| Article | : | Dancing Tid-bits Issue #144, for Thursday, May 22, 2003
Today's Topic: The Secret to Slow Foxtrot
It is amazing, you take lesson after lesson and then someday someone says
something in a way that it really sinks in. This happened to me the other day
when I was working on my foxtrot. The coach was well known Canadian Champion
Mireille Vielleux. Two things stand out and I wanted to share them with you.
1. Length of the Steps: I am talking here about the length of stride of
different steps in the basic figures such as Feather Step, Reverse Turn, Feather
Finish, Three Step and Natural Turn so on and so forth. My second Quick (SQQ)
was perhaps a little short. Specially on the third step of the reverse turn, LF
back I was not allowing her enough room to step forward and she was not too
comfortable with that. That is when she pointed out that more or less all steps
are the same length and I corrected it and she said "walla" in French; I
think it meant "good." As you get more comfortable in the dance, of course you are
taking long strides.
2. Timing and Lowering: I am lumping these two issues here in one. I think
both are interdependent You have heard this before in many different ways but
the "secret to SF is the Second Quick". Those are her words and they made such
an impact on me that my swing got better and rise and fall and all that. You
must take "your time on the second quick, lower and then go for the coming
slow."
Of course there are million other things but so much should suffice for this
late tidbit. Thank you for your patience and have a good weekend, Max |
