October 14, 2008

Lindy-Hop vs. Blues Dance: Learning

The Lindy-Hop vs. Blues conversation is certainly not a new one. There are myriad ways to slice this cake, but one of my dance partners, John Joven recently defined an important difference between the two.

A student of ours asked us at the end of class one evening:
“Compared to the other dances out there (and I believe he was specifically referring to partner dances as taught in the US, such as Swing Forms as well as Latin and Ballroom styles), don’t you think Blues is one of the hardest?”

John and I both had answers ready, but he let me answer first. Mine was a gut reaction:
“I think Blues is actually the easiest dance to start with, because it’s based on principles and doesn’t require you to learn a set of patterns or steps in order to get started. Instead, it’s just based on connection and musicality.”

John’s response was quite different. I’m paraphrasing here:
“As a school-teacher, I think it depends on what kind of learner you are. If you are good at math and science, you’re going to find a dance like Lindy-Hop a lot easier because there’s a structure and it’s based on patterns. While it is still a creative dance, you are bound by that 8-count or 6-count structure in which to make your moves. If you’re the type who is into rhetoric, creative writing and English literature where there many different answers to the same question, then you’ll find Blues a lot easier because it’s more about creativity and interpretation. You are not bound to make certain steps or moves in specific parts of the count.”

Our student and I both laughed out loud. His response, because he finds Blues to be quite challenging was, “Well, I guess I’ve just been pigeonholed!” But in a way I think it made him feel better about why a part of him doesn’t always fully grok the way Blues Dance works. Our student is in the law and accounting profession and me… well, I’ve always been the creative writer type.