I remember something from a neuro-psych course that people who stutter can usually sing with out issues. There may be a similar situation with dancing versus walking. In the case of singing/stuttering, different areas of the brain are involved with generating song vs. speech. If could be that the motor and balance areas used for dance could be different from the ones used for walking.
Do a search on "BrainDance." There has been a lot of activity in this space with stroke patients and brain reprogramming (neuroplasticity.)
Bob
Well, I did a search and found a bunch of stuff on using music for various Neurological Disorders.
There was a brief article about this in the NY Times recently
Unsteady on Your Feet? Try Moving to Music
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/30/health/research/30aging.html
"Elderly people in a new study cut their risk of falling by more than half after they took classes in eurhythmics, an exercise-and-music program designed for young children... Even after the classes ended, the participants maintained their improvements in balance, walked with a more regular gait and were better able to walk while doing other things."
FWIW, when I went to PT, they gave me exercises to try to retrain my vestibular system that, while not miraculous, were helpful. That might be something to look into.
sho
Michelleric mentioned not too long ago that she was thinking about entering a study that had something to do with improving gait in MSers by walking to music. I just remember she would get to keep the iPod at the end of the study. Wonder if she did it?
Mary