Swing has one name but encompasses many dances… Lindy Hop, Charleston, Balboa, Boogie Woogie and jive. Lindy Hop is the original street dance from 1930s Harlem and was a fusion of African and European dances.
The moves are joyful, smooth and solid and have a rhythmic eight count pulse that you can feel in your body. It has creativity and humour at its core and the music varies from Big and small bands to solo artists such as Louis Armstrong, Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald, Slim and Slam and more.
In 1927, when Charles Lindbergh piloted the Spirit of St Louis solo across the Atlantic, it is believed that the newspaper headlines declaring this event were adopted as the new name for the dance the ‘Lindy Hop’.
Why men love swing: ‘It chanaged my life…its so much better since i started Swing… and i have never felt so manly as i do on the dance floor’. It’s easy to impress the ladies with a few moves and you can dance to all kinds of music’. ‘I have met such amazing people’. ‘It’s more relaxed than many other styles of dancing’. ‘The classes and club are very friendly and we meet lots of great people’.
Why women love swing: ‘The fashion, accessories makeup and hair… and the guys are lovely.’ ‘I have made so many new friends’. ‘There is so much joy in dancing swing that it makes you forget about your troubles’.