Mr. ??, I just wanted to point out that Tara asked a very simple question! what does CBMP means? being a woman I assumed and made an a** of miself thinking that the answer should have been Contra Body Movement Position... I'm sorry if I Am simple minded!!!. Lia

Dronak put in a nice concise description. I just wanted to add that CBMP may have the feet crossing line, or in line with each other. So if a step description mentions CBMP, don't feel like you have to struggle to get your feet super-crossed. It's description of foot position and should just be enough to "feel right".

(seen students get themselves all twisted up trying to really show CBMP)

I'm not _arguing_ that CBMP can be feet in line - it's right there in the technique book, and was stressed to me as I was preparing for exams, since most people say it's a cross and leave it at that, and that's not the whole answer.

I don't have The Book (lol) with me at the moment, or I'd cite the passage.

And Jonathon as usually great description - I was about to jump in and say CBM & CBMP are often found together but are not necessarily so - but you covered it! Thanks for letting the rest of us rest our heads again, secure in the knowledge that another nagging question has been well addressed!

Stands for Contrary Body Movement Position.

The concept is often used a lot more in International Standard dancing and American Smooth
dancing than any other dance genre. The concept, CBM (Contrary Body
Movement), is used often as well as the CBMP acronym.

Without getting into too much technical concepts, let me tell you what
CBMP is....

Basically, it is the position achieved when the
dancer brings the foot forward or backward and brings out
the part of the hip leading to the free foot
at the same time. For example, in the Left Turn in waltz, which has six
steps for each beat, the leader
dancer moves forward with his LF and brings the R hip to the right at
the same time (on the first step), and on the fourth step, the leader goes
back on the RF and brings the L hip out (although backwards) at the
same time.

Hope this helps. Bringing the hips out in CBMP is important, especially in the basic turns in Standard and Smooth, because the follower will know
that she has to turn.


ë

Not a totally correct image but it might help a beginner conceptualize:

CBM John Wayne walking (but to too extreme)

CBMP After taking one step John Wayne hears a villian and freezes on the spot.

Sorry everyone. I taught elementary school.

OB

I think it's more accurate to say that CBMP doesn't necessarily cause or result from a turning movement, however, it can.

The concepts of CBM (a type of movement) and CBMP (a position of the feet) are neither mutually inclusive nor exclusive. Either can occur with or without the other. For example:

CBM without CBMP: The first step of most turning figures (eg Left Box, Right Box, etc).

CBMP without CBM: Any outside partner step without rotation (eg Forward or Back Lock, Feather/Continuity Finish, etc).

Both occurring together: Any outside partner step commencing rotation (eg Natural Turn commenced O.P., Running Finish, etc).

Neither occurring: Take your pick of any sideways or diagonal movement.



Usually a figure description will specify how far one foot should cross over the path of the other in CBMP. "Forward in CBMP" means to step directly along the path, while "Forward & Across in CBMP" means to step across the path (but still in a forward direction). This is an important distinction, and should be noted when reading technical charts.

Regards,
Jonathan

Out of twelve replies only SocialDancer answered tara's question...CBMP(Contra body movement position), actually I got a great lesson from the responses... THANK YOU!!!

Perhaps all the original poster needed was the expansion of the acronym. However, I don't think so. As ?? notes just saying what an abbreviation stands for isn't of much help, especially if the person is a beginner and still learning a lot of the basics. I bet that if no one else replied with some explanations about what CBMP is and how to do it, the original posted would have followed up with "OK, now I know what CBMP stands for. How do you do it?" So the additional replies by myself and others were almost certainly made in anticipation of that follow up question. We figured it was coming anyway, so we decided to answer it before it was asked. There's really no problem with that. And if it was more information that the original posted needed or could use at the moment, he/she can always file it away for future reference. Years ago I remember taking a dance workshop that I felt was too advanced for me (after it had already started that is) and a fellow club member gave me that advice. It's a rare opportunity to learn from a teacher I normally wouldn't, so I might as well stay, do the best I can now, and file away what I can't use now for future use. Same idea. The additional information is almost always helpful -- if you can't use it all right now, try to store it away and bring it up again later when you can make better use of it.

--
James Marshall
marshall@astro.umd.edu
http://www.astro.umd.edu/~marshall

SocialDancer is probably right that there's a dictionary on this site that explains it. You'll also see CBM, same acronym just without the "Position" part. It's not always clear what the difference is, so I'll try to help a bit in case you need it. As I recall, you can use the acronyms to tell you the main difference between the two: CBM is a movement while CBMP is a position. CBM is typically done by stepping with one leg and moving the opposite side of the body with it (e.g., fwd LF, RS moves fwd). The step is normal, you move your side with it. CBMP is usually achieved by stepping one foot somewhat across the line of the other which will pretty naturally end up bringing the opposite side of the body forward. You end up with a similar end effect, but obtained in different ways. Tango's got CBMP all over the place because of the way standard tango walks are done. If I've accidentally made a mistake here, I'm sure someone can correct it, but I believe this is a pretty good way of distinguishing between CBM and CBMP.

--
James Marshall
marshall@astro.umd.edu
http://www.astro.umd.edu/~marshall

Of course it's clear the questioner is a relative newcomer to the technicalities of ballroom - that's especially why just stating what the acronym stands for doesn't help at all (SocialDancer did refer to other info too, yes).

I took exception to your saying that the other responses didn't answer the question, when they fleshed it out - and you can't have 12 people saying what it stands for!

I am a pretty good lead but a better follower - I'm female too. But that doesn't mean that I don't think it's necessary to explain a term rather than throw out a phrase that means just as little as the acronym itself.