when I listen to music, it’s Swing that gives me that “can’t sit still” feeling. but I don’t know about Swing Dancing.
it seems there many different kinds. anyone got a primer for me?
when I listen to music, it’s Swing that gives me that “can’t sit still” feeling. but I don’t know about Swing Dancing.
it seems there many different kinds. anyone got a primer for me?
Just go to youtube and search “how to swing dance.” There’s plenty out there.
YouTube videos can be helpful, but they typically say very little about the underlying principles of swing dancing – frame, musicality, rhythm, and so forth. Nor do they typically say anything about the differences between the various swing dancing styles. They are useful in teaching a few moves, but that’s not a very good place to start. Experienced swing dancers would shudder at the notion of “teaching moves” without a good grasp of the underlying lead-follow principles, among other essentials.
I’d elaborate, but I’m beat from a weekend of swing dancing. Maybe some other time.
I did google and that’s how I know there are different styles - but I am not getting the basic difference from reading websites.
well, OK then!
maybe if you asked specific questions?
there are quite few kinds of swing dance, some of the differences are subtle. To me there are two major kinds of swing dance, west coast swing and lindy hop with all its variations and other dances of that era. Lindy Hop and West coast swing are quite similar but from what I have seen rarely do the two intermingle.
West Coast swing is done to eight counts, is very linear and from what I have seen is done to mostly more modern music that is 4/4 rhythm. I do not have a firm grasp on how it differs from Lindy Hop. From my understanding it is very linear and the basic step pattern is slightly different.
Lindy Hop is an eight count basic step but with 6 count variations (sometimes called east coast swing) also to music that is 4/4 rhythm. Good dancers easily incorporate other swing dances into thier dances as the music moves them, Lindy Hop, Charleston, East coast swing, and Balboa are some of the most popular where I am. Moves from hip=hop, salsa and tango can also be thrown in.
basically they are both lead/follow dances, the better dancers work on maintaining “frame” and "connection"The basic steps are pretty easy, it is learning the nuances as was said by a prevous poster that make the differnce. nuances of frame, connection, musicality.
So do you want to know about West Coast or about Lindy hop et al? Do you need to know the basic step patterns of each dance.
There are some regional dances like Carolina Shag so I guess we need to know what swing dance you want to know about and what you want to know.
One thin that’s worth keeping in mind is that swing is largely a social dance; which means go find people to dance with! I’d say it’s way better to pick the most common style in your area than to try to pick one you like and then find out that no one else knows it
That said, Lindy Hop (which is a pretty energetic, fast, big dance) is probably the most common in most places. Where I am (San Francisco), West Coast is pretty rare; East Coast (six count) is mostly danced by sprinkling bits in with Lindy, rather than as a separate thing. Balboa is also relatively common here; it’s another eight count, but much smaller and frequently faster than Lindy. Most people I know don’t get into Balboa until they’re already Liny dancers, and it’s frequently called a ‘swing dancer’s swing dance’ since it’s more about finesse than Lindy.
Your profile says you’re in rural Nebraska, and I’m not sure what your options are for social dancing, so another alternative is non-partner dances (all of the above are partner dances). These are usually referred to as simply jazz steps or some such, since they’re much looser than partner dances (don’t have to keep it followable!). Charleston is a pretty common one, although I found it difficult to learn; something about the knee/ankle movements did not come easily to me. Other than that, I’m not super familiar with solo dancing, but I will say that putting on some big band jazz and just dancing around the kitchen is super fun
basically, I know so little that I don’t know what to ask. but these posts were helpful.
I was hoping I could drive to civilization (Colorado or, less often, Cheyenne) once a week for lessons but I hope to relocate in 6 months or so. so it makes sense to wait and see what I find where I end up and learn what they do there.
I just know I like the music!
Denver has good swing dancing if you’re near there.
I used to be somewhat ingrained on the West Coast Swing convention circuit as a videographer and editor for this company:
www.swingdancestuff.com
Send them an email asking when there will be an event near you (within a state or two, I suppose). The atmosphere at the conventions are very pleasing and it’s all ages and all skill levels representing. There are tons of beginners workshops and instructional videos as far as the eye can see. I’m not a dancer so I can’t tell you whose videos are best, but just about every instructor sells them. It’s a great hobby/lifestyle if you hear a calling.
FTR, Lindy Hoppers mock West Coast Swing because it’s too slow for them. But it’s a friendly rivalry, if you wanna call it that.
thanks - I will check out that link. a convention sounds daunting for a beginner but I’ll see what’s out there. maybe I could plan a vacation around it or something - thanks!!
good info about the Lindy Hoppers.
the only way to learn it is to do it. Workshops are amazing, local classes are great. there are always workshops and exchanges (weekends of dance with no classes) going on. Once you get your feet wet so to speak and learnt he basics of lead/follow you can go from there to anywhere. I often when I travel google to see if there are any swing dances in the area to get my dance fix.
I love swing dance, I am not very good at it but I keep trying. My work keeps me away a lot but i keep my shoes in my car just in case I get free and can go to a class or dance. I plan to be like Frankie Manning… as long as I can walk, Ican dance and when I can’t walk anymore I will dnace in my chair! Frankie danced until a few months before his 95th birthday and women lined up to dance with him for a few steps every birthday.
Please ask questions about what you are interested in learning.
I’ll have more questions once I DO get my feet wet. so far they are dry.
what kind of swing dancing do you like best and why?
My wife and I actually took dance lessons at a local Fred Astaire Dance Studio and they teach East Coast and West Coast Swing. We prefer East Coast because we both move around more. West Coast Swing (at least how they taught it) seemed a lot of me standing in the middle as she went back and forth. We just touched on WC so there could be plenty of items where both partners move; that’s just out interpretation.
Personally, west coast.
But if the music you can’t sit still to is big band more, that’s more east coast and/or lindy hop. It’s fun.
Just a quick story, but years ago my Peruvian-born wife and I took some one night “Dancing 101” park district class. Us and a half dozen or so other couples, pretty much all Caucasians aside from her. She breezes through the rumba, tango, etc and the last dance was going to be some swing dance moves. She completely lost it for keeping up with the beat and rhythm while I had no issue. Spent the ride home (good naturedly) bitching about genetics and white people music and dancing
Blues (an off shoot from the lindy hop movement) is my absolute favorite as there is no basic step it is all lead/follow. And I really really like blues music.
Lindy Hop is my second favorite, a good “swing out”, one of the basic moves of Lindy hop feels just amazing and a good lead can make me feel like Ginger Rogers. I love the music and I get lost in a dance. I discovered when at a New York week of dancing, off the dance floor I was hobbling around from all of the extra walking, on the dance floor I completly forgot about my feet hurting. Lindy Hop can be really fast or really slow and everything in between.
East coast is fine, it is kind of a default dance, it tends to be the one everyone learns first and while it is fun, it can be monotonous. but even a beginner with a few basic turns can be a good dance. I used to love East coast becasue it was all that I knew. I have done East Coast for a very long time with a long break in the middle when I didn’t know anyone who did swing dance. I started learning Lindy hop about 5 years ago when i discovered the local group.
Charleston, is very bouncy and aerobic. I can handle it for a few measures but don’t like whole dance of it.
Balboa is for me, more difficult and there are few leads in my area who dance this. so about the time I get comfortable with it I don’t get to practise and I lose it.
Those are the more common swing dances of the historical types.
I have never really done West Coast as it feels confusing to me and the way it is taught in my area is contradictory to the way Lindy Hop is taught in my area and I don’t want to mess up my lindy Hop. But there is nothing wrong with West Coast swing if that is your thing but from my experience it is a different culture.
Both Kinds of swing dance have nationwide fan bases so it is really your prefernce and in your area the West Coast dancers may dance to 40’s swing. in my area the Lindy Hoppers dance to that style of swing music.
Just to let you know also, I am 55 female and about 50 lbs overweight with bad knees and a bad back. I live in Memphis so if you ever get to this area I can introduce you to some folks who are awesome teachers and will have you burning up the dance floor in no time.
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I may take you up on that! I have never been anywhere near TN but I know at least 3 wonderful people who live in the Nashville area that I would love to visit.
swing dancing: it’s in my future!
Lindy, because it is the only one I really know. I have danced Blues, but only a few times. As someone else said, there is less in the way of rules with Blues so it seems easier to just get away with stuff, as long as you are keeping the basic pulse.
As a Stockholmer I apparently (I didn’t know it when I started early last year) am blessed with some of the very best teachers (example: the lead in my very first lesson was Lennart Westerlund of Herräng Dance Camp and Harlem Hot Shots fame) and am only an hour or so on a bus from Herräng, Lindy Hop’s Mecca.
whoo hoo, I got to dance with Lennart in New York, not knowing who he was until afterwords. It was the most amazing dance, to me it was magic. Another example of a good lead making a poor follow look good. I hope to someday make it to Herrang.
I love Lennart the man just makes it look so effortless.
You may enjoy this Facebook group.