Okay, wow, that was rambly. Sorry! Since I graduated, I haven't had anyone to talk about ballroom with, and now I'm all excited. :)
No, don't apologize! I have barely made it beyond the advanced level in ballroom dancing, and you sound very professional, so all the information is very interesting!
It took me almost four years before I figured out the trick to Samba that made me stop feeling like a Weeble-Wobble, or perhaps a very drunk duck. Instead of bouncing up and down at the knees, you have to contract and release your ab muscles. This makes it look so much better. I so wished I'd discovered that earlier, because, while I'm definitely not great at it, now I at least look vaguely legitimate when I dance it.
Hm, perhaps I should try that, even though I would be nice to actually have any ab muscles to begin with. (Dancing is the only sport I'm vaguely into, and that only during term time; which is why my physical condition is not the fittest and best).
But that bouncy movement in the knees is so ridiculous! I always get the impression that I must look like a clumsy, ungainly sack of potatoes desperately bouncing up and down on the dancefloor. Which doesn't make it any easier to concentrate on the proper movements if you feel so awkward and uncomfortable...
And thank you for the weblink! After clicking through the different dance descriptions and trying to compare American Smooth to International Standard, I'm now not even sure whether our teachers might not have shown us a mish-mash of the two styles with the easiest steps/options...
I guess this would be okay in a group like ours -- it's a class taught by student volunteers where none of the participants has any ambition to do it properly and work their way up to competitive level. It's basically just for fun without taking it seriously enough.
I like learning more about the theory and history of ballroom dancing, though.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2006-08-20 04:48 pm (UTC)No, don't apologize! I have barely made it beyond the advanced level in ballroom dancing, and you sound very professional, so all the information is very interesting!
It took me almost four years before I figured out the trick to Samba that made me stop feeling like a Weeble-Wobble, or perhaps a very drunk duck. Instead of bouncing up and down at the knees, you have to contract and release your ab muscles. This makes it look so much better. I so wished I'd discovered that earlier, because, while I'm definitely not great at it, now I at least look vaguely legitimate when I dance it.
Hm, perhaps I should try that, even though I would be nice to actually have any ab muscles to begin with. (Dancing is the only sport I'm vaguely into, and that only during term time; which is why my physical condition is not the fittest and best).
But that bouncy movement in the knees is so ridiculous! I always get the impression that I must look like a clumsy, ungainly sack of potatoes desperately bouncing up and down on the dancefloor. Which doesn't make it any easier to concentrate on the proper movements if you feel so awkward and uncomfortable...
And thank you for the weblink! After clicking through the different dance descriptions and trying to compare American Smooth to International Standard, I'm now not even sure whether our teachers might not have shown us a mish-mash of the two styles with the easiest steps/options...
I guess this would be okay in a group like ours -- it's a class taught by student volunteers where none of the participants has any ambition to do it properly and work their way up to competitive level. It's basically just for fun without taking it seriously enough.
I like learning more about the theory and history of ballroom dancing, though.