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TYPES OF DANCES
Smooth Dances
Foxtrot |
Waltz | Tango |
Viennese Waltz |
Quickstep
Latin Dances
Rumba |
Cha Cha |
Bolero |
Mambo/Salsa
Merengue |
Samba |
Paso Doble
Rhythm Dances
East Coast Swing |
West Coast
Swing | Jive |
Hustle
Shag |
Polka | Country Western 2-Step
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Foxtrot |
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Speed |
30-34 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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The Foxtrot is a
slow dance from the 1920's created by Henry
Fox. Henry Fox had a simple rhythmical walk
to his dancing and it was originally adapted
as Fox's Trot. Since then, its simple
but elegant movements have made it the most popular "get
to know you" dance. The Foxtrot is a dance
that, more so than any other, pays back the
more time you put into it. As you first
learn the dance, you will see that it starts
off rather basic, but as you learn more
about the different ways to move, the
Foxtrot will start to blossom into a very
graceful display of sophistication.
Foxtrot Audio
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Waltz |
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Speed |
30-32 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
3/4 or 6/8 |
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The Waltz, with its ¾ rhythm and strong accent on the
first beat, was born in the suburbs of Vienna. When the dance was first
introduced in the early 19th century, people were shocked since it was the
first ballroom dance where the man put his hand on a woman's waist! But through
the music of Johann Strauss, the waltz gained in popularity and quickly became
one of the most popular dances of all. This easy and
graceful dance is still
commonly seen at weddings and other social events
today.
Waltz Audio
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Tango |
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Speed |
30-32 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
4/4 |
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The Tango, a sensual, dramatic dance,
was made famous by
Rudolph Valentino. It originated in Buenos Aires and was stylized by the Gauchos
in Argentina before making it to the United States. The Tango is known for
flexing steps and posed pauses. It is widely considered to be the "dancer's
dance," and has become even more popular due to its presence in
films like "The
Scent of a Woman," "True Lies," and "Evita."
Tango Audio
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Viennese Waltz |
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Speed |
54-56 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
3/4 or 6/8 |
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Very similar to
the Waltz in many respects, the Viennese
Waltz is
danced to a faster tempo of music. It still
holds true to the same grace and fluidity as
the Waltz, but lacks the same rise and fall
motion. Its technique is
difficult to learn and keeping it fluid is
even more difficult if the technique is not
implemented correctly. That is why this
dance is usually not taught at the beginner
level.
But if you put in the time to learning how
to move, you will definitely see a grand
reward as this is one of the most beautiful
dances to be seen twirling across the floor today.
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Quickstep |
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Speed |
48-52 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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The Quick Step
is a fast fun dance that really moves.
Usually danced to fast-paced big band music,
the Quick Step can best be describe as
beginner Foxtrot with a little too much
coffee. It's a dance that would seem a
little difficult to a fresh beginner but to
an intermediate Foxtrot dancer, Quick Step
is a quick learning experience to get
started. Its many maneuvers, graceful
glides, and syncopated jumps may prove a
little challenging, but rest assured,
practice makes perfect. Due to its very long
movements, the Quick Step requires a larger
dance floor than most other dances which is
why you will not see it danced at
traditional nightclubs.
Nonetheless, the Quick
Step is still one of the most fun and
exciting dances in the Smooth category, and
is definitely a must learn if you have the
space to dance it.
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Rumba |
|
Speed |
30-32 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
4/4 |
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The Rumba is a
sharp, slow and sensual Latin dance that
is often referred to as the dance of love. Its versatility in music
styles range from slower Latin rhythms to
the easy laid back tunes of the 50s. Rumba's
ability to be danced big or small have
helped make it the floor favorite whenever
you feel like dancing. A large variety of
steps, a little bit of hip motion, and
someone to do it all with are the key
reasons on why Rumba is such a popular dance
with beginners and advanced dancers alike.
It's a dance that can stay very simple or
become very elaborate, so it never loses its
appeal.
Rumba Audio
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Cha Cha |
|
Speed |
30-32 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
4/4 |
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The Cha Cha is a
fast and fun Latin dance that really gets
people's attention on the dance floor. Some may find it tricky to learn in
the beginning, but in a very short time, most find themselves tearing up
the floor with ease in this dance. Cha Cha
is danced to a wide variety of music varying
from medium paced Latin to even more modern
club style music. All in all, the sharp
movements added with Latin style and regular
changes of timing make this a very exciting
and fun dance to learn.
Cha Cha Audio
Clip
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Mambo/Salsa |
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Speed |
45-50 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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Mambo and Salsa
are almost one and the same dance.
Where Mambo is much more staccato and sharp,
focusing on using more of the dance floor
with wider steps, the Salsa is a bit more
smooth flowing, and focuses more on wraps,
twists, and spins in a tightly closed space.
Salsa is danced to faster Latin tempos,
with a lot of horns in the background and
Mambo's style of music is similar to a Swing
or Jive songs with a Latin style while
danced to slightly slower tempos. When it
comes to Latin nightclubs, you will be more
likely to hear Salsa music played back to
back. If you enjoy the nightlife, then this
is a must learn since Salsa is one of the
most popular dances in Charlotte's
nightclubs
today!
Salsa Audio
Clip
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Merengue |
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Speed |
29-32 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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Fast and
furious, the Merengue is the most basic of
all Latin dances. Danced to fast Latin or
Caribbean music, its simple movements, and
fast pace make it the perfect party dance to
have the most fun with the least amount of
space. Its numerous spins and wraps added to
the mix keep the dance interesting even
though the footwork remains elementary.
Merengue has two different styles that stick
out most of all; nightclub, and standard.
Where nightclub moves around more and has
many more wraps involved, the standard helps
to create sharper moves and fancier footwork
which is more tightly compacted. Although
nobody really knows the true origins of
Merengue, it is still one of the most fun
dances that beginners can master very
quickly.
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Samba |
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Speed |
52-56 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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The
spirited Samba always gets feet tapping!
Originally from Brazil, the festive and
carnival Samba was popularized in the movies
of Carmen Miranda. The Samba is
characterized by a steady bounce by flexing
and straightening the knees while weight is
transferred from the ball to the flat of the
foot. Unlike the other Latin dances, the
Samba travels around the floor using turning
boxes very similar to the Viennese Waltz.
The rolls, spins and rhythmical footwork of
the Samba makes this happy and bouncy dance
a joy to dance with a partner or even by
yourself!
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Bolero |
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Speed |
24-26 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
4/4 |
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Combining the
seductive style of Tango with the sexy style
of the Rumba and the smooth flow of the Waltz you
get a very slow and sensuous dance. The Bolero is a dance
that combines many other dances and moves to
very slow Latin rhythms, making every step
more beautiful than the last. Anyone
watching Bolero will see the grace and
beauty in the first 3 steps and the rest is
simply envy. The Bolero is
not usually available for beginners to
learn; working your way up to understanding
the techniques needed to learn Bolero will
make you a stronger dancer all around so
that
picking up Bolero later will be a cinch.
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Paso Doble |
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Speed |
58-60 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 or 6/8 |
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Paso Doble,
meaning "two steps," sums up
the basic footwork in a nutshell, although
that says nothing for the dance's highly
dramatic flair or intensity. The Paso Doble
is
usually danced to what we would think of as
bullfighting music. This dance portrays the
leader as the matador and the follower
as his cape to create a sharp, exciting and
dramatic performance. The most difficult
part of this dance is creating the attitude
which we love to watch so much, but until
you get that down, the patterns and
techniques will certainly keep you
entertained.
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East Coast
Swing |
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Speed |
34-36 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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The Swing started in the
1920s along with
the explosion of jazz music.
Swing has been known by many different names
including Jitterbug, Lindy Hop, Savoy and
now East
Coast Swing which is one of the most popular
dances we see today. Danced mostly to a faster pace
of classic rock music, the Swing gives
people a chance to really move on the dance
floor with almost an unlimited number of
ways to spin the ladies around. On top of
that you will see some really fancy
footwork, pivot turns, and a fun style that
keeps people coming back for more. East
Coast Swing is the foundation of all the
swing dances and one of the easiest to learn
for beginners.
Swing Audio
Clip
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West Coast
Swing |
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Speed |
28-32 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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Related to the
East Coast Swing,
the West Coast Swing is more earthy than its
counterpart. The West Coast Swing shows no bounce
and is very similar to the
Shag. You could say this dance is a hybrid
of the two, especially when looking
at more intermediate to advanced West Coast
with the use of syncopated and playful steps. The music for West
Coast Swing is also a lot more mellowed down
than East Coast making these two dances
almost night and day from each other. Most
people learning ECS and then transitioning
to WCS will usually find it a tricky hurdle to
overcome, but once it's done, West Coast
Swing quickly becomes a favorite.
Overall, the soft rock
tunes and smooth style, combined with a
variety of twists and turns, make this one a
fun addition to anyone's play list.
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Jive |
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Speed |
42-48 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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Simply put, Jive
can be described as EC Swing in fast
forward. Fast and bouncy, the Jive fuses EC
Swing with lots of kicks and spins keeping
the dance interesting. Due to its super
fast nature, the Jive is not usually
available to beginners and is more reserved
for the International circuit. Jive does
have a lot of good social use, but the
extensive kicking action makes it a hard
dance to perform on crowded dance floors. Instead of
Jive, the Jitterbug (Single Step Swing)
makes a great substitute for when the dance
floor gets too busy and because it moves to
the same music, you won't be sitting out any
dances. On the other hand, if you have the
time and patience (not to mention a strong
heart because this dance is fast) and have a pretty good
understanding in EC Swing, you should have
no problem getting this one off the ground
at all.
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Hustle |
|
Speed |
32-36 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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As Rock and Roll
faded out from the 50s and 60s, music that can only be described as funky was born
and with that came a new dance known as The
Hustle. At that same time, a Latin craze was
also sweeping through the nation bringing
dances like Cha Cha, Mambo, Merengue, and
Rumba. The very popular swing fused with the
wraps of the Merengue and created the Hustle as
we know it today. The most fun part about
this dance is the man gets to stand there
while he spins the lady continuously. Of
course, he still has to move occasionally to
adjust for the lady, and he still has some
fancy footwork he can do, but still the
Hustle remains a man's dance to lead and a
lady's dance to spin, making it tons of fun
for both.
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Carolina Shag |
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Speed |
28-34 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
If you have
never heard of this dance, that means that
you most likely don't live in the Carolinas
or have never been to Myrtle Beach before.
The Carolina Shag is a hometown treat for
us. It combines soft beach music with some
really fancy footwork and using what we call
"Mirror Steps", Shag dancers whether
beginners or advanced, can really look great
on any dance floor, err... beach. There is
no real theory on the origins of the Shag,
just location. It is known that Shag is a
direct descendant of the Swing due to the
similarity in the footwork, and it is
possible that the ones who made Swing famous
retired to the beach and substituted the
wild lifts with fancy footwork and what
looks like rubber knees. Either way the
dance that has been created is still a local
favorite to the Carolinas to this day.
Shag Audio
Clip
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Polka |
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Speed |
36-40 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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Polka is a
vivacious couple dance of Bohemian origin.
It began as a basic pattern of
hop-step-close-step; a lively Bohemian dance
tune in 2/4 time. The polka was originally a
Czech peasant dance, developed in Eastern
Bohemia (now part of Czechoslovakia).
Bohemian historians believe that the polka
was invented by a peasant girl (Anna Slezak,
in Labska Tynice in 1834) one Sunday for her
amusement. It was composed to a folk song "Strycek
Nimra Koupil Simla (Uncle Nimra brought a
white horse)." Anna called the step "Madera"
because of its quickness and liveliness. The
dance was first introduced into the
ballrooms of Prague in 1835. The name of the
dance (pulka) is Czech for
"half-step," referring to the rapid shift
from one foot to the other.
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Country Western 2-Step |
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Speed |
45-50 Measures Per Minute |
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Timing |
2/4 or 4/4 |
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The cowboy was
not the most limber of creatures. The long
hours in the saddle and strenuous work
produced dancers of questionable finesse. He
was not of a temperament to master intricate
dance steps or to gracefully lead a fair
maiden across the floor to the strains of a
fiddler's reel. Rather he would join a dance
with a wild whoop and a goat cry. The 2-Step
is a fast and fun dance which requires very
little more skill than the ability to walk
and the ability to lead (the latter of the
two being the more difficult). 2-Step
focuses on intricate turns, wraps and spins
while traveling in a straight line
counterclockwise around the dance floor.
Although the 2-Step was a rough and rugged
example of the traditional cowboy, today's
2-Step is much smoother flowing and has
incorporated many different elements from
other ballroom dances such as Foxtrot, Swing
and Quickstep. If you enjoy Country music,
then grab your hat, throw on some boots and
give a big Yee Haw for Country 2-Step.
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