East Coast Swing
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East Coast Swing (ECS) is a six-step social partner dance derived from the Eastern Swing Dance. Eastern Swing, in turn, was evolved from Foxtrot or more specifically its leaping version known as Shag. Furthermore, many aspects of East Coast Swing were, and still are, influenced by Charleston and Lindy Hop. In many dance studios and classes, East Coast Swing is taught as one of the first forms of swing dance because of its forgiving nature when a mistake is made and its relatively simple step routine.
East Coast Swing is the modern form of its early counterpart Eastern Swing which was a street dance. The name East Coast Swing was coined to initially be a divider between the street form and the new variant used in the competitive ballroom arena.[citation needed] While based on Eastern Swing, it does have clear distinctions. East Coast Swing is a standardized form of dance that was developed to allow for a medium of comparison for competitive dancers. It can be said that there is a right and wrong way to dance it as the technical elements of this form are documented and governed by the National Dance Council of America. The N.D.C.A. oversees all the accepted standards for American Style Ballroom and Latin dances. Eastern Swing was never standardized and later evolved into several forms such as: (European) Boogie Woogie, Jive, East Coast Swing, and Rock & Roll.
Depending on the region, the basic step of East Coast Swing is either "rock step, step, step" or "step, step, rock step". Despite the differing order, the rock step is always taken on a major beat of the music and, therefore, will result in the exact same dance. An evolution to the basic step, often seen on dance floors during slow songs, is a triple step rather than a single step resulting in a basic move of "rock step, triple step, triple step".
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[edit] Common East Coast Swing positions
- Open Position: The lead and the follow are facing one another, connected by the follow resting her hands in the lead's.
- Closed Position: The lead and the follow are at an angle to one another, where the lead places his right hand on the follow's back and the follow places her left hadn on the lead's right shoulder.
- Cuddle: The lead and the follow are both facing outward, where the position is the result of an inside turn in which the lead did not release his hands from the follow.
[edit] Common steps
- Basic Open: In open position, remain in the same position while doing the basic step.
- Basic Closed: In closed position, simply remain in the same position while preforming the basic step.
- Inside Turn, Left Inside Turn, or She Goes: In open position, the leader raises his left hand and brings it slightly to the right of his body, signalling for the follower to spin under.
- Outside Turn: In open position, the leader raises his left hand and brings it slightly to the left of his body, signalling for the follower to spin out.
- He Goes: In open position, the leader raises his left hand and spins under. (Leader left outside turn)
- She Goes, He Goes: In open position, the leader performs an inside turn and then spins under the connected arm during the fifth and sixth counts of the step. (Left inside turn followed by Leader left outside turn)
- Inside Turn to Closed: In open position, the leader leads an inside turn but directs the follower to closed position by placing his right hand on the follower's back and bringing her into closed position.
- Inside Turn to Cuddle: In open position, the leader leads an inside turn but does not let go of the follow's left hand.
- Turn Turn: In closed position or in cuddle, the leader leads a rotating rock step (counts 1 and 2), brings the follower in so that the leader and the follower are face to face and the leader's left hand meets the follower's right hand with the momentum of the rotating rock step (counts 3 and 4), and then spins the follower out by releasing the hand the leader has on the follower's back (counts 5 and 6). At the end of the turn turn, the leader and the follower will be in open position.
- Waist Slide or Belt Loop: In open position, the leader raises his right hand and turns to his left, raising his right arm and his partner's left arm over his head and in front of him while turning. He lets go with his left hand, continues to turn while maintaining the hold with his right hand, ends up facing his partner again, and regrips the follower's right hand with his left.
[edit] Footwork
Footwork can have many different forms:
- Single time: Rock-step, step-hold, step-hold, see Single Swing. Very floorbound.
- Double time: Rock-step, kick-step, kick-step; or rock-step, tap-step, tap-step. Conducive to high energy acrobatic moves (kicks, throws, flips, dips). For fast music: 180-240bpm.
- Triple time: Rock-step, triple-step, triple-step. Excellent for 120-170bpm. Can be mixed with some kicks and throws.
- Holds: Rock step, hold-hold, hold-hold. Commonly used for breaks on triplets against the grid.
These forms can be mixed and matched, for example: Rock-step, triple-step, kick, hold.
[edit] Transitions
- To Charleston: From inside position, the lead moves his right hand from the follow's back to her hip and releases his left hand from the follow's right hand.
Other common transitions are from inside position of ECS to Lindy, Shag, and most any other form of swing dance.
[edit] See also
