Re: Follow up to "Swing Dancing" (SOC)

Mark Balzer (m-balzer@STUDENTS.UIUC.EDU)
Fri, 21 Mar 1997 10:26:45 -0600

> On an off-shoot, in response to John Hayes' message and the one
> preceding on the same subject - Sure, go to the swing convention
> and enjoy. It is truly fun I gather, though I have never been to
> one. But please, do not believe for a moment that ballroom dancers
> dance over the music rather than to it. It is a thoughtless and
> an unsophisticated remark and completely disrespectful of a lot of
> ballroom dancers who try very hard and succeed at dancing to the
> music.

I don't think there was any disrespect intended in any of the previous
posts (see for yourself - they are archived on the DI web page). As I
understand the term "dancing over the music," it doesn't refer to dancing
"off-time." Rather it is used to describe dancing that ignores the
phrasing and subtleties present in the music.

> I agree the swing dancers learn to do that quite early,
> but the music is geared towards breaks, unlike ballroom music which
> is often smooth flowing.

Except for the awful strict-tempo elevator music, the songs that one dances
Waltz/Tango/Foxtrot/Quickstep to are very rich, musically. I direct you to
this web page for further study:

Frequently Asked Questions about Leading and Following
http://www.math.ucla.edu/~eijkhout/lead_follow/faq.html

look in the section called: Assorted topics,
for the chapters entitled: Hitting the Breaks
(it starts with a discussion of W/T/FT), and
Playing & Feeling The Music

> There is charm in every form of dancing -
> which is why I (try to) dance to country music, salsa/meringue ,
> swing and ballroom music and found that the experience and enjoyment
> derived from dancing transcends genres of music. Please keep this
> mind whilst you enjoy whatever form of dancing it is that you fancy.

I agree 100%

Mark