OMG why have I never heard this before.? This is an incredible eye opener. Because I play percussion myself, I became annoyed when I started counting next to the beat of 8. I felt the tempo and was irritated several times that there were 6 counts in music of eight. This is one of the best theories I really needed. Thank you very much brian. Now I can start really dancing. Do you happen to have videos where you do figures in this way where you count down to an accent? Thank you very much in advance.

@WestCoastSwingOnline

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback. Yes I think this is a BIG step in connecting to the music. It seems like an "ah ha" moment when dancers are ready to hear it. If it's brought up earlier than that it seems to go over people's heads. I'm glad you found it so helpful! Keep up the good work and thanks for the support! -Brian

Wow, fantastic. I wasn't able to watch live, but I'm so glad to be able to watch this online. Excellent explanation. Very clear and easy to comprehend the steps involved. Super useful and even something I can practice without a dance partner (though I'm sure it would be a lot more fun and useful).

@WestCoastSwingOnline

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks Kurt! That was the goal. As simple as these things seem... The 3 of us put a lot of thought into them. We sifted through our own experiences as teachers + the input of literally 10's of thousands of dancers we've interacted with online. Stay tuned for the NEW "Ultimate Guide to Musicality" It's gonna be awesome. If you enter your email here: west-coast-swing-online.ck.page/8b46f23f62 I'll shoot you an email when it's done. Also if you enter your email, I'll shoot you an immediate reply with our Musicality E-Book. Happy leanring! B

Love it! You explained it really well.

@WestCoastSwingOnline

15 күн бұрын

Thanks so much! - Brian

You ARE on fire today! The social distance fail made me chuckle. Watching 3 yrs later. Thank you for the drills!!! And doing from follow view as well. Its like relearning from the beginning to count differently but think it will be key to next level! Ps. Ive played many instruments and yes the 6 count was driving me crazy (because a 6 count to me suggests two 3 counts which would be a waltz) I cant thank you all enough

@WestCoastSwingOnline

5 ай бұрын

We are so glad that this is helpful to you!

In our LindyHop class we do not bother really with the concept of 6counts "not fitting" into usually 8 count jazz/swing music simply because it all comes down to 2counts. As with anything you learn once you have copied and repeated (think of a child learning to speak, first: mimic and copy, repeat on their own) enough times and this greatly depends on previous experience (10 year latin ballroom dancer will pick up swing MUCH faster than you average joe or jill) and talent, you will have build up "muscle memory" like in every sport. We usually start out with an 8 count pattern, the basic, the swing out (which your WCS took and made it into a whip) and go thru musicality class 1: making dancers understand that 8 fits 8, no worries (looking at you salsa). They usually start to hear the phrasing by then in the music and we keep going 8s and now trying to hit breaks - usually the last 8 beats of 32 beats (=1 phrase having 4 times 8 beats, which pop music also has, so this applies usually also to west coast swing, but it is more pronounced in swing usually) and have them do some solo-jazz figures or let them improv on those last 8s. Most important: find the one again and keep this up throughout a song - we pick an easy one where it is really really obvious. Than we introduce STOMP OFF, which is not common in westcoastswing, but a way to communicate to your partner in lindy: hey, I am done, one is coming up, lets leave the break and go back to something else (usually a rock step, but we encourage to play around with it). Once dancers get the hang of this drill we go all crazy: pick an easy 6count and our basic 8 count and do this again: 6x4 + 8= 24 + 8 = 32, perfect, so we can do 4 times the 6 counts and need one 8 count to complete the 32: so we let them split it up like 2 times 6 counts, do an 8 count, 2 times 6 counts: and then they usually go: OH WAIT! I am dancing RIGHT INTO the break, that is weird. YES! Got some! For some it takes longer, for others it is more second nature - a personal thing - but those who get that feeling of "well yeah it fits, but dancing right into the break is weird" we take to the side and give them tools to shorten or longer patterns, so making a 10 or 8 count out of an 8 or 6 count or reducing a 6 count to a 4 count. It is not always simply possible and sometimes they just need to experiment when another turn or spin (there are other ways) would get you where you want to be. It is a process and you need patience. Also what helps: go dancing 3-4 times a week, 3 times training, 1 social dance. You will fly by all those "I only go dancing once a week / oh I missed a class now its been two weeks" people - even the once in "intermediate class". ;-)

@WestCoastSwingOnline

4 жыл бұрын

Boom! Mic Drop!!!! Great info Mark. Thanks for taking the time to share. This is really good stuff and I love the different perspective. I'm not up on the Lindy world so it's great to hear your thoughts. Keep them coming! -B

@trandom2083

5 ай бұрын

@markfrinch7865 Ive found social dancing really is key as a follower because in class you really dont have to take cues since you know the step that is coming!

I've been out of the first group for a long time. I haven't counted patterns in ages. I like to be able to converse with my social dance partners. But I'm definitely not in the second group. I've tried counting 8s (we called it WCS Math), but never found a way to make good use of it. It's rather like if I'm sitting listening to the music (and or watching other dancers), I keep feeling a variety moves that would fit - hmm, the beginnings of musicality. But if I am actually dancing, I get a disconnect between that part of my brain and the rest of my body. Where I'm learning something new, I count in 2s, because everything happens in blocks of 2s. What has helped a bit, but I think it's kinda cheating, is to follow my follow. In my previous community, most follows also didn't have any musicality to speak of, but with those that did, once they expressed something in the music, I would try to mirror or mimic them, which ever was appropriate. Still difficult...

@WestCoastSwingOnline

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing your story. Yes it's difficult at all levels but it seems like you're doing great. Counting in 2's can be a BIG help just like you said. Also following your follower is a key skill to great leaders so I think you're right on there! Keep up the good work -Brian

DUDE. I've been a musician for almost two decades. My wife and I started ballroom a month ago and I was trying to explain how annoying the 6 count against 8 counts in two bars thing was and no one was understanding why it was soooooooooooo frustrating to me. We did a 8 count Lindy with our instructor and it was like a breath of fresh air actually being symmetric on the counts with the steps.

@WestCoastSwingOnline

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah at first it is pretty frustrating for musicians (or anyone who understands music). After getting rolling with WCS (or any other dance with an emphasis on musicality) the 8 counts of a basic over 8 counts of music can be restricting. I becomes another skill set to tackle. But yes it would be nice to start from a place where the dance 'matched' the music :-) I hope you and your wife are enjoying the dancing though! Where are you from? -Brian B (we're in Louisville KY)

@therealmattmendoza

3 жыл бұрын

@@WestCoastSwingOnline We're having a blast. We are about an hour inland of Los Angeles, CA

@WestCoastSwingOnline

3 жыл бұрын

@@therealmattmendoza That's awesome! We were just in Moorpark CA for a workshop. Not super far away!

@laurenrader2411

5 ай бұрын

I went dancing with a friend when I was in college. As a musician, I could NOT figure out what we were doing. He was a good sport about it, but it ranks as one of the most embarrassing nights of my life to date. I knew I was square, but that was a new level. 😅

You guys are great... I wish I wasn’t in Australia. I have trouble with the 6 beats... because it seems uneven and has to go through the music. I am naturally rhythmical and have usually have no trouble hearing the beat of the music. But I’m struggling to even see the the basic 6 count steps.... doesn’t help that nobody here teaches it. Ok I need to replay this and get up and ‘do it’. You are an excellent teacher. Would love to learn from you!

@WestCoastSwingOnline

3 жыл бұрын

Hey Lyall! Here is something you might find really helpful. It's our complete guide to beginner west coast swing. It's perfect as you're learning the beginner patterns (and your next 15 patterns) while sorting out some of the tricky parts of musicality in WCS. You can grab it here for just $7 USD westcoastswingonline.com/beginners-guide-offer-7/ It's really the best thing to get you over that beginner hump! Let me know if you have questions. Brian B

WCS music (some of it) to me seems like the music that doesn't have home or dance elsewhere, so they lump into WCS dance. Danced two WCS dances last night. The first one was fine, the second one we couldn't find the beat or rhythm at any time during the song. As soon as we thought we'd found it, then it disappeared again. So we just ended up dancing to our own rhythm, independent of the music. Very frustrating, not enjoyable. Glad when the song was over lol.

@WestCoastSwingOnline

2 ай бұрын

Most wcs music is 8 counts and the correct speed. West coast dancers are much like salsa dancers in that they will dance to anything. Im interested to what the song was.

@robertcashman5429

2 ай бұрын

@@WestCoastSwingOnline Thank you for responding. I didn't know the song. It didn't have a strong beat, so I guess I need to listen more for the phrasing if that makes sense. I don't have trouble with syncopated hustle as the 3 count multiples eventually line up with the 4 beat measure. I'll just keep trying WCS and with different partners to get more data about finding and dancing with the beat. I'd heard that some WCS dancers don't even dance to the song, they just do their own thing with their own timing. I tried that too, and it felt even worse lol.

The audio went out when you answered questions.

@WestCoastSwingOnline

4 жыл бұрын

Sorry. I think the battery ran out. We changed it quickly but there is about 2min of audio missing. You can grab the missing 2min here on Facebook: facebook.com/WestCoastSwingOnline/videos/238754717298225/ Best wishes, Brian

@cherylw3981

4 жыл бұрын

@@WestCoastSwingOnline Thank you! And Thanks for the useful video. Cheryl

@damoneugenerich

4 жыл бұрын

I heard things about musically that I hadn’t heard in the same way before. And have more things to work on. Great stream!

@WestCoastSwingOnline

4 жыл бұрын

@@damoneugenerich Thanks Damon! This video inspired us to go back and change out approach to our "Ultimate Guide to Musicality" video course. Over the years we've discovered 3 main types of people struggling with musicality. Then we realized that a 30min video simply couldn't cover all of it :-( I'm glad the live stream was useful. The full course should be finished very soon. If you enter your email here: west-coast-swing-online.ck.page/8b46f23f62 I'll shoot you an email when it's done. Also if you enter your email, I'll shoot you an immediate reply with our Musicality E-Book. That should keep you busy in the meantime :-) Thanks for the support! B

@WestCoastSwingOnline

4 жыл бұрын

@@cherylw3981 Anytime Cheryl! Thanks for the support. -B