Vic,

Thanks for your positive response.

Happy dancing!

jj

Great information. Thanks.
Quick question, and you kind of touched on it, I think. When I'm teaching I try to make the couples understand that there should be resistance in the touch, or even on the simplest of free-flowing movements. You mention the woman understanding the difference between driving and leading. Would this be similar to when I am explaining resistance and how important that is? Or are you referring to something more than knowing how the hand-to-hand connection and arms should feel, and how your arms should create resistance of their own when flowing freely?

Over the years, I've had a number of instructors (one of whom also posts on this board), each of whom approached leading following in a different way.

I learned that driving comes from your center of gravity, what the taiji folks call the "dan tien" (sp?). The partner moving forward must initiate movement from this center (essentially the fifth point of contact) both to maintain contact between the torsos and to keep the upper body from intruding into the partner's space - a common problem for poor dancers.

Leading, on the other hand, comes from the frame - the arms and shoulders of the man. When the woman fails keep tone in her arms then the man has nothing with which to lead her no matter how strong his own frame may be. I've used the analogy of bicycle handlebars made of rubber. When the woman maintains this tone then she provides the resistance of which you write (that's a good word to use); she must understand that resistance doesn't simply mean pushing her right hand against the man's left. It really comes from the back.

In Latin, of course, there is much less body contact so the frame must be used for both leading and driving.

Thanks for your response. I think that it's important to discuss these issues, especially for new dancers.

jj

Personally i think that this information should be shared with new and old dancers,it just makes allot of sense, and you can learn allot from listening to others and get their opinion and ideas.

from this post i know I've learned allot - even the basic forward connection, coming from the back makes more sense than how i was perceiving it, and the bicycle analogy as well.

i think what allot of us do - is we tend to forget that ballroom dancing is not easy it requires allot of attention. if you want results you need to keep on practicing as much as you can.

for me as well i know that my instructor is setting the bar really high for me - and wants me to do really well, and learn every thing, even if it means going back to the basics every lessons. i have to admit that sometimes working on one thing over and over and over is hard and can get frustrating, but in the end it is always worth it.

thanks to all of you for this post!!!

Vic

k

JJ

Thank you for this post. I realized when I read this how lucky I am to have the instructor I do.

When I started ballroom two years ago, I thought my instructor was trying to milk the dollars out of me because I felt we were going much too slowly. I'm an older woman, and I wanted to make up for lost time -- never had the money or time to do this when I was younger, so let's have some progress, and fast!

In the beginning I begged him to teach me patterns of steps that I could memorize, but he refused. I'd never danced before, he reminded me, and he needed to teach me very basic things like how to transfer my weight, maintain balance, use my feet, and turn my head. He wanted me to learn how to follow, because I was always anticipating the next move and of course getting things all wrong. When I started to feel more comfortable, I'd beg him to teach me more complicated steps, and he refused again. You need to learn the basics so that it's second nature, he would tell me over and over. He would ask me to practice the basic steps on my own, and make me repeat them over and over in our lessons, adding more technique just when I thought I had everything down.

I would watch a lot of my colleagues at the studio learn two and three routines new routines for each showcase. He and I worked on only two showcase routines during my two years but they were completely different styles and he insisted that everything be done well. He drove me crazy.

I told him once that I didn't understand why I was doing the same steps as he was, but that I didn't look anything like he did. He told me that if I wanted to look better I had to trust him and follow his program. It was hard, but I finally gave in, stopped protesting, and did exactly what he asked me to do, over and over and over.

Now I realize he was so right. When we compete or perform, I feel really comfortable and confident. We place very well, even with the most basic steps. And although I'll probably never look like he does when he dances, when I watch the videos I don't look half bad! Now that he is teaching me more advanced material, I am picking it up much quicker than I would have even a year ago, and that makes learning so much more fun. My teacher is delighted with my progress, and that is a major accomplishment for me!

Ballroom is very challenging and demanding, but definitely worth it to me. If I hadn't followed his advice I probably would have given it up. I wish I could have had this post to read two years ago when I was starting!

Thanks again....

Thank you for a very thoughtful and candid response. I'm very glad that you listened to your instructor and perservered. You are indeed fortunate to have such a teacher. After two years, you are far ahead of your peers who have done little besides memorize sequences.

An advantage which you may or may not have yet realized is that you will be able to follow dancers other than your instructor. Even if those folks aren't as skilled as a professional, your ability to respond will force them to lead better.

I'm glad that you enjoyed my post. I wish that someone had said these things to me ten years ago.

Best wishes and keep dancing.

jj

jj. Lots of wisdom. Great job!

Hello jj,
I do read most of your posts, but this one seemed to hit the nail on the head with every sentence. As a middle aged man, my wife and I have been ballroom dancing for about a year and a half. I have had so many feelings of joy and frustration and have grown to love ballroom to such a degree that even if I never compete, I would love to dance well enough to do so. I am striving with every lesson and group class to hone my leadership abilities to the point that my partner would have no choice but to follow. At my lesson last night, my instructor apologized to me for a misstep, but knew that it was me that made the mistake, and told her as much. Anyway, thanks for the terrific words that ring so true.

kantbelieve, you definitely have the same attitude that I do: dancing is its own reward and those folks who can see value only in competition victories are missing most of the joy which you describe.

I dance as much for exercise as for pleasure and I've learned a very important principle. Whether one ever intends to compete or not, it is important to do the steps correctly because because doing so provides the greatest physical benefit from the activity. Keeping a good frame and proper head position requires effort and burns calories.

You are very wise to accept the blame for errors even when they may not be your fault. It demonstrates your regard for your partner (don't tell your wife but she's lucky that you want to dance with her) and makes it easier for her to be critical of herself.

Thanks for your kind response and keep dancing.

jj