[Dixielandjazz] Re: Dixielandjazz Digest, Vol 31, Issue 15

[Steve barbone]

Dick_Miller at pmug.org (Dick Miller) wrote
 
> A number of posters have referred to the term "danceable tempo" in our
> discussions about what draws and keeps an audience for OKOM. I'd like to
> hear opinions (especially from the prolific and thought-provoking Steve
> Borbone) about where that comes out on a metronome. I realize there are
> slow, medium, and fast dances, but what would you say is the range that
> fills the dance floor? I  realize, too, that a series of hot tempos all in
> a row will clear the floor but, given an intelligent variety, what's your
> idea of slow, medium, and fast?

Dear Dick & Listmates:

Man, that is a most difficult question to answer. I think danceable tempo
depends on who is dancing. For example:

Our most experienced swing dancers will do a Balboa to a tune like Shine at
about 240/260. Not only that, they will do it for 6 to 8 minutes. They are
not only GREAT dancers, but in GREAT shape. We challenge them at speeds and
tune duration's that others would say can't be done. They respond to the
challenge by staying on the floor as long as we play a tune at whatever
speed. The record so far is a nine minute That's A Plenty at what I think
was about 240.

Our learner swing dancers prefer tunes at about 140-180. And shorter
duration's, say 3 or 4 minutes. Like Honeysuckle Rose, Ain't Misbehavin.

Charleston's seem to work well in the 200 range.

Fox trots anywhere from 120 to 180. The older "society folks" in this area
of Pennsylvania (The Main Line) all learned "correct" fox trots and danced
them to the music of Lester Lanin, Meyer Davis et al who hired Dixieland
Jazz musicians to play tunes like Jazz Me Blues, at say 170 etc. And they
fox trot to it.

Slower Blues tunes work great if you "lilt" them. Black & Blue at 100, or
Basis Street Blues at 100, or Million Dollar Secret at 110-120.

I guess what I'm saying is that danceable tempos run the gamut from about 90
to 260. The pre teens love the up tempo 240s because they don't know how to
dance and so they just free dance doing their own thing. We get the high
school kids to do this also. "Just do you own thing", we say and they do.

We experiment where we have a dance floor and figure out what kind of
dancers we have and then adjust to them. Surprisingly, you can play all the
tunes and they'll dance to the ones they like, while listening to the rest.

Our upcoming gig at Sydney's is always a challenge because the audience
varies in age and dancing ability. Plus, every year, we get a group of swing
dancers to come 120 miles to dance to us. Some sleep over in their cars, and
this year we have a group staying with a couple of us at the band condo. Now
that's a kick. Two 70+ year old men hosting 4, pretty, trim, 25-30 old
women. It don't get any better than that. Especially when they also adore
you. (no we're not fooling around, just enjoying being with young people)

When you build that kind of audience rapport, tempos don't matter much
because they'll dance to it all.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone

BTW: The young Eminem fans waiting on line for the show room to open
tonight, asked us to play a tune or two for them so we did. They cheered and
shouted encouragement for "St Thomas" and "Royal Garden Blues". Some free
danced also. Ages? About 21 to 25. Yep, Band Persona, audience rapport, what
ever you want to call it, is what counts. Have faith in the kids, they sure
as hell are not as dumb ass as we were at their ages. :-) VBG.