Swing Dance Moves

Swing dance moves are some of the most fun moves to learn and execute. Even better, it's easy to find both people to teach them and places to dance them!

Swing dance moves are, at their root, lead-follow moves. That is, there is one person who is directing the flow of the dance while the other person follows. While this is classically a male lead and a female follow, contemporary swing dance is performed by couples regardless of gender. The fact is, it's just fun to dance them, and if the objective is to move, it doesn't matter whose hands you're holding.

The core of swing dance is the basic, which could also be called the "step to do while the lead is trying to think of what to do next". The basic comes in two varieties, quick and slow (or two-count and three-count) and is usually done from a "closed" dance position. "Closed" means that either partners are holding hands or have a closer frame, with the lead's left and follow's right clasped, the leads right palm on the shoulder blade of the follow. The follow usually rests a hand lightly on the lead's bicep.

• Two-Step Basic - Not to be confused with the two-step dance, the basic done in a two-step pattern simply means the lead will step on the left foot (giving it weight), then shift weight to step on the right foot, and then do what's known as a "rock-step": stepping back with the left, giving it just a little weight before shifting back forward on the right. This frees up the left foot to begin the whole process over again. The way this would be counted is "left, right, back-step".
• Triple-Step (or Quick) Basic - The triple step is done either by more advanced dancers or when the music is lively enough to call for it. Instead of a simple left step, right step, back step pattern, the weight is very quickly shifted from left to right and back again, then right-left-right, before going into the same kind of backwards "rock-step" as in the two-step basic. It's important to realize that the three steps are done in the same amount of time that the single steps are done in the first example. This step is counted "tri-ple step, tri-ple step, back-step".

The follow's moves are exactly the same, but with right and left feet switched. The counts for both are actually in 6-beat intervals, so it may take some getting used to for dancers used to 8 or 16 count patterns. In both versions the arms are held loosely, and the back step should only extend them a bit - not fully and certainly not pulling on your partner. If there is a fully-closed dance frame (with only one set of hands clasped) then the "back step" is often done to the side, opening the body.

As the basic explanation has probably shown, it is not always easy to learn swing dancing from text descriptions. Thankfully, there are many videos and diagrams online to help illustrate the various moves from the basic underarm turn to the more advanced moves with names like "break your momma's back". YouTube can be a great source of both individual moves as well as combinations, whether from an instructor like Ross Saffronoff or watching old exhibitions from shows such as Dancing With the Stars.

However, the best way to learn swing dance is through hands-on instruction. Usually there are social dance studios in larger cities that will offer many versions of swing, whether East Coast, West Coast, or the newer variant known as "Blues Dancing" which is inspired by Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey's moves in Dirty Dancing. Keep in mind that swing dance is a living art, though, and just as the music is done by both classic and contemporary bands (such as the Brian Setzer Orchestra), the best place to learn your moves is actually on the floor.

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