On his way to becoming one of the greatest dancers of the 20th century, Mikhail Baryshnikov claimed that he never tried to dance better than others, but only to dance better than himself. Oh, Mikhail. I know this feeling, my dear friend. Although Mine If this feeling is based on a rigid certainty, which is certainly You I never felt, not even for a nanosecond, that everyone else didn’t feel it to do she dances better than me
I learned to dance as a child, fortunately, but the waltz and the foxtrot were not as urgent to me as my cricket bat and were quickly forgotten. Fast forward the best part of forty years and my growing admiration for good dancers, combined with an overwhelming sense of my own stupidity on the tiles, got me thinking. It’s time to do something about this.
When I was invited to take part in a five-day ‘dance retreat’ last month, I – well, I was about to say I jumped at the opportunity, but that would have given the wrong impression. I’ve never done anything as fast and agile as that. I swayed, I stumbled, I changed direction, I stumbled; In any case, I accepted the invitation and headed for Schloss Elmau. Here, near the southernmost tip of Germany, among the lakes and rolling meadows of the Bavarian Alps, the dance retreat was to take place.
These days, Schloss Elmau is known for hosting not one but two G7 summits in 2015 and 2022, and for its extensive, world-class, state-of-the-art wellness amenities (a half-dozen spas plus supposedly the best). The largest bath in the west of Istanbul). But these are relatively new additions, and there’s more to Schloss Elmau than that.
In 1916, the theologian and philosopher Dr. It was created by Johannes Müller as a venue where like-minded people could dance and discuss the issues of the day. Today, it is owned and managed by Müller’s grandson, Dietmar Müller-Elmau; He sought to expand and enrich its intellectual tradition, especially its emphasis on music and literature.
Müller-Elmau was excited about the new dance retreats. ‘I want dance to be as integral a part of what we do here as yoga, although in a different way than it has been in the past,’ he said. ‘I spoke at a wellness summit in Bali a few years ago. “Forget your expensive creams, lotions and other things,” I said. “There is only one treatment that has been scientifically proven to have a restorative effect on the human brain. This is dance too.”’ Many hotels host musical or literary events. But I can’t think of anywhere else that does this so meticulously and decisively.
The remarkable health benefits of dance, particularly its positive impact on neuroplasticity, or the brain’s ability to change, adapt, and form new connections, are supported by a growing body of research. As Müller-Elmau, who has a knack for regular voice-overs, puts it, ‘This is the most hedonistic monastery in the world.’
The main building was severely damaged by fire in 2005, but the famous concert hall on the first floor was preserved. It’s a magnificent space; large, airy, tidy, bright during the day with natural light coming in through the arched windows. The most elegant barn in Bavaria. This was where the dance classes I signed up for were held.
There were 28 of us, 14 couples, almost all German, plus our instructor, Pia David, an outstanding professional dancer from Hamburg, and her partner Thomas Kobjolke. When I arrived at the first lesson, I noticed David immediately. She had ‘five-time national ballroom and Latin champion’ written all over her. Posture like an exclamation mark. Hair that could have been braided from excess gold medals. When we met, I said, ‘I apologize in advance.’ ‘I don’t speak German and I’m a dancing fool.’ ‘No problem,’ came the reply. ‘I speak English and dancing fools are my specialty.’
By extraordinary luck, I was married to another woman, Katja von Armansperg, for whom neither knowledge of a foreign language nor the knowledge of a native language was an obstacle. In the days that followed, I realized that von Armansperg was exactly the kind of person Schloss Elmau was intended for; A deep thinker, a man with a love of music and books, and a talent for not only talking but also dancing. no matter who he finds himself in contact with.
David started us off with a waltz. I figured I should at least be okay with that. Everything will come back as easily as one-two-three, one-two-three. And to some extent it did. The only problem was that a gentleman in Germany led with the right foot, not the left as I had been taught before. This small but significant difference was too much for my brain to calculate. My coordination flew out of one of those big, beautiful windows over the Wetterstein Mountains. Poor Katja. I owe him a new pair of shoes for all the pressure I put on the shoes he wore that day.
We danced as much as we wanted for 90 minutes in the concert hall each afternoon, and then in one of the downstairs bars after dinner; David and Kobjolke were on hand to offer more tips and moral support. There are various types of events planned most evenings. Schloss Elmau hosts approximately 220 concerts a year. Musicians play to stay; So they don’t get paid for their performances, but they don’t get billed when they debut. The arrangement appears to suit all parties.
Important names are lining up for a concert at Schloss Elmau. ‘Forget Tripadvisor,’ Müller-Elmau said. ‘The quality of musicians willing to play to stay is the measure of our success.’
On my second morning, I walked to Ferchensee, a nearby lake. The day was bright and clear. Even though there was heavy snow on the ground and ice in some parts of the roads, I soon warmed up enough to take off my gloves. This was just the walk I needed after my waltz wobble. It was easy to navigate; I just followed a stream; so my mind could wander freely. I saw no more than half a dozen hikers in two and a half hours. I pulled a picnic lunch of fruit, nuts, cheese, and chocolate from my backpack and ate it, leaning my back against a pile of neatly chopped wood.
Since I’m always a bit slow to pick up on emerging patterns, I assumed that day two’s dance, the so-called discofox, would be an updated version of the foxtrot, and once again, muscle memory would shamelessly consume me. I was wrong once again. Discofox has nothing to do with foxtrot. Inspired by some steps Saturday night heat. Despite my own disappointment, it seemed to me that most of the group loved discofox and found it easy to get used to. Towards the end of class, a few couples were experimenting with spins, tilts, and other embellishments. ‘Yeah yeah!David was excited. ‘Die Sau rauslassen!‘ This caused my partner to burst out laughing. ‘What is he saying?’ I asked.
‘It literally means ‘Bring the female out.’ ‘He’s telling us to relax, to go crazy.’
But the dance that did more than any other to bring out the pigs in our herd was the cha-cha-cha on day three. That’s when we reached the peak of the pig. One of David’s themes throughout the lectures was the primary importance of togetherness, the bond between partners and the pleasure it can bring. I asked him if, despite his years of success at the highest level, this was something that could get lost in the constant whirlpool of the professional scene, full of inevitable tensions, stresses and rivalries. ‘Ooooo! ‘Hello-lo-ooo!’ he cried.
I think as proud as he is (and he should be) of his achievements in competitions, he is equally proud of his ability to convince recruits that the poise and confidence he displays are within their reach. He admitted that he wasn’t always a cool-headed figure with all the moves we see before us. ‘Dancing as a girl also taught me that I could shine. That I’m not just a little gray mouse.’
Everything came together for me on day four. Tango. For reasons that don’t make any sense to me right now, I was a little scared of it. Actually, those 90 minutes passed like sunshine. My partner could barely hide his surprise as we lunged, glided, and kicked. I felt like we could dance the tango until the kingdom comes.
Instead, we had to evacuate the concert hall in time to allow a conversation between novelists Ian McEwan and Daniel Kehlmann to continue, another highlight of the week’s cultural programme. The funny thing is, it was only when they got on stage that I noticed that one of them, Kehlmann, was also participating in the dance retreat with his corkscrew-wearing wife. Kehlmann commanded the conversation with McEwan on stage with complete control; the two exchanged important quotes, witty anecdotes, and astute perceptions with the effortless grace of Fred and Ginger.
Later, in the bar where the dance group had reconvened, Kehlmann was walking slowly on his left feet, as cheerful and awkward as the rest of us. I remembered one of the many nice things David said: ‘I would be happy if people left my lessons and said, ‘I forgot all the steps, but I learned to dance.’
Next Dance Recreation at Schloss Elmau 17-22 March. Prices start from €2,320 (£1,978) including dance lessons, dance parties, spa access, yoga and fitness classes, talks and concerts