Hand/Arm motion in open basic

T

TwoLeftFeet

Son
I feel almost silly to be posting here about this but I have been having a highly frustrating issue of late, not sure if I will be able to describe it well but anyway here goes....

Basically I am a leader - improver level, in as much as I have been doing Salsa closing on a year.

when in open hold...just doing a basic... I have never really thought about what my hands have been doing. Until recently.

Suddenly I am noticing that different followers move there arms in different ways, some followers tend to doggy paddle, others in a looping motion, and beginners often just hold them there with little movement.

Generally I go with the flow and havent thought about it but now as I consider how i improve my lead i wonder if I should be definining the way the arms move rather than just accomodating whatever style a follower uses.

but now because it weighs on my mind so much I find myself battling either against peoples arm movements or concentrating on trying to match their motion so much so that i am losing focus of everything else I am trying to do. Its the state of mind like when I was a beginner and was always trying to concentrate on my feet.

Is there a 'right' way for arm movement in open basic?
has anyone had this problem?

It feels absolutely nuts to be worrying over something so simple/basic but i cant seem to get past it!
 
Welcome to the forums!

You're lucky to be in Leeds as it has a huge, rich, groovy and friendly scene with lots of different styles and approaches accommodated. My own preference is:

1) To minimize noise
2) To accommodate the follower

(1) means I don't introduce much movement of my own. By communicating stillness and relaxation, it makes it much easier for the follower to read any actual signals.

(2) means I don't force my follower to hold her hands still if she's a wriggler, paddler, stirrer, or whatever else. My favourite follows communicate stillness and attentiveness in their connection -- this allows me the maximum precision and allows me to get more complex moves executed with much lower risk of snarlups. I continue to try to keep my lead clear of "noise" -- movements that don't have meaning -- but that's different from forcing her not to move her hands.
 
sweavo said:
(1) means I don't introduce much movement of my own. By communicating stillness and relaxation, it makes it much easier for the follower to read any actual signals.
Click to expand...

Good point. I want to add that this does not mean that there is no connection. Leader's body rhythm should "flow" through the hands even though hands are flexible and pretty still.

Hands are not separate from body but also transfer body movement to the follower. Good connection requires good technique, posture and body balance.
 
Thanks very much for the advice Sweavo - very nicely explained and thanks also to Petteri.

Sweavo your right, Leeds does has quite a good Salsa scene there are lessons on pretty much every day of the week which is ideal :)
 
Your question's not silly at all, so don't worry! :)

TwoLeftFeet said:
Suddenly I am noticing that different followers move there arms in different ways, some followers tend to doggy paddle, others in a looping motion, and beginners often just hold them there with little movement.
Click to expand...
I'm a bit surprised by this because I usually associate the moving of arms with beginner followers who are relatively new to salsa and are excited about it. Experienced followers tend to just 'give' their arms to the leader so that their arms follow the leader's arm movements rather than introducing their own movements. Do you have a female teacher who joins the rotation in the class? What do you notice about her arms?

The follower moving her own arms makes it harder for the leader to convey his lead signals. It's like a dance equivalent of her talking non-stop and not paying attention to what you are saying to her. Likewise, the leader moving his arms about when he's not actually leading adds a lot of noise to what the follower feels and makes it harder for her to detect lead signals. Both are undesirable. This doesn't mean that you should hold your arms still and rigid, but noise from either side should be minimal. Sweavo's given you good advice, but if a lot of women in your class have the arm swinging habit, it may be an idea to ask your teacher about it?
 
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