About Our Dances

Swingkatten offers classes and socials in a wide variety of swing era dances, but what are their characteristics? Learn more about our dances here!

Lindy Hop

Lindy hop is a fast-paced couples dance that is danced with a lot of joy and energy to swinging jazz music, called swing music, at different tempos. The dance emerged among the black population in the Harlem district of New York and had its heyday in the 1930s and 1940s. Lindy hop is a varied dance with many different figures/movements, which also leaves a lot of room for improvisation for both followers and leaders.

Lindy hop also includes acrobatic elements where one partner can fly in the air, but usually only at shows and competitions. In regular social dance, both partners stay on the ground. Lindy hop is danced alternately in a closed position (the leader has one hand on their followers back and the follower one hand on the shoulder of their partner) and open (where you hold each other only by the hand).

Balboa

Balboa is a couples dance that is also danced to swing music, but with much shorter steps. There are two styles, one where you dance close to each other with contact chest to chest (Pure Bal) and the other where you dance close to each other and in open position (Bal Swing). Balboa can be danced to different tempos but more often to faster swing music.

Balboa has its origins in Southern California on the Balboa Peninsula where during the 1920s it became very crowded on the dance floors and people started dancing on the spot to the swing music.

Blues Dance

Blues dance is a couples dance that is often danced to blues music or slower jazz music. The dance is based on a couple of simple basic steps that are varied with creative interpretations of the music and style-specific steps – communication and creative exchange with the dance partner is a major source of inspiration in the dance.

Blues dance is an umbrella concept for a large family of different dances that have developed over time along with the different styles of blues music, there are therefore many different styles (idiom dances) you can learn. Blues dancing can be danced in close embrace (like a hug), in a closed position (the leader has a hand on his back and the follower a hand on the shoulder of his partner) or that you only hold one hand. Blues can also be danced solo.

Boogie Woogie

Boogie woogie is a fast-paced couple dance that is danced to rock’n’roll and other music styles such as rhythm ‘n’ blues and rockabilly. It is a dance that developed from lindy hop when a new type of music came out in the 40s and 50s.

The dance can be varied from being elegant and sensual at a slow pace to being cool, raw and captivating to fast music. It is danced like lindy hop; alternately in closed position (the leader has one hand on their followers back and the follower one hand on the shoulder of their partner) and open (where you hold each other only by the hand).

Tap

Tap is a solo dance that most people can probably see in front of them. With step irons on both the heel and front of the shoes, you can dance to wonderful rhythms. Tap is both dance and music in one, often with improvisation. It is a good complement to other dances because it is a good training in rhythm, coordination and balance.

In Swingkatten, it is the tap dance from the first half of the twentieth century that sets the tone. Rhythms and step combinations appear in many of Swingkatten’s other dances. It is excellent to start with shoes with a hard sole.

Authentic Jazz

Authentic jazz is a solo dance that is danced to jazz music with a playful and improvisational repertoire. It has its origins, like lindy hop, in 1930s Harlem. Jazz is a very good complement to couples swing dance as you learn, among other things, body control, balance and coordination. It is also possible to add steps from jazz to lindy hop.

Authentic jazz can be danced both improvised and as choreographed dance.