Sharp versus soft lead

February 1, 2006

The most important thing about leading is that the intent of the lead should be clear. Given that is there an inherent superiority of a soft lead over a sharp lead or vice versa? I have heard that less experienced follower generally need stronger lead although this does not seem universally true; I find that some newbie followers take very well to soft leads while some followers who have been dancing for a long time still seem to require fairly forceful lead. What is probably true is that as followers get better, they require (and I think often prefer) less forceful leads.

So is it best to use minimal possible force in leading while still being clear with the lead? If so, should leaders try to do is to learn to minimize forcefulness in their leads and perhaps even try to stretch the ability of their dance partner to become responsive to ever softer leads? Conversely, should followers try to recognize and distinguish ever finer differences in reading leads as part of their training to get better?

I thought I'm more likely to hear concurring or opposing views in a real forum, so I posted this question last night on the londonsalsa.co.uk forum. Go there to see other people's opinion this subject.