Ian Crewe | SocialBallroom.Dance

October 25, 2015October 31, 2018

5 Ways Dancing Relieves Stress

So, you’ve got work to finish, children to drop off at hockey practice, and still need to find time to cook dinner. And then the sink backs up. Sound familiar?

If you’re like most people, the situation above would likely generate a large amount of that unpleasant reaction known as stress. While you might be tempted to just pop some Prozac or hop on a flight to the Caribbean, there’s actually a lot of evidence that points to dancing as an effective stress-reliever. The following is my top 5 ways that dancing relieves stress. Continue reading "5 Ways Dancing Relieves Stress"

October 18, 2015October 31, 2018

The Anatomy of Ballroom Dance Songs

So far in section one and section two, we’ve focused on changes in energy in ballroom dance songs, and how we can use this to determine the pace and predict where the song is going. But some styles of music can prove much more complicated then the intro-verse-chorus pattern we discussed earlier. To better understand these, we must learn about musical form. Continue reading "The Anatomy of Ballroom Dance Songs"

October 11, 2015October 31, 2018

Ballroom Dance Music Structure: Variations

We’ve looked at how to understand and anticipate how most ballroom dance music is structured, so we can improve timing and musicality. But most songs won’t follow those rules perfectly. Today, we look at some of the little variations made within ballroom dance music structure. Continue reading "Ballroom Dance Music Structure: Variations"

October 4, 2015October 31, 2018

Spotting Patterns in Ballroom Dancing Music

One of the most frustrating barriers to becoming a great ballroom dancer is a lack of feeling for ballroom dancing music. You can know the moves, the technique, all of it, but if you can’t step on the beat or recognize where the ‘1’ is, everything still feels awkward. Continue reading "Spotting Patterns in Ballroom Dancing Music"

September 20, 2015October 31, 2018

Giving your Best Dance Performance

Continuing with 4 more ways to give your best dance performance… Continue reading "Giving your Best Dance Performance"

September 13, 2015October 31, 2018

Guest Post: Dance Performances and Staying Positive

Many of us love to dance, and we often want to share that joy with others as well, whether it’s at a social, a group lesson, or one on one practice with a dance partner. Other times we want to share it with a wider audience by performing on a big stage. With that, however, come many mixed emotions. Some dance performances may result in a very rewarding feeling of accomplishment, and other times we are left disappointed in the outcome, whether it be a result of not enough practice, making mistakes on stage, or possibly an injury. If the outcome of performing has left you disappointed, or even afraid to step on stage again, how do you get back up in front of an audience after such an experience? Here are a few tips to keep a positive perspective on future dance performances, and build more positive experiences on stage. Continue reading "Guest Post: Dance Performances and Staying Positive"

August 13, 2015October 31, 2018

How to do a Dance Turn: Reverse and Natural Turns

Wrapping up our series on how to do a dance turn, we’re targeting the reverse and natural turns, those smooth and elegant rotations of the smooth/standard arena. Before we get into how to do these dance turns though, what’s the difference between them? Continue reading "How to do a Dance Turn: Reverse and Natural Turns"

August 8, 2015October 31, 2018

The Secrets of the Chaine Turn

Now that you’re a pivot turn pro (or at least on the way), we can look at the more challenging chaine turn. Used in jazz and ballet, as well as ballroom, chaine turn give speed and snap to your turns, and are often found in faster rhythm/Latin dances like cha cha or salsa. Continue reading "The Secrets of the Chaine Turn"