I would be very careful when watching top professionals as what they appear to so is very deceiving and if you try to copy, you may well be wrong. What you say above is not wrong ie step on slow for 1 beat ,roll through the foot and swing through beat 2 to place foot on step 3. However, when you are a little more advanced, this will be too fast. You want to hang out the timing for as long as possible. The timing for beat 1 will actually be as soon as the heel strikes the floor etc. so you can see that you can slow the actions down quite a bit, but as I say this is more advanced and will take plenty of practice.

Just to clarify, this will be heel for man of course.

Be careful with youtube or any other dance video. The music is frequently dubbed on after the dance and can be out of time. Probably best to stick to what you've been taught, and/or ask your teacher to explain what you have seen.

Ha! Good point.

That occurred to me when there are several cameras and I try and identify the camera from which the sound is used for all the camera views.

But if the sound is obviously from a CD rather than one of the cameras the timing of the dancers is unlikely to exactly match.

Some women have incredibly cold hands even after an hour of dancing.

I got a shock when I held a woman's hand yesterday well into the class with switching after every song.

I have noticed a few cold hands in the past and indistinctly have said "Wow! Cold hands". No other leader mentions them - Much more PC polite / reserved than me or perhaps just insensitive.

I was about to break inta rendition of "Che Gelida Manina" but I remembered that some of you said "No Singing to Strangers" so i desisted.

http://youtu.be/1KZa6RypYO8?t=18s

Cold hands are very often a sign of nerves!

Oh I was almost singing when dancing with a very good friend at the class yesterday [we're just great buddies] and I stopped humming and apologised.saying I've been told not to sing. She said "Sing away" so I did Lovely dance.

Wow! That never occurred to me. I'll have to be extra careful with cold handed women then.

I thought it was just poor circulation, low blood pressure or too much alcohol,.

Or not enough alcohol!!! Plenty of dancers insist on having a little tipple before dancing to help them relax!

I can't cope with even a glass of wine when dancing. Salsa is worse because of all the spot turns but even in AT I become very aware of even small traces of alcohol in the system. It feels like my mind is running behind my body and then whooshing back into place.. Or a bit like the sensation of going over a hump back bridge except in my head.

Seconded, kaycee!! I sometimes apologise for mine as we start dancing, especially near the beginning of a class when my hands are usually very cold at this time of year. (Poor circulation certainly doesn't help...) Very much appreciate people not seeming fazed by it

An Thro - brilliant analogy

I always have cold hands.
Short of wearing mittens all the time, not much I can do about it in a social setting.

Maybe you can sing this into her ear next time...

Thanks mimi for the link.

I also linked to it in my post above. #405 . I can "sing" it in Italian. Too many different translations into English.

I love La Boheme. It is my favourite and I always take an extra freshly ironed handkerchief to dry her tears when it gets really weepy - and naturally warm her hand between mine during that song.

I was wondering if your username was linked to the opera. A Mimi with cold hands! Amazing.

That sounds like I am not supposed to notice cold hands rather than joking about them.

Just seen a wonderful swing dance

Stephen Sayer & Chandrae Roettig SCOZ 2014 - Swing Camp Oz 2014.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSem4_gBMzs

Less is more. I don't recall an SCD dance approaching that in elegant excellence. SCD should abandon the faffin abaht and superfluous lifts. Incredible footwork.

From some where in the dark recesses of my mind I am pullingout a recollection that women differ physiologically to men in this respect Women tend to be more predisposed to cold extremities while maintaining nice warm vital organs. I think

In Tango definitely only a small minority of female hands are noticeably cold. And I can only speak about right female hands. Maybe one in eight I would say.

Depends on who you are dancing with. If it is your usual partner I daresay she will not take notice of any comment, but if it is a relative stranger then she'd probably prefer not to have her hands joked about. Might make her even more nervous!

SCD don't dance swing, they dance jive, and apart from Steve and Ola it doesn't have lifts. I sometimes wish swing could be used more in the UK, the fact that far slower music and movement can be used (as in this youtube vid) makes it much more suitable for some older folks who find the jive a nightmare.

Thanks.

I prefer watching Swing, Balboa and Lindy Hop to The Charleston. In fact I dislike the Charleston. Swing or Lindy hop should replace it IMHO but I know The Charleston is popular with viewers.

I wasn't trying to get at you at all Henry, sorry if it came across that way! But I agree with Kaycee - it's certainly something I can feel rather self-conscious about when I don't know my dance partner.

Thanks for posting another beautiful video. As well as swing, I am also enjoying getting to know Blues dancing a bit although I've only tried dancing it once. Haven't quite worked out Balboa yet...

I appreciate the feedback. It is easy to ask here and get a reply without embarrassment. I can be very spontaneous even without the help of alcohol but wouldn't want to hurt anybody's feelings.

People vary. The first time I noticed cold hands was with an Italian girl and she was surprised at my reaction rendition of Che Gelida Manina and said she was impressed by it. I can't assume that everyone will know the opera or even appreciate the allusion.

Steve and. Chanzie are dancing Hollywood style Lindy Hop (although Collegiate shag is their specialty) which involves a lot of counterbalancing in open position, not something that can be replicated or faked in 3-4 days!


I really do not want Lindy or any of the Swing family dances on SCD, like. Salsa, they are social dances, so they'd probably end up being Swingathon style lift fests which would give the wrong impression (only Lindy Hop showcase division allows aerials in swing competitions, I much prefer the classic division! Air steps are not acceptable on the social floor). Plus, the pro dancers do not know/dance these dances! They have enough of those already! Also, I can't imagine the inappropriate music they might turn up!

I sympathise that Latin Jive is very hard for celebs, especially the older ones, but at least the pro dancers know it!

I'm not fond of SCD Charleston but I'm used to it now. I guess.

Interestingly enough, Jenny Thomas, who choreographed most of the Strictly Charlestons this year, is working on Mark and Karen's Salsa this week

PS. Steve and Chanzie live in LA but teach in the UK very frequently at present. They were here last week.