Dancing is an art form that has continually evolved over the years but it has been deeply attached with humans and society. Hence, partner dances have become an integral core of this art form and might even have deep spiritual, cultural, or social meaning, depending on which particular part of the world it originated.

In the case of partner dancing, two individuals perform coordinated dance choreography. However, there are some dance forms that require each partner to perform individually.

Concept of Leader and Follower

Just like in a social setting, partner dances also incorporate roles into each participant. The man is often assigned as the “leader”, while the woman is the “follower”. These two individuals maintain a connection all throughout the dance, thus making it more of a social experience than just a simple act of dancing.

Types of Dance Partner Connections

There are different types of connection that is established between two dancing partners during a particular dance routine. Below are two of general forms of connection between two dancing partnerrs:

• Dance handhold. In this type of dance, the connection between both partners is rather loose.

• Dance frame. In other types of dance connection, there is body contact involving that connection. Hence, there are certain restrictions to your body position during dance sequence. A dance frame is relegated to each dancer, which makes it a crucial concept to each dancing partner.

Dances with Same Sex Partners

The typical idea with partner dances is that it often involves two individuals of the opposite sex, which is a type of dance involving man and woman. But there are various types of partner dancing that involve two individuals of the same sex, particularly in several western societies.

It is still treated unusual by outsiders though, while the idea of both women dancing together is more acceptable as compared to that of two men. But as more of these types of dancing are becoming more prevalent, this has been gradually accepted by the general society, especially in social situations wherein there are insufficient partners of the opposite sex. Such dances do not even take into account the sexual orientation of individuals involved during dance, while most have adapted a “comedy value” to them.

Double Partner Dance

In this type of partner dances, there are three persons involved and dancing together. It could either be one man with two women, or one woman with two men. This type of partner dancing is only done for social dancing with significant demographic disproportion amongst the two sexes. Hence, this was quite common during the years of war wherein there is not enough women in the army, or the civilians only had women as dancers.

It was not until during the 1980s though that double partner dances was officially acknowledged as a type of partner dancing. It quickly became popular amongst Hustle, Swing, Ceroc, and Salsa dancing communities. In most cases, only one serves as a leader and the two other dancing partners are mere followers. Nowadays, you will also find several folk dances that are partnered after this setup, but it typically involves one man and two women.

Style Of Modern Ballet

For those people who do not know much about modern ballet, it is actually a form of dance that traces its roots on influences made by both classical ballet and modern dance styles. Although it does not have a specific, well-defined “technique” that would differentiate it from classical ballet, it does take certain techniques from classical ballet, such as the pointework, and combines it with the fewer restrictions of body movement and range of motion that modern dance styles offer.

Usually, modern ballet uses turned-in positions, as well as more innovative styles and moves. This means that the dancer is able to interpret and use ballet concepts and apply them in more modern styles.

Origin Of Modern Ballet

Modern ballet is believed to have been influenced by George Balanchine, a person considered to be the pioneer developer of the modern ballet dance style. His style of modern ballet actually uses different techniques, such as flexing hands and legs, using off-balanced positions, and the turned-in legs. His style also uses different non-classical costumes, such as tunics, unitards and leotards. Later on, Balanchine’s style of ballet developed into a style that was influenced by Baryshnikov, and then developed into a more modern and contemporary style of ballet.

Similarities With Classical Ballet

As mentioned earlier, modern ballet has taken some things from classical ballet, which is why it isn’t that far fetched to think that there are some certain similarities between them. One of their similarities is that both dance styles uses the French language for some of their dance terms and vocabularies. Both dance styles uses well trained dancers that are equipped in terms of technique and performance. Also, both dance styles have a very strong affinity and connection to music.

Difference With Classical Ballet

Although both dance styles are pretty similar in a couple of things, they do have certain differences that helps create a distinction between the two dance styles. One of the main distinction between the two styles is that modern ballet focuses more on the movement of the dancers instead of the storyline of the performance.

In terms of style, modern ballet does not focus too much on symmetry, as evidenced on how modern ballet performances seem to disregard the balance on the stage. Also, modern ballet dancers allow their body to twist and bend and curve as they dance, whereas classical ballet dancers try to maintain an upright posture by keeping their backs straight.

Which Is Better?

Although these two ballet dance styles are pretty different from each other, they actually both have their own good aspects and bad characteristics. It all boils down to personal preference. You just need to pick one that would work best for your style of dance.

If you ask them what else do they know about mambo, aside from the fact that it is a certain type of dance, they probably won’t be able to tell you anything else, much less describe clearly how the mambo dance style is performed. Fortunately for you, this article will provide you with some information about this particular dance style. If you want to learn more about it, simply read this article.

Mambo Dance

For those of you who don’t know, mambo dance is actually a popular style of dance that exudes sensuality. This might probably be one of the reasons why a lot of people want to learn how to dance this particular dance style. This particular dance style is actually rooted to Cuban and African rhythms. The name itself actually refers to a certain type of drum called the Bantu drum. These drums were normally used during sacred rituals, hence the name mambo, which literally means “conversation with the Gods.”

History

The mambo dance style is a Cuban or Latin dance style that is directly associated with mambo music, which was created by Cachao and was popularized in the United States by the different Jazz musicians that were playing in different casinos back in the 1930’s. This was the music that was used to entertain the customers that visited these casinos. Perez Prado then came up with the mambo dance style as he was figuring out what type of dance to use for mambo music. The mambo music and the dance appealed very well with the mainstream American crowd, hence, its popularity. The mambo dance and music was especially popular in New York city, as well as in Miami and San Francisco.

Mambo Style

The mambo style of dance is actually characterized by the dancer’s different hip movements being done while he or she is moving back and forth along with the beat. This particular movement would create a smooth motion that follows the rhythmic pattern of the music. The basic mambo dance is translated in music using the time of 4/4. However, there are times that the dancer is required to pause or hold a position. The 4/4 beat is then followed by a quick-quick-slow movement, all in sync with the music.

Modern Mambo

The modern mambo is considered by some as the creation of the New York music and dance scene, especially since some New York dancers added their own flair to the clave of the mambo dance pattern by incorporating steps form jazz, swing and tap into the routine.

Essence Of Mambo

Since mambo is basically a sensual dance, a lot of modern mambo dancers try to incorporate slow but sensual moves instead of fast, dramatic and flowing dance patterns in their routines. In order to truly dance mambo the right way, a dancer must fully understand the sensuality of the dance, and he or she must be able to exhibit it even without the use of flashy moves, but more of graceful and slower dance moves.

This form of dance is commonly associated with Scottish and Irish dance music, but it actually originated from England during the sixteenth century. The dance was actually performed in 2/4 times. Since then, it has taken different forms and adaptation in a variety of time signatures. The ‘jig’ is actually divided into different forms, all of which would be discussed in this article.

Light Jig

Among all the different types of jigs, the light jig is considered to be the fastest as it is performed in 6/8 times. In this particular form of jig, your feet are rarely off the ground for a long period of time. This is so because the steps in this dance are relatively fast, at over 116 speeds at feiseanna.

Each light jig step can actually vary with each dance school and with each teacher, but there are certain standard steps or movements that can be used in almost all forms of light jigs, and that step is referred to as the rise and grind, or rising step. What you do to perform this step is basically place your weight on your first foot, then raise your second foot off the floor, once you have done this, you simply perform two hops on your first foot, or on the foot that is still on the ground.

As soon as you take your second hop, you then drop your second foot and bring it at the back of your first foot, or the foot that did the two hops. Once you have done this, you simply need to shift your weight from your first foot to your second foot while letting your first foot remain in the air after the second hop. There is usually a small delay during the hop and the hop back.

Single Jigs

From the fastest form of jig, we now proceed to the least common one. The single jigs considered to be the least common among the jig dances because it uses a not so common time signature, which is 12/8 at times, while normally it uses 6/8. This is so because this type of jig follows a musical pattern of a eighth note following a quarter note.

Slip Jig

The slip jigs is considered to be a bit longer than the light jig because it uses a longer time signature than the light jig. The time signature that the slip jig uses is actually 9/8 time, although the dance is performed with a music that has basically similar number of bars to a light jig. This form of jig is considered by some as ‘the ballet of jigs’ as the dancers often perform this dance while they are high up on their toes.

Treble Jigs

Treble jigs are the only form of jigs that are performed wherein the performer is wearing hard shoes, allowing the performer to do certain moves and steps, such as clicks, stomps, and trebles. Beginners usually do this dance in a traditional speed, while more advanced performers perform the slow, non-traditional treble jig.

Hop Jigs

Hop jigs is probably one of the more problematic forms of jigs to describe, as a lot of people often confuse it with other forms of jigs, such as slip jig, or single jig. Some basically identify this form of jig through its time signature, which is 9/8 time.

What Is Hip Hop Dance?

Hip Hop dance actually refers to a form of urban ethnic dance that is performed to different styles of hip hop music. Although Hip Hop dance has some pretty basic forms or styles, it is actually a dance style that involves a lot of improvisation or ‘freestyle’ dancing. This is where Hip Hop dancers are able to put their personal touch and flavor into their dance routines. Hip Hop dancers often times engage in what we call as ‘battles’ wherein they perform dance moves and routines against another dancer, trying to outdo each other in their dance techniques. Once a battle begins, a cipher, which is a circular space that surrounds the dancers battling, is formed. All these components actually make the core of Hip Hop dance.

History Of Hip Hop Dance

Hip Hop dance made its mark early in the 1900’s when it became a part of the Hip Hop culture, more specifically when people living in the Bronx, New York, began dancing it on the streets, especially when professional Hip Hop dance crews and groups began to form and compete against one another.

Hip Hop dance got even more exposure when some of their moves, such as the ‘running man’ and the ‘cabbage patch’, invaded into the mainstream dance culture. These were all made possible by the dedication and hard work by the different breaking, locking and popping dance groups and crews that influenced Hip Hop dance as we know it today. There are actually three different Hip Hop styles of dance that a person can do, and they are breaking, locking and popping.

Breaking

The Hip Hop dance style ‘breaking’, it actually has four basic forms that compose its foundation in order for you to be able to perform this particular style of dance. The four basic moves are the toprock, which are foot movements done while the dancer is standing up, downrock, which are foot movements done while the dancer is down on the floor while using his hands to support his entire weight, freezes, which are poses done by the dancer on his hands, and power moves, which are basically acrobatic moves that are fairly difficult to perform.

Locking

As the name implies, locking involves locking your body during a dance routine. A dancer is able to achieve this by simply pausing for a brief moment and then moving again after. This temporary holding of position is what is called a lock, and is usually performed together with popping movements.

Popping

The last style of Hip Hop dance, popping involves a jerking motion of the body which is achieved when a dancer contracts and then relaxes his muscles instantly. These pops or hits are actually timed and synchronized together with the music, which means that each movement is done in rhythm.

What Is Disco?

Disco is actually a dance music genre that became fairly popular during the mid to late 70’s. This was actually a reaction directed against the domination of rock in the mainstream music scene, as well as the dance music’s demonetization during that time. Disco was originally popular amongst the black gay community, but was introduced into the mainstream music culture as it was picked up by New York City’s white gay clubs. Even women and Latino’s were hitched to Disco later on.

Disco Sounds

Disco is actually influenced by a lot of different music, which would originally include soul and funk music. Usually, music that has a “four-on-the-floor” steady beat with an eighth note or sixteenth note pattern with soaring vocals, electric bass lines that are syncopated but prominent, and an off-beat open hi-hat, are the music that are associated with Disco. You might even notice that certain disco tracks have other instruments in the background as well, such as strings, electronic pianos, horns and electric guitars, to add a few more lush sounds to the music. These make the music very easy to dance to.

Disco Dancing Basics

When dancing Disco, there are actually no real rules, however, there are certain basic disco dance moves that you can do, especially if you do not exactly know how to dance Disco. The most basic form of Disco dancing is simply performing a simple pattern of moving from side to side, usually, a pattern of moving from left to right to left again. You simply move from side to side in a rhythmic pattern. Just make sure that you follow the beat of the music, or you would look a bit silly. Step to the right, then bring your feet together, then step to the left, then bring your feet together again. This is practically the most basic steps that you can make when dancing Disco.

Advance Disco Dancing

Once you have the most basic Disco dancing pattern, you can now proceed to dancing more complicated dance moves. Aside from simply moving from side to side, you can also add certain moves to make your dance pattern a bit more flavorful. You can add a little bit of spin to the end of your dance pattern. Simply pick a side where you want to spin to, plant your lead foot on the floor, raise your heel, and simply turn your body. Lifting your heel ensures that you spin on the ball of your foot.

Aside from that, you could also add a couple of hand gestures and hand movements along with your dance pattern. Just make sure that you do it along with the beat in order to avoid looking foolish.

What You Should Wear

No matter how fun Disco dancing is, you still need to be able to dance comfortably, which is why you need to make sure that you wear the right type of clothing for dancing Disco. Simply choose a pair of shoes that you can dance in, and clothes that you can move in. If you wear something that will restrict your movement, then you won’t be able to dance properly.

Dance and Religion

A religious taboo continues to exist when it comes to incorporating dancing as part of religious activity. Some people think that dancing is not enough to renew energy in both mind and body through dancing, while others believe it to be quite a powerful spiritual experience.

There are several manifestations of religious activities through dancing. One of the most common ways of incorporating religion through dance forms is via rituals. The act of dancing is believed to help a performer enter a trance state that will open up their spiritual path to an empowering religious experience and communicate with the divine being. Other dances also incorporate spells or prayers.

Native American Dancing

The Native Americans had quite an interesting perspective on dancing. They perform dances for varius reasons and believed that the beat of the drum served as the spirit that guides them spiritually. Hence, Native Americans performed what was to be later on considered as ceremonial dancing since they danced for joy, rain, grief, in preparation for war, and for worship. It is for this same reason such that dancing was embedded not just in their individual identities, but has become part of tribal history. Ceremonial dances played a huge role in the Native American heritage and culture.

But still, there remained to be a few others who performed dancing because of the music and for the enrichment of this art form.

Kerala Festival Dancing

Kerala is a Southwestern Indian city known for its local festivals and celebrations. During these cultural and religious festivities, ceremonial dances are an integral part of the celebration and has earned its social importance throughout the years. Here are some of the Kerala festivals that involve various types of ceremonial dances:

• Onam: This is a popular festival in Kerala that is observed with much gaiety and fervor, typically held between August and September. There are a lot of dancing involved that represent religious harmony amongst various families. There is also a ritual attached to the ceremonial dances that require the performers to wear new clothes, or paint themselves with bright yellow, red, and black colors. Meanwhile, the music is produced through cultural instruments thakil and udukku.

• Mahasivarathri: This is an annual festival observed by the Hindus that involve lots of ceremonial dances as a way to commemorate the death of Lord Shiva in an effort to save the world of destruction.

• Vishu: This festival is held during the month of April, which is the New Year according to calendar of Malayalam. Like the above festivals, there are ceremonial dancing involved mainly to thank for the abundant supply of fruits, flowers, cereals, and coconuts, while also wishing for good luck in the coming year.

Asian Ceremonial Dancing

There is a distinct correlation between drama, music, dance, and culture in majority of Asia. Hence, costumes and particular dance movements hold a sacred cultural importance, often depicting historical events, legends, mythology, and deep ceremonial activities and worship. Each performance of ceremonial dance could last for several hours, depending on the event being portrayed or the particular cultural event being commemorated.