Syncopation (dance)

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The terms syncopation and syncopated step in dancing are used for two senses:

  1. The first definition matches the musical term: stepping on (or otherwise emphasizing) an unstressed beat. [1] [2] For example, ballroom cha-cha-cha is a syncopated dance in this sense, because the basic step "breaks on two". An example for a syncopated dance figure is the lockstep in quickstep and waltz. When dancing to the disparate threads contained within the music, hands, torso, and head can independently move in relation to a thread, creating a fluidly syncopated performance of the music.
  2. The word "syncopation" is often used by dance teachers to mean improvised or rehearsed execution of step patterns that have more rhythmical nuances than "standard" step patterns. It takes advanced dancing skill to dance syncopations in this sense. Advanced dancing of West Coast Swing and the Lindy Hop makes heavy use of "syncopation" in this sense (although swing music and swing dances feature the "usual" syncopation, i.e., emphasising the even beats).

Many dance teachers criticise the use of the term "syncopation" and abandon it in favour of the term "double-time". That is most likely because of a convenience in similarity and/or a misunderstanding of the rhythmic concept.

Dance syncopation often matches musical syncopation, such as when (in West Coast Swing) the leader touches slightly before beat 3 or stomps on beat 6.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Coast Swing</span> Type of dance

East Coast Swing (ECS) is a form of social partner dance. It belongs to the group of swing dances. It is danced under fast swing music, including rock and roll and boogie-woogie.

Rhythm generally means a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time can apply to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or frequency of anything from microseconds to several seconds ; to several minutes or hours, or, at the most extreme, even over many years.

In music, syncopation is a variety of rhythms played together to make a piece of music, making part or all of a tune or piece of music off-beat. More simply, syncopation is "a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of rhythm": a "placement of rhythmic stresses or accents where they wouldn't normally occur". It is the correlation of at least two sets of time intervals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metre (music)</span> Aspect of music

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Dance moves or dance steps are usually isolated, defined, and organized so that beginning dancers can learn and use them independently of each other. However, more complex movements are influenced by musicality and lyrical relevance to express emotions or refer to a message. Dance moves tend to emphasize the concepts of lead and follow and connection.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salsa (dance)</span> Dance form

Salsa is a latin dance, associated with the music genre of the same name, which was first popularized in the United States in the 1960s in New York City. Salsa is a mixture of Cuban dances, such as mambo, pachanga and rumba, as well as American dances such as swing and tap.

Modern Jive is a dance style derived from swing, Lindy Hop, rock and roll, salsa and others, the main difference being the simplification of footwork by removing syncopation such as chasse. The term "French Jive" is occasionally used instead, reflecting the origins of the style, as is the term "Smooth Jive". The word "modern" distinguishes it from ballroom Jive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Groove (music)</span> Music term

In music, groove is the sense of an effect ("feel") of changing pattern in a propulsive rhythm or sense of "swing". In jazz, it can be felt as a quality of persistently repeated rhythmic units, created by the interaction of the music played by a band's rhythm section. Groove is a significant feature of popular music, and can be found in many genres, including salsa, rock, soul, funk, and fusion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Round dance</span>

Modern social round dance, or round dancing, is a choreographed and cued ballroom dance that progresses in a circular counter-clockwise pattern around the dance floor. The two major categories of ballroom dances found in round dancing are the smooth and international ballroom styles and the Latin dances. It is not to be confused with circle dancing, which is a type of folk dance in which dancers are connected in a circular chain.

This is a list of dance terms that are not names of dances or types of dances. See List of dances and List of dance style categories for those.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quickstep</span> Ballroom dance

The quickstep is a light-hearted dance of the standard ballroom dances. The movement of the dance is fast and powerfully flowing and sprinkled with syncopations. The upbeat melodies that quickstep is danced to make it suitable for both formal and informal events. Quickstep was developed in the 1920s in New York City and was first danced by Black Americans. Its origins are in combination of slow foxtrot combined with the Charleston, a dance which was one of the precursors to what today is called swing dancing.

The basic step, basic figure, basic movement, basic pattern, or simply basic is the dance move that defines the character of a particular dance. It sets the rhythm of the dance; it is the default move to which a dancer returns, when not performing any other moves. More formally, it can be defined as a "rhythmic step pattern" in the form of a "consistent and recurring grouping of weight changes" between the feet which is rhythmic and repeated for the length of a song. For some dances it is sufficient to know the basic step performed in different handholds and dance positions to enjoy it socially.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cha-cha-cha (dance)</span> Dance of Cuban origin cha- cha

The cha-cha-cha, is a dance of Cuban origin. It is danced to the music of the same name introduced by the Cuban composer and violinist Enrique Jorrin in the early 1950s. This rhythm was developed from the danzón-mambo. The name of the dance is an onomatopoeia derived from the shuffling sound of the dancers' feet when they dance two consecutive quick steps that characterize the dance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dance music</span> Music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing

Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded dance music. While there exist attestations of the combination of dance and music in ancient times, the earliest Western dance music that we can still reproduce with a degree of certainty are old fashioned dances. In the Baroque period, the major dance styles were noble court dances. In the classical music era, the minuet was frequently used as a third movement, although in this context it would not accompany any dancing. The waltz also arose later in the classical era. Both remained part of the romantic music period, which also saw the rise of various other nationalistic dance forms like the barcarolle, mazurka, ecossaise, ballade and polonaise.

In music, the term swing has two main uses. Colloquially, it is used to describe the propulsive quality or "feel" of a rhythm, especially when the music prompts a visceral response such as foot-tapping or head-nodding. This sense can also be called "groove". It is also known as shuffle.

Bachata is a style of social dance from the Dominican Republic which is now danced all over the world. It is connected with bachata music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dance from Cuba</span> Performing arts from Cuba

Cuban culture encompasses a wide range of dance forms. The island's indigenous people performed rituals known as areíto, which included dancing, although little information is known about such ceremonies. After the colonization of Cuba by the Spanish Kingdom, European dance forms were introduced such as the French contredanse, which gave rise to the Cuban contradanza. Contradanza itself spawned a series of ballroom dances between the 19th and 20th centuries, including the danzón, mambo and cha-cha-cha. Rural dances of European origin, such as the zapateo and styles associated with punto guajiro also became established by the 19th century, and in the 20th century son became very popular. In addition, numerous dance traditions were brought by black slaves from West Africa and the Congo basin, giving rise to religious dances such as Santería, yuka and abakuá, as well as secular forms such as rumba. Many of these dance elements from European dance and religious dances were fused together to form the basis of la técnica cubana. Cuban music also contributed to the emergence of Latin dance styles in the United States, namely rhumba and salsa.

Dalcroze eurhythmics, also known as the Dalcroze method or simply eurhythmics, is one of several developmental approaches including the Kodály method, Orff Schulwerk and Suzuki Method used to teach music to students. Eurhythmics was developed in the early 20th century by Swiss musician and educator Émile Jaques-Dalcroze. Dalcroze eurhythmics teaches concepts of rhythm, structure, and musical expression using movement, and is the concept for which Dalcroze is best known. It focuses on allowing the student to gain physical awareness and experience of music through training that takes place through all of the senses, particularly kinesthetic.

References

  1. "Dance dictionary". BallroomDancers.com. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  2. "Glossary of Round Dance Terms" (PDF). International Choreographed Ballroom Dance Assiciation. Retrieved 2020-06-05.