Ballroom Dancing 

The primItive man used to express thoughts in movement. As the ballroom dancing grew the dances became formal, then traditional. Tribes started to adapt dances as customs. Dances have lived on and it has become the START of folk dance. There are two major techniques to ballroom dancing. One of them is the "old time" way. In this, emotion stimulates the body into movement to show the emotion. Civilization and conditioning taught people to supress natural response through the body. Ballroom dancing is not an activity that is totally cut off from the rest of the world around it. Ballroom dance was influenced by events and sensitive to what is going on in: world-war fashion interest in any distant country pop music travel increase social upheavals popularity of a certain movie or television music The characteristics of a new dance to be able to become a hit are to make sure its rhythm - which must be ear-catching - should be easily recognized and it should be COMPLETELY new to the ballroom. Two dances are the Tango and the Waltz.   The Waltz   At the begining of the 20th century, the waltz was in full swing. By the 1900's, the Waltz was the "Queen of the Ballrom".    The Tango  The Tango originated in the lower classes in the neighborhoods of Buenos Aires. The higher residents in the town saw it and introduced it to their favorite cafes. They made but two changes: #1-They produced more of a soft effect by substituting the Haboneara rhythm #2-To show their dance was not the very common baile con corte`, They called it the TANGO By the close of the 19th century it reached Europe. Ballroom has made it through the centuries, and it still continues to live on.   Back To The Homepage