MUSIC AND DANCE used to be natural allies. In most traditional cultures, the two are still codependent: you wouldn't have one without the other. As modern dancers declared their independence from ballet, they also started to rethink music. Some dancers completely dispensed with it, while others used it badly. As an experiment, the Summerfest/dance West Wave Dance Festival engaged in some gentle matchmaking, helping composers and choreographers meet one another and possibly form relationships. It seems to have worked. The happy dancer and musician duos performing as part of the "Choreographer and Composers Consortium" program are Amy Seiwert with Jonathan Norton, Cathleen McCarthy with Daniel Feinsmith, Amy Helmstetter with Nurit Karen Jugend, and Janice Garrett with Matthew Pierce. The three-week festival continues through July, with a total of 20 premieres by Bay Area choreographers. "Choreographer and Composers Consortium" Fri/11-Sat/12, 8 p.m., San Francisco State University, McKenna Theater, 1600 Holloway, S.F. $18-$25. (415) 345-7575, www.summerfestdance.org. (Rita Felciano)