Bull, Richard

Richard Niles Bull, a pioneer in the art of performance improvisation in dance, was born on July 3, 1931, in Detroit, Mich. While earning a BA in sociology from Wayne State University, he supported himself as a jazz pianist and, upon moving to New York City in 1952, continued to pursue a musical career. Bull began his dance training at this time with Maxine Munt and Alfred Brooks, and soon joined their company. He later studied with Erick Hawkins, Alwin Nikolais, and Mary Anthony.

Bull's interest in performed dance improvisation began while he was studying and teaching at New York University [NYU], 1963-1970. He received his graduate degree in Dance and Cinematography in 1965, began work towards his doctorate, and formed the New York Chamber Dance Group [NYCDG] at NYU in 1967. His earliest "dance structures" were developed for NYCDG, but it was War Games (1968), a signature piece from this period, which set the course for subsequent work by incorporating structured improvisation in its design. "My own improvisational roots are in jazz," noted Bull in 1969, "and my feeling for spontaneously shaping a dance phrase carries my experience in jazz into a different dimension."

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