[Callers] Buzz Step Swing

Sun Jun 21 10:58:03 PDT 2015

Oh, one more thing: my local dance (CDNY) often holds a "swinging workshop"
at the break, to teach the finer points of swing, talk about the buzz step
explicitly and give pointers, reiterate the important stuff like giving
weight, etc. This often works pretty well, and might be a good model: a
beginners' lesson at the start of the evening that teaches a simple walking
swing and focuses on the hold, frame, giving weight, where to end the
swing, how to swing safely, etc., and a "swing workshop" at the break to
teach buzz step to those who want to learn it (and refine the buzz-step of
those who have picked it up not-all-that-well), as well as reiterate all of
the technique points about weight and safety.

On Sun, Jun 21, 2015 at 1:52 PM, Maia McCormick <maia.mcc at gmail.com> wrote:

> Tom, at a guess, Aahz is not talking about NOT spending time on the swing,
> nor about neglecting to teach dancers how to start/end one--just that the
> finer points of technique aren't a priority for the beginner's lesson. Of
> course any teacher worth their salt will teach that a swing always ends
> with the lady on the right. But I think all Aahz is saying is that, IF the
> dancers end the swing with the lady on the right, it doesn't really matter
> how they get there--fumbling through a swing happens, and it's easy to
> recover from, while moves that involve the rest of your hands-4 or the rest
> of the set have potential to cause way more disruption to the dance if
> botched.
>
> I agree that the buzz-step is not the be-all, end-all of contra swing!
> I've been dancing for going on 5 years and I pretty much exclusively
> walk-swing, because I find it more comfortable and easy to control, and
> don't actually like swinging extremely fast.
>
> John mentions the bad habits that even experienced dancers may have while
> swinging, such as:
>
> - grip, clamp, squeeze, hang, press
> - hold their partner in the wrong place so it is uncomfortable
> - use too much strength and try to do silly things like making their
> partners feet leave the floor
> - lean sideways or backwards
> - start twirls too late and when they are facing the wrong way so that they
> end up in the wrong place
>
> I find it pretty telling that this list of habits actually has nothing to
> do with footwork! In my opinion, the reason to teach walking swing instead
> of buzz-step to beginners is that there's SO MUCH ELSE to concentrate on.
> The more things we can abstract away, the easier a time beginners will have
> learning what's left. If you're focusing on strange new footwork (and I
> find that buzz-stepping beginners tend to think that the buzz-stepping is
> the most important part of the swing, and concentrate more on that than on
> their frame), it's harder to pick up things like giving weight, a proper
> hold, etc. But everyone already knows how to walk!
>
> I would also add that I would much rather dance with someone doing a
> funky/odd/strange/unpracticed walking swing than a
> funky/odd/strange/unpracticed buzz step. I find that there are fewer ways
> to mess up a walk, and that there's less potential for your partner to be
> uncomfortable or perhaps harmed than with one of those galloping,
> out-of-control excited-pony buzz step swings.
>
> Just my two cents!
>
> Cheers,
> Maia
>
> On Sun, Jun 21, 2015 at 1:38 PM, Amy Wimmer via Callers <
> callers at lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
>> I love John's idea of teaching the buzz step as individuals first,
>> then as couples. The most frequent complaints I hear from men is that
>> women hang on them and don't hold up their own weight during a swing.
>> The most frequent complaint I hear from women is men pulling them off
>> their feet and going too fast. If they can learn to hold themselves
>> upright on their own first, then everyone will have a much more
>> enjoyable experience.
>>
>> -Amy
>>
>>
>>
>> > On Jun 21, 2015, at 3:44 AM, John Sweeney via Callers <
>> callers at lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>> >
>> > Yes, of course I always tell dancers that they can walk instead of
>> buzz, but
>> > the buzz-step is so much more fun that it seems crazy not to teach it
>> when
>> > every dance is going to have a swing and usually two.
>> >
>> > <Digression:> Yes, I love swinging, and have been loving it for fifty
>> years
>> > now, but why does every new dance have to have two swings?  Oh no, not
>> > Neighbour Balance & Swing, Circle Left 3/4, Partner Swing again - that's
>> > half the dance gone with nothing new or interesting in it! (And
>> changing the
>> > Circle Left 3/4 to Men/Ladies Allemande 1 & 1/2 does not make it more
>> > interesting!)  I write lots of dances with one or zero swings - a
>> zero-swing
>> > dance can have so much good stuff in it that the dancers don't even
>> notice
>> > there is no swing; they are having too much fun. It always puzzles me
>> when
>> > people take a great one-swing dance and re-choreograph it to add a
>> second
>> > swing, losing part of what made it a great dance just for the sake of
>> even
>> > more swinging. <End of digression.>
>> >
>> > I found it interesting that Ron said, "the buzz-step swing gets axed if
>> I'm
>> > short on time".  If I only had time to teach one thing then the only
>> thing I
>> > would teach would be the buzz-step swing, and how to finish it so you
>> end up
>> > in the right place.  I can't think of anything else that newcomers can't
>> > learn during the walk-throughs.
>> >
>> > Question: If you were calling for a group with a dozen newcomers in the
>> hall
>> > out of 100 people, and the organizers said you could have two minutes
>> > teaching before you started the first walk-through, what would you
>> teach?
>> > For me the answer is obvious, every dance has a buzz-step swing; teach a
>> > buzz-step swing.
>> >
>> > Another reason for teaching swinging is that there are a significant
>> number
>> > of "experienced" dancers who have bad swinging habits.  I dance all
>> over the
>> > USA and the UK and wherever I go there are always some people who:
>> > - grip, clamp, squeeze, hang, press
>> > - hold their partner in the wrong place so it is uncomfortable
>> > - use too much strength and try to do silly things like making their
>> > partners feet leave the floor
>> > - lean sideways or backwards
>> > - start twirls too late and when they are facing the wrong way so that
>> they
>> > end up in the wrong place
>> > - etc.
>> >
>> > If just a couple of those dancers pick up on any of these points and
>> improve
>> > their swinging then you have done good work!
>> >
>> > Yes, I hate it when callers talk too much and take time out of dancing
>> time.
>> > But this can be really short:
>> >
>> > Sample teach:
>> > = = = = = = = =
>> > Hi, I'm John.  We have some new people here today and they are going to
>> > spend half an hour swinging tonight, so please let's spend a minute or
>> two
>> > on showing them how it's done.  And all you great dancers out there why
>> not
>> > see if you can't make your swing even better for you and your partners.
>> >
>> > This is called a buzz-step swing.
>> >
>> > First, let go of you partner completely. Put your left toe just behind
>> your
>> > right foot like this. Now walk fast on the spot. Now push with your left
>> > foor as though you were on a skateboard and turn clockwise by yourself
>> on
>> > the spot. Relax your knees so you don't bounce up and down.  See how
>> > smoothly.you can turn with the minimum of effort.
>> >
>> > Now take your partner in a ballroom hold - the man's hand on the lady's
>> > shoulderblade - it is far more comfotable for the lady if you hold them
>> up
>> > high.  Now relax - make sure you are not pressing on any part of your
>> > partner.
>> >
>> > And swing - it should be a gentle embrace where, as a single
>> counterbalanced
>> > unit, you glide smoothly and effortlessly around. Smile at your partner
>> and
>> > you won't get dizzy.
>> >
>> > Now think of your joined hands as an arrowhead and finish pointing at
>> the
>> > other couple.
>> >
>> > If you are having trouble with the buzz-step then you can always just
>> walk.
>> > = = = = = = = =
>> >
>> > I just timed that and it took less than 90 seconds. Surely that is worth
>> > doing!
>> >
>> > Yes, some of them won’t get it, but for those who do you have just
>> greatly
>> > enhanced their enjoyment of the evening.
>> >
>> > Anyway, that's what I think. :-)
>> >
>> > Happy dancing,
>> > John
>> >
>> > John Sweeney, Dancer, England john at modernjive.com 01233 625 362
>> > http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent
>> >
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