Also to note, paso is one of the 5 international latin dances, while bolero is one of the 5 American Ryhthm dances.

You'll rarely see paso outside of competitions. However, bolero can and is danced socially. The bolero basic has the same foot pattern as international rumba, but the technique is very different. It's done to very slow 4-4 music (inter. rumba timing and even slower). On the 1 or side step, you take take a step similar to a side step in waltz...like a sway. It shares some moves with int. rumba as well (spot turns, alemana, hockey stick), but it's definitely a very different dance. Kind of a mixture of ryhthm and smooth all-in-one.

i supose you could do paso style to anything, but then it wouldnt be paso it would be a dance number. i havent listened to the song your talking about but does it have correctly timed breaks? im just gona take a guess here and say it dosent. part of the paso is the way the music is set up so change the music change the dance. im sure it would be both neat and fun but im a pureist when it comes to paso. to call it a paso it has to be done to paso music, but im sure it would still be cool. good luck with your 4 tops paso, i hope you have fun.

Bolero is a slow Rhumba. Very close to International Rhumba. The slow step is to the side with compression and rise, so that it has rise and fall, which some people do as much as in the waltz. It is a very sexy dance. There was a nice Bolero variation a few months ago; get the dvd and look at the dance there.

I dont know about the Paso Doble; I do see friends practicing it.

Jerry

Yeah bolero is quite similar to international rhumba, but belero has alot of body contact. its hard to belero without body contact

I agree. The body contact and close hold are essential elements.

Jerry

I have been told that Paso Doble was a popular social dance in Spain in the 1920's.

there is a posibility that it may have been a social dance back in the 20's, but it would be a social dance is the same manner it could be today. if you have a dance partner that you have a paso routine with and you are at a social dance and they make the crazy mistake to play paso, then sure it is automatically transformed into a social dance. theres also a chance that back then there could have been well know sets of paso steps that all of spain knew. this is just speculation. ether way paso is not a social dance in the same manner as all other social dances and it cant be. it is the nature of the dance (and if you are from worchester polytechnical instute dance team and are saying "but yes it can!!!" you are wrong and the guy that teaches you (forget his name) taught you wrong.
-Crimson
P.S. i love the dancers of WPI

Crim,

Actually, I think if you research it you'll find Paso was popularized in Paris, France in the 20's.

As for being a purist, I can certainly respect that. I certainly feel that way about Mozart. But too much purity can also lead to stagnation. Art is not static. Paso is already static in that you rarely see and hear it performed but to the one piece of music (Espani Cani). How often have I been to competitions where the person handling the music plays a different paso only to see awful performances on the floor because the competitors only ever worked with the one piece of music.

The dance is "Paso Doble" not "Espani Cani". Imagine only ever dancing Waltz or Cha Cha to one piece of music over and over ad nauseum .That would be choreography not dance.

And what is Paso? It's a march in 2/2. The piece by the 4 Tops has a very strong feel of 2 as I recall so my opinion is it would be a refreshing approach and show adaptability.

But don't get me wrong. This is just an opinion. Your opinion is equally valid.

OB



OB

choreography can not be dance? What is dance?

Sunshine,

Good question!

Hmmmmmm!

OB