HOW TO DO A VIENNESE WALTZ
A Viennese Waltz does not really bear any relation to what we know as the waltz, for a start it is twice as fast! If a normal waltz can be counted “1,2 and 3” at 90bpm, this one is 1,2,3,4,5,6 at 180bpm and involves constant movement. There are not many steps, as such, but what there is as a style all of its own! To watch a large number of couples circling the floor and dancing in this style is truly breathtaking.
This is a rotary dance where you are constantly turning clock/anti-clockwise (natural and reverse turns) and if you are not turning in this manner you are doing change steps or spinning on the spot – doing your fleckle! (this is quite hard, so don’t expect to learn it quickly). American VW has things such as open hold, pivots, underarm turns etc, - but I don’t think they are allowed in a British comp. so I wont go into that here!
Firstly, you need a good close hold. With all this spinning, you need to ensure you as a couple have a good centre of gravity – you do not want to fall over! Because you are moving so fast, you need to give your trust to the lead, and let him steer you. This is best achieved again if he is holding you correctly.
The Viennese Waltz does not have rise and fall, apart from anything else it is too fast to incorporate it, and it could leave your audience feeling sea-sick! NOTE: the VW you may see on DWTS bears little resemblance to that danced in Vienna!
The best way to begin to learn this dance is actually on your own, in a largeish room with nothing for you to trip over or bang into. You may well get dizzy and nauseous, this dance also requires a good level of physical fitness. I suggest you do a little each day to build your stamina. Some people suggest you start off in flat shoes, so you don’t “go over” on your heels.
Man/Woman steps are the same –they just “mirror” each other. Like I said, a rotation is 1,2,3,4,5,6 – so when one is doing 1,2,3 –the other is doing 4,5,6 and vice versa. Note 4,5,6 should be smaller steps, so that 1,2,3 can get around you! If you rotate to the right, this is a natural turn. I try to think of my watch. It is “natural” for the hands to turn “right”. A reverse turn therefore is when you are rotating to the left. Change steps is how you switch direction in your turns when carrying on moving. To spin in one spot is to “fleckle”, this is handy if you fancy showing off a bit, or are stuck – perhaps another couple is in your way?
OK – here’s how to do it!
Natural Turn
Step 1 Listen to the beat. The emphasis will be on the first and fourth beats, and the turns will be on the quick beats. It goes: ONE, 2,3 FOUR, 5,6 ONE, 2,3 FOUR 5,6
Step 2 Have both feet facing 60deg to the left of the line of dance. Step forward with your right foot so you turn to face the line of dance. Continue rotating on the toe of your right foot, you should turn 90 deg.
Step 3 Move left foot in direction of line of dance, stay on the toe of your left foot. Move your right foot so it is next to the left foot. Have your back facing 60 deg towards the left of the direction you are dancing.
Step 4 Rotate your body as you step backward on your left. You should be facing the line of dance.
Step 5 Put right foot down line of dance, facing 60 deg, to the left of the line of dance. Slide your left foot over so its next to the right foot.
Step 6 Repeat
Reverse Turn
Step 1 Do the same as above, but move with your left foot first instead of your right.
Step 2 Move your left foot over your right foot on the third step
Step 3 Place it between your partners feet
Step 4 Continue the turn
CHANGE STEPS
Step 1 Use change steps to make the transition from natural to reverse turns
Step 2 Take 2 steps down the line of dance
Step 3 Move the moving food next to the standing foot on the third step
THE FLECKLE
Step 1 Turn in a circle with your partner. You will step with your left foot in front of the right foot as you turn, then step with your left foot behind the right foot. Then step with your left foot before your right foot. Your partner will do the same.
Step 2 Reverse direction by checking your movement, rock forward on to the left foot, back on the right, step on the left, then begin rotating in the other direction.
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Posted by Suzanne - April 8th, 2008
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“Millions of girls using Facebook, Bebo and Myspace ‘at risk’ from paedophiles and bullies”
This is the front page headline from today’s Daily Mail. I am a parent of one of these “millions of girls” who use Bebo, MSN etc, and it is fair to say the content on these sites that pass between users can be shocking to say the least. I won’t go into details here. This is not a scare-mongering article! As parents, we know we have a duty to supervise our children, both in the real and the “cyber” worlds. However, that duty also comes with the realisation that as much as we would like to keep our kids safe from the nasty things that go on, we cannot protect them entirely.
In passing, a couple of years, back I asked my software developer hubby if he could write something which would enable us to monitor our Daughter. This led him to create a programme called ICU (I see you!, clever eh!). This was installed on her machine, and throughout our network, so whenever she was on any computer he would get a “snapshot” of whatever she was looking at, saying, doing or playing. It did not take long to realise that whilst our daughter is still the sweet little innocent we hoped – the same could not be said for the “friends” that send her things and link to her profile from theirs!
This made us think. Do these other parents even know what their kids are doing? Our daughter is lucky because my husband is savvy enough to set up something to look after her. Most parents are not as computer literate. It was this that made him decide to roll out “ICU” and offer it as a tool for all parents to help keep their kids safe online. There are of course, lots of these types of things around, but generally they are complicated – and the parent has to run reports and all that sort of carry on. ICU is dead easy, you don’t have to “do” anything……It is also about a tenth of the price of the others. (Ideally, it would be free, but anyone even running a small website knows there are costs involved.)
It is also a fact that if your kids know you are watching them, they are much more likely to monitor themselves and what they do! They are more likely to act like they would if you were stood over their shoulder!
Like I say, there are others around. But from one parent to another I want to let as many people as possible know that we are NOT fighting a losing battle on this, and there are things we can do. Here are some links for you to have a look at. See if they would work for you. One is my hubby’s, the other is a similar type of thing. One of them might be just what you are looking for.
www.icu-software.co.uk
www.spectorsoft.com
Regards, Suzanne
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Posted by Suzanne - April 2nd, 2008
Posted in Personal Ramblings - No Comments »
Hi readers
I bet you have been wondering why i have had nothing to say about this programme? I thought I would let it “bed in” a bit first before forming any opinion. So, here we go!
I am not going to bother writing about everyone (who is who, and who is with who) etc - you can find that out from anywhere - but the ones that stand out so far for me are:-
The Bad
Julie Anne/Adam Corolla I think it is fair to say she wont be winning the treble! I didnt like him much last week, thought he was a bit cocky, but this week he didnt seem to be quite as full of himself, so thats a start! Foxtrot was dire, Mambo - better! -loved her green dress!
Kim/Penn Poor Kim. The best bet was when he broke the bar in the training room! I didnt like his voodoo doll thing, i thought he was rude to the judges and I didnt like at the end when he would not dance properly and kim had to walk away from him! I think to be fair though, he was always going to find it tough - big tall people always do!
Steve - he is a darling, but he dances like my dad!
Monica - Poor girl never stood a chance. She looked wracked with nerves, and was as far removed from what she is used to than she could be.. Good for her though for trying. She will be missed.
I like watching all the people who don’t find dancing comes naturally! It makes it clear just how hard it is to actually dance well!
The good
Kristi Yamaguchi - could win, but probably wont! i think her lifetime of ice skating experiience will count against her, as traditionally people vote for those who dont have an advantage. I am unsure how much she really has, but i know people perceive her in this way.
Shannon Elizabeth - One of my favourites. I loved her cha-cha, and her quickstep was amazing. I dont know if it was good technically, but as a viewer, it was a joy to watch.
None of the others have made much of an impact on me yet.
back soon!
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Posted by Suzanne - April 1st, 2008
Posted in Personal Ramblings - No Comments »
