For the LovE of DancE
Once upon a time, ballroom dance was “social dancing” for the privileged classes, which left what was known as folk dancing for the lower classes.
Sooo when did social partner dancing end you ask…you do ask that don’t ya?..Heh
Some dance historians (yes, there is such a thing) mark the appearance of the Twist in the mid 1960s as the end of what was social dancing.
They credit the Latin Hustle (remember Saturday Night Fever) for bringing it back big time, in the late 1970s.
There are different kinds of dances.
Some are known as travelling dances..like Standard and Smooth.
Why you ask?..(you do ask don’t ya?) Well, primarily because couples travel around the dance floor…hence the term “travelling”…
There are others known as spot dances, namely most Latin and rhythm dances because they do not travel. O.K. there are exceptions such as Samba and Paso Doble..but I won’t quiz all y’all on that k. 
Here’s a quick cheat sheet.
And yes, I’ve studied them all. HeH.
International Standard:
1-Waltz
2-Tango
3-Viennese Waltz
4-Foxtrot
5-Quickstep
International Latin
1-Cha-cha-cha
2-Samba
3-Rumba
4-Paso Doble
5-Jive
American Smooth
1-Waltz
2-Foxtrot
3-Tango
4-Viennese Waltz
American Rhythm
1-Cha-cha-cha
2-Mambo
3-Rumba
4-Bolero
5-East Coast Swing
Nightclub
1-Nightclub Two-step
2-Hustle
3-Modern Jive and swing.
4-West Coast Swing / East Coast Swing / Lindy Hop / Carolina Shag / Balboa
Latin nightclub
1-Salsa
2-Merengue
3-Cumbia
4-Bachata
5-Cha-cha-cha
6-Country/Western
Cajun dances
1-Cajun One Step
2-Cajun Two Step
3-Zydeco 4-Cajun Waltz
5-Cajun Jitterbug
And lastly…..
1-Argentine tango
2- Polka
Wheww…I got tired jus lookin at that list. 
For me.
Dance is my drug of choice.
Pure, unadulterated “high.” 
It can empower you to experience and express your emotions. The process of movement can help you resolve inner conflicts…without even knowing it. It’s my personal prescription for happiness…and yes, I self medicate.
Does it have “real” healing powers?
Studies have suggested heightened brain activity while dancing…now that can’t be bad.
I could use some some increased brain activity…Heh.
So all y’all…Git out there..
and dance….like nobody’s watching eh.
“Heaven… I’m in heaven,
And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak.
And I seem to find the happiness I seek,
When we’re out together dancing cheek to cheek.”
Irving Berlin
When I’m dancing….
I’m somewhere North of Heaven.
Care to join me?
Waltzin over to my friends at Perri Nelson’s Website, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, A Blog For All, The Random Yak, Right Truth, Adam’s Blog, Big Dog’s Weblog, Webloggin, Leaning Straight Up, The Bullwinkle Blog, Phastidio.net, The Amboy Times, , Colloquium, Conservative Cat, Jo’s Cafe, Pursuing Holiness, Diary of the Mad Pigeon, third world county, Right Celebrity, Woman Honor Thyself, Wake Up America, stikNstein… has no mercy, , The World According to Carl, Pirate’s Cove, Blue Star Chronicles, Nuke’s news and views, Dumb Ox Daily News, and High Desert Wanderer, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.
May 20th, 2007 at 4:39 pm
– and the Texas Two-Step, The Schotisse, The Cotton-eyed Joe…
May 20th, 2007 at 5:21 pm
Great post!
I, too, studied ballroom dancing. I even earned medals, up through the gold star level.
Alas! Once I got married, I didn’t get to do much more ballroom dancing, except by myself all around the house when the music moves me. My husband has two left feet–at least.
But once in a while, I go to a party where there are several good dancers. As the song almost says, “I Dance All Night.”
Let’s see….My favorites? Probably the cha-cha or the swing. For relaxation, the fox trot. I like the waltz as well, but too much toe-and-heel to think about after too many drinks. LOL.
May 20th, 2007 at 6:19 pm
For dance lovers, great movie to view is “Girls just want to have FUN”.
May 20th, 2007 at 7:26 pm
[...] Read more at Angel [...]
May 20th, 2007 at 7:58 pm
We took ballroom dance classes but didn’t follow up with practice. We’re about to get a little more free time so we may try it again.
May 20th, 2007 at 10:18 pm
This is definitely my genre of music:
“Heaven… I’m in heaven,
And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak.
And I seem to find the happiness I seek,
When we’re out together dancing cheek to cheek.”
Well, along with the Big Band Sound of Glen Miller, Artie Shaw, and Bennie Goodman. I couldn’t dance the swing if my life depended on it, but I love to watch the old videos of those who could.
Great post, Angel. As always.
May 20th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
Every now and then I have been known to do a little jig or two.
May 21st, 2007 at 12:17 am
The Dance of Love and friendship does it for me…everytime..
Love the research you did Angel…makes me tired just reading….
May 21st, 2007 at 12:52 am
Never much of a dancer, but very cool post, Miss Angel!
May 21st, 2007 at 8:32 am
My 4-year-old dances like that. She’ll sit and sing, and then she’ll start to sing and dance, and she only seems really calm when she’s dancing.
She doesn’t get it from me; I have the white-boy’s disease, and two left feet.
May 21st, 2007 at 11:57 am
I used to love to dance, but my hubby has never been a dancer.
May 21st, 2007 at 1:39 pm
Thanks alls for sharing!
May 22nd, 2007 at 11:00 am
I still can remember when I was known as the Brooklyn Mambo King!
May 22nd, 2007 at 11:06 am
It just so happens that I am a fanatical Argentine Tango dancer. I do believe that there are many health benefits to dance. The endless possibilities of learning the mechanics of dance ties into your post today about improving memory. You can learn self-awareness and challenge your mind just by pushing dance to its limit.
Fun, Fun, Fun!!!!!!!!!!!!
August 29th, 2008 at 10:00 am
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February 7th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
Great pst!