Cultural Differences in Ballroom Dancing

I have been thinking about the differences between English waltz, Argentine tango, and swing dancing.  From my experience with these three kinds of ballroom dancing, I have observed how different they are from each other culturally.  Waltz dancing can be perceived as stiffer and more reserved than other forms of ballroom dancing, such as Argentine tango.  In Argentine tango, which developed later than waltz did (in Buenos Aires, the tango capital of the world), the partners hold their faces closer to each other, in a more intimate manner.  Their bodies remain close to each other throughout the majority of the steps.  In waltz, the girl looks away from her partner, over her partner's right shoulder.  The waltzers'  arms and hands are less relaxed than the tango dancers', and they have to hold the position of their arms up higher, as they glide effortlessly around the room.  Waltzers have to keep the composure of ballet dancers the entire time.  Being a cultural expression born of more Northern climes, it has a touch of English culture, though waltzing came from Vienna and in comparison to England, it was from a more southern clime.  To me, waltz seems to be all about the appearance; it focuses on making the steps elegant.

Victoria dances the waltz with Albert in The Young Victoria (2009).

Waltz dancing was thought of as scandelous when it was introduced to English culture in the early 1810's, because of the partners' positions, with the man's hand on the girl's hip and the girl's hand on the man's shoulder.  In Regency Era England, dancing usually only involved the touch of the partner's hands.  Their dance movements involved graceful poses of the arms and hands, and in that way was quite reminisent of classical ballet.

The dance scene in Emma (2009).

Unfortunately, waltz dancing has changed more than tango, which has kept its social function.  The modern day emphasis on competition has changed waltz dancing stylistically, and in my opinion, has detracted from its natural beauty.  I would welcome a return to dance as a popular social activity and a return to more natural body postures.  The natural more intimate pose between dance partners of yesteryear is more beautiful, optimistic, and human.  I truly loved taking social waltz (I used to take waltzing classes in the summer).  It matched me pretty well, and I really felt connected with it.  I understood its mentality and personality.  Waltz dancing comes from my cultural background.  It is also connected to old fashioned ballroom dancing, in the days when my great grandmother was young.  I love that world when young people used to go to dances like that as social events for fun.  Waltz brings me closer to that world.

Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge dances the polka in Scrooge (1951).

Argentine tango has both European and African influences.  It derives from the waltz, but on the other hand, it is practically the exact opposite of waltz dancing, because tango is much more an expression of southern culture, both in terms of the Southern European immigrants to Buenos Aires, as well as the African slaves, who moved to the Argentine capital after they were freed.  Argentine tango is freer and less inhibited in its expressions; it's more personal.  It comes from a cultural world where, from my observation, there is a warm personality, something that someone like me, with the northern cultural background that I have, is at times less familiar with.  Argentine tango, particularly the era of the 1930's and 1940's, is a beautiful dance form, as is the music that accompanies it.

A more modern form of tango is called tango nuevo.  My impression is that the music is modernized from the style of the tango music from the 1930's and 1940's, and is apt to sound computerized, whereas milongas from the '30's and '40s would have a live band with talented musicians (something that could happen again if social dancing experienced a rejuvenation in popularity).  As you can observe from the following two videos, tango has evolved, both in terms of the music and the dance movements.  Tango nuevo (or nuevo tango) has kept tango innovative as it keeps apace with the times.

I liked learning Argentine tango as well, but in a way it was very different from waltz and something I was not used to.  It helped vary my perspective and opened my eyes to a different culture, which is always a beneficial experience.  But I didn't feel as connected to it as I did with waltz.  I often get the impression that people look upon being reserved to be a negative thing, and that being more personal is more real.  I don't think people understand the more reserved cultures.  The cultural perspective of waltz is just different from the perspective of tango.

Most swing dances came from African American culture, and grew to be very popular in the 1920's, during the Jazz Age and the Harlem Renaissance.  Swing dancing has a fast paced rhythm and expresses itself openly with its energy.

Below is a video of a Lindy Hop ("The Lindy Hop" is a very fast type of swing dance) competition from YouTube that I really like.  The dancers are very skilled and do a lot of impressive moves.  I don't think I could ever dance as fast as they can!

I adore swing dancing.  I wish I could have taken far more swing classes than I have in the past.  I think swing dancing balances well with waltz dancing, as opposites tend to do.

Figure Skating Versus Ballet

When I returned from visiting my great grandma in Canada for the last time, I was four years old.  During that year I began to take numerous activities:  Kindermusic, ballet, tap/jazz, figure skating, and Irish dancing.  I loved taking all of these enrichment classes, but eventually I had to quit some activities because of how busy I was becoming.  One of the activities I quit was Irish dancing, but I kept on taking figure skating and ballet.  When I was eight, I had to choose between keeping ballet, or figure skating.  It is extremely hard to do both of these activities, once it starts to get serious and competitive.  Both ballet and figure skating take up the majority of your time, and require a lot of energy and devotion.  It was pretty impossible for me to continue both.  I ended up choosing to keep ballet.  That was a big mistake.  And that is what I am going to talk about in this post - the differences between ballet and figure skating.

Traditionally, ballet requires a tall, willowy, and graceful body structure.  I'm not saying there can be no good ballet dancers who don't fit this description, but I am saying it helps a lot if you do fit this description.  It is also true that this body type is more suited for ballet.  I am not the tall skinny type.  I am just below average height and slightly stockier than what a typical ballerina should be.  I also have slightly thicker ankles than what would be considered good for ballet.  If your ankles are thin or delicate, ice skating is probably not for you.  In other words, I am far more adapted for figure skating than for ballet.  I was also far more natural at figure skating.  It seemed to click for me.  I enjoyed practicing and I practiced nearly every day.  I loved to skate.  I enjoy dancing as well, but I'm not quite as suited for it.  It's not as natural for me as skiing or ice skating is.  I suppose winter sports are more my sort of thing.  I think I will always regret quitting figure skating when I was eight.  I know that if I had continued it, I would have been pretty good (I realize I'm sounding very boastful right now, but I don't want to have fake modesty either.  If I think I would have been a great figure skater I might as well say it. :P).  Ballet, on the other hand, was much more complicated for me.  I began to improve my dancing skills more and more, but for some reason, when I reached the fifth level of ballet, I began to go backwards instead of forwards in terms of progress.  That was when I remember it began to get pretty competitive.  I think I couldn't handle the psychological intensity that came with the competition, especially since I can be a very self-conscious person.  Figure Skating is also a competitive activity, but I felt more confident with figure skating than I felt with ballet.  So after ten years of ballet and two and a half years of pointe shoe classes, I quit ballet as well.  In some ways I miss ballet.  I miss dancing; I like to dance.  But in other ways, I'm glad I'm not doing it any more.  I tried out skiing during the Holiday break two years ago, when I went to Quebec.  I got the hang of it in four days, and it was really fun.  I love the feeling of freedom when I'm skiing quickly down a steep slope.  I plan on skiing again next year in Quebec.  I feel that in a way, skiing has replaced ballet for me.

However, just because I didn't have the best experience with ballet at times, doesn't mean I don't still love it.  I love classical ballet.  I think it's a beautiful dance form that, to quote myself, possesses the talent of story telling.  Here is the Odile solo from Swan Lake, a classical ballet I often went to see when I was little.

Below is a figure skating duet.  As you can see, ballet and figure skating could be seen as similar in some ways, but are very different in many other ways.  They have different movements and a pretty different style altogether.  Some movements may seem similar at first, but they are executed very differently.  For example, ice skaters do not turn out or keep their position the same way a dancer would.  Although, it is of course obvious figure skating would differ from dance, since it is a performance art form that takes place on ice rather than on a stage or the wooden floor of a dance studio. 

I really like this duet.  I think they're excellent skaters.  Their movements are very well executed and very graceful.

I really like this duet, as well.  I think I may like it even more than the previous one.

I prefer the Russian style of figure skating to other styles, because they often cross-train in ballet and think of ice skating as an art form rather than just a sport.