West Coast Swing Musicality

Table of Contents

Time signatures #

Pop music is commonly written in the 4/4 time signature and structured in sets of 8 beats. Pop songs frequently come up on the radio radio. They have a distinctive boom-tick rhythm.
The 4/4 time signature means 4 quarter notes per bar. How long is a quarter note? In this case it is one beat long, but that is not the case for other time signatures. The length of the beat is defined by the beats per minute (BPM) in a song.
For example, if a song is fast and has 120 beats per minute, then there are two beats per second. In other words, one beat is exactly 0.5 seconds.
Most ballroom dances except Waltz are written in 4/4 time and can be danced using 8 beat patterns:
- Bachata: 4- or 8-beat patterns
- Chacha: 4- or 8-beat patterns
- Country Polka: 4- or 8-beat patterns
- Salsa: 8-beat patterns
- West Coast Swing: primarily 6- and 8-beat patterns, with 10- and 12-beat patterns requiring a rock-and-go
- Waltz is written in 3/4 time signature and has 6-beat patterns

Approximating song beats per minute #

You can approximate the beats per minute in a song by counting 8 beats and seeing how many seconds it takes. If you started counting when the music player was at 2min 15 sec and you finished counting when it was at 2min 20 sec, then 8 beats took 5 seconds. This means the song is 96 BPM.

If it takes 5 seconds to count 8 beats, then you are listening to a mid-tempo song with $((8 beats / 5 seconds) * 60 seconds / 1 minute) = 96$ beats per minute.

If it takes 3 seconds to count 8 beats, then you are listing to a really fast, non-danceable song of $((8 beats / 3 seconds) * 60 seconds / 1 minute) = 160$ beats per minute.

Competition music #

West Coast Swing competitions usually feature pop songs around 100 beats per minute, so that means songs between 80 to 120 beats per minute are good for social dancing.
Contemporary pop music is written such that major phrases are 32 beats long and minor phrases are 16 beats long.
In Blues, phrases are 48 beats long.

Music counting strategies #

Pop music is organized in minor and major phrase changes, so you can count the number of beats to determine when the next phrase change will be. Standing still, performing a dip, or doing fancy footwork at the beginning of a phrase change is known as “accentuating the 1”.

You can count music in different way depending on what works for you.

Counting straight 8’s #

This counting strategy involves counting each beat in the music, like so:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 ..

You can also count straight 8’s in sets of 8. It may help you do math of keep track of how far away you are from the next phrase change:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ..

Pros:

Counting each beat is helpful when learning a new pattern to make sure the song rhythm matches the steps in the pattern.

Cons:

It takes too much mental bandwidth, specially if you try to count triple steps like 1&2 3 4 5&6 7 8 instead of just counting 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8.
Count correction is very difficult. If you are 2 beats behind while counting 6 and hear the 1 in the song, you have to correct your current. By the time you update the number 6 to number 1, the music has already moved to number 2. By the time you realize this, the music is on 3. Your count will be completely messed up before you know it. Gracefully getting on beat if dancing off-beat by 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 beats is very hard. Counting down-beats solves this issue.

Counting straight 2’s #

This counting strategy involves counting 2-beat increments, like so:

1 2 1&2 1&2 1 2 1&2 1&2 1 2 1&1 1 2 1&2 1 2

Zach told me that counting straight 8’s takes too much mental bandwidth, so he only counts 1, 2 or 1&2 for triple steps. He is able to feel the music progression to avoid having to count straight 8’s to hit the phrase changes. Jennifer also counts straight 2’s.

Pros:

It helps maintain the step-step (1 2) and tri-ple-step (1&2) rhythm.
It simplifies hitting phrase changes because you do not have to know if the phrase change will happen on a 1, a 3, a 5, or a 7. You just get ready for a phrase change after every 2 beats, or continue as normal if you do not hear the phrase change. This may be the most useful for songs that are completely unfamiliar.
It may be useful when using a mixed approach, where one counts straight 2’s until a phrase change, after which counting straight 8’s may become relevant again.

Cons:

This strategy will not work if you cannot intuit or feel when the phrase changes happen.
You may not be able to plan your patterns in advance if you only have 2 beats to prepare.

Counting upbeats #

West Coast Swing is structured in 2-beat increments, so it is possible to only count the upbeats. So instead of counting:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 …

You could equivalently count the odd beats:

1 b 2 b 3 b 4 b 1 b 2 b 3 b 4 b 1 b 2 b 3 b 4 b 1 b 2 b 3 b …

In this case, the even down-beats get replaced by the letter “b”.

Pros:

Not counting half beats in triple steps, like 1&b, frees mental bandwidth.
Not counting half beats in triple steps promotes counting the music, not the pattern.
Counting half the beats reduces the mental bandwidth needed by half.
Counting up to 8 is the same as counting phrase changes, which makes it easier to hit the phrase change.

Cons:

Counting the music as opposed to counting the pattern makes it easier to mess up the pattern footwork.
Counting the upbeat is hard sometimes because the upbeat is silent in some songs.
Not counting half beats in the triple-steps, like b&1, can negatively affect rhythm.

Counting downbeats #

West Coast Swing is structured in 2-beat increments, so it is possible to only count the downbeats. So instead of counting:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 …

You could equivalently count the even beats:

b 1 b 2 b 3 b 4 b 1 b 2 b 3 b 4 b 1 b 2 b 3 b 4 b 1 b 2 b 3 …

In this case, the odd down-beats get replaced by the letter “b”.

I have not found a major drawback to this system. But it has many benefits:

Pros:

Not counting half beats in triple steps, like 1&b, frees mental bandwidth.
Not counting half beats in triple steps promotes counting the music, not the pattern.
The down-beat is usually audible, so it is easy to count.
Counting up to 8 is the same as counting phrase changes, which makes it easier to hit the phrase change.
Counting half the beats reduces the mental bandwidth needed by half.
Count correction is easy because the count self-corrects when you count “1”. If you count “1” when you hear it, your count will be on time. This is because the beat is “b” when you hear the “1”, so the next number that you count is 1. Your count will be correct even though you are retroactively counting the 1. The remaining beats are not “self correcting”, but who cares about those?

Cons:

Counting the music as opposed to counting the pattern makes it easier to mess up the pattern footwork.
Not counting half beats in the triple-steps, like b&1, can negatively affect rhythm.

Personally, I believe this is the best counting method. The only additional suggestion is avoid fucking it up by counting half beats. Do not count b 1 b&2 b&3 b 4. Counting the half beats is bad because counting half beats promotes counting the pattern, when in reality you should be counting the music. If it does not affect your rhythm, count 1 2 3 4 without the “b”. If you count the pattern, you will always be robotic and miss the phrase changes while focusing on completing the pattern. I have been stuck counting patterns for a year. If you count the music, you will be more reactionary and spontaneous. Count the music, not the pattern. Dance the music, not the pattern.

Not counting #

After I proudly showed my downbeat counting method to Karin, she understood it, but said that she personally did not count. Whenever we danced, I struggled to find the 1 in the music, and even when I found it, the phrases were not always 8 downbeats long, or at least they did not feel like so, causing me to lose confidence in my count. However, Karin was able to identify the 1 in the music. She was even able to identify the 1 at least six beats in advance. In other words, she did not need to count because she could hear the count in the music.

The counting downbeats strategy is first-beat centric because the count is useless if you are not able to identify the 1. Also, it feels odd having to patiently wait for the first 1 to come around so you can reset your count. Truly listening to the music means being able to identify the phrase progression and being able to identify the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, etc., beats. Whenever you can just listen to the music and know what beat it is on, then counting becomes meaningless. Why do you need to count when the music is telling you what count it is on? Rather than listening to the count from the music and “echoing” it back by counting it, simply listen to the count. Doing so requires being able to identify all or most of the beats in a phrase independently, not just the 1. This is a skill I do not have, but it is a skill I can practice.

Musicality exercises #

Musicality is hard. I suspect it will take anywhere from 3 months to 2 years to learn.

Counting straight 8’s #

Count straight 8s up to 12 times. Repeat this exercise at least 3 times without mistakes.
Count straight 8s up to 12 times in sync with music. Repeat this exercise at least 3 times without mistakes.
Count straight 8s up to 12 times while doing whips. You may get unbearably dizzy. Repeat this exercise at least 3 times without mistakes.
Same as 3, but doing sugar pushes only.
Same as 3, but doing left-side passes only.
Same as 3, but doing right-side passes only.
Same as 3, but doing a sequence of 4 6-beat patterns and 1 8-beat pattern to add up to 32 beats.
Count straight 8s in sync with music for an entire song. Reset the count after each major phrase change. Repeat this exercise 3 times.
Same as 8, but doing whips only.
Same as 8, but doing sugar pushes only.
Same as 8, but doing left-side passes only.
Same as 8, but doing right-side passes only.
Same as 8, but doing a sequence of 4 6-beat patterns and 1 8-beat pattern.
To develop your phrase change intuition, jump to random points in a song and count the beats leading up to a major phrase change at least one third of the time.
Same as 14, but while dancing any 6- and 8-beat patterns required to hit the phrase change.
Listen to a song and pay attention to the chord progression. Detect the major phase change before it happens without doing any counting.
Now do 14, 15, and 16 all simultaneously. If you can manage to do this, you are a musicality professional.

You don’t have to hit all the phrase changes in the song. Aim for 1, then 2, then 3, then all of them for a specific song you are familiar with.

Rules: once the song starts and you make your first move, you cannot bail out and stop dancing. Doesn’t matter how fast, how slow, how tired, how sloppy, how confused you may be.

Accentuating the 1 #

Dance your basic patterns while counting straight 8s. Accentuate the 1 by any means necessary. This may mean a slide on 1, a back drop on 3, or a side check or sweep on 5. You can accentuate the 1 by accentuating the 3&4 compression on a sugar tuck. You may also sweep or point your free arm or head. Accentuations will all fall on 1, 3, or 5 while counting straight 8s to 6-beat patterns.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 …

Sugar push with accents #

on 1: do a [hitch] step or [level change]
on 3: do a back drop while angling your body leftwards or a [brush] backwards
on 5: do a [right side-check] side-check or a [clockwise sweep]

Pattern count combinations #

Many popular songs are composed such that each phrase is 32 beats. The leader can use this knowledge to sequence his/her patterns such that they add up to 32 beats, leading to sequences that consistently end on a phrase change.

If you start dancing at the beginning of a phrase change, then you must sequence your patterns to add up to 32. If started late by two steps, then you sequence must last 30 beats, etc.

The equations below split up the total number of beats into chunks that can be translated into specific patterns. For example, the equation $32=6+6+6+6+8$ could be translated into $4$ basic patterns and $1$ whip.

This table is descriptive, not predictive, meaning that studying it will not make you a better dancer. It will only help you understand why someone is a good dancer or why a patter is structured well. Int he best case you may be able to use it for choreography.

$$ \begin{aligned} \\ 32&=6+6+6+6+8 \\ &=6+8+8+10 \\ &=8+8+8+8 \\ &=8+12+12 \\ \\ 30&=6+6+6+6+6 \\ &=6+8+8+8 \\ &=6+12+12 \\ &=8+10+12 \\ &=10+10+10 \\ \\ 28&=6+6+6+10 \\ &=6+6+8+8 \\ &=8+10+10 \\ \\ 26&=6+10+10 \\ \\ 24&=6+6+6+6 \\ &=8+8+8 \\ &=12+12\\ \\ 22&=6+6+10 \\ &=10+12 \\ \\ 20&=6+6+8 \\ &=8+12 \\ &=10+10 \\ \\ 18&=6+6+6 \\ &=10+8 \\ \\ 16&=8+8 \\ &=10+6 \\ \\ 14&=8+6 \\ \\ 12&=6+6 \\ &=12 && \text{When doing a 6+RAG+8 pattern} \\ \\ 10&=10 && \text{When doing a 6+RAG+6 pattern} \\ \\ 8&=8 \\ \\ 6&=6 \\ \\ 4&=? && \text{Not including 4-beat starter steps} \\ \\ 2&=? && \text{Not including styling variations} \\ \end{aligned} $$

I am not sure whether 4-beat or 2-beat patterns exist in West Coast Swing. There are starter steps that are 4-beats long, but they are only used to start the dance. Also, 6-beat and 8-beat patterns may be lengthened via styling to make them 2 beats longer, but I have never heard of a standalone 2-beat pattern.

Some ways to lengthen a pattern by 2 beats are:

Replace the 2-beat anchor step with a 4-beat, slow, and smooth sweep
Replace the 2-beat anchor step with 4 small steps, 1-beat each
Split the 6-beat or the 8-beat pattern into 2-beat increments, and repeat any 2-beat increment. For example, a 6-beat pattern can be split into 2-beat increment like walk-walk triple-step triple-step, and then lengthened by 2-beats by adding another walk-walk at the beginning or another triple-step any time after the initial walk-walk. It is a subtle form of copy-and-paste.