SwingDJs

I think an important ingredient in faster music is having a clearly defined rhythm so that people don't get lost. Classic swing music has an awesome four on the floor pulse that is irresistable. A lot of postwar arrangements feature more fragmented rhythms (e.g. ride cymbal work, dropping bombs on the bass drum) that makes it much, much harder to dance fast. In my opinion.

Nothing is more frustrating than finally being able to swing out at 225 bpm when suddenly the recording goes into a frenzied chaos of arrhythmic soloing and nasty clangorous drum fills. Suddenly the dancer who was barely clinging on for dear life is thrown overboard and drowns.

I also agree that you have to accustom dancers' ears to faster music first, then their feet, then their bodies, and finally their dancing. Hence the progression of "clearing the floor" ->"balboa" ->"bad fast dancing" ->"overwhelming joy at doing the impossible".

Last night Wendy Rea's band played at TJ's in Orange County (a place not known for quality fast dancing) but the floor was constantly full at all tempos, 80 to 280. Good music will compel people to dance.

...provided the dancers don't have a preconceived mindset.

I was DJing the U of S practice/dance last week and I wanted to set up for an Albert Ammons boogie. I played Gene Krupa's Sweet Georgia Brown figuring I'd clear the floor with something fast-ish then the Ammons stuff would not feel so fast. Most of the newbies fresh out of the triple-step, triple-step, rock step lesson danced to the Krupa track and had no problem keeping up.

I'm happy to see the newbies trying to dance a variety of tempos and doing a good job of it

Toon Town Dave wrote:
Most of the newbies fresh out of the triple-step, triple-step, rock step lesson danced to the Krupa track and had no problem keeping up.

I'm happy to see the newbies trying to dance a variety of tempos and doing a good job of it

It's incredible to me how when you are a newbie you can dance to something say at 180 BPM but as you get better you resist the notion of going over 150.

Maybe it's Dizzy Gillespie speaking beyond the grave. You know, the "slow it down so you can have a sandwich in between notes" concept.

Kalman

sonofvu wrote:It's incredible to me how when you are a newbie you can dance to something say at 180 BPM but as you get better you resist the notion of going over 150.

The more experienced you get, George, the more you realize that speed kills.

...off the weak leaving only the strong to survive.

Lately I really enjoy dancing at the extremes, either fast or slow, but the medium zone, well, been there a lot. I still enjoy it, but as far as pushing myself, it's not in the medium zone.

I have a problem when dancers use tempo as a crutch. If you only want to dance at Oscar Peterson and Ernestine Anderson between 130 and 160 BPM, fine. If you can only dance to pieces above 200 BPM, fine. Just remember that you're investing time and money to stay in a small box.

Kalman

sonofvu wrote:It's incredible to me how when you are a newbie you can dance to something say at 180 BPM but as you get better you resist the notion of going over 150.

Bingo. I've wondered how the music that is selected to be intentionally slow so you can practice to it became a standard dancing speed that some people don't want to leave...

But anyway, when it comes to getting your scene's dancers in general to dance faster, like everyone said -- nobody feels comfortable dancing to a tempo they haven't danced at before. So play (good) faster tunes. I don't think the answer is any more complicated than that. DJ faster songs, DJ them well.

-FF