{{About, the ballroom dance technique, , Rise and Fall (disambiguation){{!Rise and Fall, Rise and Fall Rises and falls is a category of the

ballroom dance Ballroom dance is a set of European partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and te ...

technique that refers to rises and falls of the body of a dancer achieved through actions of knees and feet (

ankle The ankle, the talocrural region or the jumping bone (informal) is the area where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle includes three joints: the ankle joint proper or talocrural joint, the subtalar joint, and the inferior tibiofibular joint. The ...

s). This technique is primarily recognized in

International Standard An international standard is a technical standard developed by one or more international standards organizations. International standards are available for consideration and use worldwide. The most prominent such organization is the International O ...

and American Smooth dance categories. Rises and falls are important in

waltz The waltz ( , meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom dance, ballroom and folk dance, in triple (3/4 time, time), performed primarily in closed position. Along with the ländler and allemande, the waltz was sometimes referred to by the ...

foxtrot The foxtrot is a smooth, progressive dance characterized by long, continuous flowing movements across the dance floor. It is danced to big band (usually vocal) music. The dance is similar in its look to waltz, although the rhythm is in a time ...

quickstep The quickstep is a light-hearted dance of the standard ballroom dances. The movement of the dance is fast and powerfully flowing and sprinkled with syncopations. The upbeat melodies that quickstep is danced to make it suitable for both formal ...

, and Viennese waltz. Tango is described the "level" or "flat" dance, and its basic technique specifically eliminates rises/falls in the overall motion, with the exception of certain advanced figures and styles. The expression "rises and falls of the body" is a rather vague one, and in attempts to be more precise some texts refer to center of gravity, rather than body. This may also be misleading if taken out of context: the center of gravity may be lowered, e.g., by bends and sways. In addition, a certain amount of body rise and fall may be achieved by hip action, used in Latin dance, but absolutely proscribed in Standard and Smooth. Rises and falls of the body is a natural phenomenon during casual walking: when feet are apart the body is closer to the ground than when the feet are together. Some dances, e.g., Charleston, exaggerate this natural "bobbing", while in many others bobbing at each step is considered to be bad style or lack of proper technique.

Actions

''Foot rise'' refers to the rising of the body by pushing up onto the balls of the feet through the flexing of the ankles. ''Body rise'' sometimes refers to the rise without foot/ankle action, therefore the meaning of the expression should be understood from the context. ''No foot rise'': In descriptions of the footwork of step patterns it is abbreviated as ''NFR'' and means that the heel of the support foot remains in contact with the floor until the weight is transferred onto the other foot. Most often this description is applied to a step backwards in turning figures when the person is on the inside of the turn. ''Falls'', i.e., returns from the position of rise, are often separated into three actions. *''Lowering'' refers to returning to the normal position of flat feet and "soft" i.e., lightly flexed knees. *''Compression'' refers to further lowering through the bending of the knees in preparation of pushing off the foot into the next step. It is not to be confused with "compression", which refers to hip action in

Latin dances Latin dance is a general label, and a term in Glossary of partner dance terms, partner dance competition jargon. It refers to types of ballroom dance and folk dance that mainly Dance and music of Latin America, originated in Latin America, thoug ...

. The term "compression" is used to emphasize the fact that this lowering is not simply "dropping down", but rather the straining of the leg muscles (in an analogy with the compression of a spring) simultaneously with going down. This serves both smooth arrival onto the next support foot and preparation of the next step.

References

* List of partner dance books Ballroom dance technique

Actions

See also

References