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If only I had been told

Posted by quickstep

7/25/2004 4:22:00 AM

If I had been told that in the Samba, when the heels leave the floor the knees bend, and that when the heels lower the knees straighten. Which means that if the ceiling was touching your head you will remain at the same height, and not keep trying to put your head through the ceiling. That little bit of advice would have made a vast difference to my understanding of what is required in the most difficult of all dances, the Samba. Choose your teachers well.

Re: If only I had been told

Posted by Anonymous

8/11/2004 1:22:00 PM

Hmm... i am not a particularly accomplished dancer, but it is my understanding that the knees straighten when the heal leaves the ground. The knee action and the heal are both a consequence of of pushing into the floor.

Re: If only I had been told

Posted by Sarcastic Smoothie

8/12/2004 11:21:00 AM

No, quickstep is right - the knees and ankles work in opposition on a weighted foot.

When a foot is unweighted - reaching or leaving - then you can have the heel up and the knee straight. But when you are over a foot, the knee is straighter with the heel down and more bent with it up.

So the samba bounce happens entirely within your body - it doesn't make it to your head.

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