Dances and Terminology
There are always plenty of questions about all the different dances and what makes them different. Sometimes the answers seem confused because two different people will give you entirely different answers about the same dance—or so you think. Part of the confusion is that there are two different Styles (yes, with a capital "S") of ballroom dance in the world today—American and International. Why would this confuse? Because they both have dances called Foxtrot, Waltz, Tango, Rumba, Cha cha, and Samba, which are usually similar to each other, but which always have distinct differences. You might also find that descriptions differ between dancers who are primarily competitive versus primarily social, as each has priorities based on their disparate goals. So here we attempt to resolve your conflict and confusion and provide the answers you need.
Terminology
Social vs. Competitive — Attitudes and Goals
In social dancing, the emphasis is on fun and variety—a variety of partners, music, and dance floors. Dancers focus on the partnership (leading and following) and navigation (dancing through the crowd without hitting or otherwise disrupting others). In competitive dancing, the emphasis is on technical details, aesthetics, and difficulty, usually assuming a large floor with a limited number of couples on the floor at once, ideally while still working the partnership and navigation, although the latter two items have been sorely neglected over the past several years. Competitors frequently practice with a single partner to achieve excellence and may develop routines. Social dancing can be seen in clubs everywhere, and competitive dancing can be seen on the PBS program "Championship Ballroom Dancing" (televised annually) and soon as part of the Olympics. The movie "Strictly Ballroom" gives a funny (but somewhat realistic) behind-the-scenes look at competitive ballroom dancing. For a look at the allure of ballroom dancing, see the movie "Shall We Dance" (Japanese, with subtitles) which shows one man learning to dance and which nicely blurs the lines between social and competition dancing.
American vs. International
American style dancing is done mostly in the United States and Canada while the International style is done all around the world (including the U.S. and Canada) and is the style that will be danced at the Olympics.
American style dances were codified with ease of learning (and sales) in mind, and so tend to have patterns that are easier to mix-and-match. Most beginners find the American style easier to learn and to dance socially, since a dancer with only one figure in a dance can be functional (although a bit boring) on the floor, whereas International style dances tend to have smaller patterns which must be fit into longer sequences in order to get to a point where a sequence can be repeated. One way to think of it is that International style patterns are syllables and American style patterns are words you use in forming dance sentences. The International style was also codified more for descriptive clarity than with ease of teaching (or sales) in mind, and so some difficult skills are included fairly early in the syllabus, while the American style builds up to these skills over time. Eventually, the two skill sets are quite similar, the two styles just take two different paths to achieve their goals.
Once you've attained a certain amount of skill in one style, it is easier to learn the other, and in some cases the differences are quite minor (especially between Smooth and Standard).
Smooth/Standard
In the smooth and standard dances, the dancers have a tall, elegant stance, usually taking long strides, yet appearing to move without effort. These are called the smooth dances in the American style (Foxtrot, Waltz, Tango, Viennese Waltz, and Peabody) and the standard dances in the International style (Slow Foxtrot, Slow Waltz, Tango, Viennese Waltz, and Quickstep). Smooth (American) dances can be open, meaning the partners may separate from each other, either to an open postition with only hand contact, or they may separate entirely, whereas in the standard (International) dances, the partners always maintain body contact with each other.
Rhythm/Latin
In the Rhythm and Latin dances, the dancers generally have a more rounded, more obviously forward stance, with short steps and hip motion (Cuban motion for American style and Latin motion for International style), danced within a more restricted space. These are called rhythm dances in American style (Rumba, Cha cha, Mambo, Samba, Merengue, East Coast Swing, West Cost Swing, Hustle, Night-Club two-step, Polka, and just about anything else that comes along that is significantly different from what we already have) and Latin dances in international style (Rumba, Cha cha, Samba, Paso Doble, and Jive). The International style acknowledges some other dances, such as Mambo, but does not compete them, and if taught, they are presented as "party dances." For the Cuban motion of the American dances, dancers land with a bent knee when they take a step, with the hip motion (primarily lateral, with some rotation being acceptable) following afterwards, resulting in a sultry look. For the Latin motion of the International dances, the dancers land with a straight leg, which causes the hip motion (primarily rotational) to be more abrupt and dramatic. Nowadays, turns in the Latin dances (and to some degree the Rhythm as well) are almost exclusively fast and sharp. Traditional Rhythm dances provide a wide variety of turns, slow as well as fast.The Ballroom Dances
Bolero
(American)Bolero-son is the slowest of the son family, with a huge split box basic, incorporating the hip motion of rhythm dances with the closed position and rise and fall of smooth dances. This makes the dance very demanding both technically and physically, as the mind and body try to maintain a number of technical effort simultaneously. Not usually a good dance for beginners, but very satisfying for more advanced dancers. Try "Beautiful Maria of my Soul" from the soundtrack to "The Mambo Kings" as well as Gloria Estefan's "Not Givin' You Up."
Cha Cha (Cha)
(American & International)A medium-speed Latin or rhythm dance, the cha cha can range from cheesy to stacatto and dramatic. It is a derivative of Mambo, and so also has a split box basic, but with triple steps and rock steps. International Cha cha is faster than the American. Songs to cha cha to include "Cuban Pete," Santana's "Oye Como Va," and Hansel Martinez's "Love Potion Number Nine."
East Coast Swing
(American)A slow to fast speed rhythm dance, east coast swing is lazy and energetic at the same time. This triple-step swing can be modified to a single-step (which can be transformed into a jitterbug) or double-step version, and with certain rhythm changes also contains Lindy-like elements. It is danced to all kinds of rock music such as the "Stray Cat Strut," "Pink Cadillac," as well as big band music like "In the Mood."
Foxtrot
(American & International)A medium-speed smooth or standard dance, the foxtrot has both a box-step basic and a progressive (forward-moving) basic step. This is an ideal dance with which to start American Smooth. Frank Sinatra recorded many excellent songs for foxtrot like "Hey, Jealous Lover" and "Witchcraft."
Hustle
(American)A club dance which ocassionally shows up in the ballroom, Hustle is a fast American-style dance done to disco music. Not to be confused with the line dance, in this swing-related dance, partners approach and move away from each other in a modified slot.
Jive
(International)An international style swing, jive has more of a staccato, bouncy look to it than does east coast swing; jive bounces up, while east coast swing bounces down. It is a highly energetic, upbeat dance that is done to slightly quicker songs than is east coast swing, such as Madonna's "Hanky Panky," Manhattan Transfer's "Boy from New York City," and the Honeydripper's "Rockin' at Midnight."
Merengue
(American)A rhythm dance of varying tempos, the merengue is one of the easier dances to learn and an easy dance in which to incorporate other dance moves that you know. The basic requires taking one step to the side and then closing the other foot to it. Merengue is most commonly taught in clubs.
Mambo
(American)A very fast American-style rhythm dance, the mambo is closely related to Cha cha and the club dance salsa. Most people's difficulty with Mambo isn't learnign the steps, but putting those steps with the music with the rock steps (breaks) on "2". You can mambo to "Tequila," "Ran Can Can," ; this dance is featured in the movie "The Mambo Kings." (Salsa has its breaks on "1" and uses a hip motion that is best described as Latin motion with an incomplete weight change; it is taught in clubs.)
Nightclub Two-Step
(American)A relatively new American-style dance (not related to Country and Western two-step) danced to slow music, the nightclub two-step is like a very mellow samba with its equilibrium restored. This dance is done in place like a rhythm dance but lacks Cuban motion and is considered more natural than other ballroom dances. Good songs for nightclub two-step include "Earth Angel" by Barry, Marvin and the Starlighters; Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight;" and Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You."
Peabody
(American)The forerunner of quickstep, Peabody is a fast, traveling dance demanding agility, experience, and lots of space, the latter being one reason it is only rarely seen, even in the ballroom community. It is a jovial dance, giving the impression of the partners racing around the floor, but with intricate footwork and frequently changing positions. The dance was started in 1910 by Frank Peabody, and reached its peak of popularity in the 20's, frequently danced to current pop music—ragtime. It's a dance of controlled abandon and boundless energy. It can be done, somewhat slowly, to any quickstep music, or to faster songs like "Get Me to the Church on Time," "Zip- A-Dee-Do-Da," or Rodgers & Hammerstein's "I Enjoy Being a Girl." If it's fast (120 beats per minute) and fluid, with a little bounce to it, it's Peabody.
Paso Doble
(International)The paso doble is an international-style dance that's very dramatic and is supposed to look like a bull fighter (the woman is his cape or sometimes the bull). The posture is distinct, with shoulders thrown way back, and this dance is unique in that attention tends to be focussed on the man.
Quickstep
(International)The quickstep is a quick foxtrot (not quite as fast as the Peabody) done in the international style. It is upbeat and energetic with skipping and jumping moves at the advanced levels. This is usually the dance of choice for starting International Standard. Good songs for quickstep include "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," and "I Get a Kick Out of You."
Polka
(American)Debated by some as "not really a ballroom dance, but rather a folk dance," the polka does ocassionally show up in the ballroom. It uses all the same partnership skills as our other partnership dances, but combines elements of the smooth (it certainly can travel around the floor) and rhythm (dance position, types of turns). It is fast and festive with a fair amount of bounce and joviality. Try one to "Beer Barrel Polka," as well as any other song with "polka" in its name.
Rumba
(American & International)Rumba-son, one of the faster dances in the son family, is a medium to slow dance that can be done as a rhythm dance (quicker, box basic) or Latin dance (slower, split box basic). The rumba is featured as the "dance of love" in the movie "Strictly Ballroom." This is the dance of choice for starting either Rhythm of Latin. Good rumbas include Doris Day's "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" and Sting's "Fields of Gold." With a little syncopation of the rhythm, many jazz bands are quite dance-able as well.
Samba
(American & International)Origianlly a folk dance from Brazil's Carnival, Samba is a quick dance which can be done both as a Latin dance (which tends to move around the floor a lot) or as a rhythm dance (with a box step basic and a characteristic sway and pendulum motion). The American style retains many of the movement qualities of the drunken celebratory dance that developed in Rio. Not to be confused with the poetic, story-telling forms of Samba from which the revelers borrowed the name. "The Macarena" makes an excellent song to samba to. Barry Manilow's "Copacabana" and John Paul Young's "Love is in the Air" are also good for samba, as well as the classic "Brasil."
Tango
(American & International)The tango is characterized by sudden, dramatic changes in position and direction and an emphasis on staccato movements which differentiate it from other smooth and standard dances. The International version is the fastest, and many of its movements are faster. The American version uses more of the original fanning movements more and contrasts between slow and fast movement. The Argentine version (taught separately from other ballroom dancing) is much slower and has an even greater contrast between slow and fast movements. Commonly heard tangos include "La Cumparsita," and "Hernando's Hideaway."
Viennese Waltz
(American & International)Originally a folk dance, and the original partnership dance (in that the partners touched more than just hands), this is a fast waltz that involves dancing circles within circles around the dance floor like a planet spins in circles within its orbit—you may get dizzy. This is a rather unforgiving dance, technically, and so is not recommended for beginners. The American version features figures in which the couple opens and sometimes separate entirely, while the International version keeps the partners in body contact at all times. Viennese waltz songs include Enya's "Caribbean Blue," Doris Day's "Que Sera Sera," and Cat Stevens' "Morning Has Broken." At German festivals, many bands play nothing but polka and Viennese waltz.
Waltz
(American & International)The slower form of the Waltz, and the most common wedding dance, this is the classic dance we think of when we think of ballroom dancing with Fred Astair and Ginger Rogers. It is a very elegant medium-speed smooth or standard dance with a box-step basic. Anne Murray's "Could I Have This Dance?", Olivia Newton John's "Sam," Nat King Cole's "Fascination," and Harry Connick, Jr.'s "A Wink and a Smile" are some good waltzes.
West Coast Swing
(American)Originally a bar dance, this is a swing done in a smaller space and to slower songs than east coast swing and with a steamy (rather than upbeat) look and feel to it. It is a slot dance with the woman moving toward and away from the man throughout the dance. Good songs for west coast swing include most blues songs, "Mustang Sally," Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools," En Vogue's "Free Your Mind," Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer," and Art of Noise's "Kiss." This dance is closely related to the Whip which is taught in some Austin clubs as well as the Push in North Texas.