History of Dance

The dance has always been with us, even before the arrival of written language and modern
history, when our earliest cultures evolved utilizing oral and performance methods to pass
the stories from one generation to the next. Many historians believe that social, celebratory
and ritual dances are one of the essential factors of the development of early human
civilizations.

The earliest findings have pinpointed the origins of ancient dances in 9000-year-old India or
5300-year-old Egypt, but the records more common infusion of dance into a modern culture
can be found from Ancient Greece, China, and India. All these old dances evolved, eventually
morphing into a wide variety of Roman and European medieval dances, traditional Chinese
dances, Hindi and other traditional dances, respectively.

 First archeological proof of dance comes from the 9 thousand year old cave paintings in
India.
 One of the earliest uses of structured dance was introduced in religious ceremonies that
told the stories of ancient myths and gods. Egyptian priests used this kind of visual
storytelling in their rituals.
 Ancient Egyptians used dancing for both entertainment and religion.
 Dance represented important parts of many Greek and Roman religious ceremonies.
 Ancient Greeks and Romans annually celebrated their wine
gods Dionysus and Bacchus with several days long festivities filled with alcohol, song
and dance.
 History of European medieval dance is fragmented and limited, but is believed that
simple folk dances were widespread among common and wealthy classes.
 Modern dance history in Europe started with Renaissance, when many new dances were
invented. After that, periods of Baroque, post French Revolution, Elizabethan era, World
War 1, Prohibition, Ragtime and pre-WW2 brought many new waves of dance styles.
 Waltz, one of the most popular dances today came into popularity in mid-19th century
by the efforts of the famous composer Johann Strauss, but its origins can be traced even
to the distant 16th century.
 At first, waltz was performed with arm's length between male and female dances. The
shocking transition to the close embrace happened only after English Queen Victoria fell
in love with the dance and forced this change.
 Around 30 thousand people are employed in UK dance industry today, maintaining
around 200 dance companies.
 Even people in wheelchairs can dance! Such dancing is very popular in Europe where
there are even competitions in Latin dances with special wheelchair choreographies.
 Professional dance is today regarded as one of the most demanding physical abilities and
sports. According to studies, 80% of all professional dances have at least one major injury
during their career and staggering 93% of all dance teachers were forced into that position
after career ending injury.
 High amount of injuries in professional dancing is induced by high levels of fatigue, little
time for rest, inadequate healing techniques and high stress levels. All those factors can
produce burn out periods when dancers have decreased strength, coordination, cognitive
and immune functions.

http://www.dancefacts.net/
 History of Dance
 Dance accompanied ancient rituals, spiritual gatherings and social events.
 As a conduit of trance, spiritual force, pleasure, expression, performance and interaction,
dance became infused into our nature from the earliest moments of our existence
 From the moment when first African tribes covered themselves in war-paint to the
spreading of music and dance across all four corners of the world.
 The oldest proof of existence of dancing comes from the 9000 year old cave paintings that
were found in India, which depicts various scenes of hunting, childbirth, religious rites,
burials and most importantly, communal drinking and dancing.
 Period when dancing became widespread can be traced to the third millennia BC, when
Egyptians started using dance as integral parts of their religious ceremonies. Judging by
the many tomb paintings that survived the tooth of time, Egyptian priests used musical
instruments and dancers to mimic important events - stories of gods and cosmic patterns
of moving stars and sun.
 European dances before the start of Renaissance were not widely documented, any only
few isolated fragments remain found today. The most basic "chain shaped" dance
practiced by commoners was most widespread across Europe, but the arrival of
Renaissance and new forms of music brought many other styles in fashion. Renaissance
dances from Spain, France and Italy were soon surpassed by Baroque dances which
became widely popular in French and English courts. After the end of French Revolution,
many new types of dances emerged with focused on less restrictive woman clothing, and
tendency for skipping and jumping. These dances soon became even more energetic in
1844 with the beginning of so called "international polka craze" which also brought us the
first appearance of famous waltz.
 After the short period of time when great ballroom masters created wave of complicated
dances, the era of modern day 2 person dance started with the careers of famous
ballroom dances Vernon and Irene Castle. After those early years of 20th century many
modern dances were invented (Foxtrot, One-Step, Tango, Charleston, Swing,
Postmodern, Hip-hop, breakdancing and more) and the expansion of musical brought
those dances into worldwide popularity.

http://www.dancefacts.net/dance-history/history-of-dance/
 Origins and Early History of Dance

 The dance has always been with us, even before the arrival of written language and
modern history, when our earliest cultures evolved utilizing oral and performance
methods to pass the stories from one generation to the next.
 Many historians believe that social, celebratory and ritual dances are one of the essential
factors of the development of early human civilizations.
 The earliest findings have pinpointed the origins of ancient dances in 9000-year-old India
or 5300-year-old Egypt, but the records more common infusion of dance into a modern
culture can be found from Ancient Greece, China, and India.
 All these old dances evolved, eventually morphing into a wide variety of Roman and
European medieval dances, traditional Chinese dances, Hindi and other traditional
dances, respectively.
 First archeological proof of dance comes from the 9 thousand year old cave paintings in
India.
 One of the earliest uses of structured dance was introduced in religious ceremonies that
told the stories of ancient myths and gods. Egyptian priests used this kind of visual
storytelling in their rituals.
 Ancient Egyptians used dancing for both entertainment and religion.
 Dance represented important parts of many Greek and Roman religious ceremonies.
 Ancient Greeks and Romans annually celebrated their wine
gods Dionysus and Bacchus with several days long festivities filled with alcohol, song
and dance.
 History of European medieval dance is fragmented and limited, but is believed that
simple folk dances were widespread among common and wealthy classes.
 Modern dance history in Europe started with Renaissance, when many new dances were
invented. After that, periods of Baroque, post French Revolution, Elizabethan era, World
War 1, Prohibition, Ragtime and pre-WW2 brought many new waves of dance styles.
 Around 30 thousand people are employed in UK dance industry today, maintaining
around 200 dance companies.
 Even people in wheelchairs can dance! Such dancing is very popular in Europe where
there are even competitions in Latin dances with special wheelchair choreographies.
 Professional dance is today regarded as one of the most demanding physical abilities and
sports. According to studies, 80% of all professional dances have at least one major injury
during their career and staggering 93% of all dance teachers were forced into that position
after career ending injury.
 High amount of injuries in professional dancing is induced by high levels of fatigue, little
time for rest, inadequate healing techniques and high stress levels. All those factors can
produce burn out periods when dancers have decreased strength, coordination, cognitive
and immune functions.
 Lion Dance is one of the most popular religious and ceremonious dances in China and
surrounding countries of Taiwan, Korea and Japan. This dance can signify bringing of good
fortune, ward of evil spirits and be an excellent showcase in martial arts proficiency.

https://vlad13.home.blog/2019/12/11/origins-and-early-history/
 DANCE GENRES
Jazz
Jazz was once considered any style of dance that could be performed to Jazz music. As dance
has evolved with the times, this genre has changed greatly. Jazz has been molded to fit hard
hitting or upbeat music and is recognizable by the use of technique with a ballet base.
Modern
The initial motif of the Modern dance genre was to break away from the mold of Classical Ballet
and focus on freedom of movement and expression. Modern choreography is often created with
the intention of telling a story or representing a thought.
Contemporary/Lyrical
Lyrical began as a dance genre that combined Ballet technique and Jazz movement. As dance
styles have rapidly progressed and dancers have been exposed to various choreography styles,
elements from Jazz, Hip Hop, Lyrical, Ballet and Modern have merged together to form
Contemporary. Defined by changes in musicality and emotion driven performances,
Contemporary has become the most prominent genre in dance.
Hip Hop/Street/Urban Dance
This dance genre was cultivated outside of dance studios alongside Hip Hop music and culture.
Hip Hop spread like wildfire as a result of it being the primary choreographed style for music
videos and other commercial appearances. The entertainment aspect of Hip Hop has made it
the most popular genre outside of the dance world.
Street Jazz/Jazz Funk
Jazz Funk, now known as Street Jazz, formed by mixing components of Jazz and Hip Hop. Pop
and R&B music inspired the groovy, semi-sensual movement used for a lot of today’s
commercial work.
Ballroom
Partner work and precise steps are essential to Ballroom dance. Ballroom dances vary among
cultures. However, there are a set group of ballroom styles that are competed
internationally. Classical and Latin styles are differentiated by the dancers’ speed, steps, and
rhythm.
 Tap
Tap is characterized by sharp, musical sounds created by the feet of a dancer wearing shoes
with metal plates attached to the heels and toes. Today it seems that Tap dancers are coming
out of the woodwork to show off their insane rhythmic capabilities and bringing Tap into the
21st century.
Cultural Dances
Cultures around the world have practiced Folk dances unique to their people since the
emergence of dance in human life. These dated traditional dances are beautiful to experience,
it almost feels like time travel. The Cultural dance genre is the most important of them all
because they symbolize the importance of expression through dance.
Line dance
A line dance is a choreographed dance with a repeated sequence of steps in which a group of
people dance in one or more lines or rows, all facing either each other or in the same direction,
and executing the steps at the same time. Unlike circle dancing, line dancers are not in physical
contact with each other.
Pop-Dance
Dance-pop is a popular music sub-genre that originated in the early 1980s. It is generally
uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable
for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a combination of dance and pop with influences
of disco, post-disco and synth-pop, it is generally characterised by strong beats with easy,
uncomplicated song structureswhich are generally more similar to pop music than the more
free-form dance genre, with an emphasis on melody as well as catchy tunes. The genre, on the
whole, tends to be producer-driven, despite some notable exceptions.
Ballet
Ballet is known as the building block of all dance and is characterized by fluid and precise
movements done in “turned out” positions. This graceful, meticulous art form is spoken in
French and is considered the foundational style of all dance technique. Even though there are
different types of ballet (French, Vagonova, etc.), it’s been relatively standardized worldwide.
Irish dance
Irish dance or Irish dancing is a group of traditional dance forms originating from Ireland,
encompassing dancing both solo and in groups, and dancing
for social, competitive, and performance purposes. Irish dance in its current form developed
from various influences such as French quadrilles and English country dancing throughout the
18th and 19th centuries. Dance was taught by "travelling dance masters" across Ireland
throughout this period, and separate dance forms developed according to regional practice and
differing purposes. Irish dance became a significant part of Irish culture, particularly for Irish
nationalist movements.
Festival dances
Festival dances are cultural dances performed to the strong beats of percussion
instruments by a community of people sharing the same culture usually done in honor of a
Patron Saint or in thanksgiving of a bountiful harvest. Festival dances may be religious or secular
in nature

Interpretive dance
Interpretive dance is a family of modern dance styles that began around 1900
with Isadora Duncan. It used classical concert music but marked a departure from
traditional concert dance. It seeks to translate human emotions, conditions, situations or
fantasies into movement and dramatic expression, or else adapts traditional ethnic movements
into more modern expressions
The effect of interpretive dance can be seen in many Broadway musicals as well as in other
media. While it was—and most often, still is—thought of as a performing art, interpretive dance
does not have to be performed with music. It often includes grandiloquent movements of the
arms, turns and drops to the floor. It is frequently enhanced by lavish costumes, ribbons
or spandex body suits.

https://thisiswod.com/a-breakdown-of-dance-genres-for-dummies/

https://www.slideshare.net › chelTobato › festival-dances

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Irish_dance

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Line_dance

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interpretive_dance

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance-pop
 DANCE GENRES

Ballet
Ballet is known as the building block of all dance and is characterized by fluid and precise
movements done in “turned out” positions. This graceful, meticulous art form is spoken
in French and is considered the foundational style of all dance technique. Even though
there are different types of ballet (French, Vagonova, etc.), it’s been relatively
standardized worldwide.

Jazz
Jazz was once considered any style of dance that could be performed to Jazz music. As
dance has evolved with the times, this genre has changed greatly. Jazz has been molded
to fit hard hitting or upbeat music and is recognizable by the use of technique with a ballet
base.

Tap
Tap is characterized by sharp, musical sounds created by the feet of a dancer wearing
shoes with metal plates attached to the heels and toes. Today it seems that Tap dancers
are coming out of the woodwork to show off their insane rhythmic capabilities and
bringing Tap into the 21st century.

Modern
The initial motif of the Modern dance genre was to break away from the mold of Classical
Ballet and focus on freedom of movement and expression. Modern choreography is often
created with the intention of telling a story or representing a thought.

Contemporary/Lyrical
Lyrical began as a dance genre that combined Ballet technique and Jazz movement. As
dance styles have rapidly progressed and dancers have been exposed to various
choreography styles, elements from Jazz, Hip Hop, Lyrical, Ballet and Modern have
merged together to form Contemporary. Defined by changes in musicality and emotion
driven performances, Contemporary has become the most prominent genre in dance.

Hip Hop/Street/Urban Dance

This dance genre was cultivated outside of dance studios alongside Hip Hop music and
culture. Hip Hop spread like wildfire as a result of it being the primary choreographed
style for music videos and other commercial appearances. The entertainment aspect of
Hip Hop has made it the most popular genre outside of the dance world.

Street Jazz/Jazz Funk

Jazz Funk, now known as Street Jazz, formed by mixing components of Jazz and Hip Hop.
Pop and R&B music inspired the groovy, semi-sensual movement used for a lot of today’s
commercial work.

Ballroom
Partner work and precise steps are essential to Ballroom dance. Ballroom dances vary
among cultures. However, there are a set group of ballroom styles that are competed
internationally. Classical and Latin styles are differentiated by the dancers’ speed, steps,
and rhythm.

Cultural Dances
Cultures around the world have practiced Folk dances unique to their people since the
emergence of dance in human life. These dated traditional dances are beautiful to
experience, it almost feels like time travel. The Cultural dance genre is the most important
of them all because they symbolize the importance of expression through dance.

Line dance
A line dance is a choreographed dance with a repeated sequence of steps in which
a group of people dance in one or more lines or rows, all facing either each other or in the
same direction, and executing the steps at the same time. Unlike circle dancing, line
dancers are not in physical contact with each other.

Irish dance
Irish dance or Irish dancing is a group of traditional dance forms originating from Ireland,
encompassing dancing both solo and in groups, and dancing
for social, competitive, and performance purposes. Irish dance in its current form
developed from various influences such as French quadrilles and English country
dancing throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Dance was taught by “travelling dance
masters” across Ireland throughout this period, and separate dance forms developed
according to regional practice and differing purposes. Irish dance became a significant
part of Irish culture, particularly for Irish nationalist movements. From the early 20th
century, a number of organisations promoted and codified the various forms of dance,
creating competitive structures and standardised styles.
Solo Irish dance includes the most well-known form of Irish dance, Irish stepdance, which
was popularised from 1994 onwards by dance shows such as Riverdance, and which is
practised competitively across the Irish diaspora. Stepdance is characterised by the rigid
upper body and intricate footwork of its performers. Other forms of solo Irish dance
include sean-nós dance, a relaxed and social dance style involving improvised steps,
and festival Irish dance, a style which separated from step dance in the mid-20th century.

Irish dancing in groups is made up of a number of styles and traditions, which developed
from French and English dances and formations. Ceili dance, practised both competitively
and socially, is performed by groups of two to sixteen people, and often uses traditional
or codified dances and formations. Its footwork is simple, and emphasis is placed on the
figures and formations of the dances.

Festival dances
Festival dances are cultural dances performed to the strong beats of percussion
instruments by a community of people sharing the same culture usually done in honor of
a Patron Saint or in thanksgiving of a bountiful harvest. Festival dances may be religious
or secular in nature

Interpretive dance
Interpretive dance is a family of modern dance styles that began around 1900
with Isadora Duncan. It used classical concert music but marked a departure from
traditional concert dance. It seeks to translate human emotions, conditions, situations or
fantasies into movement and dramatic expression, or else adapts traditional ethnic
movements into more modern expressions
The effect of interpretive dance can be seen in many Broadway musicals as well as in
other media. While it was—and most often, still is—thought of as a performing art,
interpretive dance does not have to be performed with music. It often includes
grandiloquent movements of the arms, turns and drops to the floor. It is frequently
enhanced by lavish costumes, ribbons or spandex body suits.

Pop-Dance
Dance-pop is a popular music sub-genre that originated in the early 1980s. It is generally
uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also
suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a combination
of dance and pop with influences of disco, post-disco and synth-pop, it is generally
characterised by strong beats with easy, uncomplicated song structureswhich are
generally more similar to pop music than the more free-form dance genre, with an
emphasis on melody as well as catchy tunes. The genre, on the whole, tends to
be producer-driven, despite some notable exceptions.
https://vlad13.home.blog/2019/12/11/dance-genres/
 Types of Dance
Ballet
Ballet has been the dominant genre in Western theatre dance since its development as an independent form in the 17th
century, and its characteristic style of movement is still based on the positions and steps developed in the court dances of
the 16th and 17th centuries

Modern dance
Modern dance, the other major genre of Western theatre dance, developed in the early 20th century as a series of
reactions against what detractors saw as the limited, artificial style of movement of ballet and its frivolous subject matter.
Perhaps the greatest pioneer in modern dance was Isadora Duncan. She believed that ballet technique distorted the
natural movement of the body, that it “separated the gymnastic movements of the body completely from the mind,” and
that it made dancers move like “articulated puppets” from the base of the spine.

Indian classical dance

The six recognized schools of Indian classical dance developed as a part of religious ritual in which dancers worshipped
the gods by telling stories about their lives and exploits. Three main components form the basis of these dances. They
are natya, the dramatic element of the dance (i.e., the imitation of character); nritta, pure dance, in which the rhythms
and phrases of the music are reflected in the decorative movements of the hands and body and in the stamping of the
feet; and nritya, the portrayal of mood through facial expression, hand gesture, and position of the legs and feet.

Tribal and ethnic dance

Ballet, modern dance, and Indian classical dance are forms of theatre dance, the dancers usually being highly trained
professionals performing for audiences in particular venues and on special occasions. Tribal and ethnic dance, on the other
hand, may be characterized by a number of almost opposite features. They are not necessarily the province of trained
specialists (although they may be). Such dances may be participatory (i.e., with no real distinction between dancer and
spectator), and, while they may take place in special venues or on special occasions, these are often intimately related to
the everyday life of the community.

When tribal societies in Europe gave way to more structured societies, the old dance forms gradually developed into what
are now called folk or peasant dances. For a long time these retained much of their original significance and therefore
could have received the modern classification of “ethnic.” The Maypole dance, still sometimes performed in England, is a
descendant of older tree-worshipping dances, the ribbons that the dancers hold as they dance around the pole
symbolizing the tree’s branches. The morris dance, also called the moresque because the blackened faces of the dancers
resembled the Moors, is a survival of early weapon dances, which were not war dances but an ancient form of religious
worship. The types and styles of these different dances were numerous, and, as with tribal dances, many were lost so that
information about them often remains sketchy. In the 20th century, efforts to collect national music and dances were
made by, among others, Cecil Sharp in England and Béla Bartók in Hungary. These efforts resulted in the revival of certain
dances, but they are now danced mainly for recreation, and their original significance has been lost. It is in this conscious
revival or preservation of ethnic and national dances for purposes of entertainment that modern folk dance has its origin.
 Social dance
When the early European folk dances—particularly the courtship forms—were incorporated into court dances, they lost
many of their boisterous and pantomimic elements. The man no longer thrust forward to embrace the woman or lifted
her vigorously into the air, but simply knelt and took her hand. The woman’s earlier violent resistance dwindled into a
coquettish turn of the head, and energetic strides and runs gave way to simple gliding steps, often forming intricate
patterns that were punctuated with small poses, bows, and curtsies.

Jazz
Jazz was once considered any style of dance that could be performed to Jazz music. As dance has evolved with the times,
this genre has changed greatly. Jazz has been molded to fit hard hitting or upbeat music and is recognizable by the use of
technique with a ballet base.

Tap
Tap is characterized by sharp, musical sounds created by the feet of a dancer wearing shoes with metal plates attached to
the heels and toes. Today it seems that Tap dancers are coming out of the woodwork to show off their insane rhythmic
capabilities and bringing Tap into the 21st century.

Contemporary/Lyrical
Lyrical began as a dance genre that combined Ballet technique and Jazz movement. As dance styles have rapidly
progressed and dancers have been exposed to various choreography styles, elements from Jazz, Hip Hop, Lyrical, Ballet
and Modern have merged together to form Contemporary. Defined by changes in musicality and emotion driven
performances, Contemporary has become the most prominent genre in dance.

Hip Hop/Street/Urban Dance

This dance genre was cultivated outside of dance studios alongside Hip Hop music and culture. Hip Hop spread like wildfire
as a result of it being the primary choreographed style for music videos and other commercial appearances. The
entertainment aspect of Hip Hop has made it the most popular genre outside of the dance world.

Street Jazz/Jazz Funk

Jazz Funk, now known as Street Jazz, formed by mixing components of Jazz and Hip Hop. Pop and R&B music inspired the
groovy, semi-sensual movement used for a lot of today’s commercial work.
 Line dance
A line dance is a choreographed dance with a repeated sequence of steps in which a group of people dance in one or more
lines or rows, all facing either each other or in the same direction, and executing the steps at the same time. Unlike circle
dancing, line dancers are not in physical contact with each other.

Irish dance
Irish dance or Irish dancing is a group of traditional dance forms originating from Ireland, encompassing dancing both solo
and in groups, and dancing for social, competitive, and performance purposes. Irish dance in its current form developed
from various influences such as French quadrilles and English country dancing throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.
Dance was taught by “travelling dance masters” across Ireland throughout this period, and separate dance forms
developed according to regional practice and differing purposes. Irish dance became a significant part of Irish culture,
particularly for Irish nationalist movements.

Festival dances
Festival dances are cultural dances performed to the strong beats of percussion instruments by a community of people
sharing the same culture usually done in honor of a Patron Saint or in thanksgiving of a bountiful harvest. Festival
dances may be religious or secular in nature

Interpretive dance
Interpretive dance is a family of modern dance styles that began around 1900 with Isadora Duncan. It used classical
concert music but marked a departure from traditional concert dance. It seeks to translate human emotions, conditions,
situations or fantasies into movement and dramatic expression, or else adapts traditional ethnic movements into more
modern expressions

The effect of interpretive dance can be seen in many Broadway musicals as well as in other media. While it was—and most
often, still is—thought of as a performing art, interpretive dance does not have to be performed with music. It often
includes grandiloquent movements of the arms, turns and drops to the floor. It is frequently enhanced by lavish costumes,
ribbons or spandex body suits.

Pop-Dance
Dance-pop is a popular music sub-genre that originated in the early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended
for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a
combination of dance and pop with influences of disco, post-disco and synth-pop, it is generally characterised by strong
beats with easy, uncomplicated song structureswhich are generally more similar to pop music than the more free-form
dance genre, with an emphasis on melody as well as catchy tunes. The genre, on the whole, tends to be producer-driven,
despite some notable exceptions.

https://www.britannica.com/art/dance/Social-dance
 HISTORY OF TANGO

Tango is a genre that originally involved dance, music, poetry and singing. Tango expresses a way of
conceiving the world and life and it nourishes the cultural imagery of the inhabitants of the capital cities of the
Rio de la Plata. This genre includes also the milonga, the milonga candombeada and the so-called vals criollo.

Tango was born among the lower urban classes in both cities as an expression originated in the fusion of
elements from Argentine and Uruguayan`s African culture, authentic criollos [natives of this region] and
European immigrants. As the artistic and cultural result of hybridization`s processes, Tango is considered
nowadays one of the fundamental signs of the Rio de la Plata’s identity.
Argentine Tango is a complete cultural phenomenon that includes dance, music, song and poetry in which
attracts and absorbs more and more people worldwide.

Although the facts about tango and its personages are often discussed and subjected to scrutiny, it is generally
accepted that tango was born in Buenos Aires toward the end of the XIX century. Nevertheless, some prefer to
say, for conciliatory purposes, that it was born on the banks of the Rio de la Plata, in order to please the
Uruguayans who claim co-paternity of the phenomenon.

It is impossible to pinpoint a precise date of birth for a manifestation of popular origin and, therefore, one of
evolutionary birth such as tango. However, what is certain is that most experts agree that the decade of 1880
was a starting point for what was then no more than a particular way of dancing to music. The society into which
tango was born listened and danced to havaneras, polkas, mazurkas and an occasional waltz, as far as the whites
were concerned, while the blacks, 25% of the population of Buenos Aires in the XIX century, moved to the
rhythms of the candombe, a type of dance in which couples refrained from intertwining and danced in a way
that was determined more by the percussive beat than by the melody.

Musically speaking, Tango is related by genealogy to the Hispano-Cuban havanera and is thus progeny
of the mercantile transactions between the Spanish speaking ports of La Havana (Cuba) and those of Buenos
Aires (Argentina). Nevertheless, these origins explain little abut its birth. Initially, tango was interpreted by
modest groups consisting only of a violinist, a flutist, a guitarist -and at times without the latter- and
accompanied by an experienced blower who set the beat playing a comb converted into a wind instrument by
way of a cigarette rolling paper. The mythical concertina was not incorporated into tango until a few decades
later, in the year 1900, approximately. Little by little, this instrument substituted the flute.

At first, tango must have been a way of interpreting already existing melodies, upon which other newer ones
were created, although initially there was no written music since most often than not the interpreters and
creators did not know how to read or write sheet music. In fact, with the passage of time, some of the first
recorded tangos were not signed by the authentic authors but rather by clever characters who did indeed know
how to write down music and took advantage of the existing void of authorship of certain popular tangos to put
their own names on them, thereby earning a few extra pesos.

Perhaps, at this point in the text, some readers may wonder about the origin of the name. It is a good question,
but one lacking an answer or, what amounts to the same thing, having thousands. In the Spain of the XIX century,
the word tango was used for a genre of flamenco; there are some place-names in Africa called tango, in Spanish
colonial documents the vocable is used in reference to the place where the black slaves celebrated their festive
meetings... some even say the origin could reside in the fact that the Africans were incapable of pronouncing
the word 'tambour' correctly and uttered 'tango' instead. All in all, it is a good question but the irremissible lack
of written documentation as well as the origin of tango and its forefathers, will forever hush the answer.

However, it is possible to speak with authority of one important element: the stage of its birth. It must
be said that turn-of-the-century Buenos Aires was an expanding city with an enormous demographic growth
rate, sustained above all by emigration originating in several countries. Of course there were Spaniards and
Italians, but Germans, Hungarians, Slavs, Arabs and Jews were part of this migratory current as well. All of them
composed a huge mass of uprooted and poor working class individuals, with scarce possibilities of
communication due to the linguistic barriers and mostly male, since they were usually men seeking their
fortunes, to such an extent that the the population of Buenos Aires was completely unbalanced, for 70% of the
inhabitants were male.

Argentina grew from a population of two million in 1870 to four million twenty-five years later. Half of that
population was concentrated in Buenos Aires where the percentage of foreigners reached 50%, and which was
also the migratory destiny of inland Gauchos and Indians. In this environment, down in the slums and brothels,
a new dance began to a new rhythm, and was associated from the beginning with bawdy-house ambiences,
since the only women present in the dance academies or dance halls were prostitutes and 'barmaids'. Since they
were females dedicating their souls, and above all, their bodies to accidental companions, tango commenced
as a dance which was very 'corporal', provocative, close, explicit... in a hardly sociably acceptable manner,
something which would become apparent as it spread into an emerging phenomenon and began to expand
outside the slums of the city of its origin.

From its humble birth to its elevation as reigning dance in the salons of the occidental world, tango
traveled an interesting round trip journey between the Old and the New Continents, with a decisive and brilliant
layover in Paris.
How did it get there? The answers to this question are also disparate and varied. Some texts, many more
ingenuous then erudite, go so far as to offer first and last names of 'the' person responsible for this trip. Actually,
in its expansion as in its birth, the causes were more complex and, indeed, more plural.

Within this social context, it was not difficult for the daring dance created in the Silver Capital to find a terrain
fertilized for its blooming and conversion into an oddity at first and a furor afterwards. Once in Paris, the
European trend setter, the capital of fashion, the cradle of chic, its extension to the rest of the continent first,
and then to the entire world, was easy and quick. Ironically, it is not until then, when Buenos Aires takes a look
at itself in Paris, that tango finally enters into the most noble salons, guaranteed by the European baptism, and
becomes the best of all pedigrees for an emergent bourgeoise struggling to make of its city the Paris of America.

The Tango had triumphed, there were tango dresses, tango colors, tango teas... tango was the number one
dance of that prewar world. Also, the world, in a new prewar period, discovered and admired Carlos Gardel (the
most famous argentinian Tango singer).

All these years, tango has a brilliant history and a continuous life throughout which both the dance and
the music have been developed so thoroughly that it has reached a level of sophistication and purification that
makes clear the maturity of a manifestation now living the first decades of the second century since its birth.
http://www.motionartscenter.com/tango-history/4593759924
 THE HISTORY OF TANGO
They say that the word tango is older than the dance itself and that by 1803 it would
appear in the Real Academia Española dictionary as a variant of tángano, a bone or rock used to
play the game bearing the same name. But by 1889, the institution ruling over the Spanish
language would include a second entry for the word "tango" as a "popular celebration and
dancing of black people in America". However, almost 100 years had to pass for the dictionary
to define tango as a "world-wide known Argentinian dance for two people who join in
movement, based on a binary 2/4 beat".
Other scholars of this musical expression argue that the term derives from the African tongues
that arrived in the River Plate along with the slaves and which would mean "closed space".
The word tango may also have a Portuguese origin and may have been introduced in the new
continent through an Afro-Portuguese Creole dialect. When comparing tango and tambo, Blas
Matamoro asserts that these two terms are onomatopeyic of the tam-tam or candombe used
in African dances. Even more, in the bozal dialect, the expression was "tocá tango" or "tocá
tambó" (play the drum) to start the dance. The slaves' meeting space, both in Africa and
America, was called tango.
And Buenos Aires gave that name to the houses in the suburbs where, in the early XIX
century, the African would meet to dance and forget their condition for a while.
Its date is not precise and its origins are even more uncertain. There are theories that refer back
to its black roots and others that assert its immigratory origin. The truth is that in the mid 1800s,
the well-known conventillos (large houses inhabitted by several families) in the booming city of
Buenos Aires would be crowded with countrymen, foreigners who had just descended from a
boat and several porteños without any means of support who, maybe in order to make a
difference or perhaps to take root, set their own stamp on the new popular expressions.
A mixture of closed codes and having a particular language, the tango would germinate
in the dancing houses, by the Riachuelo, the carters and horse caretakers shops and in the
southern end conventillos. In those days, many of the immigrants would come along on their
own and the few women that would come to Buenos Aires used to be in the academies or the
dating houses.
In the 1880s, Buenos Aires would be revealed little by little in the academies and the theaters.
In the comedies, zarzuelas and other plays, the actors began singing and dancing tango.
The academies, also called peringundines, would work in the suburbs or neighborhoods located
in the outskirts of the city only under a certain kind of authorization and, even if in principle they
were only for men, women were hired for dancing later on.
 The guapos, compadritos and malevos would meet at the Café Sabatino, the Almacén de
la Milonga and the Viejo Bailetín del Palomar. The boliches located on Necochea Street at La
Boca neighborhood began to play this joyful, youthful and mischievous music based on a binary
2/4 beat and performed by Rosendo Mendizábal, Eduardo Arolas, Angel Villoldo and other self-
taught musicians that would compose without even knowing anything about scores.
The tango stopped being exclusive from the suburbs to gradually get deep into the core of the
city. The street organs would spread it across the neighborhoods where it was normal to see
male couples dancing in the streets.
Essentially porteño, many writers consider that the tango from the late 1880s would combine
various music styles. It would imply the choreography of the milonga, the rhythm of
the candombe and the melodic, emotional and sentimental line of the habanera. But it also
received the influence of the Andalucian tango, the chotis and the cuplé, in addition to the
town payadas and the Creole milongas.
It is believed that the first tango composer was Juan Pérez, author of the tango called Dame la
Lata (Give me my pay). Nevertheless, it is quite likely that there have been previous authors and
songs. In addition to Pérez's work, the first compositions were El Tero and Andate a la
Recoleta (Go away to Recoleta).
Even if its origins still cause controversy at the tango coffee tables, the world-wide prestige and
recognition it has acquired is unquestionable.
As every authentic artistic expression, the tango unravels our inextricable human
condition, revealing the porteño spirit. Maybe it is due to this reality that it lives in the Buenos
Aires neighborhoods and at the academies in Japan, in the streets of Paris and in the New York
cultural centers.
https://vlad13.home.blog/2019/12/11/the-history-of-tango/
 A Tango History
by Murray Pfeffer

The Tango, often called 'The Argentine Tango', is Argentina's contribution to the world of dance. The Tango came from
the brothels and low cafes of Buenos Aires at the turn of the century. However, at it's very beginning, it was a ballet-like
dance between two men, which, just a little later, became the obscene dance of the brothels where both men and
women had the opportunity to rub their bodies together. Over the years, the Tango has changed becoming an elegant
and stylish dance evoking a picture of high society, with women in sleek glittering evening gowns and men in tuxedos
and tails.

During the last 25 years of the nineteenth century, the desperate poverty of a disintegrating Europe caused a great
migration - "to make America" was the saying. Very large numbers of eastern Europeans emigrated to the New World.
While New York City was a favorite desitnation, a great many landed in Buenos Aires with their few tattered belongings
and a pocket full of dreams for a better life. Although a few emigres did bring their families, generally it was the men
who came first to build a home and then later sent for their wives and children. Many found a new home in the outskirts
of Buenos Aires during the 1880's.

Here, instead of their dreams, they found the stark reality of the meat packing houses along the Riachuelo in Buenos
Aires, and near the port in Montevideo, Uruguay. In places like the Mataderos district of Buenos Aires and El Cerro in
Montevideo; or along the docks on both shores of the mud colored Rio de la Plata, they worked from dawn till dusk
amid the heat and the stench of spoiling meat.

Many lived five and six to a room, in various housing conglomerates that came to be called "conventillos", while others
lived in sewer pipes stored on an empty lot belonging to a Frenchman named A. Touraint and, in the Argentine
vernacular, became known as the "atorrantes", - a slang expression which today still describes homeless 'bums'. The
Conventillos housed thousands of poor immigrants, mostly from Spain and Italy, but elsewhere too, along with
Argentineans from the provinces.

In this 'male world' there was often violence as the alcohol and the cocaine took effect. Knife wielding toughs, called
"compadrones," ruled the arrabales. In the beginning, the Tango was danced by two men - "the tango of the
compadron". They danced not arm in arm, but in something of a ballet-like, style, expressing a tale of two men locked in
symbolic mortal combat (and often ending in real combat). The expression 'ballet-style' may be confusing. In the Spanish
ethos, there is a history of men dancing either alone, or in a group. Nowadays, we can conjure up a vision of modern day
male Flamenco dancers dancing in bolero jackets, with a hat pulled low over one eye, and such. So too, with the early
Tango. It was danced by one man alone, -expressing his sorrows and hopes, or by two men expressing some sort of
moral combat. This is the type of dancing to which 'ballet-style'makes reference.

In time, women - many of them prostitutes - made their way to the ports. They too, found their way into the Tango. The
"kilombos" and "enramadas" (brothels), where they plied their trade around the turn of the century, became show
places for the Tango. French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, and German women were brought in to work in these bordellos.
Supply very often did not meet Demand and eager men would wait in long lines. Not wishing to lose the "customers" to
boredom while they were waiting, the bordello owners hired musicians - usually trios playing guitar, violin and flute -as
entertainment. Mostly they would play the popular music of the time: polkas, habaneras, waltzes, and mazurkas. And,
the customers, might often "dance" with a prostitute. Since these humble people had no dance training whatsoever, it
must have been some very simple "walking" dance, with quite a bit of body rubbing. (In today's ballroom, the Basic steps
of the Tango are 'walks' and the dance protocol demands that the dancer's bodies be in contact.)
This eclectic mix of cultures, the European emigres, the peasants from the Argentine hinterland, and the disadvantaged
"portenos" became a new social class. They began to create their own cultural expressions. This "Tango culture", -the
particular slang, usages and customs of the group, is earlier than Tango dance as an artistic expression.

Today it is generally accepted that the Tango is borrowed from many nations. It took the relentless African slave
rhythms -the 'Candombe' and the beat of their drums (known as tan-go), and added the popular dance music of the
Pampas (Argentina's prarie land) called the 'Milonga' .(The Milonga, was an early rural dance-form that mutated into the
Tango around 1880.) It combined Indian rhythms with music of early Spanish colonists. The "Candombe", was a typical
Uruguayan rhythmic form, well known in the nearby port city of Buenos Aires. (As an aside, it is interesting to note that
'True' Tango music does NOT use any drums in the ensemble.) The Salon dances (mainly the Waltz), -those involving
men and women embracing, were the precedent for the dance, which was refined until it became what we now know as
Tango.

The Tango dance originated as an "acting out" of the relationship between a prostitute and her pimp. Tango songs and
dances, often highly improvised, had no lyrics, and were generally quite obscene. Titles usually referred to characters in
the world of prostitution. During this period, Tango music largely consisted of the melancholy wailing of a bandoneon,
an accordion-like instrument imported to Argentina from Germany in 1886.

Between 1880 and 1930, Argentina developed qjuickly. Buenos Aires was virtually entirely rebuilt during this period. The
beautiful old colonial Spanish city, with it's one story buildings and narrow streets, was replaced by a metropolis of wide
avenues and beautiful parks. The tall buildings were of French and Italian architecture. (Argentina became one of the ten
richest nations in the world, maintaining that position until the early 1950's when it's economy began a lengthy decline,
lasting for the next 30 years.) During the prosperous period, the very rich had the habit of going to Europe at least once
a year. They. maintained big homes in Paris or London, where the nobility, the famous and the very rich regularly
attended their parties. The French coined the phrase "he is as rich as an Argentinean" to mean extremely rich. Some
young Argentineans visiting Europe introduced their "indecent" Argentine Tango to the Parisian nobility, and the dance
took Paris by storm. Tango became the craze of the time. Parties were given with Argentinean orchestras, tango lessons
and milongas.

By 1912, the Tango, helped by Argentina's passage of Universal Suffrage, was becoming absorbed into the larger
Argentine society. While the dance lost some of it abrasiveness, it's structure remained intact, and soon the Tango
developed into a worldwide phenomenon. One writer said that even the Americans were doing it, although noting that
"some ladies were given to wearing "bumpers" to protect themselves from rubbing a bit too closely against their male
partners".

"Eventually, the evolution of the tango took it to the better dance halls closer to "el centro," (downtown) of Buenos
Aires. The "fungi" and the silk neckerchief were replaced by the black tuxedo, patent leather shoes, spats and silk top
hat."

A somewhat more rigorous classification of this history, that has become widely used, includes the dates and commonly
used labels for the eras:

1900 - 1920 : La Guardia Vieja (The Old Guard)

1920 - 1940 : La Guardia Nueva (The New Guard) - The Epoca de Oro of Argentine Tango.

1940 - 1960 : La Post-Guardia Nueva (The New Post-Guard), - aka: "The generation of the 40's"
 1960 - present : El Nuevo Tango (The New Tango )

1900 - 1920 : Mainly the sung and small instrumental tangos (fundamentally trios and quartets), until 'La Orquesta
Tipica' arrives on the scene, with the incorporation of the bandone¢n. Musicians like: Vicente Greco, Villoldo, Arolas, etc.
One of the more representative tangos is La Morocha (Saborido and Villoldo). Perhaps, the Tango "El Choclo", best
exemplifies the "Guardia Vieja". In 1907, one of the very first genuine Argentine Tangueros to visit Paris (France)was the
song's composer, Angel Villoldo, who wanted to do some recording. (At the time, Paris had the best recording facilities
and techniques.) In 1918, writing Lyrics for the tango became all the rage with singers such as the tragic Carlos Gardel
and celebrated salon orchestras like Francisco Canaro's giving the music a new legitimacy and acceptance.

1920 - 1940 : Here, besides the tango with lyrics and authors such as Discepolo, the instrumental Tango becomes
prominent. There are two groups of writers. The composers most identified with the 'Traditional' Tango include Juan
Darienzo, Francisco Canaro, Pugliese, D'Arienzo, Di Sarli, Troilo, Tanturi, and (early) Salgan. While such composers as
Astor Piazzolla, Julio and Francisco de Caro, Juan Carlos Cobian, Elvino Vardaro, try to take Tango into a newer form. But
probably the most important evolutionist was Astor Piazzolla. "La Cumparsita", is an excellent example of a 'Golden Age'
song. Another example is the Tango "Celos", ("Jealousy" is the English name). Paris, France, was first to take the Tango
to her heart, and soon after, the Tango took all Europe by storm. "Tango Jalousie" is a European tango written by the
Danish composer Jacob Gade, and may be the best known Tango of the "golden age".In 1930, an Argentine military coup
ended universal suffrage. No longer able to vote, the citizenry became largely apathetic with a concomitant depressing
effect on dancing the Tango. A rather pessimistic philosopher/singer of the Tango emerged at this time. Enrique Santos
Discepolo is perhaps most famous for his lyric, "The 20th Century is a trash heap.

1940 - 1960 : Musicians such as Anibal Troilo, Osvaldo Pugliese, Leopoldo Federico, Osmar Maderna, Atilio Stampone,
are writing, strongly influenced by Astor Piazzolla's evolutionist line with "La Ulltima Curda" being a good example of the
songs then written. Such poets as Homero Manzi, Enrique Cadicamo, and Homero Exposito are writing. In 1946, Juan
Peron rose to power and the Tango reached a new pinnacle of popularity in Argentina with both the generalisimo and
his wife Evita embracing it wholeheartedly. But with Evita's death in 1952, the Tango again fell from public favor. With
the advent of American rock-and-roll, the Tango seemed "out of step" with the times.

1960 - To The Present: Piazzolla's influence is so very strong, that many now divide Tango into Before and After Piazzolla.
Piazzolla's big hit, "Balada para un Loco", convinced many doubting Argentinians that the "New Tango" was "for real".
Another example is "La Bestia Potenciada", a big hit from the Tango heartland, Buenos Aires.The Tango still enjoys wide
favor. Immensely popular (it is virtually the "national" dance of Finland), the Tango is again enjoying a world-wide
renaissance. Several shows have already appeared on New York's Broadway stages, and another version is still a very
popular and required ballroom dance in international DanceSport Competitions. .

Many attempts have been made to trace the history of Tango, but nobody has ever found the exact root of its origins. It
suffices to say that that Tango was the music of the "portenos", - the inhabitants of the city of Buenos Aires. It is a "rags
to riches" story that began in the late 1800s, when poor immigrants danced in Argentine brothels, and continued on to
the glittering evening Galas of high society. Tango is still sexy and elegant, and danced with passion not only in Buenos
Aires, but in London, Berlin, Tokyo, Paris, and New York, - but in fact, in every nation of the world, including Zambia.

http://www.triogarufa.com/tango-history.html
 The History of the Waltz
Few sights are as romantic as that of a couple, absorbed in each other, sweeping across the floor
in a dreamy waltz. It is certainly the highlight of many a fairy tale and even Jane Austen allows
her couples ample time on the dance floor. While the English Country Dance is most associated
with Jane Austen’s novels, many will be surprised to discover that by the early 1800’s the waltz
had also made it’s way across the channel and was being danced by the more progressive of the
Beau Monde. The fact that it was a couples dance (as opposed to the traditional group dances),
and that the gentleman actually clasped his arm around the lady’s waist, gave it a dubious moral
status in the eyes of some.
By 1814, the waltz, originally considered decadent, was finally sanctioned as appropriate
behaviour when it was approved at the ultra fashionable Almacks, though the patronesses there
still kept a firm hand on who was allowed permission to dance; no debutante could waltz unless
one of the patronesses had given her permission, something that was only granted to girls
“whose deportment was considered impeccable.”* By 1815, when Emma was printed, it was
acceptable dancing, even in the humble home of the Coles, in the small village of Highbury. This
detail from frontispiece to Thomas Wilson’s Correct Method of German and French
Waltzing (1816), shows nine positions of the Waltz, clockwise from the left (the musicians are
at far left).
The history of the waltz actually dates back to the 1500’s. There are several references to a
sliding or gliding dance, i.e. a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the
printer H.S. Beheim. The French philosopher Montaigne wrote of a dance he saw in 1580 in
Augsburg, where the dancers held each other so closely that their faces touched. Kunz Haas, of
approximately the same period wrote that, “Now they are dancing the godless, Weller or
Spinner, whatever they call it.” “The vigorous peasant dancer, following an instinctive
knowledge of the weight of fall, utilizes his surplus energy to press all his strength into the
proper beat of the measure, thus intensifying his personal enjoyment in dancing”. The wide,
wild steps of the country people became shorter and more elegant when introduced to higher
society. Hans Sachs wrote of the dance in his 1568 Eygentliche Beschreibung aller Stände(1568).
At the Austrian Court in Vienna in the late 17th century (1698) ladies were conducted around
the room to the tune of a 2 beat measure, which then became the 3/4 of the Nach Tanz (After
Dance), upon which couples got into the position for the Weller and waltzed around the room
with gliding steps as in an engraving of the Wirtschaft (Inn Festival) given for Peter the Great.
The peasants of Bavaria, Tyrol, and Styria began dancing a dance called Walzer, a dance for
couples, around 1750. The Ländler, also known as the Schleifer, a country dance in 3/4 time,
was popular in Bohemia, Austria, and Bavaria, and spread from the countryside to the suburbs
of the city. While the eighteenth century upper classes continued to dance the minuet, bored
noblemen slipped away to the balls of their servants.
Describing life in Vienna (dated at either 1776 or 1786), Don Curzio wrote, “The people were
dancing mad […] The ladies of Vienna are particularly celebrated for their grace and movements
of waltzing of which they never tire.” There is a waltz in the second act finale of the opera “Una
Cosa Rara” written by Martin y Solar in 1786. Solar’s waltz was marked Andante con moto, or
“at a walking pace with motion”, but the flow of the dance was sped-up in Vienna leading to the
Geschwindwalzer, and the Galloppwalzer.
In the transition from country to town, the hopping of the Ländler, a dance known as Langaus,
became a sliding step, and gliding rotation replaced stamping rotation.
In the 19th century the word primarily indicated that the dance was a turning one; one would
“waltz” in the polka to indicate rotating rather than going straight forward without turning.
The Viennese custom is to slightly anticipate the second beat, which conveys a faster, lighter
rhythm, and also breaks of the phrase. The younger Strauss would sometimes break up the one-
two-three of the melody with a one-two pattern in the accompaniment along with other
rhythms, maintaining the 3/4 time while causing the dancers to dance a two-step waltz. The
metronome speed for a full bar varies between 60 and 70, with the waltzes of the first Strauss
often played faster than those of his sons.
Shocking many when it was first introduced, the waltz became fashionable in Vienna around the
1780s, spreading to many other countries in the years to follow. It became fashionable in Britain
during the Regency period, though the entry in the Oxford English Dictionary shows that it was
considered “riotous and indecent” as late as 1825. The waltz, and especially its closed position,
became the example for the creation of many other ballroom dances. Subsequently, new types
of waltz have developed, including many folk and several ballroom dances.•
Hummel was an early piano virtuoso to compose waltzes, and Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations
were on a simple waltz tune; but Schubert was the first major composer to produce music
specifically described as waltzes. Weber’s piano rondo, Aufforderung zum Tanze (1819),
foreshadowed the form later adopted by major dance composers: a sequence of waltzes with a
formal introduction and a coda referring to themes heard earlier. This form was established in
the 1830s by Joseph Lanner and the elder Johann Strauss, and from then the waltz was
particularly associated with Vienna, although it was popular throughout Europe.
With Strauss’s sons, Johann and Josef, during the 1860s the waltz reached its peak as dance
form, musical composition and symbol of a gay, elegant age. With Josef’s death in 1870 and
Johann’s turn to operetta, the two major exponents of the waltz were lost to it. Their place was
taken by minor composers, but some of the best waltzes of the late 19th century are found in
the operettas of Lehár, Offenbach, Suppé and Messager. The waltz featured prominently in
ballet and in such operas as Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, Puccini’s La bohème and, especially,
Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier. Stylized waltzes are to be found in instrumental and
orchestral works. Some of the most original are those for piano by Chopin, Brahms’s Liebeslieder
Walzer for voices and piano duet, the third movement of Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony and the
Valse triste of Sibelius. The waltz era is effectively summed up in the Valses nobles et
sentimentales (1911) and the choreographic poem La valse (1918) of Ravel.
https://www.janeausten.co.uk/the-history-of-the-waltz/
 History of the Waltz
Nick Enge

Having evolved from one or more peasant dances over several centuries, the exact
origins of the waltz are unknown, but the dance as we know it was introduced to
high-society Germany and Austria during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
From there, it spread to England and America, where its close embrace and
intoxicating feelings of dizziness created quite the scandal. The original Rotary Waltz,
based on a pivoting step, turned clockwise and quickly grew in popularity with help
from the musical genius of the Strauss family in Vienna.

In the late 19th century, a so-called New Waltz was introduced in Boston,
Massachusetts. The New Waltz simplified the waltz footwork to an easy box step,
enabling counter-clockwise as well as clockwise rotation.

With the advent of competitive ballroom dancing in the early 20th century, waltz
was divided into two categories — the slow Waltz and fast Viennese Waltz — both
based on the New Waltz from Boston. In order to stand out from their competition,
ballroom dancers invented new steps and styling for each kind of waltz.

At the same time, in Paris, social dancers — who simply dance to have fun, rather
than to compete — invented yet another kind of waltz, a slow waltz with a crossing
step. Now known as Cross-Step Waltz, this 20th century waltz form is currently
undergoing a revival and is the fastest — growing social dance form in the world.

Meanwhile, social dancers have continued to keep the original clockwise Rotary
Waltz alive. Even today, Rotary Waltz is danced in a form identical to that which has
been danced continuously for more than 200 years, adapting itself to a wide variety
of pop music throughout the ages, from “Roses from the South” by Johann Strauss II
to “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls.

Originally published as “The Waltz” in the Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, May 24,

2014, and the program for the 2014 OK Mozart Festival.
https://medium.com/dancing-through-life/a-brief-history-of-the-waltz-7e617105c95a
 WALTZ HISTORY
by Harold & Meredith Sears

A surprising number of dance rhythms are as recent as the Twentieth Century, but the origins of
the Waltz go way back. Curt Sachs, a dance historian, has said that "the roots of all turning dances
are lost in the twilight of Neolithic vegetation cults," and many fast and twirling folk dances are
described from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Italy (the Volta), Germany (the Weller),
Austria (the Ländler), in France, and in England.

The early Waltz was what we now call the Viennese Waltz. It came to Vienna early in the 1800s. In
England especially, the Waltz was widely condemned as immoral, given the "closed" dance position,
the rapid tempo (60 measures per minute), and the constant twirling and turning.

In order to appreciate the outrage initially caused by this new dance style, one might think of the
stately, slow, and distant movements of the Minuet, the Allemande, the Contredance, and the other
courtly dances of the time. These social dances of French society were characterized by a refined
and stylized elegance, polite distance between the dancers, and reserved and precise movements.
They were subdued, much less energetic, characterized by sternness of attitude and slow complex
patterns of movement. They were performed at arm's length. Dancers wore gloves so there would
be no fleshly contact even at this distance. You can hardly imagine a more diametrically opposite
style of dance than those first wildly popular Viennese Waltzes.

Lord Byron (1788-1824) was a great Romantic poet and author of such works as She Walks in
Beauty, To a Lady Who Presented to the Author a Lock of Hair Braided with His Own, and Appointed
at a Night in December to Meet Him in the Garden. Well, maybe these three titles do suggest a more
distant and worshipful, rather than close and lusty, attitude toward women, but Byron was shocked
to enter a London ballroom and see the lady of his dreams clasped close by "a huge, hussar-looking
gentleman, turning round and round to a confounded see-saw, up-and-down sort of turn, like two
cockchafers spitted upon the same bodkin." (quoted in Silvester, 1949)

In the English magazine, Belgravia, there was this warning:

We who go forth of nights and see without the slightest discomposure our sister and our wife seized
on by a strange man and subjected to violent embraces and canterings round a small-sized
apartment – the only apparent excuse for such treatment being that it is done to the sound of music
– can scarcely realize the horror which greeted the introduction of this wicked dance. (quoted in
Allen, 2002)

Or consider this report on the Prince Regent's grand ball from the society pages of The Times of
London, summer, 1816:

We remarked with pain that the indecent foreign dance called the Waltz was introduced (we believe
for the first time) at the English court on Friday last … it is quite sufficient to cast one's eyes on the
voluptuous intertwining of the limbs and close compressor on the bodies in their dance, to see that
it is indeed far removed from the modest reserve which has hitherto been considered distinctive of
English females. So long as this obscene display was confined to prostitutes and adulteresses, we
did not think it deserving of notice; but now that it is attempted to be forced on the respectable
classes of society by the civil examples of their superiors, we feel it a duty to warn every parent
against exposing his daughter to so fatal a contagion.

Jeff Allen has explained:

Interestingly, "voluptuous intertwining of the limbs," simply referred to the close dance position of
the day. The gloved hand of the gentleman was placed gently on the waist of his partner at virtually
full arm's length. The lady's left-gloved hand quite possibly was delicately placed on her gentleman's
shoulder, and she likely held a fan in that same hand. The left hand of the gentleman remained
open and acted as the shelf for his partner's right-gloved hand. The really scandalous point of that
reporter's observation was that the gentleman's foot disappeared from time to time under the
lady's gown in the midst of the dance. The bodies of the dancers were never in contact!

Whether or not you feel the closed dance position to be indecent, this early Waltz was an
exhausting and dizzying experience, consisting of constant twirling without pause or break. Lloyd
Shaw quotes Cellarius, a great French dancing master, who warned that, "The Valser should … take
care never to relinquish his lady until he feels that she has entirely recovered herself."

Hillgrove wrote, "When the lady expresses a desire to pause, the gentleman should take her aside
and wait until she feels refreshed, and is inclined once more to join the whirling maze."

Lloyd Shaw said, "In close embrace (the Waltz position) the dancers turned continually while they
revolved around the room. There were no steps forward or back, no relief, it was all a continuous
whirl of pleasure for those who could take it."

Goethe said, "Never have I moved so lightly. I was no longer a human being. To hold the most
adorable creature in one's arms and fly around with her like the wind, so that everything around us
fades away…"

And it was fun – much too fun to remain widely condemned for long.

The Emperor Alexander of Russia and Lord Palmerston of England (with their respective partners,
of course) were seen enjoying the Waltz. They whirled around English ballrooms with grace and
skill, and the rest of English society quickly joined in. Johann Strauss Sr. (1804 - 1849) and Johann
Strauss Jr. (1825 - 1899), the "Waltz King," wrote On the Beautiful Blue Danube and Tales from the
Vienna Woods and many other pieces. Franz Lehar's (1870 - 1948) Merry Widow was another
beautiful piece, and the Viennese Waltz became popular among all classes. As early as 1825, the
Waltz became known as the "Queen of the Ballroom." In America, the Waltz was first exhibited in
Boston in 1834.
The Two-Step Waltz —

Some obviously felt that the Viennese Waltz was exhilarating, but others found it exhausting, and
a Two-Step Waltz developed at the end of the nineteenth century, as a reaction against the frantic
whirling of the Viennese Waltz. The name, " Two-Step Waltz" almost seems a contradiction of
terms. "Two-Step" is a dance style that features a step, a close, and then a second step (hence the
name "Two-Step). We're used to dancing the Two-Step to 4/4 country music (quick, quick, slow),
but of course we could Two-Step to 3/4 waltz music, too (1,2,3; 1,2,3;).

The Two-Step Waltz does not frantically whirl but calmly progresses around the ballroom in a kind
of zigzag pattern. In closed position, the man faces line of dance, and both step side, close, side,
toward diagonal center. Then the couple turns 1/4 left face and steps with the right foot (woman's
left) side, close, side, diagonally out toward the wall. Keep repeating this pattern, and you trace a
soft or stretched out zigzag around the floor.

Modern Waltz —

The Two-Step Waltz is an old style of Waltz that is not done much anymore (there are no round
dances like this that we know of). It is historically interesting, but around the beginning of the 20th
century it was replaced by the modern Slow Waltz, which is danced at about half the tempo of the
Viennese Waltz. In essence, we have solved the problem of "waltz exhaustion" by cutting the speed
in half, rather than by changing the basic step pattern.

In the modern Waltz, instead of the "fwd, close, fwd;" of the Two-Step Waltz; we dance "fwd, fwd,
close;" It doesn't seem like such a big change or difference, but the overall effect is wonderfully
different. Where the Two-Step Waltz is a smooth, level dance, the modern Waltz has graceful,
undulating rise and fall in body position. You soar upward and glide back down. Instead of a train
purposefully progressing down the track, you glide like a bird on wing, up toward the heavens and
then easily back to earth; or like ocean waves. We seem to be trying for a literary metaphor here.
It certainly is not a wave rising up and then crashing onto the beach. Let's imagine ourselves out
from shore and the swells steadily rising and falling. This smooth rise and fall is perhaps the most
consistent and characteristic feature of the modern Waltz.

Waltz music conspires to create this rise and fall. The first beat of each measure is a heavily accented
"downbeat." The music then rises to a crescendo through beats 2 and 3. At the end of beat 3, the
music falls again. The dancer feels this swelling and contracting in each measure. We rise and
stretch with the music. Lower in the knee with the closing step at the end of beat 3 (and compare
this to the passing steps in foxtrot that help to keep us up). Stay down through count 1 with a heel
lead, rise during 2, stay up into 3, and then lower. Your "fwd, fwd, close;" becomes "rise, up, lower."
Often, we stretch count 2, borrowing a little time from 1 and/or 3, delaying and extending the rise,
"milking" the body flight, smoothing out the turn of the figure. There is strong body sway toward
the center of the turns. We can spend a measure or more developing this or that "picture" figure.
The modern Waltz is anything but frantic; it is slow, smooth, and graceful.
Again, it is specifically the closing step at the end of the measure that allows you to collect
yourselves and lower at the end of the measure. In a Two-Step Waltz, you can't match the rise and
fall to the measures. In Two-Step Waltz, the closing step is in the middle of the measure, when you
should be up. So the Two-Step Waltz ends up level or flat. Our country Two-Step (4-beat) is a flat
dance, too.

Of course, we still have the Viennese Waltz, and it is still danced much faster than the modern
Waltz, up to twice as fast. This means that the rise and fall is more abrupt and more shallow, and
steps are small and compact. Round dance choreographers tend to use music that is at the slower
end of the accepted range for Viennese Waltz (Shibata's Que Sera Sera (2001) times out at 52
measures/min; Goss' Look At Me I'm Sandra Dee (2004) is about 55), but the 1,2,3; timing would
still be tiring if maintained through an entire dance, so a "canter" timing of 1, -, 3; is much used for
relief. Sometimes, we even drop down to the old Hesitation Waltz pattern of step, hold, hold; step,
hold, hold (Sandra Dee has some of this); although this takes us pretty far from true Viennese Waltz.

Some final quotes:

I've only got to set my toe in a dance hall and the adrenaline starts flowing. I can feel that music
even before it starts. My big toe tells me as soon as I step through the door, that I want to get on
that floor and dance. I just come down those stairs and I can't wait to get my shoes on. – "Annie, 75
years old, a London tea dancer, 1997";

True romance (of course!) Floating and tranquil. Bittersweet; like suffering from unrequited love,
or the way you feel after you've moved on from someone you loved once but still feel longingly
toward them every once in a while. Think of Juliet drinking the poison at the end in Romeo and
Juliet. Then lock that feeling in your heart. No, wait, it's a dagger: "Oh happy dagger, here is thy
sheath, there rust and let me die!" – a ballroom dancer

The Waltz is the loveliest blossom of our ballroom. It is perhaps the most satisfactory dance ever
achieved by man. – Lloyd Shaw, 1949

References—

 Old Time Dancing by Victor Silvester, Herbert Jenkins Ltd. London, 1949.
 The Complete Idiot's Guide To Ballroom Dancing by Jeff Allen, Alpha Books, Indianapolis, IN,
2002.
 The Round Dance Book, A Century of Waltzing by Lloyd Shaw, Caxton Printers, Caldwell,
Idaho, 1949
Line Dance basic steps
Irish dance basic steps

Tap dance basic steps

Jazz dance basic steps

Folk dance basic steps

Social dance basic steps

Ballet basic steps

Hip hop dance basic steps
Waltz dance basic steps

Tango basic steps

Line Dance basic steps

Irish dance basic steps

Tap dance basic steps

Jazz dance basic steps

Folk dance basic steps

Social dance basic steps

Ballet basic steps
Hip hop dance basic steps
Waltz dance basic steps

Tango basic steps

Line Dance basic steps

Irish dance basic steps

Tap dance basic steps

Jazz dance basic steps

Folk dance basic steps

Social dance basic steps

Ballet basic steps
Hip hop dance basic steps
Waltz dance basic steps

Tango basic steps

 WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BALLROOM,
MODERN, STANDARD, and INTERNATIONAL &
DANCESPORT?
There are a number of different types of dance that may look the same but are quite different. These
types of dances stem from different traditions and use different music and slightly modified
movements. In order to tell them apart, you need to know the basics behind them. Here are five that
need defining:

Ballroom
Ballroom dancing is what most people think of when they picture a traditional partner dance. Ballroom
dancing consists of the waltz, the foxtrot, the tango, the Viennese waltz, and other similar partnered
styles. Ballroom dancing is broken down into categories, including International Standard,
International Latin, and American Style.

Modern
Modern dance is a catchall phrase for all types of dancing that do not fall into the ballroom, standard,
international and dancesport categories. Modern dance considers dance to be an art form, therefore it
is interpreted in a number of different ways.

Standard
Standard dancing is another term for some of the same ballroom, or partner, dancing. Dances that fall
into the “standard” category are the waltz, the tango, the foxtrot, the Viennese waltz and the
quickstep. When these dances are done for a competition, they become known as International
Standard.

International
International dances are a catchall term for the competitive versions of ballroom dances. There are
two main categories: International Standard, which includes the tango and the Viennese waltz; and
International Latin, which includes the Rumba, the Paso Doble and the Cha-Cha.

Dancesport
Dancesport is a competitive form of ballroom dancing. It is done in front of judges, in the form of
dance that is required of the competitors. This can be everything from the waltz to the slow foxtrot.
There are different categories for age and skill level.

https://www.elitedancestudio.net/blogs/whats-the-difference-between-ballroom-modern-standard-international-and-
dancesport/
 WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BALLROOM,
MODERN, STANDARD, and INTERNATIONAL &
DANCESPORT?
There are a number of different types of dance that may look the same but are quite different. These
types of dances stem from different traditions and use different music and slightly modified
movements. In order to tell them apart, you need to know the basics behind them. Here are five that
need defining:

Ballroom
Ballroom dancing is what most people think of when they picture a traditional partner dance. Ballroom
dancing consists of the waltz, the foxtrot, the tango, the Viennese waltz, and other similar partnered
styles. Ballroom dancing is broken down into categories, including International Standard,
International Latin, and American Style.

Modern
Modern dance is a catchall phrase for all types of dancing that do not fall into the ballroom, standard,
international and dancesport categories. Modern dance considers dance to be an art form, therefore it
is interpreted in a number of different ways.

Standard
Standard dancing is another term for some of the same ballroom, or partner, dancing. Dances that fall
into the “standard” category are the waltz, the tango, the foxtrot, the Viennese waltz and the
quickstep. When these dances are done for a competition, they become known as International
Standard.

International
International dances are a catchall term for the competitive versions of ballroom dances. There are
two main categories: International Standard, which includes the tango and the Viennese waltz; and
International Latin, which includes the Rumba, the Paso Doble and the Cha-Cha.

Dancesport
Dancesport is a competitive form of ballroom dancing. It is done in front of judges, in the form of
dance that is required of the competitors. This can be everything from the waltz to the slow foxtrot.
There are different categories for age and skill level.

https://www.elitedancestudio.net/blogs/whats-the-difference-between-ballroom-modern-standard-international-and-
dancesport/
 WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BALLROOM,
MODERN, STANDARD, and INTERNATIONAL &
DANCESPORT?
There are a number of different types of dance that may look the same but are quite different. These
types of dances stem from different traditions and use different music and slightly modified
movements. In order to tell them apart, you need to know the basics behind them. Here are five that
need defining:

Ballroom
Ballroom dancing is what most people think of when they picture a traditional partner dance. Ballroom
dancing consists of the waltz, the foxtrot, the tango, the Viennese waltz, and other similar partnered
styles. Ballroom dancing is broken down into categories, including International Standard,
International Latin, and American Style.

Modern
Modern dance is a catchall phrase for all types of dancing that do not fall into the ballroom, standard,
international and dancesport categories. Modern dance considers dance to be an art form, therefore it
is interpreted in a number of different ways.

Standard
Standard dancing is another term for some of the same ballroom, or partner, dancing. Dances that fall
into the “standard” category are the waltz, the tango, the foxtrot, the Viennese waltz and the
quickstep. When these dances are done for a competition, they become known as International
Standard.

International
International dances are a catchall term for the competitive versions of ballroom dances. There are
two main categories: International Standard, which includes the tango and the Viennese waltz; and
International Latin, which includes the Rumba, the Paso Doble and the Cha-Cha.

Dancesport
Dancesport is a competitive form of ballroom dancing. It is done in front of judges, in the form of
dance that is required of the competitors. This can be everything from the waltz to the slow foxtrot.
There are different categories for age and skill level.

https://www.elitedancestudio.net/blogs/whats-the-difference-between-ballroom-modern-standard-international-and-
dancesport/