Hierarchy of Advancement Workshop Eight

Introduction
Building on the arm-functionality begun in the previous workshop, this session uses an actual flamenco rhythm interpreted on the hands in synchrony with lower body movment. More complex body isolations and arm positions are detailed.

Section I - Basic flamenco castanet rhythm

Warm-up reprising Exercise: A basic hand and foot rhythm to Nuevo Flamenco
Solo. Basic rhythms on castañuelas (hands) and zapateo (feet). All wrist gates.

Concept: The basic flamenco castanet rhythm
Left hand is the time-keeper; and
Right hand plays the roll from little finger to first finger.

Exercise: Basic flamenco castanet rhythm co-ordinated to a simple walk
Solo. Basic flamenco castanet rhythm on castañuelas (hands) and walking (feet). Heart wrist gates.

Exercise: Basic flamenco castanet rhythm co-ordinated to a simple walk, to music
Solo, to music. Basic flamenco castanet rhythm on castañuelas (hands) and walking (feet). Heart wrist gates.

Section II - Lower body action

Concept: Knees as regulators of the lower body action
The rate of extension of the knee joint is critical to the timing of weight transfer; its alignment with the heel and the hip determines the nature of the hip deflection: whether achieved through muscle tension or relaxation. And yet is probably the most overlooked aspect of the lower body action. As salsa dancers are least likely to be developed with respect to the proprioception and cortical mapping of the knees, the final section of basic lower body action will address this.

Exercise: Pedalling revisited
Particular emphasis on the smooth, horizontal plane, backward travel of the knee joint. Detecting the initial effect of the backward travel of the knee by sensing pressure on the sole of the supporting foot. Detecting the advancing effect of the knee by detection of pressure and displacement around the hip joint.

Exercise: Pedalling to flamenco castanet rhythm, static
Synchronising the pedalling action to the basic flamenco castanet rhythm:
heel - knee (commence) - knee (continue) - knee (complete) - hip

Exercise: Pedalling to flamenco castanet rhythm, walking
Without, then to music.

Section III - Compound body movements, horizontal plane

Practice: Body isolation exercise, seated, upper body (torso), compound circular paths
Figure-eight motif e.g. centre-west-centre clockwise one rotation, centre-east-centre anticlockwise one rotation. Repeat. (Note: Inverting the direction of rotation i.e. anticlockwise and then clockwise creates the reverse figure-eight.)

Practice: Body isolation exercise, seated, upper body (torso), compound linear-circular paths
Horizontal-plane loops e.g. north-west linear to north, full clockwise circle plus 90degrees to east, linear to south-east.

Practice: Body isolation exercise, seated, upper body (torso), compound linear-circular paths
Vertical-plane loops - "rocking the cradle".

Likewise:

Practice: Body isolation exercise, standing, lower body (pelvis), compound circular paths
Figure-eight motif e.g. centre-west-centre clockwise one rotation, centre-east-centre anticlockwise one rotation. Repeat. (Note: Inverting the direction of rotation i.e. anticlockwise and then clockwise creates the reverse figure-eight.)

Practice: Body isolation exercise, standing, lower body (pelvis), compound linear-circular paths
Horizontal-plane loops e.g. north-west linear to north, full clockwise circle plus 90degrees to east, linear to south-east.

Practice: Body isolation exercise, standing, lower body (pelvis), compound linear-circular paths
Vertical-plane loops - "rocking the cradle".

Learning point:  Side-of-hip points to little toe
Observe that the lateral mobility of the hip is constrained by the supporting joints beneath it; the ankle and the knee. A general, though not absolute, guide is that 'the side of the hip should point to the little toe of its supporting foot' when that side of the pelvis laterally rotates to its forward-most position.

Concept: A fundamental difference between rumba and son action
The 'side of hip to little toe' phenomenon is used in defining the movement characteristics of rumba and son:

• rumba action has less foot turn-out and hence the hip rotations are further forward, resulting in an even 'figure-eight' pelvic movement-path when viewed from above.
• son action has more foot turn-out and hence the hip rotations are hardly forward, resulting in an asymmetrical 'figure-eight' pelvic movement-path which is flattened on the frontal side (facing the partner) when viewed from above.

Section IV - Arms

Concept: Constraints of the castanet positions
Having to hold the castanets from audience view behind the hands of the dancer, limits the distance which the castanet arm gates can be located distal from the body's centreline - the wrist of the outer arm can only bend inward so far.

Concept: Fan and skirt gates
Gates more distal from the centreline can be defined, and understood more easily, with the hand fan and the skirt. If necessary, a cape can be substituted for males.

Concept: Inner gates, castanets. Outer gates the fan and skirt/cape
These constructs determine the spatial location of the limbs and the routes of travel they trace. Additionally, they determine the conformation/shape of the hand(s).

Exercise: Positioning the arms through the external gates
Upper (fan), upper-outer (fan), outer (fan or skirt), lower-outer (fan or skirt) gates

Section V - Guaguancó fundamentals

Concept: The elemental guaguancó dance rhythm
The basic dance rhythm is a regular one alternating between unaccented and accented beats. This is translated into movement as step-accent-step-accent-(repeat).

Concept: The basic guaguancó movement mode is lateral
The functional constraint of the male having to circle around the female, yet still facing her, results in the foundational movement being laterally-based. Culturally the definition of the circle is important as it represents the circle of creation. Guaguancó is classic pursuit-and-capture.

Exercise: Basic guaguancó walk
Solo. Lateral movement. Side-tap-close-tap-(repeat).

Exercise: Basic guaguancó walk
Solo, to music. Lateral movement. Side-tap-close-tap-(repeat).

Yeo Loo Yen