Pivots

[SwingWaltz]

At the moment, I'm learning how to transfer and accept my weight in the pivots. Apparently I wasn't doing that at all in the past. And also to go foward using the heel of my standing leg instead of falling into the front foot. Um...keeping my head more left does help! Oh yea DSV, it does feel like the diagonal sumo! 

[elisedance]

I was taught to also keep a strong contact between our thighs - the result is that you pivot as one unit, it gives you much better stability and coordination

[Dora-Satya Veda]

At the moment, I'm learning how to transfer and accept my weight in the pivots. Apparently I wasn't doing that at all in the past. And also to go foward using the heel of my standing leg instead of falling into the front foot. Um...keeping my head more left does help! Oh yea DSV, it does feel like the diagonal sumo! 

Sure sounds like you are getting it. Well done SW.

Looking forward to seeing them some day soon.

[Dora-Satya Veda]

I was taught to also keep a strong contact between our thighs - the result is that you pivot as one unit, it gives you much better stability and coordination

Yes, there should be a very strong thigh contact. Otherwise you would go "flying". 

[elisedance]

luca and lorraine do pivots with rise and fall at 1.16
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0rhEOoXYCM&feature=related
- are these spin pivots then rather than continuous ones?

BTW what school would they fit in, if any? 

[pruthe]

Really enjoyed watching that one. It was very relaxing to watch. Besides pivots, seems to be some good examples of swing too. Thanks for posting.

[cdnsalsanut]

Very nice!  I do enjoy watching good dance video's. 

[Dora-Satya Veda]

luca and lorraine do pivots with rise and fall at 1.16
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0rhEOoXYCM&feature=related
- are these spin pivots then rather than continuous ones?

They do 1-3 of Natural Turn (1:08) and then from about 1:09 to about 1:16 they do Spin-Pivots. They start out with Spin-Pivots with no sway and then they change to a left sway just before going into another 1-3 of Natural Turn. They do Spin-Pivots many time in their routine. Sometimes they do just one Spin-Pivot and sometimes they do a series of Spin-Pivots sometime they do no sway and sometimes left sway. You will see Spin-Pivots shown in just about every form here.

DSV

[elisedance]

I thought so - and are they body school?  At first I thought so but later I didn't feel they had quite the harmony I expect so not sure...

[cornutt]

I was taught to also keep a strong contact between our thighs - the result is that you pivot as one unit, it gives you much better stability and coordination

I really really wish I could convince more follows that they need to really step into pivots and not shy away from it.  I don't think many of them realize that, in a pivot (as in many things) whoever is going forwards at any given moment is leading.  If the follow won't step in and establish the axis for the back half of the pivot to turn on, then it leads the lead trying to wrestle the thing around, and then when that fails, finishing the thing by taking a big fling-the-left-leg-out step around his partner. 

(The other side of that coin, and I'm as guilty of this as the next guy, is that the lead has to be patient and wait for the follow to step in before the pivot can continue.  If the lead has over-cranked the front half, he'll already be swinging around again before the follow has a chance to get on her front foot, and the follow will be pulled off her balance.)

[elisedance]

[take a look in the body school board - DSV has posted a note on thigh contact in spins.]

And you are totally right - the hardest part of pivots is patience... you have to wait your turn.

[SwingWaltz]

the hardest part of pivots is patience... you have to wait your turn.

LMFAO! Pure gold! You're good!!!

[cornutt]

And you are totally right - the hardest part of pivots is patience... you have to wait your turn.

Right!  That's a lesson that I've only learned recently.     A well-executed pivot looks like one continuous movement to the observer, but it really isn't.

[elisedance]

Yes because only one person is moving at a time - I mean (body) moving, the other is rotating which, if you are well balanced, takes NO effort.  So the sensation is pivot , wait, pivot, wait...

[Dora-Satya Veda]

Yes because only one person is moving at a time - I mean (body) moving, the other is rotating which, if you are well balanced, takes NO effort.  So the sensation is pivot , wait, pivot, wait...

I was always told the sensation to be…..move forward, turn, move forward, turn, move forward......and I must say that is the sensation I always had and have when dancing Spin-Pivots.

I would however be careful talking about feelings as they are different for every person. I normally never tell students what I feel when teaching because I think it is important they develop their own feelings. I always teach dancing as factual as is humanly possible.

DSV