decoded to try MOVEMENT THERAPY, MOTION PERCEPTION, and KINESTHETIC PERCEPTION. The first search I conducted using the term MOVEMENT THERAPY retrieved one hundred results. I browsed through the first page and found a citation that discussed contact improvisation. I decided to further limit my results by searching with MOVEMENT THERAPY and Contact Improvisation together in an advanced search, which yielded 1 result. This article discussed using contact improvisation as a means for people with eating disorders to increase comfort with their bodies and develop a more accurate perception of their bodies through the information gained by physical contact. This article also discusses typical activities included in in a contact improvisation session, which I have not seen discussed in any other sources. This article might be useful. As well because this article is written by someone outside of the dance field it has an interesting perspective on dance and contact improvisation and provides a factual assessment, which may be more lucid for a reader of my bibliography, who does not have dance experience.
The search using MOTION PERCEPTION, yielded over three thousand results. I attempted to limit using MOTION PERCEPTION and Contact Improvisation as a key word in an advanced search, but that search yielded no results. I then tried to refine the search by using MOTION PERCEPTION and the key word Dance, but the search only yielded two results that were not relevant. I browsed through several pages of the original search, MOTION PERCEPTION, but I did not find any relevant results. The search, KINESTHETIC PERCEPTION, retrieved two hundred fifty results. I tried to narrow the search using Contact Improvisation but then did not retrieve any results. I tried again to narrow the 250 results by combining KINESTHETIC PERCEPTION with Dance, that retrieved no results. I decided to browse through the 205 results of KINESTHETIC PERCEPTION. I did not find any relevant entries. The last search I conducted was using the key words Contact Improvisation. Three results were presented, of which one appeared to be relevant. This article discussed contact improvisation’s effect on self awareness. Searching in PsychINFO only resulted in one relevant source. The experience of searching for dance materials with a different set of terminology was valuable. I discovered new vocabulary for the field of psychology to describe dancing and the experiences of movement.
 
 

I searched in Pub Med with the usual set of terminology. I did not find any results with the terms, and decided to try different keywords that relate to the medical field. I searched using Dance Therapy and retrieved a varied set of 87 results. Some results addressed physical therapy for dance injuries, others addressed dance as a means for maintaining physical or mental health. Dance improvisation is addressed in several articles that discuss the healing nature of creative dance forms and one article that discusses the curative qualities of dance improvisation. However I did not find any that addressed specifically contact improvisation as a dance form that promotes health. I also searched using Modern Dance and retrieved eleven results. One of these results discussed the potential for improved body image in female students as a result of participation in creative dance. The other results covered the topic of treatment of dance injuries or the effects of modern dancing in relation to a specific aspect of health, such as bone strength or schizophrenia. This search did not uncover any relevant sources on contact improvisation. It was a very informative search, in that I was able to learn how dance is connected to the field of medicine through the process of trying different search terms and in looking at some of the articles. I found it very interesting that articles do exist regarding the positive affects of creative dance forms. Unfortunately none of these articles specifically address contact improvisation.
 
 

Dance on Disc did give options for choosing a search mode. A single search box was provided and there was no menu options for subject or keyword searching. After some experimentation I determined that all searches were conducted as key word searches and so I was not able to conduct subject searches. However I tried all of the terms from my search list. All the search terms I used were entered into the search box and then followed by pressing enter. Improvisation in Dance retrieved sixteen results, two of which were relevant. Postmodernism (Dance) retrieved three results of which none were relevant. Contact Improvisation included a set of one hundred twenty five results, the majority of which were relevant and some highly relevant. One article that was highly relevant was “A Short History of Contact Improvisation” which is in Contact Quarterly. Postmodern Dance retrieved a set of six results, none of which were relevant. The search using Steve Paxton, produced 109 records, a few of which were relevant. Many of these results were reviews of Dance concerts, although they are relevant to contact improvisation I chose not to include them. I would prefer to include materials in my bibliography that address in more detail the concepts and practice of contact improvisation. The review articles that I looked at described the piece and then analyzed the consistency and clarity of the content and the quality of the performance.
 
 

I first searched using the controlled vocabulary IMPROVISATION IN DANCE. The heading included several hundred entries. After browsing through several pages I found only one entry that was relevant. While searching with IMPROVISATION IN DANCE I noticed a subject heading IMPROVISATION IN DANCE PERIODICALS and decided to see what materials were classified under it. This subject heading had two periodical titles included within it, both of which were specifically related to Contact improvisation. In examining the record for Contact Quarterly, I observed that contact improvisation was listed as a “local subject”. I then searched using CONTACT IMPROVISATION (the “local subject” heading) and retrieved approximately two hundred results. All of these results were highly relevant. I followed with a search using Contact Improvisation as a keyword search and retrieved approximately three hundred results, all of which were highly relevant. An item of particular interest was an article written by Susan Aposhyan published in Contact Quarterly, that is called “23 photographs of contact improvisation with Susan Milani and Alan Gardner”. The results included videos, journal articles, books, and sound recordings. POSTMODERNISM (DANCE) retrieved several hundred results, none of which were relevant. Post modern Dance retrieved several hundred results, none of which were relevant. Judson Dance Theater produced just over one hundred search results, many of which were unrelated to contact improvisation. I noticed in examining these records that Judson Dance Theater was used in CATNYP as a subject heading and I therefore searched with JUDSON DANCE THEATER. The results were a hundred in number and were more relevant than those retrieved in the natural language search. I lastly, searched using Steve Paxton, which retrieved fifty three entries. Again I observed that Steve Paxton was a subject heading within CATNYP and used STEVE PAXTON as a search. Fifty five entries records were retrieved. The records retrieved from the STEVE PAXTON and Steve Paxton search were nearly identical. Approximately one quarter of the results retrieved were relevant. This was a very successful search. I found hundreds of highly relevant sources in several different formats.
 
 

I first searched with the controlled vocabulary terms IMPROVISATION IN DANCE and POSTMODERNISM (DANCE). The LEO catalog has different search field choices than UH Voyager and many other OPACs I have seen. I spent some time examining the search options and eventually chose to conduct the controlled vocabulary searches in the “subject alphabetical” field. The subject heading IMPROVISATION IN DANCE only contained eleven entries. These entries were not relevant. POSTMODERNISM (DANCE) was not a subject heading in LEO. I searched with the natural language terms Contact Improvisation, Judson Dance Theater, Post modern Dance, and Steve Paxton.I conducted these searches using the advanced search option on LEO which enabled me to search both the “subject (keyword)” and “title (keyword)” fields. The search terms Contact Improvisation and Judson Dance Theater each retrieved one record, both of which were highly relevant. Searching with Steve Paxton and Postmodern Dance produced a few records none of which were relevant. Since I had retrieved very few records I browsed through some of the subject headings in the “subject alphabetical” listing. I decided to broaden my search and try MODERN DANCE UNITED STATES HISTORY and MODERN DANCE UNITED STATES. These searches produced more results but none of the results were relevant. This search was unsuccessful. I found no new relevant sources.
 
 

I only used natural language terms for searching in Google, since the internet is not organized through controlled vocabulary. I started with Contact Improvisation which retrieved several thousand results. The first result was highly relevant. The page contained a listing of U.S. schools and studios that practice contact improvisation as well as a calendar of workshops or jams. I scanned through several pages of results, all of which were of the same variety, listing contact improvisation classes or programs that were being offered in various geographic areas. The majority of the sites had a listing of contact improvisation events for a particular city or university. Although most of these sites did not provide any information on the concepts of contact improvisation, or history of contact improvisation, and would not be included in my bibliography, these sites would be helpful for someone trying to locate contact improvisation classes in a specific geographic area. To find information on contact improvisation for a certain geographical area, I found searching with Contact Improvisation and the name of geographic area to be very effective. For example a search using Contact Improvisation and North Carolina yielded many relevant results. I also searched using Postmodern Dance which resulted in many thousands of sites but none of the ones that I scanned were remotely relevant. I searched using Steve Paxton which retrieved several thousands of results none of which on the first several pages were related to contact improvisation. Finally I searched with the phrase Judson Dance Theater which retrieved a couple thousand results. Some of the sites were not particularly relevant, however there was a sight that was highly relevant. This site (www.cornell.edu/pages/jgv4/dance/post_mod.htm) discussed Judson Dance Theater as an important part of contact improvisation and postmodern dance, as well as including a picture of the original people involved. Google proved to be a good source of information, locating information that I have not found in any other of my searches, such as information on contact improvisation classes and brief concise historical information on Judson Dance Theater.
 
 

I used natural language terms to search the internet using www.ixquick.com. I began searching with the phrase Contact Improvisation. The results contained approximately forty sites. The sites were similar to those retrieved on the Google search pertaining to information about specific schools and studios. Ixquick did also retrieve the home page for Contact Quarterly and Proximity which are contact improvisation magazines. I next searched with the phrase Judson Dance Theater and thirty one sites were retrieved, of which the first page contained results very similar results to those form Google. The second page included some different sites, several of which were highly relevant. A bibliography of modern dance videos was among these highly relevant results and included some citations for contact improvisation dance pieces on video. In this set of results I also discovered a book, Democracy’s Body: Judson Dance Theater, written by Sally Banes, which is particularly relevant. I also searched using the natural language term Postmodern Dance which retrieved thirty nine results, most of which did not include information about contact improvisation. There were several sites that did contain some relevant information, one of which had information on the Judson Dance Theater, including a list of the names of the people involved. finally, I searched with the natural language phrase Steve Paxton and received twenty seven results, none of which were relevant. This search retrieved a lot of results that were similar to the Google search, but also retrieved some new sites that were highly relevant. Overall, this search was successful.
 
 

I searched the 1999 edition, which was the most recent year available. I used the controlled vocabulary IMPROVISATION IN DANCE and POSTMODERNISM (DANCE). IMPROVISATION IN DANCE had approximately ten entries, many of which were highly relevant. POSTMODERNISM (DANCE) was not a heading in the Bibliographic Guide to Dance: 1999. I next used the terms usually used as the natural language searches Contact Improvisation, Judson Dance Theater , Post modern Dance, and Steve Paxton. In searching in a print index it is not possible to conduct key word searching, because only certain fields are indexed.
For all of the print resources I searched, I conducted the natural languages searches as closely as possible to the way a key word search would be conducted, by searching for the terms in all of the indexes in the book. I chose to keep all of these search terms in Italics, as key word searches even though they are not differ from key word searches conducted on an electronic source. The heading Contact Improvisation contained approximately ten entries, some of which were visual works. All of the citations listed were highly relevant. A particularly interesting article was “Making Contact” written by David Beadle and published in Dance Teacher Now. Judson Dance Theater was a subject heading in the Bibliographic Guide to Dance: 1999, with only one citation listed, which was highly relevant. Post modern Dance included five entries , only one of which was relevant and was seen earlier under Judson Dance Theater. The search using Steve Paxton included seven citations, two of which were audio materials. Two of these citation appeared to be relevant. This search was very successful, approximately twenty highly relevant sources were identified, several of which were in video and audio format.
 
 

I searched the 1990 edition, which was the most recent edition. I searched with the controlled vocabulary terms IMPROVISATION IN DANCE and POSTMODERNISM (DANCE). There was no heading for POSTMODERNISM (DANCE). There were approximately twenty entries under IMPROVISATION IN DANCE the majority of which were relevant. I followed with the natural language terms Contact Improvisation, Judson Dance Theater, Postmodern Dance, and Steve Paxton. Contact Improvisation had approximately ten citations listed all of which were highly relevant. “Spontaneous Combustion” and article written by Robert Sandla and published in Dance Magazine. One citation was listed under the heading Judson Dance Theater which was in French. Ten entries were found under the heading Postmodern Dance, but the citations were not relevant. Two entries were listed under Steve Paxton, neither of which were relevant. The heading Steve Paxton also included seven “see also” references which guided me to other works which related to Steve Paxton as a member of a dance troop and these citations were listed under the heading of the proper names of various dance groups which he has been a part of. However none of these entries were relevant. This was a fairly successful search . I found approximately ten highly relevant sources.
 
 

This collection indexed the videotapes that are in the Sinclair Library. I searched using the usual terminology but only found results for Postmodern Dance and IMPROVISATION IN DANCE. IMPROVISATION IN DANCE contained one entry that was not relevant. There was one entry under the heading Postmodern Dance and it was highly relevant. This search was not particularly successful, I found only two entries, one of which was highly relevant.
 
 

I searched in this index with all of the usual terms. On account of the organization of this source I was required to search for IMPROVISATION IN DANCE and POSTMODERNISM (DANCE) in the subject index. I searched using Contact Improvisation and Postmodern Dance in the subject index and also the companies index. I searched using Judson Dance Theater in the choreographers and companies index. Judson Dance Theater included 13 videotapes that were highly relevant. I also chose to do an additional search using HISTORY OF DANCE CONTACT IMPROVISATION and found thirteen videotapes, which were the same set of tapes that I had found under the heading Judson Dance Theater.
 
 

As can be seen by the Subject Heading Relevancy ratings certain terms produced higher relevancy in the results. Postmodern Dance retrieved useful information in only one of the databases and POSTMODERNISM (DANCE), did not retrieve any relevant results. I would dissuade any potential searcher, looking for information on contact improvisation, from using postmodern as a search term. Searching using Contact Improvisation retrieved highly relevant or useful results in all of the searches I conducted. Contact improvisation consistently retrieved relevant results and was overall the most successful term that I used. Judson Dance Theater also consistently retrieved highly relevant or useful results and was the second most successful term that I used. Searches using IMPROVISATION IN DANCE and Steve Paxton had varied results. IMPROVISATION IN DANCE retrieved highly relevant, useful, and not relevant results. Steve Paxton as a search term resulted in mostly useful results, but a few times retrieved not relevant results. I do think that both Steve Paxton and IMPROVISATION IN DANCE are worthwhile search terms. Although high relevancy results were not consistently retrieved, these terms did retrieve useful information in more than half of the databases which I searched.
The natural language search mode was most effective in the majority of the databases on account of contact improvisation not being a Library of Congress Subject Heading. As a result of this the key word searching was most effective, since it was the only means available to find materials that included the words contact improvisation in the record. In most databases the controlled vocabulary used to describe the dance materials were too general. All dance improvisation is put together within the same category, which meant that in searching IMPROVISATION IN DANCE usually retrieved large amounts of material that were not really relevant to my specific topic. However, the New York Public Library’s CATNYP, used many subject heading that are not of congress subject heading which apply more directly to dance. In LEO I found that contact improvisation, Judson dance Theater, Steve Paxton, and contact improvisation were all subject headings. Using these subject headings I retrieved many highly relevant results.
After looking at so many articles on contact improvisation I began to develop a better sense of what aspects I wanted the bibliography plan to focus on. I have decided to concentrate on contact improvisation videos, films, and photographs and the history of contact improvisation. I did not include any materials which are reviews of particular pieces or installations, or materials that describe in depth the lives of contact performers, unless significant information on the concepts or history is included. The materials that I chose to annotate attempt to represent the breadth of information that would be covered in the bibliography and in addition I believe to be authoritative and informative. The materials are geared towards someone with an adult reading level. I have also chosen articles that I deem to be lucid for a person who has had experience as a viewer of dance or a participant of dance, as well as someone who has not had previous experience with dance.
I found enough results through my searches to have adequate materials to put together a bibliography. However, very few of these materials were available at the the University of Hawaii, the Hawaii State Library System, or through electronic sources available to me. There was a large number of record in the New York Public Library’s CATNYP that were relevant to contact improvisation but these items are part of a closed research collection. Dance on Disc retrieved a large number of relevant journal articles, that were unfortunately not owned by the University of Hawaii. The University of Hawaii owns very few video tapes on the topic of modern or postmodern dance and I was only able to find one video tape that showed people dancing contact improvisation. I included video, film, and photographs of contact improvisation as a sub topic in my annotations, since watching a dance performance can inform the viewer in ways that written material can not. Video tape, films, and photographs are the only way to keep record of dance, other than using dance notation forms. The sources that I chose to annotate were not sources that I felt were exceptional but were sources that were available.
 
 

Through conducting this bibliography plan exercise I had an opportunity to closely examine the aspects of one topic. It became clear to me during this process how complex the information structure of the library is and what an important role the librarian plays as a facilitator between information sources and information seekers. The topic of contact improvisation is placed in several different areas in the Library of Congress system, and is cataloged using terms that are not congruous with dance terminology. These two factors create a situation in which an information seeker may have great difficulty in finding information on contact improvisation. Also, most of the databases that cover art, do not include materials on dance. Information sources that address dance are scant. The majority of sources that I found are compiled by the New York Public Library, which has a comprehensive dance collection. My search in the New York Public Library CATNYP was the most successful search I conducted, that produced the largest number of relevant results.
I learned that searching is a flexible process. It is important to be alert to new subject headings that appear on records that are examined and be receptive to trying these new headings. In searching, it is also critical to pay close attention to the number of results retrieved. If the search terms are not successful, I learned that it is important to take a step back and rethink the search terms. Search terms that were successful in one database will not necessarily be successful in another. When examining a search situation to construct new refine search terms it is beneficial to consider the topic the database covers, what searches have been conducted and have failed, what broader terms could be used, and what related terms have not been used. Also, I found it helpful to use the strategy of pearl building, which is to start with a relevant material title or a specific person and use that to discover the appropriate subject headings for the topic. I learned that as a searcher I prefer to search for short periods of time and then have a chance to think about the searching before I continue on with another search. I appreciated the chance to work on a more in depth search query and overall feel this was a beneficial experience. If I was required to do this search again I would have spent more time trying to identify specific dance sources rather than use the databases on Voyager which do not specifically address dance. The topic is not covered in a large number of databases and I may have had an easier time finding information. However my interest in the topic proved to be sufficient to make this a rewarding project and if I were to do it again I would not change the topic.
 
 

Sub Topic One: Contact Improvisation Videos, Films, and Photographs

Deephouse, Chris. “Contact Improvisation,” Contact Improv.net Online. Home page on-line. Available form http://www.contactimprov.net; Internet;
    accessed 2 November 2001.
    Features pictures/video clips of movement. A few pictures are poor quality. Video clips are high quality and convey more specific qualities of movment. Includes information on classes, studios, teachers with international list of people and places and provides six month calendar of events.

Common Ground: Dance and Disability. Produced by Joint Forces and Independent Video Services. 20 min. Independent Video services, 1991.
    Videocassette.
    Shows international conference meeting of contact improvisation in Eugene Oregon. Participants discuss positive impact of event, which is informative. Video is brief but exhibits essential components of contact improvisation.
 

Sub Topic Two: Contact Improvisation History

Roberts, Paul. “Nancy Stark Smith-Interview,” Proximity 2 (1998). [e-journal] <http;//journal.slightly.net>.
    Discusses initial development of contact improvisation in 1972. Includes initial impressions of movement style, performance value, and continued interest in contact in the 1990’s. Excellent source of information on the initial invention of contact improvisation.

Novack, Cynthia. “Contact Improvisation’s Origins and Influences.” In Sharing the Dance: Contact improvisation and AmericanCulture.
    Madison:University of Wisconsin Press, 1990.
    Traces history of improvisation. Covers influence of Merce Cunningham, Anna Halprin, Eric Hawkins, Social dance of the 60’s, and Steve Paxton in establishing opportunity for contact improvisation to arise. Comprehensive, detailed, and insightful.

Banes, Sally. “Steve Paxton: Physical Things.” In Terpsichore in Sneakers: Post-Modern Dance. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1980.
    Describes Steve Paxton’s career as a dancer and key figure in contact improvisation. Covers first performances, basic concepts, and practices. Excellent source for concise summary.

Smith, Nancy Stark. “Trance Script: Judson Project Interview,” Contact Quarterly 9, no.1 (1989): 14-21.
    Steve Paxton discusses the Judson Dance Theater, who was involved, what the group was working on. Dynamics of original members in dance group is explored. Offers unique view of group, its members, and the creation of contact.
 
 

¹Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987) LB 2369 .T8.

²Martha Bremser, Fifty Contemporary Choreographers (London: Routledge, 1999) GV 1785 .A1B74 1999; Taryn Benbow ed., International Dictionary of Modern Dance (Detroit: St. James Press, 1998) GV 1585 .B461998; Selma Jeanne Cohen ed., International Encyclopedia of Dance (New York: Oxford University press, 1998) GV 1585 .I586 1998.

³Benbow, 446.

⁴Cohen, 146.

⁵Library of Congress, Library of Congress Subject Headings, 21st ed. (Washington: Library of Congress, 1998) REF Z 695 .Z8LS24.

⁶Robert Balay ed., Guide to Reference Books, 11th ed., (Chicago: American Library association, 1996) CIS REF DESK Z 1035.1 .G1 and A. J. Walford, Guide to Reference Material, 6th ed., (London: Library Association, 1989) REF Z 1035.1 .W33 1989.

⁷Y. S. Belknap ed., Guide to Dance Periodicals (Gainesville: University of Florida, 1962) Z 7514 .D2G8; New York Public Library for the Performing Arts ed., Index to Dance Periodicals: 1990 (Boston: G. K. Hall & Company, 1992) GV 1586 .I58; New York Public Library, Dictionary Catalog of the Dance Collection: a List of Authors, Titles, and Subjects of Multi-media Materials in the Dance Collection of the Performing Arts Research Center of the New York Public Library (Boston: New York Public Library, 1974); New York public Library, Bibliographic Guide to Dance (Boston: G. K. Hall & Company, 1999) GV 1593 .N481; Dance on Disc, [CD-ROM] (Boston: G. K. Hall & Company, 1992) CIS REF DESK.

⁸Library of Congress, LC Classification Outline, 6th ed. (Washington: Library of Congress, 1990) CIS REF DESK.

⁹Chiyomi Shinoda, Videotapes on DanceAvailable in the Wong Audiovisual Center, Sinclair Library (Honolulu: The Center, 1994) GV 1595 .V45 1994 and Deirdre Towers ed., Dance Film and Video Guide (Princeton: Dance Horizons/Princeton Book Company, 1991) GV 1595 .D32 1991.

¹⁰New York Public Library, “LEO,” New York Public Library Online [database on-line]; available from http://www.nypl.org; Internet; accessed 1 December 2001 and New York Public Library, “CATNYP,” New York Public Library Online [database on-line]; available from http://www.nypl.org; Internet; accessed 1 December 2001.

¹¹Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, “Art Bibliographies Modern,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [home page on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 27 November 2001.

¹²Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, “PsychINFO,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [database on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 28 November 2001 and National Library of Medicine, “Pub Med,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [database on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 25 November 2001.

¹³Library of Congress, Library of Congress Subject Headings.

¹⁴Library of Congress, Library of Congress Subject Headings.

¹⁵ Library of Congress, Library of Congress Subject Headings.

¹⁵University of Hawaii, “ Hawaii Voyager Library Catalog,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [database on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 28 November 2001.

¹⁶University of Hawaii, “ Hawaii Voyager Library Catalog,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [database on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 28 November 2001.

¹⁷Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, “Art Bibliographies Modern,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [database on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 27 November 2001.

¹⁸Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, “PsychINFO,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [database on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 28 November 2001.

¹⁹National Library of Medicine, “Pub Med,” University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Online [database on-line]; available from http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/index.htm; Internet; accessed 25 November 2001.

²⁰Dance on Disc, [CD-ROM] (Boston: G. K. Hall & Company, 1992) CIS REF DESK.

²¹New York Public Library, “CATNYP,” New York Public Library Online [database on-line]; available from http://www.nypl.org; Internet; accessed 1 December 2001.

²²New York Public Library, “LEO,” New York Public Library Online [database on-line]; available from http://www.nypl.org; Internet; accessed 1 December 2001.

²³Google Online [home page on-line]; available from http://www.google.com; Internet; accessed 12 November 2001.

²⁴Ixquick Online [home page on-line]; available from http://www.ixquick.com; Internet; accessed 12 November 2001.

²⁵New York Public Library, Bibliographic Guide to Dance (Boston: G. K. Hall & Company, 1999) GV 1593 .N481.

²⁶New York Public Library for the Performing Arts ed., Index to Dance Periodicals: 1990 (Boston: G. K. Hall & Company, 1992) GV 1586 .I58.

²⁷Chiyomi Shinoda, Videotapes on Dance Available in the Wong Audiovisual Center, Sinclair Library (Honolulu: The Center, 1994) GV 1595 .V45 1994.

²⁸ Deirdre Towers ed., Dance Film and Video Guide (Princeton: Dance Horizons/Princeton Book Company, 1991) GV 1595 .D32 1991.