Use of hands in smooth

[skipper]

As a lady, does anyone have some great ideas or excersiss for the use/display of hands? So many of the ladies I dance with have all had dance training as a young kids----
That kind of elegance is very foreign to me!

[QPO]

not sure if you hold your hands the same as we do in new vogue. Our coach says we have to think we are holding a squash ball between our thumb and  middle finger,

also feather the arm so it is not straight it should have a slight bend.

[SwingWaltz]

Extend those shape from your body all the way down to your finger nails.

[TangoDancer]

sorry I missed this; still learning how to navigate the boards. the ball in the fingers trtick is  a good one, but is sort of placing the period at the start of the sentence. do this...sit comfortably resting teh arm and hand on a side table or desk, etc. when completely relaxed, lift the arm as if it is being raised by a string at the wrist (like a marionette). you might have to do this several times until the arm and hand are lifted, yet perfectly relaxed. notice he shape of the wrist and the hand. the wrist has tone because this is where the lift is coming from. the hand is shaped "naturally" with the fingers resting downward. notice the positions of the thumb and mid fingers. now, you might understand that if you were holding a ball between these 2 fingers, a certain tone would be applied to the hand as well.

when moving the arms in dance, always dance the hands -at the wrists- and the arms will follow. hope this helps.

[SwingWaltz]

when moving the arms in dance, always dance the hands -at the wrists- and the arms will follow. hope this helps.

I disagree with this.....I think the shape should come from the body. The shape of the body THEN extends through to the arm, wrist and finally hand and finger.

[malakawa]

i watched the other day a video about arms. and i heard the same thing that my teachers thought me.

arm always finishes your movement. i found it very easy to practice arms in rumba cucarachas, even if you are a smooth dancer. movements are the same.

make a step to the side moving your center (your arm can be close to your center), when you are moving your arm, your elbow should go first, than wrist than hand and fingers. 

[QPO]

I think the arm movements become second nature when you feel comfortable with the foundation of the dance. In the beginning you are stilted and as you learn more you become more fluid....

[waltzelf]

I think the arm movements become second nature when you feel comfortable with the foundation of the dance. In the beginning you are stilted and as you learn more you become more fluid....

Depends. As you become more aware of how the arms and hand works as an extension of the body flight (see Swing Waltz), then it becomes second nature enough to happen fairly naturally.


One other thing to remember is, when moving the arms, to have a mental image of moving the arm through water. there should be an invisible resistance to any arm movement that will give it the look of being "thick"



Arm movements in Latin are a different beast entirely.

[QPO]

Yes I am pretending to do my arm movemeents through water or doing tai chi.

Latin we only do socially and that would be too much to bear trying to get that up to a good standard.

[SwingWaltz]

Think tree branches in wind.
The larger branches move, which takes the small ones with them, enabling the smaller branches to move more in the wind.
But if the larger branches don't move at all and the small ones do, they are mostly likely going to snap in the wind.

[QPO]

that sounds like a very Confucius saying :-)

[SwingWaltz]

that sounds like a very Confucius saying :-)

Works for us 
We did major tree in the Lucille Waltz last night! Look forward to more tonight.

[Medira]

In addition, something that a choreographer once told me was to let the movement flow through your arms, your wrists, your hands, your fingers...and out beyond the tips of your fingers, to the far reaches of the room.  Most people think as far as their hands, which leaves the fingers forgotten, which can give some unfinished looking lines.

[Ginger]

I think hairball.

[skipper]

I think hairball.

I don't get that----