Dance Descriptions
Basically, West Coast Swing consists of 6-beat and 8-beat patterns executed in a slot area on the dance floor, and can be danced to a variety of styles of music. It has enjoyed a rise in popularity in the last few years, due partly to the work of the U.S. Open Swing Dance Championships and the now-defunct United States Swing Dance Council.
During the late 40's or early 50's, another form of swing dancing appeared on the scene: East Coast Swing. It is almost impossible to find anything written on this dance, probably because it wasn't really a new dance. East Coast Swing is nothing more than the Lindy Hop.
Shag
Unlike other musical-dependant social developments primarily associated with the Sixties, Shag music (often called "beach music") didn't have a scene to spring from, no primary city of development. Of course, the easygoing beach dances that used the name had a point of origin - the beaches of South Carolina, where white kids had broken the color barrier as early as the 1930s by convincing local DJs to add rhythm and blues to their lists. However, there were no bands dedicated to shag music during the movement's zenith in the mid-60s. Shag was one of those rare cultural events that picked its own music after the fact.
Waltz
The introduction of the Waltz was the scandal of 19th century English society. Never before had a man and woman danced publicly in a virtual embrace. Fortunately the grace and beauty of the Waltz were noticed, and English society, so quick to denounce the dance, eventually "embraced" it. In fact, Queen Victoria was an exquisite ballroom dancer who developed a passion for the Waltz. Johann Strauss can be credited with the persistence of the Waltz in mainstream ballroom dancing with his fast paced Waltz compositions that paved the way for the quicker Viennese style. In America the Waltz tempo slowed to form a more smooth and graceful gliding dance with a gentle "rise and fall" motion. Today the Waltz persists as the oldest of ballroom dances and perhaps the best loved. The Waltz is unique in that it is the only ballroom dance written in 3/4 time. There are three beats to each measure, counted as "1-2-3" or "quick-quick-quick." Typically, there are three steps of equal duration per measure, with the Hesitation being the exception. The lead foot alternates with each measure (ie, Left-2-3-Right-2-3). Because of this, Waltz combinations are usually written in a series of six steps. For example, the man will begin the first pattern as LRL (left-right-left) and the second as RLR (right-left-right), for a total of six steps.
Salsa
Salsa is not easily defined. Who invented salsa? The Cubans, Puerto Ricans? Salsa is a distillation of many Latin and Afro-Caribbean dances. Each played a large part in its evolution.
Salsa is similar to Mambo in that both have a pattern of six steps danced over eight counts of music. The dances share many of the same moves. In Salsa, turns have become an important feature, so the overall look and feels are quite different form those of Mambo. Mambo moves generally forward and backward, whereas, Salsa has more of a side to side feel.
Rumba
Rumba is the spirit and soul of Latin American music and dance. The fascinating rhythms and bodily expressions make the Rumba one of the most popular ballroom dances. With only a transfer of weight from one foot to the other on beat 1 of each bar, and the absence of an actual step on this beat, the dance has developed a very sensual character. Beat 1 is a strong beat of the music, but all that moves on that beat are the hips, so the music emphasizes the dancing of the hips. This together with the slow tempo of the music (116 beats/minute) makes the dance very romantic. Steps are actually taken on beats 2, 3, and 4. Weight transfer and turns are performed on the intervening half beats. Again, as in the Samba, the weight is kept forward, with forward steps taken toe-flat, and with minimal movement of the upper torso throughout.
Hip Hop or called, Funk
Today, many dance studio offer hip hop classes in which they practice elements of various hip hop dances, often mixing them with more structured dance styles such as Jazz. As hip hop is such a broad genre it gives the choreographer much freedom and room for personal interpretation, allowing them to be more creative.
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