Connection is...

**straycat** · 15th-March-2007, 12:07 PM

A couple of recent conversations with Freya have led me to wonder: what does connection mean to everyone else?

What does everyone know about it?
How important is it to you in your dancing?
Do you see it as a useful tool, or something that permeates every part of your dancing?

What it means to me should be pretty obvious, as I keep harping on about it at every possible turn - but I thought I'd start a quick (public) poll, and throw it open to the floor.

Miguel · 15th-March-2007, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by straycat264

What it means to me should be pretty obvious,....

It is....Connection (dance)

**Caro** · 15th-March-2007, 12:30 PM

connection.... I see different levels to it:

- my own connection through my body, i.e. you just don't move my hand if you move my hand (well, that's not entirely true all the time, but time constraints require a bit of oversimplification!)
- connection with my partner, the first level for me would me matching what's his doing to provide connection (which could just be looking at him if we're not touching), then maintaining it throughout the dance. And also at times initiating a different level / sort of connection because I either want the dance to change a little or I just want to play on my own.
- connection to the dance and the music, i.e. not only hearing what's being played and how I could play with it, but also trying to find out what my partner's hearing and what he wants to dance to (whether he wants both of us to dance to the same thing or is willing to let me dance to something else for a little while)

Connection is different in different dances, as explained by many people in other threads on AT / WCS.

The more I dance (blues, AT and WCS) the more I realise that there are unknown (to me that is) depths of connection... and that's both very exciting and frustrating (as the deeper you get, the more you want and the rarer the occasions to go as deep.... if that makes sense?). I posted a thread about what that frustration can look like a while ago here.

But to me, in a few words, it is both what enables the dance to happen, and a holy graal... (edit: typed that before you posted the poll, and now realises it's spelt grail

)

**straycat** · 15th-March-2007, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miguel

It is....Connection (dance - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

You're telling me it doesn't exist

Does that mean I don't exist either?

You seem to, but in a rather ambiguous way. Who / what exactly are you?

**Gadget** · 15th-March-2007, 01:38 PM

Physical connection, or an empathic connection, or an emotional connection?

I think that as a lead, you have two main connections that pull you similtaneously - one with your partner and one with the music.
But you also have one where you are trying to pick up on the connection your partner has with the music, and that pulls you as well.

The physical connection and empathic connection with your partner allows you to influence these other connections. For them to influence you, you also need a connection within yourself.

The physical connection within a dancer is often referred to as 'frame'.
The physical connection used to move that frame is normally 'lead' and/or 'follow'
How this physical connection is manipulated is normally 'technique'
Manipulating your own is 'style'
When to use the physical connection is 'conveying musicality'
Creating a connection with the music is 'musicality'
Creating a connection with your partner's musicality, using your connection to influence it and respond to it: that's 'dancing'.

...

so which connection are we talking about then?

MartinHarper · 15th-March-2007, 01:46 PM

Connection is ....

... a catch-all term used to mean lots of different things, thus enabling people with little real understanding of dance (eg, me) to appear wiser than they are.

(Gadget missed "visual connection", which is how we can lead/follow without touching)

**Jamie** · 15th-March-2007, 01:54 PM

I can't really describe connection... It just.. is. Does that make sense?

Aparently I have "good connection"

**Trouble** · 15th-March-2007, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jamie

I can't really describe connection... It just.. is. Does that make sense?

Aparently I have "good connection"

yeah you do.

Connection is so important when dancing because without it your just jiggling about in time to music.

That eye contact, that little touch, that little smile, that moving together, that perfect break, those little close sways, those bashful come get me eyes.....ooooooh i could go on for ages.

Cant beat it when it happens.

**Gadget** · 15th-March-2007, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartinHarper

(Gadget missed "visual connection", which is how we can lead/follow without touching)

bugger.

also missed the 'rapport' with your partner.

**Gav** · 15th-March-2007, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gadget

bugger.

Not in the current context, but google would probably come up with a forum for you to discuss that kind of conection.

**straycat** · 15th-March-2007, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gadget

Physical connection, or an empathic connection, or an emotional connection?

The physical connection within a dancer is often referred to as 'frame'.
The physical connection used to move that frame is normally 'lead' and/or 'follow'
How this physical connection is manipulated is normally 'technique'
Manipulating your own is 'style'
When to use the physical connection is 'conveying musicality'
Creating a connection with the music is 'musicality'
Creating a connection with your partner's musicality, using your connection to influence it and respond to it: that's 'dancing'.
...

so which connection are we talking about then?

We're talking about ... most of the above.
We're talking about the connection that gives two-way communication between leader and follower - that let you both shape the dance together.

For me - that's both a physical thing (yes frame, amongst other things), and an emotional / spiritual thing. I am not really talking about your connection to the music, or to the floor, but I am talking about the ability to communicate those aspects of your dancing (amongst other things) to your partner. On the other hand, it's definitely different things to different people - which is one of the fantastic and infuriating things about the whole topic...

**Freya** · 15th-March-2007, 03:23 PM

Ok Since I'm partly to blame for this startingly long Poll,

I guess I should actually post.

As most people have pointed out there are a lot of different meanings to Connection with re: to dancing.

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 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.

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?

MartinHarper · 15th-March-2007, 03:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by straycat264

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

I'd prefer to put the emotional/spiritual thing into an entirely seperate box to the physical/visual thing. Maybe one with flowers on it. Eg:

Quote:

Originally Posted by someone on yehoodi

In Blues the connection is much more metaphysical. You have to look deep, deep into her eyes and penetrate the very depths of her soul. Only then have you truly achieved a "blues connection."

(I ain't saying it don't exist, just that it's prone to mockery)

Ghost · 15th-March-2007, 03:34 PM

Quote:

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 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 reckon both ways work. Just as some people prefer to learn music the structured way and some prefer to just experiement and see what works (See Phoebe in Friends)

Quote:

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?

Chocolate

Get them to dance with someone who's good at connection and explain that the dance is good because of it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by straycat264

We're talking about ... most of the above.
We're talking about the connection that gives two-way communication between leader and follower - that let you both shape the dance together.

Ok BIG CATCH to this. Connection is wonderful, but if you don't understand the information it's rather limited

.

Oh and connection is being in touch with "The Force" - it connects all living things

(Quantum Physicists may express it slightly differently)

**StokeBloke** · 15th-March-2007, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jamie

I can't really describe connection... It just.. is. Does that make sense?

Nope. But the day you start to make sense is the day I'm going to quit Jaime

I have not been dancing long, and what I think is connection seems to keep shifting. You feel so in tune with your partner - a oneness that you feel cannot be bettered....... then it is! I wonder if it's wise to question and examine it too closely for fear of breaking it. Rather, just sit back and enjoy it

View Poll Results: Connection...
is unimportant / over-rated	0	0%
is a useful part of one's dance repertoire	1	2.22%
is very important	20	44.44%
is the Holy Grail of partner dance!	21	46.67%
is just something you pick up naturally - no need to set out to learn it	2	4.44%
needs work and practice to get right	21	46.67%
takes a lifetime to master	9	20.00%
cannot be taught - you've got it or you haven't	1	2.22%
should be taught in more workshops and classes	20	44.44%
should be taught as an integral part of MJ	17	37.78%
should be taught as an integral part of all partner dances	18	40.00%
is surely just a WCS / Tango thing?	0	0%
is the key to blues / slow dancing	14	31.11%
Don't know, don't care.	0	0%
I'm fabulous and know everything!	2	4.44%
This poll is waaaay too long.	16	35.56%
I used to have connection, but it broke	3	6.67%
I'll forget me own name next	4	8.89%
I don't have the slightest idea what you're going on about	1	2.22%
Who are you again? Who am I, for that matter?	6	13.33%
Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 45. You may not vote on this poll \| Withdraw Vote

15th-March-2007, 12:07 PM	#1 (permalink)
straycat Senior Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Northeastern Parts Posts: 3,860 Status: woke up clipped Rep Power: 4 Rep.: 1791	Connection is... A couple of recent conversations with Freya have led me to wonder: what does connection mean to everyone else? What does everyone know about it? How important is it to you in your dancing? Do you see it as a useful tool, or something that permeates every part of your dancing? What it means to me should be pretty obvious, as I keep harping on about it at every possible turn - but I thought I'd start a quick (public) poll, and throw it open to the floor. __________________ Straycat Cheap, but not as cheap as your girlfriend...

15th-March-2007, 12:30 PM	#3 (permalink)
Caro Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: London Posts: 2,484 Status: No Status Rep Power: 3 Rep.: 1688	Re: Connection is... connection.... I see different levels to it: - my own connection through my body, i.e. you just don't move my hand if you move my hand (well, that's not entirely true all the time, but time constraints require a bit of oversimplification!) - connection with my partner, the first level for me would me matching what's his doing to provide connection (which could just be looking at him if we're not touching), then maintaining it throughout the dance. And also at times initiating a different level / sort of connection because I either want the dance to change a little or I just want to play on my own. - connection to the dance and the music, i.e. not only hearing what's being played and how I could play with it, but also trying to find out what my partner's hearing and what he wants to dance to (whether he wants both of us to dance to the same thing or is willing to let me dance to something else for a little while) Connection is different in different dances, as explained by many people in other threads on AT / WCS. The more I dance (blues, AT and WCS) the more I realise that there are unknown (to me that is) depths of connection... and that's both very exciting and frustrating (as the deeper you get, the more you want and the rarer the occasions to go as deep.... if that makes sense?). I posted a thread about what that frustration can look like a while ago here. But to me, in a few words, it is both what enables the dance to happen, and a holy graal... (edit: typed that before you posted the poll, and now realises it's spelt grail ) __________________ . Little Miss Whipme

15th-March-2007, 01:38 PM	#5 (permalink)
Gadget Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Cruden Bay (Aberdeen) Posts: 6,156 Status: Gigalo for hire Rep Power: 5 Rep.: 1527	Re: Connection is... Physical connection, or an empathic connection, or an emotional connection? I think that as a lead, you have two main connections that pull you similtaneously - one with your partner and one with the music. But you also have one where you are trying to pick up on the connection your partner has with the music, and that pulls you as well. The physical connection and empathic connection with your partner allows you to influence these other connections. For them to influence you, you also need a connection within yourself. The physical connection within a dancer is often referred to as 'frame'. The physical connection used to move that frame is normally 'lead' and/or 'follow' How this physical connection is manipulated is normally 'technique' Manipulating your own is 'style' When to use the physical connection is 'conveying musicality' Creating a connection with the music is 'musicality' Creating a connection with your partner's musicality, using your connection to influence it and respond to it: that's 'dancing'. ... so which connection are we talking about then? __________________ I used to be an angel, you know with halo and those wings; Now that i'm a devil, my mind's on other things... My feathers turned to ash, and my harp has broke in two; I took uppon myself, to have a dance with you... ¤ TheEvolutionOfMJ ¤ SensualDancing ¤ TechniquesOfLeading ¤ MarkOfaGoodTeacher ¤ Style ¤ Moves,moves,moves ¤ MoveMap ¤ DanceingTest ¤ DanceFloorSlease ¤

15th-March-2007, 01:46 PM	#6 (permalink)
MartinHarper Registered User Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Worcester, UK Posts: 4,118 Status: No Status Rep Power: 5 Rep.: 1869	Re: Connection is... Connection is .... ... a catch-all term used to mean lots of different things, thus enabling people with little real understanding of dance (eg, me) to appear wiser than they are. (Gadget missed "visual connection", which is how we can lead/follow without touching)

15th-March-2007, 01:54 PM	#7 (permalink)
Jamie Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Disneyland Paris Posts: 1,532 Status: No Status Rep Power: 2 Rep.: 495	Re: Connection is... I can't really describe connection... It just.. is. Does that make sense? Aparently I have "good connection"

15th-March-2007, 03:23 PM	#12 (permalink)
Freya Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Up near the ceiling!!! Posts: 2,030 Status: No Status Rep Power: 2 Rep.: 781	Re: Connection is... Ok Since I'm partly to blame for this startingly long Poll, I guess I should actually post. As most people have pointed out there are a lot of different meanings to Connection with re: to dancing. 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 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. 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? __________________ Living in a confused state....Permantly!

15th-March-2007, 04:00 PM	#16 (permalink)
robd Basically lazy Join Date: May 2005 Location: Nr Cambridge Posts: 2,695 Status: No Status Rep Power: 3 Rep.: 1775