Swing is American in origin and, is the only “all American” dance.

The Swing comes from Fox Trot. During the big band era a clarinet player named Benny Goodman took the Fox Trot music and made it more upbeat. This paved the way for Swing to evolve from the changes Goodman made to Fox Trot.

With the birth of Swing it gained in popularity day by day and new variations were coming out every day. There was faster tempos of Swing as well as slower ones.

In Washington D. C. the cabbies would get together on Sunday nights and work on their dancing, and they gave birth to what was called the D. C. Swing which later on became also known as the West Coast Swing. Others referred to Swing as hand dancing. Different names and styles came about- though they all fell under the generic name of Swing. Swing has also been called Lindy, Jitterbug (which is single Swing), Jive, East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing, and Hand Dancing. D.C. Swing is pretty much the same as West Coast Swing. The international style of Swing is called Jive. And, out of the Carolinas came a version to the Swing called the Shag.

We teach the East Coast (which also includes Triple Swing and Single Swing) through ballroom dance lessons in Our D. C. area dance schools.

Swing is so fun and versatile that it has been popular since the late forties and has grown in popularity amongst all generations of dancers of today!

Transport yourself to the 40s with this Foxtrot-inspired dance number! As fun as it is to watch people do the swing, it’s even more fun partaking in the dance yourself! With practice, you’ll hear Jazz like never before. Relive the Swing Era by signing up for dance lessons with Now and Then Studios in Rockville, MD.