OLD SCHOOL JAZZ

Old school jazz dance (also known as UK jazz dance) refers to the improvised dancing style that originated in the UK in the 1970s. The style grew in clubs in the UK, mainly in London and in northern cities, with the sounds of bebop, Afro-Cuban jazz, fusion, swing and other Latin-influenced jazz and funk.

It predates hip hop and breakdancing- the American dance culture, which didn't reach the U.K. shores until 1982–1983. Jazz dancing has similarities to breakdancing, but essentially it is not the same.

It important to know it started in heart of second generation African Caribbean/African homes and community venue preceding the takeoff in the heart of cities, nightclubs and discos all over the country. Built on the dance steps and spirit of celebration of their first generation (1950s, 1960s) immigrant parents; who where connoisseur record collectors; top-dancers and fashion icons who pioneered the underground live music and soundsystem scene. Second generation were encouraged in early learning (by first generation parents) to value improvising to their own freestyle music of their day modern and swing jazz; blues; ska; RnB; calypso; soul; rocksteady; rock 'n' roll; reggae; gospel; country 'n' western. The Rest is history {blu uk jazzdance oral history}

DJ Paul Murphy is generally credited with having begun the trend of playing high tempo jazz, bebop and fusion records to dancers in the early 1980s in London nightclubs such as The Horseshoe(or "Jaffa's") on Tottenham Court Road and the Electric Ballroom on Camden High Street, along with young London DJ Gilles Peterson

It is also believed^{[by whom?]} that the true birthplace of this dance movement was in the northern towns and cities in the late 1970s, driven by a healthy Northern Soul scene that at the time was fragmenting into a more modern soul sound. DJs Colin Curtis, Shaun Williams and others were at the forefront of promoting the scene in Northern England, regularly playing to 3–4,000 club goers every weekend.

The northern Jazz Dancers were pretty organised and travelled regularly, frequenting various clubs in the North East and North West of England. It was common place for soul music fans and jazz dancers to make a 200-mile round trip to visit a nightclub.

Some of the crews in the early 1980s included the Birmingham 'Spades' - recognisable from their grey cut-off sweatshirts with the 'barefoot' logos printed front and back. In Manchester there were many Jazz Dance crews, one of the most memorable were the Manchester 'Riffs' - Their trademark look was sunglasses (worn during a dance battle), shaven bald heads and leather jackets, the same outfit as worn by the New York street gang The Riffs in the film 'The Warriors'.

Blackpool (Mecca), Birmingham (Hummingbird, Locarno), Manchester (Ritz,Berlins, Hell, various), Preston, Nottingham, Derby, Wolverhampton, Stoke-on-Trent, Wigan (Cassanelli's) were all notable towns and cities where 'All-Dayers' (All day discothèques) were popular playing both soul music, Jazz-Funk and fast tempo Jazz. Lasting usually from 2 pm to 11 pm they were staple hangouts for the northern youth of mainly (but not exclusively) black heritage and essential on the Jazz Dancing scene.

The development of the dance style was influenced by jazz, tap and lindy hop. Dancing is often performed with two dancers within a circle of other dancers, each taking a turn to outperform each other.

The dance style was highly energetic with the dancers mainly free styling with moves akin to tap dancing with funky grooves, floor moves involving the intricate intertwining of limbs. Fast footwork and almost impossible stamina characterised this U.K. home-grown phenomenon.^{[citation needed]}

Some of the more outlandish moves that have become legendary folklore amongst the dancers involved in the scene were the 'wrist watch on the ankle'. A dancer, pre battle, placed a wristwatch on his ankle and after performing a series of energetic moves completed the discipline with a series of floor moves ending up frozen in a pose checking out the time on the watch.

Another battle involved a dancer dancing out of his shoes performing a series of jazz dance moves, then effortlessly dancing back into his shoes.

One dance even managed to work the illusion of laying an egg - leaving an egg in the middle of 'battle circle' for his opponent to ponder. These stunts were imaginative and a part of the fun.

The Jazz Defektors", were the first to form and perform, IDJ, Jazzcotech, The Floor Technicians, Brothers in Jazz, The Backstreet Kids and other pioneers across the country.

IDJ, or 'I Dance Jazz', were arguably the most successful dance crew of the genre, appearing in music videos  - The Specials, 1984), full length feature films (Absolute Beginners, Released 1986), and eventually performing in front of an estimated 44 million viewers worldwide at the Nelson Mandela: An International Tribute for a Free South Africa (1990 at Wembley Stadium).

SALSA

Salsa is a popular form of social dance that originated in New York with influences from Latin America, particularly Cuba and Puerto Rico. The movements of salsa have its origins in Cuban Son, Cha cha cha, Mambo and other dance forms, and the dance, along with the music, originated in the mid-1970s in New York. It is commonly danced to salsa music, although the steps can be danced to any type of music with an 8-count rhythm.

Description

In many styles of salsa dancing, as a dancer changes weight by stepping, the upper body remains level and nearly unaffected by the weight changes. Weight shifts cause the hips to move. Arm and shoulder movements are also incorporated. The Cuban Casino style of salsa dancing involves significant movement above the waist, with up-and-down shoulder movements and shifting of the ribcage.

The arms are used by the "lead" dancer to communicate or signal the "follower," either in "open" or "closed" position. The open position requires the two dancers to hold one or both hands, especially for moves that involve turns, putting arms behind the back, or moving around each other, to name a few examples. In the closed position, the leader puts the right hand on the follower's back, while the follower puts the left hand on the leader's shoulder.

In the original Latin America form, the forward/backward motion of salsa is done in diagonal or sideways with the 3-step weight change intact.

In some styles of salsa, such as LA and New York style, the dancers remain in a slot or line (switching places), while in some Latin American styles, such as Cuban style, the dancers circle around each other, sometimes in 3 points. This circular style is inspired by Cuban Son, specifically to the beat of Son Montuno in the 1920s. However, as it is a popular music, it is open to improvisation and thus it is continuously evolving. New modern salsa styles are associated and named to the original geographic areas that developed them. There are often devotees of each of these styles outside of their home territory. Characteristics that may identify a style include: timing, basic steps, foot patterns, body rolls and movements, turns and figures, attitude, dance influences and the way that partners hold each other. The point in a musical bar music where a slightly larger step is taken (the break step) and the direction the step moves can often be used to identify a style.

Incorporating other dance styling techniques into salsa dancing has become very common, for both men and women: shimmies, leg work, arm work, body movement, spins, body isolations, shoulder shimmies, rolls, even hand styling, acrobatics and lifts.

Latin American styles originate from Cuba and surrounding Caribbean islands.