One of the hardest things to figure out is setting the perfect embrace. It often feels like the embrace needs to be many things for many purposes, and all at once. While some people would rather just focus on an comfortable embrace and not care about function (or leading fancy moves), I would say your embrace still needs to be many things to be truly comfortable.
You wouldn’t think so but your embrace needs to be both ROUND & FLAT. Why?
ROUND embrace (elbows and arms more circular in front of you):
- Gives your partner the feeling of a hug (surrounded-ness), security, and clarity through containment. It also encourages, or I should say, allows you to make space for the circular lead used in smooth movements and melody play.
FLAT embrace (elbows and arms more to the side, horizontal):
- Gives your partner the feeling of presence, strength, size, and clarity through directness. It allows you to fully connect both upper body and lower for a direct linear lead for strong steps, change of direction, and rhythmic play.
So take a look at your embrace and see. Is it more flat or more round? What happens when you go to one extreme (or the other) and what happens when you find the perfect middle?
You want your embrace to feel both expanded AND surrounding to your partner.