117 Attitude and feel
Date: Thu, 26 Jul 2001 15:51:44 -0500
From: "Frank G. Williams" <frankw@MAIL.AHC.UMN.EDU>
Subject: Attitude and feel
Heyo friends,
Lets consider the 'floor-teaching vs. pointer vs. etiquette' arguments in
terms of the FEEL of the dance. Doesn't each of us want to feel
wonderful to our partner? Why ever not? So, if a follower is a little
tense or off kilter, is it too much of an ego shock to be slightly
adjusted or to have shoulders lightly massaged or some other little
thing that helps with the feel inside the frame? The dance is just for
us two, right? Then so can be the adjustment... In my community,
followers have been very receptive to my help in eliminating useless
tension. The fact that there are usually four songs in a tanda was a
recognition that partners take time to adjust to one another. When a
follower DOES 'hit the sweet spot' in posture and frame, the things that
we can do together are so much more fun for both.
The problem is, accomodating larger technical faults can reinforce bad
habits. For example, my teacher has been on me to always fully collect
each step. Fine. Easy to do with her. But dance with over half the
students and the leg collisions caused by the follower's slow collection
are very distracting. So, does that make it OK for me to be a step
collection cop in the milonga? No. From that kind of technical
standpoint, those dances are doomed to fail.
But we must remember that people are always trying to do their best.
When Gavito was in town recently he generously danced with most of the
followers without any obvious tinkering, and all the followers looked
great. I danced with one lady immediately before Gavito and with me it
was a near disaster! So I take it that finding and executing material
for any set of technical deficiencies is an exercise in tact.
Situations like that reinforce my opinion that the feel of the dance,
not the appearance, is the highest measure of success. ...and small
adjustments are a private matter between two people who are embracing...
Warmly,
Frank in Minneapolis
Frank G. Williams, Ph.D. University of Minnesota
frankw@mail.ahc.umn.edu Dept. of Neuroscience
(612) 625-6441 (office) 321 Church Street SE
(612) 624-4436 (lab) Minneapolis, MN 55455
(612) 281-3860 (cellular/home)
Date: Fri, 27 Jul 2001 22:12:23 EDT
From: Shirley Kwan <SKisaichi@AOL.COM>
Subject: Re: attitude and feel
Frank Williams wrote:
> But dance with over half the
>students and the leg collisions caused by the follower's slow collection
>are very distracting. So, does that make it OK for me to be a step
>collection cop in the milonga? No. From that kind of technical
>standpoint, those dances are doomed to fail
I concur with the gist of Frank's posting, and certainly with his diplomatic
and ameliorative intention. I do want to add my two cents to the above,
which is that yes, we all know we should collect our feet. We know it,
breathe it, practice it, etc. But ya know, have you ever considered that
sometimes it's kinda nice to brush feet/legs? I'm in the middle of a
several-month run on this one, with one particular person. We found out,
accidentally (?) that we both kinda like it. Actually, we like it a lot. It
takes a certain skill, subtlety, delicacy, etc. , but we try it and
compensate, and it's nice. Very nice. And we're trying it with others as
well, on judicious occasion. So there. Scream all you want, but it works
for us.
Unrepentantly,
shirley kwan, nyc
Date: Sat, 28 Jul 2001 12:31:25 EDT
From: Shirley Kwan <SKisaichi@AOL.COM>
Subject: Re attitude and feel
One more thing about the general complaint of slow leg-collecting: why limit the complaint to women? Men do it all the time--and it interferes with the woman's ability to express herself creatively. Also, consider that the TIMING of a movement (yes,even foot-collection)is part of its esthetic quality, and can/should vary as a mode of expression.
And finally--the man initiates--and then he has to wait. No matter how slow her response is, for whatever reason.
rgds,
shirley kwan
Date: Mon, 30 Jul 2001 13:58:32 -0500
From: "Frank G. Williams" <frankw@MAIL.AHC.UMN.EDU>
Subject: Re: attitude and feel
Heyo friends,
Shirley Kwan wrote:
> One more thing about the general complaint of slow leg-collecting: why limit the complaint to women? Men do it all the time--and it interferes with the woman's ability to express herself creatively.
Two thoughts...
Shirley's comment is well taken. Collection was just the first example
of a technical glitch that popped into my mind. The larger point I was
trying to make is that we must accept some failures from either side of
the frame in order to get on with dancing to the music. A dancer who is
afraid of "mistakes" will never excel. I'm reminded of kids in music
recitals, timidly playing along for fear of playing a wrong note. The
music they make is mostly in their parent's heads! That's fine - been
there... But the occasional recitalist who seems not worried about
mistakes - THAT kid is showing you how well s/he can play! Just the
same, mistakes in dancing happen. They are not related to one's skill
level, they are related to one's attitude. IMHO, our many preparations
in classes and practicas are to free our bodies to dance within the
setting of the milonga. The larger mistake is to dance without
expressing ourselves, fearful of 'playing a wrong note'.
Second thought, concerning collecting per se: Slow collections may seem
like a *cause* of knee-banging, but in my experience it's often an
*effect* of inadequate posture (leader's and/or follower's) and of the
follower not waiting. Choosing to brush legs (on the sides) - nice!
Having no place to put your feet as they follow under one's torso
(tripping) - slightly alarming.
Accepting technical problems in the short term is part of the dance.
Accepting them long term is not, but people will choose their own
teacher(s) in any case, and it will probably not include you or me...
Best wishes,
Frank in Minneapolis
Frank G. Williams, Ph.D. University of Minnesota
frankw@mail.ahc.umn.edu Dept. of Neuroscience
(612) 625-6441 (office) 321 Church Street SE
(612) 624-4436 (lab) Minneapolis, MN 55455
(612) 281-3860 (cellular/home)
