ISTD Waltz Syllabus: descriptions, step by step diagrams, videos

There has been a lot of updates on the website! For the International Waltz Newcomer and Bronze Syllabus figures listed below, in addition to timing, step by step descriptions, alignment, footwork, technique notes, we've also added step-by-step diagrams, including all the official variations, preceding and following figures and instructional videos that demonstrated the patterns.

Newcomer level:

1. Closed Changes
2. Natural Turn
3. Reverse Turn
4. Natural Spin Turn
5. Whisk
6. Chasse from Promenade Position

Bronze level:

1. Closed Impetus
2. Hesitation Change
3. Outside Change
4. Reverse Corté
5. Back Whisk
6. Basic Weave
7. Double Reverse Spin
8. Reverse Pivot
9. Back Lock
10. Progressive Chassé to R

Happy Dancing!

Standard Technique: Stretch Left Up and Forward

Here are a couple of things to review - mostly for the Lady:

• Getting into frame: Use the 10-point system described in Standard Technique. Note that Lady put her left hand on Man's right arm last, it is after Man put his wrist under Lady's left shoulder blade.
• Lady's shoulder: do not drop left shoulder, really stretch left side forward and upward, and counter balance with muscle under shoulder blade crunching diagonally.
• Head: do not wrinkle back of neck in order to appear looking up. Start standing straight, turn head 1/8 left without creating wrinkles in the back (elongate back of neck), bend left knee forward, pull 2 shoulder blades together to center of your back, counter balance the forward bending knee by leaving head, upper body as one unit behind (bend 'back' if you can, but as one unit and without gapping with Man), think about presenting your collar bones.

Tipple Chasse to Right:

• Though step 4 is listed as "side, slightly back" in the Ballroom Technique book, the Lady should step to the step, and because of changing direction to BDW, it will become a "slightly back" step. If Lady really steps back, it will gap with Man.

Natural Turn:

• Step 4: Lady be careful not to dip left shoulder. Keep left shoulder flat.
• Step 5: LF to side, some leaders like to shape a lot, by turning shoulder to right to wind up and connect with Zig-Zag.

Quickstep Fishtail Figure

In reviewing the entry for the Quickstep Fishtail in The Ballroom Technique, we find what may very well be a typo. The notes for this figure state that the man's 3rd step should be slightly outside the lady's left foot. To set context, the first two steps are RF in CBMP, outside partner, and LF crosses behind RF. So we are in outside partner position going into step 3.

At this point, if we have good connection, and we are in outside partner position, stepping outside the lady's LF requires at minimum that the man swing his leg out and around the lady's right foot.

However, if we read that note to state that the man's 3rd step is slightly outside the lady's RF, then the movement is natural.

Quickstep Silver Practice Routine

1. Running Right Turn  (SQQ S SSS SQQ) start on the short wall, ending new LOD
2. Natural Turn With Hesitation  (SQQ SS hold S)
3. Chasse Reverse Turn  (SQQ)
4. Reverse Pivot  (S)
5. Double Reverse Spin  (SSQQ)
6. Chasse Reverse Turn  (SQQ)
7. Reverse Pivot  (S)
8. Closed Telemark  (SSS)
9. Fish Tail  (SQQQQS)
10. Natural Turn And Back Lock  (SQQ SQQS) cut across corner along short wall
11. Running Finish  (SQQ)
12. Forward Lock  (SQQS) to corner
13. Natural Spin Turn  (SQQ underturned to BDC, then SSS ending BDC on new LOD)
14. Progressive Chasse  (SQQS S) overturned to LOD, moving DC
15. Quick Open Reverse  (SQQ)
16. Four Quick Run  (SQQQQS)
17. Natural Turn  (SQQ) half natural
18. Tipple Chasse To Right  (SQQ SQQS) corner

CONTINUE WITH #1

Quickstep Silver Choreography

Starting the routine on short side of wall:

1. Running Right Turn (SQQ S SSS SQQ) start on the short wall, ending new LOD
2. Natural Turn With Hesitation (SQQ SS hold S)
3. Chasse Reverse Turn (SQQ)
4. Reverse Pivot (S)
5. Double Reverse Spin (SSQQ)
6. Chasse Reverse Turn (SQQ)
7. Reverse Pivot (S)
8. Closed Telemark (SSS)

More Newcomer and Bronze routines at http://www.dancecentral.info/ballroom/international-style/quickstep/quickstep-choreography

Lesson on Quickstep and Rumba

Quickstep:

• Do not lean into natural turns, or leaning into the lady in the Forward Lock. In the Forward Lock it may be a matter of how much CBM one can manage. 
• Sometimes there is a disparity in how much two partners settle which causes two people to rise and fall different amounts. I settle late, and continue to go down when I should have leveled off and started to rise. Power comes either from going down, or by flexing the joints and pushing off. The four joints are the ball of the foot, the ankle, the knee, and the hip.
• Lady: when stepping backward, step back as far as her body is moving. If her body weight is behind her feet, he would feel her weight leaning away. When he tries to adjust and close the gap, her feet are in the way. 
• Man: do not lift chin in an attempt to improve posture. Instead, lengthen the neck, and keep chin parallel with the floor.

Rumba:
In a backwards walk, we need to straighten the leg before it receives weight. The motion needs to be more. Cucarachas and cuban rocks are not two-dimensional, and they need to have rotational motion. On rumba walks, we should bend the knee of the moving leg, pressing up from the ball of the foot, and down from the hips.

Lesson on Quickstep Technique

As a side note, our coach said that she and her partner almost never do latin lessons with their coaches individually, i.e. partnership is much more critical in standard than in latin.

How to lead the difference between the Chassé Reverse Turn and to do a Heel Turn in Double Reverse Spin. The difference in footwork is that on a Reverse Turn, the swing step, step 2, should be in a line with Man's driving step, step 1. In other words, if Man starts the reverse turn DC, his second step should continue DC in a line from his first step. When leading the lady to do a Heel Turn, Man steps forward and diagonally across with his right foot, cutting off his lady's ability to step forward. Man steps around her.

The instructor talked about a "Standard dance principle": Do not turn the body (hips) until the end of a step.  Otherwise, it would feel like Man is leading the lady into a Heel Turn when he is trying to lead the Chassé Reverse Turn.

Zig-Zag is where the lead is especially important, since there is no rise as an additional clue to the lady. Man needs to make sure to maintain balance forward on the second step of the Zig-Zag. Some ladies change weight on their heel turn too early so Man's balance would not affect them, but with other ladies, having Man's weight on his back foot would cause the lady to step forward on her second step, instead of just changing weight to her right foot. Man also needs to keep his body turned to right side leading on that second step, or he will not be able to lead the lady outside partner on the third step.

Closed Impetus. Once again, the first step: Man needs to step straight backwards, not off to the side. Left toe can be slightly turned on the Heel Turn. Feet should not turn out, which makes the dancing look bow-legged.

On the Reverse Pivot and the Double Reverse Spin, here comes the next "standard dance principle", according to our coach: The man leads reverse turns with his head.  In other words, Man keeps his head left and back, leading the turn, body follows the head, to keep his balance. The other point of technique, for the Double Reverse Spin, is that on the second step, Man should turn on the ball of his right foot with the heel almost to the ground, and provide rise by stretching his right side.

Clarification point on Rumba Fan: in almost all the cases, the lady is lead to walk straight through step 5 of the fan, while the book has the lady turning to face the man on step 4.  The difference is in part a reflection in the change in technique over the past 50 years. Our instructor says what was taught in classes and lessons is used in open figures. For closed figures, the books alignments are still used, as it is not possible for the man to get sufficiently out of the lady's way in closed position.

Lesson on Quickstep Technique, Practice Routine

Quickstep practice routine:

Starting DC, middle of long wall (alignment is from Man's perspective)

Steps in this color can be skipped when dancing on a shorter wall.

1. Chasse Reverse Turn (SQQ) (start on 1, not 8) -> BLOD
2. Progressive Chasse (SQQS) -> DW
3. Forward Lock (SQQS) -> DW
4. Natural Turn with Back Lock (SQQS QQS) -> BLOD
5. Running Finish (SQQ) -> DW New LOD
6. 123 Natural Turn (SQQ) -> BLOD
7. Closed Impetus (SSS) -> either DW (moving BDW) or facing Wall (moving center)
8. Reverse Pivot (S) -> DC
9. Double Reverse Spin (SSQQ) -> LOD
10. Progressive Chasse to the Right (SQQS) -> BDW
11. Back Lock (SQQS) -> BDW
12. Tipple Chasse to the Right (SQQS QQS) -> DW New LOD
13. Natural Pivot Turn (SQQS) -> LOD
14. Natural Spin Turn (SQQ SSS) -> BDC
15. Progressive Chasse (SQQS) -> DW
16. Natural Spin Turn (SQQ SSS) -> BDC
17. Heel Pivot - Quarter Turn to Left (SQQ) -> DW
18. Cross Chasse (SQQ) -> DW
19. Natural Turn (SQQ SSS) -> underturn ending LOD on New LOD
20. Zig Zag, Back Lock & Running Finish (SS QQS SQQ) -> last "S" in previous Natural Turn is first "S" in Zig Zag, Running Finish ending DW New LOD
21. Natural Turn with Hesitation (SQQ SSS) -> DC about in middle of long wall, start over from #1.

Some technique points:


Reverse Pivot

The man lowers down to his heel for the pivot, but keeps a straight leg, delaying the compression of the knee for collection until the pivot is complete. When the man steps, and begins to turn, he has the lady step with her left foot inside his right foot. It is because of this that he needs to keep his right knee straight, so that her left foot can switch between being inside and outside of his right foot without the partners bumping knees.

Double Reverse Spin

The man needs to rise at the end of 1, so that the lady can rise at the end of her heel turn. He also needs to take a big side step, and use some swing to get there. He uses the image of trying to spiral his head up to the ceiling.

Tipple Chassé to Right

Distinguish the shaping on the Running Finish and Tipple Chassé: On the Tipple Chassé, the man shape right at the end of the first step. On the fourth step step, S, the knee compresses for a change of direction, but the heel stays off the ground. Be careful to keep his head and center left through the second half of the Tipple Chassé.

Zig-Zag

This was characterized to be nearly identical to the Foxtrot Reverse Turn, but all slows, rise at the end of 3.

Class on Bronze Quickstep

Some points on technique:

• Lady needs to maintain "a strong elbow", referring to her left elbow, otherwise she will be difficult for the man to lead.
• Lady makes contact with the man below the rib cage, but not above, otherwise she is leaning against him, and cannot respond to his lead.
• On the Tipple Chassé, on the first slow step, the man begins shaping, bending his spine to the right. After the check step, he returns his spine to the left. The degree to which the direction of movement changes determines how much checking is done on the check step. To continue in a line down the floor, there is hardly any check at all.
• Keeping both feet in contact with the ground at all times is required for balance in the swing dances. Without this contact, there is a tendency, particularly when coming out of a rise, to come down abruptly and not smoothly.
• One way that the lady may determine whether a figure requires a lock or a chassé: if the timing is QQ, the step is elevated, and moving forward or back, it is a lock, and if it moves to the side, it is a chassé.

Lesson on Quickstep Technique

It's good to have a ritual to get into frame. On social dance floor, this could be brief, but the elements are still there.  In competitions, the ritual is dramatized. The 10-point system is described in details on Standard Technique page.

Natural Turn: first step, step straight.

On the natural pivot, the man needs to leave enough space between his legs for the woman to be able to step between, and that space needs to be maintained through the pivot.

The importance of the woman driving through on her forward steps was emphasized. Without that drive, she is not able to get around the man on the second half of the natural turn.

Class on Bronze Quickstep

Quickstep practice routine:

1. Natural Pivot Turn   
2. Quarter Turn to Right   
3. Progressive Chasse   
4. Forward Lock   
5. Natural Turn And Back Lock   
6. Tipple Chasse To Right   
7. Natural Spin Turn   
8. Heel Pivot (Quarter Turn To Left)   
9. Cross Chasse  

Three phases of movement in the swing dances. lower, move, and swing. We lower to gain speed, move on the slow step, and slow down as we rise and swing. The movement of the quickstep is like a roller coaster. We go down on the slow and pick up speed, and then go up on the quicks and slow down. The rise and swing is less than in waltz, as there isn't time for the full swing and rise of waltz.

There was a question about how the lady knows that a lock step is being led. The amount of rise on the quicks is what leads the difference between a lock step and passing the feet.