Ceroc Scotland Forum - View Single Post - Does the music style dictate the dance style?

**DavidB** · 4th-May-2006, 01:58 PM

Some dance styles are very intricately linked to the style of the music, eg Argentine Tango

Other dance styles are linked to features of the music eg Lindy is not linked to 'Swing music', but rather music that swings. This obviously includes swing music, but also some blues and even some hip-hop.

Modern Jive is only linked to one feature in the music - the downbeat. Any music style that has a regular downbeat can be jived to. This means you *can* jive to a waltz, if you really wanted to. However it makes quite a few modern RnB tracks very difficult, as many beats are delayed or missed. It is usually the upbeats that are kept constant in RnB, not the downbeats.

What you do between the downbeats in Modern Jive is up to you and your partner. The fact that other styles specify what you should do is irrelevant. They don't own the copyright on footwork. If you do something from another style, but still keep to the main downbeat structure of Modern Jive, then you are still doing Modern Jive.

Of course the style of the song isn't everything. The tempo is a big consideration. Modern Jive is based on walking, and there is a limit to how fast you can walk. Start running and you immediately hit the limit of how fast a lady can follow, and how much momentum she can control. In Lindy and East Coast Swing there is a 'pause' between each move that allows the momentum to be controlled, and the lady to follow the lead without losing connection/dislocating her shoulder.

Dancing to slow music is another matter altogether. People can walk very slowly. The difficult thing is making it feel good, and that takes practice. A couple of years ago, Fire (112 bpm) would be the slowest track you might hear. But now 100bpm is not uncommon at some venues.

So no, you can't do Modern Jive to everything. But the limitations are based on practical considerations, and your ability as a dancer, and not on someone else's opinion. (If everyone had to worry about what I thought, then there would only be 6 couples in the world allowed to do Lindy. And no-one allowed to do Ballroom Jive.)

I enjoy dancing to music I like. As long as I'm enjoying it, and my partner is enjoying it, I don't care what anyone else thinks. If you don't like dancing a particular style to a particular track, then no-one is forcing you. The only consideration you need to make to someone else is floorcraft. You don't need to worry about what they think is right or wrong. What looks better is immaterial outside a competition or a show. Yes a good tango couple might look better dancing to a tango track than a jive couple. But that jive couple (hopefully) feel better dancing to it than sitting down.

Leave the pigeon-holes for the pigeons.

4th-May-2006, 01:58 PM	#1 (permalink)
DavidB The Oracle Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 2,140 Status: working too hard Rep Power: 5 Rep.: 1437	Does the music style dictate the dance style? Some dance styles are very intricately linked to the style of the music, eg Argentine Tango Other dance styles are linked to features of the music eg Lindy is not linked to 'Swing music', but rather music that swings. This obviously includes swing music, but also some blues and even some hip-hop. Modern Jive is only linked to one feature in the music - the downbeat. Any music style that has a regular downbeat can be jived to. This means you can jive to a waltz, if you really wanted to. However it makes quite a few modern RnB tracks very difficult, as many beats are delayed or missed. It is usually the upbeats that are kept constant in RnB, not the downbeats. What you do between the downbeats in Modern Jive is up to you and your partner. The fact that other styles specify what you should do is irrelevant. They don't own the copyright on footwork. If you do something from another style, but still keep to the main downbeat structure of Modern Jive, then you are still doing Modern Jive. Of course the style of the song isn't everything. The tempo is a big consideration. Modern Jive is based on walking, and there is a limit to how fast you can walk. Start running and you immediately hit the limit of how fast a lady can follow, and how much momentum she can control. In Lindy and East Coast Swing there is a 'pause' between each move that allows the momentum to be controlled, and the lady to follow the lead without losing connection/dislocating her shoulder. Dancing to slow music is another matter altogether. People can walk very slowly. The difficult thing is making it feel good, and that takes practice. A couple of years ago, Fire (112 bpm) would be the slowest track you might hear. But now 100bpm is not uncommon at some venues. So no, you can't do Modern Jive to everything. But the limitations are based on practical considerations, and your ability as a dancer, and not on someone else's opinion. (If everyone had to worry about what I thought, then there would only be 6 couples in the world allowed to do Lindy. And no-one allowed to do Ballroom Jive.) I enjoy dancing to music I like. As long as I'm enjoying it, and my partner is enjoying it, I don't care what anyone else thinks. If you don't like dancing a particular style to a particular track, then no-one is forcing you. The only consideration you need to make to someone else is floorcraft. You don't need to worry about what they think is right or wrong. What looks better is immaterial outside a competition or a show. Yes a good tango couple might look better dancing to a tango track than a jive couple. But that jive couple (hopefully) feel better dancing to it than sitting down. Leave the pigeon-holes for the pigeons.