Harlem Roots

Origin: Harlem in New York City during the late 1920's and throughout the 30's.
Music: Mainly Swing, but also other forms of jazz related music meant for dancing.
Synonyms: Jitterbug, Swing, Jive
Film Clips: After Seben (1929), A Day At The Races (1937) and Jammin' the Blues (1944)

The Harlem Roots program has the intention to tightly hook up with original Harlem swing dance basics, not only in the perspective of execution, but also as a way of thinking. The official language spoken in the classes will emanate from low down old school New York rhythms, closely linked with the music itself and intend to primarily cover the time period of the 1920s into the early 1950s. Important elements of the program will pay attention to the historical background and root system of the Lindy Hop as well as Solo Jazz, Tap, Mambo and some basics around African dances. The classes will avoid contemporary influences and interpretations and will instead direct the light and focus towards essential characteristics significant to classical vernacular Harlem swing dancing.

This track is somehow rooted around the Lindy Hop but intends to pass on an all-round knowledge in Harlem style dancing. The program is a combined level (Intermediate to Advanced) for reasonably experienced dancers. We believe that students showing up are confident, technically knowledgable and fairly fluent in the rhythmical language of old-school jazz. The material in circulation on this level will be challening from all aspects: rhythmically, technically and sometimes tempo wise.

Available: Week 1 and Week 5