Swing – Dancing in Vienna

There are several schools and clubs that offer kick ass Swing dance education! Want to learn Lindy Hop, Balboa, Shag, Blues, Tap and more? Check them out:

What is Swing dancing?

Swingdances exist in all kinds of shapes, figures, rythms and from slow to fast.
One of the most popular swingdances called the Lindy Hop is a partner dance that originated in the 1940s in Harlem. It was influenced by popular dances of the time, like the Charleston and the Foxtrott, and danced to swinging jazz music. Nowadays a lot of different styles and variants exist, making the Lindy Hop a very universal dance for different musical styles, tempos and eras.
One of the most popular Ballroom in the development of the Lindy Hop was the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, one of the first where people of colour and white people where allowed to dance together. Even though Lindy Hop is known for it's aerials (where one or both partners are flying trough the air) today it's mostly danced as social dancing. Aerials are just used for performance or competition.
In generel when we look back on swing dances and Jazz music whe find most of the origins within the african american communities of the united states.
The dances you will find today within the Swingdance scene are
Lindy hop
Charleston
Shag (Collegiate - and St. Louis Shag as well as some pleases carolina shag)
Balboa (that's where you can dance very fast by shuffeling with you feet)
Blues (that's mostly slower)
Solo Jazz/Charleston/Blues (where you dance without a partner)
Tap
Videos:
Lindy Hop: Camp Hollywood 2016 Amateur Lindy Hop finals
Collegiate Shag: Performance of the Vienna Shag Team in Warsaw 2017
Lindy Hop historical: Whiteys Lindy Hoppers in the Movie "Hellzapoppin"
Other Links:
Swungover - a blog by international dance instructor Bobby White gives you great insights into the history of the dance but also todays Swingdance world.
iLindy.com - Learn with the help of lots of online material from international instructors Kevin & Jo
Saint Savoy - kickk ass elegant vintage inspired dance shoes based in Vienna