Erick Singleman Dance - ericksinglemandance

The Binghamton Ballroom Dance team had a great showing at the RPI competition. CJ and Sarah won all of the International Standard and Latin Dances at the silver level, the silver American Smooth dances and were first and third in the American Rhythm dances. The Binghamton team as a whole performed extremely well.  In the silver American Rhythm finals, five of the seven couples were from Binghamton. Way to go Bearcats!!!

The Binghamton Dance crew competed at the MIT comp on March 17th.  CJ Anslow and Sarah Chen performed admirably, making the finals in several silver level events. I did not attend this event, but was able to watch parts of it as MIT streamed the event live over the internet. Unfortunately only part of the dance floor was covered by the camera.

The Binghamton ballroom dance team hosted a colligiate competition on February 18th.  several colleges attended including Penn State, Cornell, RPI, Ithica College, Syracuse, and a few others. CJ Anslow (of Troy) and Sarah Chen (of Norwalk)competed in Bronze and Silver American and International categories.  The couple was awarded first place in several bronze level events, and made it to the finals in most of the silver level events, winning 13 ribbons in all.

Manhattan Amateur Classic -

Erick's Students CJ Anslow and Sarah Chen from Binghamton University (center picture above) earn first place honors in adult American bronze level smooth (W,F) and American bronze Rhythm (C,R) as well as first place in International Bronze Standard (W,Q).  They were also finalists in the bronxze International latin division.

Foxtrot rhythm:  When we first learn foxtrot we learn a slow slow quick quick rhythm.  Many teachers keep their students dancing figures with this rhythm so they are not confused while they are learning the basic techniques of turning and negotiating the dance floor.  However foxtrot can be danced with basically any combination of slows and quicks, for example: SSQQQQQQSQQ or SSSS or SSQQQQSS clould be danced, or your own combination could be danced.  However one of the most useful rhythms that one can used in foxtrot is SQQ.  SQQ allows one to dance almost any figure that is done in the waltz to foxtrot music.  There you have it, you just doubled your repertoire in the foxtrot.

Cha Cha like mambo also breaks on the "2" count.  This means that the forward and back steps of the cha cha basic step should be taken on the 2 and 3 counts.  In order to do this you must know how to recognize the "1" count.  The one count in the cha cha is the beat that is accentuated.  But if you can't tell which beat is accentuated, listen for what appears to be three beats in a row "cha cha cha", the "one" is the last cha.  So now that you can find the one, you step to the side on "one" to begin the cha cha, and then into you break forward or back on the "two".  There you have it, now you are dancing on time with the music.  Remember you can count the cha cha either 2, 3, cha, cha, cha or 2, 3, 4 and 1, but never 1, 2, cha cha cha.

Mambo timing.  Many people dance the mambo to a quick quick slow (salsa) timing, this is actually incorrect.  Mambo breaks on the "2", which means when we do the forward break in the basic step, the forward step should be on count "2".  If we count the mambo 2, 3, 4, the 2 and 3 are the quick steps and the 4 is the slow.  But we must remember that although we only say the word "4" we are actually dancing to both the 4 and the 1, it is just that we are holding on the one and just finishing the hip action from the step we took on 4.

If you are confused, come to Bob Englert's Sunday dance on April 3rd for the free lesson, and we clarify the situation.

When we rise to our toes in the ballroom dances (waltz, FT, quickstep) we rise by a combination of straightening our legs and rising through the foot.  We must be conscious not to straighten our leg completely, but rather leave a little bit of flex in the knees.  Remember when we are down on the previous step we are using our big leg muscles to provide the power for movement through the figure, when we rise up on subsequent steps we are not taking any more power, but rather gliding through using up the energy developed when we were down.

When we are finished gliding through the "up" steps, we must use our leg like a shock absorber bending at the knee and lowering the heel softly, landing on the whole foot toe then heel.  Now we are flexed in the leg again and ready to supply power from the big muscles in that leg to power ourselves to the next figure.

When dancing the standard dances like the waltz, FT or quickstep, quite often beginning dancers are not low enough, or do not dance with enough flex at the knees.  When stepping a "count 1" in the waltz or a "slow" in the other dances, the moving foot should stay in contact (caress) with the floor.  If the foot leaves the floor as is done when we walk, this is a sign that we did not lower enough.  Remember, when we move from step to step when we walk, when we arrive on each step our leg is completely straight.  When we dance we want much softer knees, we want our knees to be flexed when we arrive.  In Next weeks tip, we'll discuss what happens when we rise.

When we take side steps in the merengue (or rumba) the use of the inside edge of the feet causes the knee of the moving leg to move inward making us look temporarily "knock Kneed", actually half knock kneed as the standing leg is straight.  This is actually desired as if we attempt to keep the knee from moving inward we will not achieve the proper action of the hips.

When dancing turns in the ballroom dances it is necessary to apply CBM at the beginning of the turn.  CBM is contrary body movement, and is a rotation of the torso from the hips where the opposite side of the body rotates toward the moving leg.  In other words, if we are turning right, our hips/torso starts turning right as the moving leg starts moving.  There are two good reasons for using good CBM at the beginning of turns. 1) It makes the turn less abrupt, which is easier for the lady to follow, and 2) it gets the hips out of the way so that one partner is not blocking the other. CBM is applied during both forward and backward turns in either direction (left or right).

When dancing the waltz it is important that we lower at the end of count "3".  It is helpful to then count the waltz as 1, 2, 3&, instead of merely 1, 2, 3.  The "&" will then denote the time when we should be lowering.

When dancing the Latin dances, the footwork is ball-flat for every step, meaning the ball of the foot lands first then the heel lowers.  However, because we must also take all of our foot placements with the feet turned out, this causes a different part of the front of the foot to hit the floor first depending on the direction of the step.  On forward steps the outside of the foot lands first, then the foot rolls flat as the heel comes down.  On side steps and back steps, the inside edge of the ball of the the foot lands first, then the foot rolls flat as the heel comes down. Proper foot placement is important for both balance and correct movement, as we must move from the muscles of our feet and legs.  Our feet work the floor.

When performing a "spot turn" also called a "walk around turn" in the Latin dances, it is important to place the foot, get body weight completely over the foot, and turn from the hips. Many folks turn too early causing a very awkward and off balanced turn.

Body sway is an important concept in the ballroom dances, however when we produce sway it is important that both sides of our body remain straight.  Sway should be produced from the hip girdle area with the spine remaining straight, and not by a curvature of the spine or the dipping of a shoulder.

 

When placing the feet in Latin American dancing the foot must be placed on the floor ball first, then heel (not heel then ball like when we walk). To help ensure this takes place, pay special attention to lifting the heel, while keeping the toes of the same foot touching or barely touching the floor.  Remember all steps must be placed with the toe sightly turned out as well, this helps tremendously with balance, and also makes our legs and feet look good.