With normal poise (having the body weight already forward over the balls of the feet), only a very slight forward movement of the body is necessary before I pass the point of imbalance (and I'm NOT proposing falling forward from a position beyond that, just timing my leg swing to correspond with the arrival at that point).

To paraphrase Moore, it is ALWAYS the body that moves before the foot. As for the idea that I will be towering over my partner, that is just silly. If I have maintained a correct hold, my lady will have started to move backwards, from the upper body lead, and her moving foot will already be extending back, well before I swing my leg. If it were not so, all that would happen is that I would stub her toe, and she would probably kick my shin, and deservedly so.

I can usually tell right away when the lady I am dancing with at the time is going to be a potential back-leader. I do not feel that slight resistance coming toward me in the arms and hands. That resistance sets up partners for easy communication. It should feel like her arms and shoulders are ready to be led like a steering wheel in my arms. If I don't sense that feeling, then I am trying to "power" it a little more, which may throw her off. And, if she thinks she knows the steps and where she is supposed to go, and that's how she is used to dancing, it makes for some awkward moments, for sure.

I find that resistance vital to effective leading. The similarity with Argentine Tango is very marked: the way in which we can use the embrace (hold) to signal and invite movement is really exactly the same.

It regularly amuses me to hear AT teachers (who are the most up-themselves group of dancers in the world) tell their classes how AT is so different, and that if we come from a Ballroom background, we have to forget everything we already know - AT isn't just about the robotic performance of choreographed sequences ...

If you exclude the close embrace hold, that requires contact at upper chest level, really the only difference in the set up is that Lady is not poised backwards from the waist. Both Man & Lady have the usual forward balance (which can be developed in the AT embrace, to the point of being well beyond imbalance, and requiring support from the other), but that is quite an extreme form of the embrace, and doesn't suit everyone. Every invitation comes from the embrace, and the Lady will never move back unless she has felt the Man move forward. He can have her moving continuously all around him, but never move his feet (not even to release a knee), and she will not detect any actual step, unless he intends her to. Just look at the standard lead into cross-system: if the Lady detected the man's weight change to same foot, she would mimic it.

All of this is vital to lead and follow, and many of the rules work just as well in Latin. I very frequently dance with beginners, and always groan, inwardly, when I take a L to R hold in open position, feel no tension, and lead a forward basic, only to see Lady's elbow pushed behind her back, while she barely moves. A moment later, when I try to lead into fan position, she anticipates, and instead of the push-pull lead of the turn, she pulls on me - just a bit early. Oh dear!

When you make comparisons between Intern, style and T/ Arg. one has to be very careful about the specific STYLE you are addressing ( there are several ), the 2 most common .. Salon and Milonguero, which is as opposite as one can be to Intern style. )

The correct holds for the 2 styles in T/Arg, are completely different , as is the footwork ( toe leads to outside edge are common )... in addition ,the "hold " is much more an embrace, with a non static hand position for lady.. it can, and should be moved to different positions ( her right ) depending upon the variation . Add to this , the mans left hand/arm is much closer to the body .

Also, the Lady is in order to " highjack " on occasion by initiating lead..

It took me a considerable time to change my concepts, from what i had been taught and danced, for many moons ( including the Amer. style ).My " tutor", was an individual who had invested much time, money and effort ( in Argentina ) and subsequently with the many visiting Profs .

I gave him the same argument,, its the same ( my total ignorance )

One may say there are some small obvious similarities, and even some variations are near identical..but.. thats where the comparisons end.

I'm only suggesting the similarity in using the embrace as the means of communicating intention: I don't of course, mean that the actual hold, less still the range of figures, are the same. Those of us who dance AT as well as Ballroom & Latin see points of similarity as well as difference. Over time, I have come to see rather more of the former, but of course, I'm still not talking about the mechanics of the embrace, or the figures I lead. You mention walking steps in AT, and here, I agree that there is a far greater similarity with a Latin walk. No heel leads, obviously!

Most dancers are used to switching between quite a wide range of styles and even if we just stick to the usual Ballroom/Latin range, that's still quite a few. Adding a couple more: perhaps AT & some basic Salsa is no big deal; and it is hardly surprising that we see points of similarity, as our experience grows. I'm not suggesting that the Club dances do not have an advanced technique of their own (but they are poorly documented), but I do find it tiresome when teachers in those styles (many of whom have no formal teaching qualification in ANY style) start pontificating about the redundancy of comparing, say Ballroom Tango with AT when it is perfectly obvious that they know nothing about the former.

Jerry,

The others here are getting a bit ahead of me.

My experience tells me that just about everytime there is a difference in timing, the person who is moving first, is ahead of the music.

It is far easier to follow the music, than it is to dance slightly ahead of it.

If you are behind the music, you can easily catch up to the beat. However, if you are slightly ahead of the music, you have nothing to guide you. (I often see these dancers try to catch up to the next measure.)

The ladies at the Senior Center might be a little hard of hearing, or they might just be nervous. (As with a small child, excitement often causes people to move faster than they should.)

I would suggest that you try rocking side to side to the music before you start your figures. (Wispering the count might help too.) Try to get them moving with the music, before you try to lead anything more difficult.

(In answer to your question, my guess is that the ladies are moving early.)

The person who moves 1st, is AHEAD of the music ????????... hopefully, the 2 will move as ONE..

I doubt whether it is possible for two people dancing to move as one on all steps. If we take any move where one or the other has further to go. Step four to five of a Natural Spin Turn is one that comes to mind. To move as one we would have to do exactly the same step at exactly the same time which is not possible because one os going forward and the other backwards . One is moving out of the other ones way aren't we.... To create an appearance of moving as one is only an illusion.

Telemark. As Terence quoted Richard Gleave the first thing that moves is the knee. Which is absolutely correct.
But analyze this.
This is for a normal walk with a heel lead. For instance the first step of a Feather Step or a Natural Turn in the Waltz
1. Do you bend your front knee before the full extent of the stride.
2. Do you bend your front knee whilst your rear foot is still to the rear.
3. Do you bend your front knee only as the rear foot reaches the standing foot under the body.

Actually you have it wrong. In waltz you want a swing action in the legs. first weight is lowered, next your leg moves in a swing action... her leg moves to make room for you, then your body weight follows. If you move your weight first then your feet you will run her over. try it