I've come to realize over the years that instructors in the states can get rather loose in their terminology of various steps, positions or variations.
I'd like to know if there is any difference between "fan steps" or the ronde steps that I am doing on certain advanced variations of the Tango.
The fan steps are wide and circular, with the man going backward in this particular case. But the ronde steps are tighter and land right behind the other foot, with the foot seemingly at a bit of an angle, of course.
First, is there really a difference, or am I doing ronde in both cases?
Second, if they are different, am I describing the basic difference.
Finally, I sometimes wonder if the instructor isn't just calling it a fan step, when in reality that term is more proper for just a certain position, not really for the steps, per se.
Again, this may be kind of nit-picking, because both steps work, both are fairly easy, and both look quite nice when done properly. So, no matter what I call them, I can make them work. As others know from answering my questions in the past, I am a bit of a stickler for wanting to pass along proper information, rather than perpetuating a name for something that isn't quite right.

A ronde' is primarily a movement of the feet with little turning of the shoulders while a fan requires a significant amount of turning in the upper body with much less movement of the feet.

jj

Yes, there is a technical as well as a visual difference.

In Amer. style, the "aerial ronde " does not appear until silver level, whereas the more simple " fans " are present in Bronze.

In descriptive terms, a ronde is much more " circular " in appearance as well as being of the aerial design .

There can also be a ronde " action ", that is more common in T/Arg .
Tango is notorious for number of similar "types " of fan .

To add to the confusion, there are also open and closed fans .

Fans and rondes are also evident in the Intern. style, and are characterised in much the same way altho the name may change .

detailed descriptions of each , would fill a book, so i suggest you speak with someone who has the knowledge to demonstrate the differences .

Thanks. These replies make sense to me, based on what I am doing with those steps. I wanted to confirm that they indeed are different, and I am glad to know that, as usual, there is more than meets the eye. I will press my instructor to demonstrate these differences for me. One other thing, if you don't mind, would a grapevine sequence employ steps similar to ronde? Is that kind of what the ronde action is? Or because the grapevine, as I know it, moves side-to-side, they are not similar steps to ronde at all?

Apples and oranges

Yes, there is a difference. A ronde is by definition circular -- the word itself means "round" -- while a fan may be circular or straight. The primary characteristic of a fan is foot extension, i.e. you "fan" the foot outward from the body.

The main thing that sets apart the fan and ronde is independence of the leg. With a ronde, the circular path of the foot is caused by a circling of the leg independently of the body. A fan, if it is circular, would be caused by the entire body turning with the leg held in a fixed position (e.g. forward, sideways or back). However, not all fans are circular.

The technique of many fans, particularly in American style Tango where the action is staccato, is not actually circular at all. It may appear round to an observer, but it's an illusion. The path of the extending foot is actually straight. The "round" appearance is due to the swiveling of the supporting foot while the free foot is extending straight out.

I should point out also that the body *can* turn during a ronde. In fact, most rondes are caused initially by turning the body. Typically the body stops turning once the ronde is underway (with perhaps a moment of overlap, depending), but that's not a defining characteristic, either. Were you to keep turning while the leg was circling, it would still be a ronde. As long as the leg is circling on its own, it's a ronde. If you were to hold the leg in a fixed position relative to the body while turning, then it would be a fan (round variety).

I hope that clears it up for you.

Regards,
Jonathan Atkinson
www.ballroomdancers.com