How important is a sense of rhythm?

A guy I sometimes dance with...

has some decent technique and skills. When practicing without music, he's great to dance with. But, when it comes to the actual music...it is like what I'm hearing is not playing in his head. It is always faster than the actual rhythmn of the song...I end up feeling like I was just dragged around. So...I think having rhythmn is a very important thing. It's kind of like people that are tone-deaf. They can try and try but never sing a song on key although they think they are doing it correctly. One of those mysteries of life I guess.

Ah ha . . . me thinks that someone has got it right, or at least thinks the way that I do.

Kevin says that "everyone can be trained to any task," and I agree. To a point! Anyone aspiring to be a dancer can be taught to count out the steps to a particular dance. The that person can be taught to listen to the drums or the slap of a bass guitar. Then, they can be further taught to apply those counts to hear the beat of that bass guitar, and subsequently move to the rhythm of the music being played. In time, who knows how far they could go?

Have you ever gone to the dance studio to practice your, say WCS, and another couple was there practicing their Waltz routine with Waltz music on? What did you do? Give up? Not practice? No, you probably counted out your steps. You sure as heck didn't have the rhythm of the Waltz dictating your movements, did you?.

Of course, there are exceptions to every situation. Not everyone could learn this way, and some individuals are just plain hopeless. But if this hopeless person just want to dance for the fun of, who in their right mind would want to discourage them? They may never ever compete, but then again, as witnessed above, not all of us "had rhythm" when we started to dance. And one of those above who said just that . . . let me tell you . . . they do have rhythm now! I'm a witness!