I have listened to players and dancers discussing music for dancing, it usually revolves round one topic - tempo.

First let us get one thing straight, you will never please all the dancers on the floor, they are the most critical of all audiences. The reason for this is quite simple, audience participation. When you play for dancing you invite your audience to share your music in a very intimate way.

I hope to give a bit of an insight into the world of dance from a dancers perspective.

As a reference I have referred to the Victor Silvester book on Modern Ballroom Dancing and have, in fact, used the 1977 edition and the revised edition of 1993. Victor Sylvester is remembered as the top dance bandleader, what many don't know is he was also a winner of the World's Dance Championship and president of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing Incorporated.

When quoting tempo I use;
VS (brackets) to indicate 1977 tempo.
VS no bracket to indicate 1993 tempo.
(00 to 00) to indicate the minimum and maximum recommended tempo for comfortable dancing.
I also include the latest information issued by the International Dancesport Federation, these are used for competition dances. Indicated by IDSF 00
Note all tempo is in beats per minute.

There are three basic types of dancer with some couples are somewhere between these groups:-
Social dancer. Nearly all will have had lessons at some time, some are retired competition dancers or medallists that have reached their goal and now just want to enjoy their dancing.
Medallists, they are still having lessons and take regular examinations. They are probably up to date on the latest steps and information.
Competition Dancers, most are a joy to watch, some are a pain, their fixed smiles and rigid routines out of place at a social dance. The competition dancers are often out practising there latest routine, once they are happy they will probably leave the floor, this is no reflection on your playing, they have just achieved what they wanted to do.

To give a better understanding of dance I also include a brief history of each dance, these come from a number of sources. I have tried to pick the most interesting, I can not vouch for the accuracy of these pieces as I wasn't there at the time.
I have deliberately avoided sequence dancing, I don't dance it and therefore leave it to someone better qualified to write about it.

Waltz.
VS (93) VS 90 (87 to 102) IDSF (90)
The first of the modern dances its history prior to 1812 is vague, some believe it originated in America, others say Germany. One thing is certain, in 1812 it met with great opposition, to the extent that an Anti-Waltzing party existed. This was brought to an end when Emperor Alexander of Russia was seen dancing the Waltz. It was the first dance that allowed the man to come close to the lady, so close he put his arm round her waist. The romance of the waltz should always be remembered, it is the first dance most married couples do, the last waltz dictated who took you home, and the snowball waltz, where partners constantly change, allows you to meet new members of the opposite sex.
The waltz is a graceful fun romantic dance with turns, hesitations, changes of direction and the occasional double step in place of the normal step. The music should also be fun and romantic, waltzing to plodding music results in a plodding dance.
Competition and medal dancers will probably want a slower tempo, giving them time to complete the intricate steps and turns, they will want time to drag their foot into position on the last beat before gliding away on the first beat of the next bar. Social dancers are likely to prefer a slightly quicker tempo otherwise they end up waiting between steps for the next beat.

Slow Foxtrot.
VS(120) VS 120 (112 to 144) IDSF 120
The Foxtrot has nothing to do with a fox. It is attributed to a gentleman by the name of Harry Fox who ran an American bordello. The naked ladies had to stand motionless, to add a bit of movement to the show Harry danced round the ladies. The dance is four beats to the bar, the first two being joined together to form a slow step followed by two quicker steps, or trots. This possibly allowed him to do two quick steps round the lady, so as not to interrupt the audiences view with the slow step to move between the ladies, but then possibly not.
The original Foxtrot was faster than today at about 136 to 168 beats per minute and evolved into the Quickstep.
The most difficult dance to dance well it is probably the second most popular ballroom dance. The reason it is difficult is because it is the most graceful dance, this is achieved by giving the appearance of perpetual motion. To assist the dancer the music should flow with a slight swing, no sudden changes in volume or quick runs up the keys. Hugo Strasser's Autumn Leaves is a classic foxtrot number.
Once again social dancers will prefer a slightly quicker tempo, this is easier on the legs. Competition dancers and medallists will prefer the slower tempo to allow them to show off their body control and smooth gliding steps.

Quickstep
VS (200) VS 200 to 204 (152 to 216) ISDF 200
As I have already mentioned the quickstep started life as a fast foxtrot, it is now a separate dance with a style all its own. Danced as a series of small quick and slow steps with hops locks and body sway it virtually races round the floor. The music needs to be lively with a strong beat. To play a good quickstep the player must be confident and really enjoy the piece being played, the music must have vitality, and it must live. Many of the big bands of the fifties and sixties produced great foot tapping numbers that make excellent quicksteps.
This time it is the social dancers who prefer the slower tempo, medallists slightly faster and the competition dancers will want the flat out turbo charged version.

Tango
VS (132) VS 132 (112 to 136) ISDF 132
The original Tango was developed in the bars and cafés of Argentina. The slightly crouched stance, with the lady leaning away from the man, is said to have come about because the gentleman spent their days riding horses, their leather trousers stiffened by rain and horse sweat made standing up uncomfortable. Their lack of personal hygiene meant the ladies preferred to keep their noses as far away as possible. Why would a lady dance with such a man, because it is how they earned their living.
When the Tango arrived in Europe it was condemned by the church, Pope Benedict XV called it indecent and Kaiser Wilhelm forbade his officers to dance it.
The Tango reached its peak in 1913 with Tango Matinees and Tango Teas, it then died away to resurface in a remodelled form 1922 it has remained popular ever since.
The tango is danced in set pieces, each piece coming to a stop before resuming with the next piece. A good description is it is like a sentence with periods, commas and stops. Sudden stops, head movements and changes of direction all feature in this dance.
Tango music needs to be like the dance, short breaks and flurries of activity all make a good tune. A good strong even beat is essential. Do not confuse the European tango with the Argentine, this is a much sexier dance.
This is one of the few dances where everyone should be in agreement about tempo, but I wouldn't put money on it.

Viennese Waltz
VS (180) VS 180 (134 to 172) ISDF 180
This dance started life as the Landler, an Austrian folk dance.
Everyone knows the Viennese Waltz, the couples turning one way then the other.
The dance is quite strenuous, so pieces should be reasonably short. The music must flow to help the dancers achieve the graceful steps at quite a speed.
Disney has produced some nice Viennese waltzes for his final love scenes in his films.
Not many people dance the Viennese Waltz, at least not more than one a night, so you may not be asked to play one, but you should have one ready just in case.
Another dance where there should be agreement as to tempo, if they are fit they can do it, it is only how long they can do it for that changes.

Rumba
VS (128) VS 108 (96 to 176) ISDF 108
The dance of love, some say it had its origins in fertility dances, with scantily clad couples rubbing against each other, a bit like competition dances today really.
The Rumba is all about courtship, the man chasing after the lady, she coyly pulling away then relenting only to move away again.
Rumba music, like the dance, should be about love and passion. The love theme from Titanic has proved a very popular Rumba.
If everyone on the floor says you got the tempo right then thank the couple for coming, and hope more turn up to your next dance. Everyone has their own favourite tempo, medallists will probably want it slow, competition dancers faster, they tend to dance the dance of marriage with arguments, pushing and shoving, though the competition tempo has just been slowed down so this may change. Social dancers will probably be happy with middle of the range.

Samba
VS(208) VS 200 (180 to 260) IDSF 200
Probably best known as the dance of the Rio carnival Samba traces its origins back to the African slaves of Rio de Janeiro. The Samba became popular in the 30s and 40s due to films like Flying Down to Rio; the exotic locations in Brazil and the rhythm of the dance captured people's imagination.
In most Latin American dances, Rumba and Cha Cha Cha for example, the dancers stay in one place, in ballroom dancing couples progress round the floor. In Samba they do both, some steps are done on the spot others travel, this can lead to the odd unplanned coming together, as this dance is fun no one really cares.
Samba has bounce it is a party dance. The only instrument available to those slaves was the drum and it is still very important in the Samba, use percussion to drive the dance. The Samba is danced to 2/4 time as well as 4/4 so your choice of music is wide.
Social dancers may want a slightly slower tempo, they may decide to go with the flow and just give up earlier. Most don't really care about tempo, they just want the music to make them dance. This makes playing Samba quite challenging, you must be confident and enjoy the music, if you are not enjoying it it will show and dampen the whole thing. If you are lucky enough to be asked to play for a competition you may look at the ladies and wonder how they manage to stay in the costumes, the truth is they sometime don't.

Cha-Cha-Cha
VS(128-144) VS 128 (120 to 160) IDSF 120
Why three chas? Because the time is 4/4 but it is danced 2, 3, 4, & 1. The & giving the dance its specific signature. Yes it does start on beat 2, although most dancers start moving on 4 and do a short preparation step then the two steps of beats two and three before the cha-cha of 4 & followed by beat one a slightly longer cha. Yes there are five steps to the four beats, all good Cha Cha Cha music has at least one piece of percussion leading the dancers through the 4 &.
The Cha Cha Cha is actually quite a modern dance, appearing about 1948 it is a variant of the Mambo and Rumba.
Social dancers will normally prefer the 4&1 part of the rhythm accentuated, this helps them keep to time. The tempo on this dance is probably the most difficult to judge, it really depends on the routines the dancers use. In general competition dancers will want 120 as they will be tuned to that, other than that it is down to your judgement, if the floor stays full you are about right.
A point of etiquette, never refer to the Cha Cha, it is Cha, Cha, Cha.
There is plenty of music out there written for the Cha Cha Cha, find some you enjoy playing, it is a popular dance so you will be playing it a lot.

Rock n Roll
VS (160) VS 160 (120 to 200) IDSF N/A
The music of the fifties, within a lot of peoples living memory. The dance is still popular and rock n roll clubs exist all over the country. Be aware there are two different groups, the purists who still dance Rock n Roll as it used to be, and the ballroom version, slightly less energetic but still a lot of fun.
The dance is not used in IDSF competition so they do not give a tempo.
You may not be asked to play Rock n Roll, but most dances have at least one. Be ready to let rip and get rocking.

Jive
VS (160) VS 176 (120 to 200) IDSF 176
Like Rock n Roll this dance evolved within living memory, of the more senior generation anyway.
Unlike Rock n Roll this is danced at competitions.
Once gain be prepared to get rocking and make that instrument bounce.
Competition dancers will want it fast and furious, so will some of the more senior dancers who can still remember how it should be done, and in fact can still do it.

Mambo
VS (N/A) VS N/A (N/A to N/A) IDSF N/A
Originally from Cuba this is another dance condemned by the church. The dance was very popular in the fifties with Mambo Kings demonstrating their prowess at this latest Latin dance.
The dance is once again becoming popular and Mambo & Salsa clubs are springing up round the country. Mambo No. 5 helped make the music popular again, did you know there is a Bob the Builder version? Mambo No. 5 was actually a rework of an old tune, there are other Mambo No.s out there. Mambo Jambo and Guaglione are two other very popular Mambos.
Do not confuse Mambo with the sequence dance magic mambo, it is not the same type of music.
Not much to go on with regard to tempo, about 140 appears to please most, but this is another dance that responds to the music, exciting music gets the pulse racing and the blood moving quickly through the veins so dancers are happy with the quicker tempo.
This dance is strictly for fun, it is your music that will get them out of their seats.

Playing For Dancing Part 2 by Ted Kirby M.U.K.A; A.I.D.T.A; A.N.A.T.D; M.G.P.T.D. A Dance Teacher's Perspective

Ted Kirby was a dummer in a dance band for many years and has been a qualified dance teacher and championship adudicator in Old Time; Modern Sequence; Ballroom and Latin American for the past 25 years. To expand this article, and with sequence dancing in mind, we thought that Ted would be the ideal person to say a few words.

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Keyboard players, more often than not, refer to tempo in BEATS PER MINUTE as it probably suits the function of the instrument they are playing. However, every dance tempo has always been quoted, and still is, in BARS PER MINUTE.
It would be most difficult to check that a pianist is playing a SLOW FOXTROT at the correct tempo by having to count 120 beats with a SLOW being 2 beats and a QUICK being 1 beat - it is much easier (and correct) to count BARS - i.e. 30 BARS per minute.
The tempos recommended by the British Dance Council and The Dance Teachers Association for Ballroom/Sequence medal and social dancing are as shown in the following table:-

Dance Tempos

DANCE	BARS PER MINUTE	Sequence
Waltz	30	.......
Quickstep	50	48
Slow Foxtrot	30	.......
Tango	33	32
Viennese Waltz	50-60	.......
Rumba	27	.......
Cha Cha Cha	30	.......
Jive	44	38-44
Samba	50	.......
Paso Doble	62	.......

Music for Sequence Dancing    This requires a 4 bar introduction followed by 16 bars phrasing of the music (normally 5 or 6 sequences). The phrasing of the music is important - it must coincide with the start of the 16 bar sequence.

Playing For Dancing Part 3 by Robert Davies A Player's Perspective

To complete this feature we asked Robert Davies for his comments. Robert plays for dancing all over the UK - including the Lyme Bay Keyboard Festivals.

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There is a difference between ballroom, latin and old time as compared to sequence dancing.

Regarding sequence dancing, I agree with Ted's comments on tempos, although playing all over the country for dancing, as I do, tempos do vary. There's no hard and fast rule, some people prefer a brisk quickstep, some a slower foxtrot, you never can tell. With over 25 years experience playing for dancing, both social and sequence, I adjust the tempos slightly depending on the age and agility of the dancers. I have very few complaints, but you can never please all the people all of the time, I just try to please most of the people most of the time.

Click here to visit Robert's Organfax web site.

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