I wondered how long it would take for someone to realise SSQQ was Amer. style.

The reason the rise is "limited ", and i say limited because it is danced to the ball rather than the toe, is that it was devised for Niteclub usage and meant to "fit " in and express more of a rhythm type slow trot( it use to be called Soc. f/t ) .

For the poster-- try blending your quicks together a little more ,and dont get too concerned about the finer details, particularly in a beginners class or Priv.-- its supposed to be fun, so add techn. in small doses.

Remember , they are not there to become Comp. dancers !

"The reason the rise is "limited ", and i say limited because it is danced to the ball rather than the toe, is that it was devised for Niteclub usage and meant to "fit " in and express more of a rhythm type slow trot( it use to be called Soc. f/t ) ."

Actually, the reason the rise remains limited is that there's no practical benefit to going higher.

Even in the international or continuity foxtrot, rising well onto the toe when over it would imply very large movements in between these rises, which only the most athletic dancers are going to be able to keep in control. If less fit dancers use such rise, their foxtrot will become substantially waltz-like.

The continuity foxtrots make extreme use of the toes, yes, but not to go up high - instead, the challenge of the toes is to project the body weight and get full usage out of each foot before having to move onto the next. Balance in this case is ultimately about the strength of the toes.

I,m well aware of its intent, and as usual, you get into the pedantic mode .

Simplicity and brevity in such answers seems more pragmatic, and serves the immediate purpose.

SocialDancer. In an American Foxtrot isn't there a Technique Book giving instructions how the Basic Steps are to be performed. Like rise at the end of the first step and so on and so forth.
I don't like the idea of using a Supermarket Trolly for backwards steps. I think it would not encourage me to not bend my knee to the front while extending my other leg to the toe, if that is what is required.
Hisao Sudou Orchestra is going back a few years. My favourite on that disk is Sherezade. I've also got Richard Gleave demonstrating a bouncless Foxtrot to Sherazade.I expect you have noticed that on the same disk Somewhere in Time is played as a Waltz as well as a Foxtrot. Actually that album I class as my all time favourite.

I'll leave others more knowledgeable in American style to answer on technique books, but my understanding is that due to the franchised Fred Astaire/Arthur Murray approach such books would be jealously guarded secrets.

Terence2, how different is American bronze from the dance often taught to beginners in the UK under a variety of names, social rhythm, slow rhythm, rhythm foxtrot etc?
Dheun's reference to gliding had me confused as I do not see that in the UK version of this dance.

Yes that particular Hisao Sudou album is going back a while but it is still the CD I reach for if I need some good music in a hurry. I have to force myself not to play it too often in case it gets boring.

They are still producing nice albums though, most recently the Elegant Dance series. Volume 2 includes a waltz version of You Raise Me Up which is more commonly heard as a rumba.

Amer. style Bronze ( W-- F.T.-- Tango and VW. ) have many similarities in content, and many that are identical.

W. uses Nat and rev turns, -- closed changes and even a spin turn .

In some cases, the names are changed . left and right are mostly used for direction.

In FT ," think " 1/4 turns as a basic concept and from that, develop prom. figures and nat. and rev. turns .The speed of the music can also vary greatly .

Primarily, the beginners level ( prel. br. ) is kept quite simple. The objective is to get people up dancing as soon as poss. techn. is kept to a minimum in class work, but can be as complex as Intern. style as one goes on .

Tango, is unlike anything that we teach here ( altho, I use the american system in my classes ).It is much closer to the original form, than the far more rigid approach we use .

I did a lecture and brief class at a national congress here 2 yrs ago, on the Amer. style Silver W and FT..( 4 basic variations in each )

it was met with very good response-- in fact its now being taught in several areas of the country .

As to your ref. on techn. books, there was a manual put out by the old US ballroom council which had the 13 dances in BR- Silv and Gold written in techn. form .

there are now several different ones available .

Terence. That doesn't tell us who put the bounce in this American Foxtrot.Is it in any manuals. Did someone carry this on from a Bounce Fallaway and got their facts muddled.

Serendipidy, I don't think anyone put "bounce" in American Fox Trot on purpose, per se. I asked the original question because my "bounce" tends to be just a bad habit that kind of hurts the look of the dance.
Terence always makes great points about not fretting over the little stuff with beginners and a little bounce in the step is probably common, depending on what kind of music is being played. Irving Berling -- smooth and elegant; Sinatra or Darin -- a little swagger and bounce. At least that's the way I see it play out most of the time. I think the tendency to bounce a little bit is similar to another odd habit that really looks bad -- when the male, most often a beginner, tends to raise clasped hands up and down with each step, sometimes called the "pump handle" problem.
We're doing a Fox Trot routine to "New York, New York" in the next show we are dancing in, and the instructor/choreographer keeps reminding me to watch the bouncing... so he doesn't want it, even to a "bouncy" tune like "New York, New York."

It was intended to be a Niteclub dance.

Funny, whenever the ballroom world gets hold of a dance ( and I,m a BIG part of that world ), they seem to ALWAYS want it to conform to a set look !.
Dance is NOT about competition-- it was always supposed to be social,-- but-- human beings, being what they are, have to turn everything in life into a contest .

I have taught literally thousands of people to dance over the last 60 yrs-- wanna guess how many wanted to compete ?.

The reason the American system became so popular ?-- it thrived on teaching " fun " .

And yes, I went the comp route in the UK ( and numerous times in Pro/am )but I never lost sight of dances original purpose-- wanna bounce ?-- have at it !!

Terence2, I couldn't agree more about the fun part of dancing. But wouldn't you agree that someone putting together a show routine would want everyone looking similar, so you'd point out a "bouncer" and try to correct him/her?
Is there a difference, in your mind, between competitive dancing and dancing in a show?
There is no doubt, however, that social dancing and the fun it brings is what really makes it worth the time it takes to learn the vast field of technique that ballroom offers.