Connection is...

[Gadget]

Originally Posted by Freya

Alot of us talk about it being the 'Holy Grail' as Straycat put it! But is it something we really have to work at or does it come naturally?

I think that it can come naturally, just as some people are naturally musical and some people naturally move with music... and others don't. But each element and fascet involved in "connection" can be developed independantly, so it really dosn't matter too much.

Oh another question, how do we explain it to newer people to make them want to come to these workshops that are being held??? And Off the Moves, Moves, Moves Path?

Get them to 'feel' more?
Feel the music, feel their partner { out of the guttter you!}, and feel the flow of movement.

How to do that? listen to the music, close their eyes and concetrate on touch, try and move with grace? dunno. Depends as much on the person as exactly what you are trying to convey I think.

[LittleSal]

Originally Posted by Gadget

I think that it can come naturally, just as some people are naturally musical and some people naturally move with music... and others don't. But each element and fascet involved in "connection" can be developed independantly, so it really dosn't matter too much.


Get them to 'feel' more?
Feel the music, feel their partner { out of the guttter you!}, and feel the flow of movement.

How to do that? listen to the music, close their eyes and concetrate on touch, try and move with grace? dunno. Depends as much on the person as exactly what you are trying to convey I think.

I have to agree that to some it is more natural that others and that you need to hear and feel the music etc.Connecting well with a partner especially one who is in tune with you makes for a great dance experience!
When I was learning Tango our teacher made us dance with each other with our eyes closed to get us to concentrate on the music and the whole "being " of the dance it was a really interesting experience and taught us a lot.

[Caro]

Originally Posted by straycat264

For me - that's both a physical thing (yes frame, amongst other things), and an emotional / spiritual thing.

indeed...
although my experience tells me the later doesn't happen very often / with a lot of partners...
I think if you want the second sort of connection to happen, you need both partners to be 'open' to the possibility of it and that something extra special that's a bit... undescriptible really.

Originally Posted by Jamie

Aparently I have "good connection"

Therefore, can connection really be an absolute thing (i.e., "I have it") ?
I guess you can have the physical connection with almost everybody (i.e. tension / compression, a minimum level of eye contact), but as I said, can you really 'connect' and really dance with every partner?

Originally Posted by Freya

But is it something we really have to work at or does it come naturally?

I think to a certain degree that we all will have a natural connection. However the difficult part is maintaining this connection and using it to have a fantastic dance. And this is the bit that requires work and lots of patience.

I'd say both: to me the natural connection you are refering to relates to the emotional / spiritual sort,
Whereas to get the physical connection, you need it to be explained and then work on it (and different people will have different abilities with regards to how fast they learn that)

Originally Posted by Freya

Oh another question, how do we explain it to newer people to make them want to come to these workshops that are being held??? And Off the Moves, Moves, Moves Path?

to me it's a bit of a catch 22, you can't really understand what connection (and dancing) is about until you have actually experienced it... or at least a little of it.
So somebody talking about connection to a person who would just be very much into the 'moves moves moves' phase and haven't got a clue what you are talking about would be close to a waste of time... (unless you're really convincing... ). Another thing is that, that 'connection discovery' moment is very much part of each individual's own learning path and will come naturally (hopefully, if exposed to enough good dancers / dances)... you can make it happen faster (recommending a workshop for example) only to a certain (limited) extent.

Originally Posted by FoxyFunkster

I recently experienced a real lack of connection when i danced with someone i used to really enjoy dancing with....i noticed that she was in a world of her own....she wasn`t really interested in dancing together as such ...

that's an example of what I am talking about, it seems that she wasn't available to connect on any other level than the physical one...

I think while everybody has the ability to connect physically (i.e. leading / following moves), connecting emotionally into the dance requires to 'open up' to the possibility of it (i. e. make yourself available for it) and also can be ruined quite easily (bad day, somebody bumping into you, wrong tune, hand bounce... the list is endless).
Which also means that you have to 'risk' a bit of yourself into the dance...
I know that I find that sometimes difficult to do, and that depends both on factors inherent to me, and on my partner.

.... am I making any sense here?

[spindr]

Connection is...
...finding a place between you -- where you can dance *together*.

That place can be a joint handhold with compression between you.
That place can be a joint handhold with tension between you.
That place can be a shared axis between you.
That place can be along a line of sight between you.
Etcetera, etcetera...

Both of you need to be looking for the same place -- or you won't connect (obviously).

Both of you need to want to dance together -- or you won't connect (obviously).

SpinDr

[MartinHarper]

I don't know to what extent physical connection is important in MJ. Long-term MJ dancers often spend a lot of time learning to dance with the thinnest sliver of physical connection they can. Those aren't actions of people who are genuinely sold on connection as a vital dancing skill.

[Gadget]

Originally Posted by MartinHarper

I don't know to what extent physical connection is important in MJ. Long-term MJ dancers often spend a lot of time learning to dance with the thinnest sliver of physical connection they can. Those aren't actions of people who are genuinely sold on connection as a vital dancing skill.

Those are the people who are trying to learn the subtalties of communication - you can't have communication without connection.

[straycat]

Originally Posted by MartinHarper

I don't know to what extent physical connection is important in MJ. Long-term MJ dancers often spend a lot of time learning to dance with the thinnest sliver of physical connection they can. Those aren't actions of people who are genuinely sold on connection as a vital dancing skill.

...but are those people actually missing out on one of the best aspects of partner dance? Personally, I feel they are - that the reason they aren't sold on connection is the fact that they don't know enough about it.

'Course - these could be the arrogant ravings of a born-again connection-cult evangelist

Stray - raving born-again connection-cult evangelist

[David Bailey]

Originally Posted by MartinHarper

I don't know to what extent physical connection is important in MJ. Long-term MJ dancers often spend a lot of time learning to dance with the thinnest sliver of physical connection they can.

Yeah - I used to do that. I think it's a bit simplistic now.

"Fingertip dancing" is a very good practice exercise, because it means you learn to lead without bad habits like yanking and "death grips" - and followers learn to follow without being pushed. "No contact" dancing is even better for that exercise.

But that doesn't mean "fingertip dancing" is always good - just that it's a good way of avoiding bad yanking / lazy dancing.

Once you've got out of that habit, then you can establish as much or as little physical connection as you want - appropriate to the dance, your partner, and the music. I've been much more connected physically to my partners since learning AT, for example.

[Freya]

Originally Posted by MartinHarper

I don't know to what extent physical connection is important in MJ. Long-term MJ dancers often spend a lot of time learning to dance with the thinnest sliver of physical connection they can. Those aren't actions of people who are genuinely sold on connection as a vital dancing skill.

Ok I'll Bite at this one! I have one example! Franck...! (I'm sure there are others but his is the only one I've experienced!) He doesn't need a strong physical connection, he sometimes leads with a minimalist touch. The "Connection" with the partner is There!!

Franck...If I remember from his workshops on connection...Describes matching the pressure of your partners touch as a vital part of connection. if the lead puts a lot of pressure through the hands then you respond with an equal amount! If you have 4 points of contact ie ballroom hold...hands, elbows and hands/backs then the pressure exerted through these 4 points should be matched! If the lead is leading you lightly with one finger tip then you should respond appropriately.

Part of Connection is about being more aware of the touch and what the partner is trying to convey!

I think that being able to lead with the lightest of touch is good and an example of good connection...however I think it's also important to be able to adjust and adapt the touch as required! And This is Excellent connection!!!

(I may be wrong though!)

[David Bailey]

Originally Posted by Freya

Ok I'll Bite at this one! I have one example! Franck...! (I'm sure there are others but his is the only one I've experienced!) He doesn't need a strong physical connection, he sometimes leads with a minimalist touch.

Well, to be fair, he's not done AT

Originally Posted by Freya

Franck...If I remember from his workshops on connection...Describes matching the pressure of your partners touch as a vital part of connection. if the lead puts a lot of pressure through the hands then you respond with an equal amount! If you have 4 points of contact ie ballroom hold...hands, elbows and hands/backs then the pressure exerted through these 4 points should be matched! If the lead is leading you lightly with one finger tip then you should respond appropriately.

I'm not sure about that one - it may be a genuine difference between dances, but "mirroring contact level" is not advice I've heard elsewhere.

"Acknowledge the contact", certainly, but "match the pressure"? Sounds like a recipe for a wrestling match to me; I think that's maybe a little bit inflexible as a rule...

On the other hand, it may be useful as a general rule of thumb, along the lines of "It's always the leader's fault when things go wrong" - not exactly true, but a good teaching mechanism.

[Tiggerbabe]

Originally Posted by Freya

I think that being able to lead with the lightest of touch is good and an example of good connection...however I think it's also important to be able to adjust and adapt the touch as required! And This is Excellent connection!!!

(I may be wrong though!)

No, you're not. Those people who are "dancing with the thinnest sliver of physical connection" could quite possibly be more connected than two people dancing in a "ballroom frame".

The followers job is to match what they are given, and this will vary from lead to lead.

[Tiggerbabe]

Originally Posted by DavidJames

"Acknowledge the contact", certainly, but "match the pressure"? Sounds like a recipe for a wrestling match to me; I think that's maybe a little bit inflexible as a rule...

I don't see why, David, if a lead has a very light pressure inside my hand, on my shoulder, my back, wherever..... I will match it, if he has a stronger pressure I will match that too, at no point (unless I want to hi-jack, and we'll not go there ) will I give him more pressure than he's giving me.

[Tiggerbabe]

At Franck's workshops he always asks the leads/followers to match pressure and then asks the lead to make it lighter, and lighter until it's almost a whisper. This is not about proving how strong you are.

[David Bailey]

Originally Posted by Tiggerbabe