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	Swango Blues Technique! Swango Blues is the smooth blend of the partner dances Swing (both Smooth Lindy Hop and West Coast Swing), modern Argentine Tango (Tango Nuevo or NeoTango), and Blues (both traditional and modern styles). For years before combining these dances, I studied them individually, and danced them regularly in their separate scenes. At some point I began to see similarities in the movements and the music, and so began to experiment with making new combinations. I chose to combine primarily modern versions of these dances that were smooth, relaxed, improvisational, and had similarities in posture-frame-connection. With this in mind, there are also more traditional styles of all these dances that I chose not to combine because of their extreme differences in styling. You can watch video examples of Swango Blues on the Videos page of this site. In each SB clip, you will see movements from all three dances smoothly combined to a variety of music, with moments of fusion occurring in the transitions. Styling will vary according to the song style. YouTube video preview of Chris & Jessica dancing Swango Blues to a Blues song on the new Fundamentals DVD: To build a strong base for evolving Swango Blues, I have focused on how each dance leads and follows weight changes from the torso. At first I removed non-essential dance styling to better see how the fundamental movements fit together (this can be added later to better complement the music). Then I modified some movements to smooth out the transitions. This is especially true of the Swing movements. Unlike Tango and Blues, in both Lindy Hop and West Coast Swing I have observed that many dancers do not lead and follow weight changes for every step. Usually the beginning and ending of each six or eight count swing movement only involves leading-following direction. For instance, the leader uses leverage to bring the follow in from open position, then leads some weight changes in the middle using compression and leverage, and lastly sends the follow back out again till leverage is achieved again at the end of the connection. It is rare to find leaders actually leading the follow to shift on to her left foot on the last two beats of a swing move, expecially in open position. Many Swing dancers simply memorize what foot to be on at the beginning and end of each movement. I think this developed in Swing dancing because it is difficult to lead open position weight changes at higher music tempos, and in most cases isn’t necessary anyway. With fast music, momentum will create the leverage needed, and good dancers can always adjust their feet between movements if they end up on the wrong foot. Chris & Jessica dancing Swango Blues to Underground Swing music (Goth, Funky, and NeoTango): However, I noticed that at lower music tempos it is beneficial to lead every weight change, because it increases the connection to your partner. I saw this can be done by leading the first and last steps as you would lead them in Tango, like forward and backward ochos, so there is connection on the sides of the slot, not just the ends. With practice this can also be done in open one-handed position. I then broke every Swing move down and figured out how to lead-follow them Tango style in both open and closed position. This is when everything fell into place, and the movements of Swing and Tango became interchangeable. This slight modification, which I believe is inherent in the Swing movements anyway, allows me to switch at any time from leading direction with triples to leading single foot weight changes. This is where the lines between the dances begin to blur, and fusion sometimes occurs spontaneously. Keep in mind that this technique is in the very early stages of its evolution. As I dance this more and more with my partners, we find some combinations that work, and some that don’t work. We keep what we like, and change or discard what we don’t like. Sometimes, new combinations we didn’t even consider are discovered. This is the beauty of exploring new dance territory. Click here to watch more Swango Blues video clips… Historical Influences Below is a brief introduction to some fundamentals of the main dances influencing Swango Blues. I highly recommend studying all these dances individually to further your understanding of their unique qualities and styling. I prefer to combine more modern styles of these dances because the music I like dancing to is more contemporary versions of swinging Jazz, Blues, and Tango. I also believe modern versions of these dances are more compatible with each other, because they began to incorporate modern dance principles. All of the dances listed below are characterized by a relaxed frame, bent knees (some styles bend more than others), leading and following that centers in the torso, maintaining connection through leverage and compression, and dancing primarily on the balls of the feet while sometimes rolling down to the heel with a full weight shift: Swing (Smooth Lindy Hop & West Coast Swing) – Lindy Hop originated in Harlem in the 30’s, and was popularized by dancers like Frankie Manning and Whiteys Lindy Hoppers. This original style of the dance evolved from a break-away Charleston, and was developed at the famous Savoy Ballroom. Dean Collins brought his style of Lindy Hop from New York to Los Angeles in the 40’s, and was featured in several movies of the time. As music changed and the style developed, it became smoother than previous versions, and a little more linear or slotted (some say to get a better camera view of the dancing in movies, although the slotting may have developed because of the crowded dance floors in California). There are historical reasons to believe that this smooth style of Lindy Hop (sometimes also called Hollywood Style) at some point branched off to become West Coast Swing. West Coast Swing (formerly called Western Swing) is the state dance of California, and danced to everything from contemporary Blues to Hip Hop. However, there are still many varieties of smooth and traditional Lindy Hop being danced on both coasts (and around the world) today. In SLH and WCS, the embrace varies from loose closed position to open break-away position, and triple steps are mainly used for turning and changing directions. One important difference between these two styles, however, is that WCS always moves backwards-forwards in a linear slot, while SLH has additional circular movements that are not confined to a slot. Other differences include more straightening of the legs in WCS, and the use of more rock steps in SLH. Fundamental movements are the linear Whip (WCS), over-rotated Whip (SLH), left and right Side Passes, Under-arm Turns, Tuck Turns, and Sugar Push. Additional styling includes footwork, slides, and spins. · Here are some YouTube video examples of Lindy Hop and West Coast Swing dancing (Note: these clips were chosen to show a progression from traditional Lindy Hop to modern Smooth Lindy Hop. Notice the similarities and differences to West Coast Swing): Traditional Lindy Hop danced by Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers – Dean Collins dancing his style of traditional Lindy Hop – Doug Silton & Sylvia Sykes dancing smooth Lindy Hop – Kevin & Carla casually dancing a very smooth Lindy Hop – Jordan & Tatiana dancing West Coast Swing – Tango Nuevo (NeoTango) – This modern style of Argentine Tango was developed by some now famous contemporary dancers (Fabian Salas & Gustavo Naveira) who wanted to remove unnecessary performance styling and choreographed movements that had been integrated into traditional Tango. In some ways they tried to bring Tango back to its street roots of being a relaxed social dance that is completely improvisational, and completely based on lead-follow. They developed a logical method for teaching Tango that is based on modern dance and movement principles. The embrace in this style of Tango varies from loose closed position to a close embrace. Movement is forward-backward, side-to-side, and circular, with some advanced movements that use both leverage (Colgadas), and compression (Volcadas). Fundamental movements are cross-foot stepping (Ochos), walking (Caminadas), and turning (Molinetis). Styling includes displacements (Sacadas), kicking between the legs (Ganchos), and whipping the legs (Boleros). · Here are some YouTube video examples of Tango Nuevo and NeoTango dancing: Fabian Salas Tango Nuevo Colgadas Demo – Sebastian Arce Tango Nuevo class at CITA – Fabian Salas dancing Tango Nuevo – Chicho Frumboli dancing Tango Nuevo – Homer Ladas dancing Neotango to Blues in SF – Blues (traditional & Modern) – This is a style of dancing done primarily to slow and medium tempo Blues and Jazz music. Before its current rise in popularity, this style was sometimes taught by a few instructors in the Lindy Hop scene, such as Steven & Virginie, Bill Borgida, Charlie & Heidi, etc. Over the last few years, however, there has been an effort by dancers around the country to research the historical movements done to traditional Blues music in the African-American community. Much of this is based on what little is available through rare old film footage in film clips of jook joints and Blues concerts, and of some early Jazz dance footage from The Spirit Moves. While having an equally long history, unlike Swing and Tango this dance never became a part of the larger national or international popular dance culture. Traditionally it was often called “Jookin”, while more recently it was sometimes referred to as “Dirty Dancing”, and was mainly confined to house parties and after hours dances. But now there has emerged some consensus of traditional movements and styling (as well as some modern variations), and there is an emerging Blues dance scene complete with workshops, exchanges, and dances. The embrace varies from loose closed position to a close embrace in some modern variations, and there are even times when dancers completely break away and come back together. Like Lindy Hop, movement is forward-backward, side-to-side, and circular. Fundamental movements include Slow Drag, Fish Tail, Shake & Bake, and Mess Around. Styling includes body isolations, especially in the hips and legs (Snake Hips), and waves through the whole torso (modern variations similar to Break Dance & Hip Hop movements). · Here are some YouTube video examples of Blues dancing: Al Minns and Leon James show some Snake Hips – Steven & Virginie dancing Blues – Rhythmic Arts Festival ’07 Slow Blues Finals – Solomon & Brenda dancing Blues – Cheap Thrills ’06 Speakeasy Blues Performance - Carolina Shag and DC Hand Dance – There are a couple regional Swing variations that I am currently very interested in exploring. Carolina Shag was developed in Myrtle Beach South Carolina as a dance primarily done to slower Motown, Soul, and R&B music. DC Hand Dancing is done to similar music, as well as to Hip Hop, and is still popular in the Northeast African-American community. There are some interesting similarities in these dances. Both are characterized by funky footwork and spins. Also, both dances have become popular on the West Coast Swing circuit, which has produced some interesting combinations. · Here are some YouTube video examples of Carolina Shag and DC Hand dancing: Michael & Leann dancing Carolina Shag – Marcus & Deonna dancing DC Hand Dance – Click here to watch more Swango Blues video clips…