Monday, January 18, 2010

We're Back!

It has been a while since my last post and it was the lovely comment that came through to me today that reminded me why I started this blog and why I should continue. I still firmly believe that people need to have a place that they can come to when they are looking to solidify the steps they are learning/have already learned and that that resource should be free and accessible.

Dance is something that is entering the public consciousness more and more and for that very reason, I believe that there is a genuine desire to explore - one that should be encouraged, not discouraged. Classes are an integral part to learning any dance style, but it is also easy enough to be in a class and do the routine that your teacher has given you. To feel that you are truly dancing, you need to understand what the individual steps are and how they can be put together and then listen to the music ... and just go!

I do value your feedback and love to hear from you when you have questions and thoughts. Those of you that have been in touch by email or through the comments on here have been greatly appreciated and I hope that you will continue to return despite my recent absence!

In all honesty, my future posts may not hit the schedule that I set out before, however I will do my best to at least regularly add something new for you and to keep the dances as well rounded as possible.

The best bit of advice that I can give you though, is to get out and dance whenever you can. There are socials and events all over the place and anywhere with music and an open space can be somewhere to dance. Don't be afraid of dancing in front of people that you may not know or who may not know you dance. Don't be afraid of dancing. Enjoy it.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Samba - Style

The style of Samba is one that is very different from the rest of the Latin Dances. Based more on the bounce motion that is integral to the movement, Samba uses the forward and backwards movement of the pelvis in conjunction with the bend and stretch of the knees rather than purely side to side hip movement.

As many people know, Samba originated in Brazil and though formalized in the Ballroom and Latin syllabus, should still bring to mind a party spirit and a sense of fun.

One of the hardest Ballroom/Latin dances to dance socially, the Samba has a lot of movements that are done out of the closed hold and which generally require the partners to be very clear with and aware of what their partner is doing. There are tonnes of variations on the basic steps and attention should be taken to make no assumptions about which variation will be done.

One of the key elements to making the Samba feel correct is the bounce which should go down on the full count (1, 2, etc) and up on the half beat (&) or delayed until the "a" - which occurs on the last quarter beat. This bounce is then used to drive the movements and is manipulated to create the different rhythms within the dance.