Rhythms of Lindy Hop

Early into our Jazz With A Beat class at Stormy Weather Jazz Festival we asked students to work less hard and strip out their triple steps to which a student behind us said to their partner - "Let's do east coast swing." After we had danced to the complete song, we addressed the topic of cultural appropriation because it's important to discuss this topic and to confront other misconceptions about what rhythms Lindy Hop is comprised of (answer: it’s a lot!).

In the brief amount of time we gave ourselves, we named east coast swing in this context Cultural Appropriation while laying the foundation for this choice with Jacqui Malone's definition of vernacular dance being dance that makes African-American rhythms visible on the dance floor. While triple steps are important for capturing swing music's core rhythms on the dance floor, they aren't the sole rhythm to be employed alongside the vernacular dance and social hallmarks were aiming to employ as teachers and dancers. The possible rhythms are infinite though the most common rhythms seen across 2 beats or a half-measure would be:

• triple step

• step hold (such a fundamental bounce too)

• hold step

• step step

• hold ball change

Any swing school labeling patterns that are 6-count or containing Slow, Slow, Quick, Quick rhythms as East Coast Swing and/or Jitterbug is doing their students a disservice while engaging in Cultural Appropriation. Disservicing students and patrons comes in because we lose cultural context, stratification between community occurs and we're placing barriers of entry when exchanging rhythms during a dance or growing as a dancer.

It might also be worth directly quoting from Olly Wilson’s paper titled “The Heterogeneous Sound Ideal in African-American Music”:
”As such, the essence of their Africanness is not a static body of something which can be depleted but rather a conceptual approach, the manifestations of which are infinite. the common core of this Africanness consists of the way of doing something, not simply something that is done.”

as we reflect on the fact that a good portion of this class focused on individuality, bringing in the experiences that have shaped us, and setting aside notions of “this is the way this thing (swingout, a rhythm, a tuck turn) is done.

Undergirding the Enthusiasm

“Enthusiasm is the place that you start, but you got to like undergird that with information” - from PillowTalk: History of Jazz Dance hosted by Melanie George featuring LaTasha Barnes. Marie N’Diaye also comments “If you want to create, you need to educate yourself first.” in the Part 1.5 - Ethnocide with Barrett Holmes Pitner talk hosted by CVFC. As a great portion of us swing dancers like myself were raised in spaces devoid of Black vernacular dance and social values, we’ve lacked the language to be tradition bearers or cultural surrogates. We let enthusiasm rule us and, at times, lack the thoughtful care these dances deserve before jumping into the fray.

It’s also problematic that we live in a country steeped in ethnocide, where our ancestors deliberately destroyed ethnic groups’ culture but left the people behind. The applies to both Indigenous tribes and enslaved Africans. We are used to taking without permission, propagating appropriated culture and avoiding uncomfortable truths because of what they might say about us. As Barrett Holmes Pitner said in a talk for CVFC, “Within the American framework we are encouraged to view existence as static” but it isn’t. We can change, better ourselves and help improve the lives around us.

Here are some anti-racist steps people can take to help create a more inclusive welcoming environment and to help undo the harm previous generations have done and continue to do:

• Center these dances as being from Black culture starting with the first point of contact - online. Instead of stating nothing, America’s swing dance, or originating in Harlem, consider sharing marketing copy akin to “Lindy Hop is a Black dance created in the 1920’s during the Harlem Renaissance” and sharing complimentary visuals when possible.

• Place these Black vernacular dances within the jazz continuum. For example, we like Rachel Pitner’s viewpoints expressed in this article: “These are dance forms that were created by African Americans during the 20s, 30s, and 40s, and they are rooted in African culture. They are dynamic partner dances that defy and manipulate physics, and they are fun!

  The other day someone asked me to describe in three words why I love this dance, and I said, ‘It is fun. It is true, and it lives. It lives because this dance is a historical art form, but it wants you to invest yourself and not just replicate the past.”

• Since what we do and say is culturally coded and the default in America is whiteness, we must take a critical eye at our communications. I’m personally critical of how the word vintage gets used because it can speak to how white people culturally preserve things. Without providing context, vintage could be likened to a wine label attributing Lindy Hop to a particular harvest, freezing it in a particular time and allowing it to be plucked from history without its cultural attributes or Black social dance names. This Denver Arts and Venues hosted 1930s Dance event is an example where everything they allude to is steeped in whiteness and white comfortability.

• Use Black social dances, promote others that do and consider calling people in that use appropriative names. Black dances with their dance and social hallmarks promote freedom. I want that in my life and others.

And, if you need resources, Swingin’ Denver has been amassing resources since 2017. We’re ready to help you build back better.