The History of Swing Music
A typical swing song features a strong rhythm section supported by a more loose brass section and later a string and/or vocal section. Improvisation depends on the song, band or the band-leader, but it is most likely to have one soloist in the center of the stage surrounded by supporting band members. As the song progresses multiple soloists can pick up the baton and pass it on, but commonly there are two or three band members improvising. Swing bands tend to be bigger than other jazz bands and because of that they have a more organized and detailed composition and notation as well as more energetic arrangements. By doing that they have reduced the chaos that may come from the improvisation of 12 or 16 musicians.
History
Swing developed in the 1920s as a mixture of West African and Western European rhythms and has evolved from lively jazz experimentations in New Orleans and later on in Kansas City and New York. All sorts of unique types of swing developed in Cuba, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Brazil, etc. by the enslaved Africans, but the first recordings come from the United States and the United Kingdom.
Although it dates back to the 1920s, swing got embraced by people in 1935. Before it was mostly limited to African Americans, but as its audience grew, musicians and band-leaders were under pressure of developing softer (dumb-down) music for the more conservative Anglo-American listeners. In 1939. the resistance against swing music in the USA finally stopped. Unfortunately young listeners today are often offered with mass-market form of swing often labeled as “'old fogey big – band dance music.”
The Swing Kids
Similar conflicts arose when swing became more popular in other countries. In Germany it confronted the Nazi ideology and was forbidden by it. It was offensive to the Nazis because of its lyrics (that sometimes promoted free love and sexual permissiveness), but also because it was performed by African – American, as well as Jewish musicians. It was labeled as “nigger music” and “degenerate music.” That’s when The Swing Kids (German: Swingjugend) arrived. They were a group of jazz and Swing lovers in the 1930s, mostly concentrated in Hamburg and Berlin. The name Swing Kids or Swing Youth was a parody on the numerous “youth groups” in Nazism. They also took parody in their greeting “Swing Heil” which mocked the Nazi's “Sieg Heil.”
The Swing Kids were composed of 14 to 18-year olds that usually went to high-school. They were mostly members of the upper-class because they needed to have access to records and music that wasn’t played on German radio and they had to posses certain knowledge of English language. They were against Nazism, especially Hitler Youth and they found themselves in the American and British way of life, defining in swing music. They referred to themselves as “Swings”; members were also called “Swing-Boy”, “Swing-Girl” and “Old-Hot-Boy.” Swing kids wore long hair and hats. Boys wore long, checkered jackets, shoes with crepe soles, flashy scarves, umbrellas and dress shirt buttons with a semi-precious stone. Girls wore their hair long and loose and put on excessive make-up. They had met in cafés and clubs and developed a jargon made of Anglicisms.
In the beginning the Swing Kids were apolitical, but later, by the aggression of the Gestapo and Hitler Youth, they evolved into a non-violent refusal to the National-socialist culture (even though they were not an organized political opposition). Swing was tolerated to some degree until a Swing festival in 1940 that was held in Hamburg and had attracted over 500 kids. Swing was forbidden then and only Germanized and restricted jazz was allowed. But even with that the Swing Kids turned into the 3d biggest underground adolescent movement along with the street gangs of the working class youth (Meuten) and less politically motivated Edelweiss Pirates. The Swing Youth even had some contacts with the White Rose, but nothing happened of their collaboration (even though those contacts were later used on People's court to accuse the Swings of anarchist propaganda and sabotage which led into trials, death sentences and executions by the end of the war). Even though big gatherings were banned and Swing Kids moved into smaller clubs that emerged in all major cities of the Reich, on 18 August 1941, in a brutal police action, 300 Swings were arrested. They had their hair cut and were under close monitoring in schools and their leaders were sent to concentration camps. Among them was a famous revolutionary Wolfgang “Jem” Bőwles. That raised an even bigger rebellion among the Swing Kids and they were even more fiery about their anti-fascist propaganda. On January 2nd 1942 there was a clamp down of Swing Kids and their ringleaders that ended up in a crackdown when clubs were raided and participants taken away to concentration camps where they were beaten up and forced into labour. In January 1943, Günter Discher, the ringleader of the Swing Youth was deported to a concentration camp of Moringen and the Swing Kids movement had ended.
A similar movement started in France called zazou when the Vichy and German racial laws demanded of Jewish people to wear the Yellow Star. Many people in defense started to wear yellow badges labeled zazou and were consequently arrested and deported.
There was also a film made on this subject in 1993 by Thomas Carter starring Robert Sean Leonard, Christian Bale and Kenneth Branagh that, even though it wasn’t a commercial success, is a moderately accurate history-based film.
The Decline of Swing
Swing music become less popular during World War II because of two reasons. Firstly, and most importantly, it was very difficult to start a band since many musicians went to war and overseas. Secondly, big band touring became more expensive due to war economics. This made large ensembles smaller (a 3 to 5 combo) which changed the sound of swing and gave rise to rhythm 'n' blues, jump blues and bebop. The last records were released in the year 1947 and by 1949 swing turned into several different music genres such as r'n'b, jump blues, bebop, rock 'n' roll, country, western and funk.
Famous Swing Musicians
The most famous swing musician, as many consider him to be, is Benny Goodman, nicknamed “King of swing” because of his contributing to jazz music by originating a style today known as swing. Another famous musician is Artie Shaw, the only one to ever challenge Benny Goodman's crown. Other famous swing musicians are Glen Miller, Count Basie, Duke Ellington (famous for his piano playing) and Cab Calloway. Some of the most famous female swing and jazz singers are definitely Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday as well as Diane Shuur, Ivie Anderson, The Boswell Sisters and others.
Swing Dance
Another change came around in 1935 as the music gained bigger popularity in the USA. Strong rhythms and loud tunes have led into a new creation in the black community; an energetic, vibrant and improvised dance better known as swing dance.
The term “Swing dances” refer to either dances that developed to swing music in the 20s, 30s and 40s or to lindy hop, a popular partner dance. The majority of dances began in African – American communities, but some developed in Anglo – American communities as well. Though jazz dances technically came before swing, some like Black Bottom, Charleston and tap dance are still associated to swing music. Those dances were popular in New York, Kansas City and Chicago. Swinging jazz music features a combination of crotchets and quavers that swing dancers call “steps” and “triple steps.” It developed from Dixieland jazz and has traveled north with black dancers during the Great Migration. Other swing scenes rose in Western and Asian countries where the most popular swing dance is Lindy Hop. In the USA it is the West Coast Swing.
Swing Forms
In many swing scenes outside the USA swing dances are considered to be Lindy Hop, Charleston, Shag, Balboa and Blues, but dances such as Jive, Rock 'n' roll, Western Swing and Ceroc are often forgotten. In the USA swing dances expanded with a few new styles including Western Coast Swing, East Coast Swing, Hand Dancing and so on. Also, there is a strong tradition of Boogie Woogie and acrobatic rock 'n' roll in Europe.
Swing forms from the 1930s and the 1940s
Lindy Hop started around in the late 1920s and the early 1930s. It characterized on the improvisation and the ability to adapt to different swing music styles. It has been danced to almost every form of jazz music as well as blues.
Balboa is a jazz dance described with strong partner connection and quick footwork. It is a product of crowded ballrooms (it is called Balboa or Ball) and it is danced in a tight, closed position, usually to fast jazz, even though some people prefer Balboa to slower tempos.
Collegiate shag was danced in the early 30s and its different varieties were single, double and triple Shag. They depended on the amount of slow steps.
St. Louis shag is a “side-by-side” Charleston position dance whose steps are: rock step, kick forward, step down, kick forward (other leg), stag, step, and stomp (repeat).
Jitterbug if often associated with one form of swing dancing, but in fact it is a term for all swing dancing. It was “invented” by Cab Calloway who once said that "they [dancers] look like a bunch of jitterbugs out there on the floor."
Swing forms from the 1940s, 1950s and later
Lindy Hop continued into the 40s and the 50s and was featured on many films such as the Whitey's Linndy Hoppers that starred some famous dancers.
Boogie-woogie developed in the early 1940s with the rise of boogie-woogie music and it is considered to be a counterpart to East Coast Swing, gaining its popularity in Europe. It is danced to various kinds of rock music, blues and boogie-woogie music, but not to jazz.
Eastern Swing is an “ancestor” to East Coast Swing.
East Coast Swing is also known as Single-Time Swing, Triple-Step Swing, 6-Count Swing, or Rock-a-Billy. It has very simple footwork and a basic style and it is danced to all types of jazz, blues and rock 'n' roll.
St. Louis Imperial Swing Dancing is a cross between the West and the East coast. It started in “Club Imperial” in St. Louis. Geroge Edick, the owner of the club, had let the teenagers dance in the lower part of the club and the local swing dancers taught them swing dancing by using the elements they picked from their trips to the east coast. “The Imperial” has elements of East Coast, West Coast, Carolina Shag and Bop. Some people can actually tell the difference between dancers from St-Louis and other dancers.
Carolina Shag originated along the strands between Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina, during the 1940s and it is mostly associated with beach music.
Washington Hand Dancing began in the mid 1950s in Washington D.C and it as often referred to as D.C. Swing and D.C. Style. This dance was first to term “hand-dancing.” It is characterized by a smooth footwork and close-in hand movements.
Jive is an International Ballroom Style dance and is based on Eastern Swing brought to England by American troops in World War II.
Push and Whip are Texas forms of Swing dancing.
Western Swing, also called Country Swing or Country/Western Swing (C/W Swing), resembles to East Coast Swing, but takes variations from other country dances. It is danced to country and western music.
Skip Jive is a British variant, danced in the mid 50s and 60s to trade jazz.
West Coast Swing is a variation to Lindy Hop that developed in 1940s and 1950s. It is danced to blues and rock 'n' roll, but to smooth and cool jazz as well. It is very popular in the USA and Canada, but uncommon in Australia, New Zealand and Asia (though in those countries it is compared to Ceroc and Dirty Latin Jive).
Rock 'n' roll developed as a response to rock 'n' roll music in the 1950s and is very popular in Australia. It has a long association with Lindy Hop, and even though there are discussions whether it is or isn’t a swing dance, many old Lindy Hoppers are also keen rock 'n' roll dancers.
Acrobatic rock 'n' roll is more of a performance and a competition dance than a social dance, but it is very popular throughout Europe (even though it’s Russian gymnasts who took up the dance).
Modern Jive developed in the 1980s from a French style Jive and it is also known as LeRoc and Ceroc as well.
Blues dancing, not technically swing dancing, but heavily associated to swing, is an informal type of dancing with a focus on connection, improvisation, sensuality and strong body contact. It is danced to blues, but can also be danced to rock ballads and club music.
Competitions and Social Dancing
There are 3 different formats of competition:
- Strictly - One couple has to dance to randomly selected music and no pre-choreographed steps are allowed
- Showcase – One couple has to dance to one song that has been previously choreographed
- Jack & Jill – Leads and follows have to compete individually with their partners randomly selected
There are two types of swing dance competitions, the “Ballroom Swing” and “Jazz Dance Swing.” The standard dances for Ballroom dancing are East Coast Swing (American style) and Jive (International style). Jazz dances include Lindy Hop, Balboa, Collegiate Shag and Charleston.
There are three different formats of competition:
Judging is based on what is called the three Ts as well as showmanship. The three Ts are timing (how much the couple is related to the tempo and rhythm of the music), teamwork (how well a lead and follow dance together) and technique (how clean and precise the dancing is). Showmanship consists of presentation, creativity, costumes, and difficulty.
Not only couples apply for competition, teams may challenge as well. A “team formation” consists of 3 to 5 couples who all dance to a pre-choreographed song. They are judged on the three Ts and showmanship criteria, though it does not apply to the team a whole.
Even though there are competitions, swing is firstly and mostly a social dance that features frequently active local clubs and associations as well as schools, studios and workshops with teachers. There are also special events and camps such as the lindy exchange.
Swing revival
Even though ensembles such as the Count Basie Orchestra and the Stan Kenton Orchestra survived for decades, a new wave of swing music appeared (though it lasted shortly) in the 1990s and the early 2000s. Swing music as well as swing dancing (which has always been and still is popular, unlike swing music) was brought back to life by various films (Swingers, Swing Kids & Blast from the Past) as well as commercials (Gap's advertising campaign that featured Louis Prima's song Jump, Jive and Wail). Bands of the period based their music on basic rock 'n' roll instrumentation of bass, guitar and drums, but with addition of a few horn instruments, and tended toward “sweet style” music (well rehearsed) than to the original “hot style” music (more improvisation). Most famous bands of swing revival era were Royal Crown Revue, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Cherry Poppin' Daddies and The Brian Setzer Orchestra. Marilyn Manson also experimented with neo-swing on his 2003 album The Golden Age of Grotesque as well as Christina Aguilera on her 2006 album Back to Basics.