Zürich Balboa Night am 7. Mai 2010

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Zürich Balboa Night

ENGLISH version: find this event on Facebook Für alle Daheimgebliebenen, die nicht am BOTP in Cannes dabei sind. Wiederum organisieren wir einen Balboa Mini-Workshop vor der Party. Host Benno Rickenbacher MINI-WORKSHOP – Thema: The Flow von und mit Marcia Bodenmann & David Knoll Ein spannendes Thema, das euren Balboa Stil auf eine neue Ebene bringt! Zeit: 19.45 – 20.45h Level: Balboa Basics sind Voraussetzung Registration: Bitte mit Partner/in anmelden, damit wir die Klasse ausgeglichen planen können. DANCE NIGHT Zeit: 21.00 – 2.00h DJane MARCIA und DJ BENNO legen die heissesten Balboa-Songs für euch auf! Ort Downtownswing, Friedaustrasse 17, 8003 Zürich [...]

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5. Swiss Balboa Weekend 03.-05.09.2010

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Swiss Balboa Weekend 2010

This year’s Swiss Balboa Weekend in Zürich will already be the fifth edition. We are looking forward to a great weekend from Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th September 2010. There will be two days of workshops with international and local teachers and two parties on Friday and Saturday night. The teacher line-up: Joana Ekeström & Andreas Olsson from Sweden, Masha Krohina & Alex Gud from Russia and our local teacher couple Ulla Wingenfelder & Tim Kask. The registration is now open! So be fast and register as soon as possible, preferably as a couple! (Don’t use the registration link on [...]

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DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #8: Alreet

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Anita O'Day In Memoriam

I often get asked what makes a Swing song a typical Balboa song. This is a very good question but from my point of view only a subjective answer could be given. Generally we could say – and this is broken down to a very simple quote – that danceable Swing music from the 30s and the first half of the 40s is a good source for Balboa dancing, while R&B from the later 40s and 50s is not suitable. Of course we could go now much more in details but I rather show you good examples. Let’s start with [...]

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14 Tips To Become A (Better) Swing DJ

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14 Tips To Become A (Better) Swing DJ

Swing DJ’ing is different from DJ’ing House music for example. Neither do we have to mix the songs nor do we have to scratch. Nevertheless it’s much more than just running a playlist! I often get asked for tips about Swing DJ‘ing. So I have put together this list of 14 tips to become a (better) Swing DJ in a more or less random order. 1. Listen to Swing music Do it as much as possible: CDs, radio, internet radio, live concerts. Get a feeling for the music. Which songs make you dance? Why? 2. Know your music library Build [...]

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DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #7: No More Love

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Buddy Johnson Walk'em The Decca Sessions

For this week I have chosen a R&B song – played by a big band – rather than a typical Swing song, but it’s just perfect to dance Lindy Hop to. Pianist Buddy Johnson (1915-1977), his real name was Woodrow Wilson Johnson, led a large jump blues band that was very successful during the 1940s and 1950s. He featured different vocalists but his younger sister Ella Johnson was the primary singer of the band. No More Love is a great example of the big band’s driving sound at a slower tempo and Ella’s soulful voice. Title: Artist: Buddy Johnson And [...]

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Balboa Mini Workshop in Glebe Sydney 17.04.2010

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Shuffle Baby, Shuffle!

SHUFFLE BABY, SHUFFLE! Balboa mini workshop just before “Swing @ The Roxbury” by Christian Bossert – Balboa addict, Swing dance instructor and DJ, directly from Zurich Switzerland. Learn one of the Balboa Shuffle steps and get an awesome technique to dance to the fastest music! Where: The Roxbury Hotel, 182 St Johns Road, Glebe NSW 2037 Date/Time: 17.04.2010 7-8pm Level: all, Balboa basic steps required Shoes: don’t forget to bring shoes with leather soles! Costs: AUD 20 (entry fee for “Swing @ The Roxbury” is included!) Registration: Not necessary, just turn up. Event is published on Facebook Any questions? Please [...]

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DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #6: The Gal From Joe’s

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Charlie Barnet The Gal From Joe's

Another great song is The Gal From Joe’s composed by Duke Ellington and Irving Mills, here in my preferred version by Charlie Barnet (1913-1991). Charlie Barnet was a son of wealthy parents who had hoped he would become a lawyer. However Charlie led his first orchestra on a transatlantic ocean liner at the age of 16 years! Charlie later led what was known as “The Blackest White Band Of Them All” and he was a great admirer of Duke Ellington (as well of Count Basie). He mainly played tenor sax, influenced by Coleman Hawkins, but also alto and soprano sax. [...]

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Global Shim Sham

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Global Shim Sham

Vom 21.-26. Mai 2009 wurde in New York ein riesiges Geburtstags-Festival anlässlich Frankie Mannings 95. Geburtstag organisiert. Dieser Anlass ist allgemein als Frankie Fest oder Frankie 95 bekannt. Leider verstarb Frankie Manning (16.5.1914-27.4.2009) einen Monat vor dem Anlass und das Geburtstags-Festival wurde kurzum zu einem inzwischen schon legendären Gedenk-Festival. Die Organisatoren riefen im Vorfeld dazu auf, den Shim Sham in der lokalen Szene auf Video aufzunehmen und auf Youtube zu veröffentlichen, um einen Zusammenschnitt für das Festival herzustellen. Über 160 Videos wurden produziert, u.a. auch vom Schneeschuh-Shim Sham, aufgenommen im März 2009 während dem 1. Geneva Lindy Exchange: Wie ihr [...]

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Zürich Balboa Night am 9. April 2010

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Zürich Balboa Night

English version: find this event on Facebook Es ist wieder soweit: Am nächsten Freitag findet die April-Ausgabe der Zürich Balboa Night, ausnahmsweise ohne Mini-Workshop, statt. Host: Benno Rickenbacher Tim Kask Ort: Downtownswing, Friedaustrasse 17, Zürich Zeit: 21.00 – 2.00h DJs: DJane Natascha und DJ Tim legen die heissesten Balboa-Songs für euch auf! Kosten: CHF 15/10 Nächste Balboa Night: 7. Mai 2010 Die Zürich Balboa Night findet jeden 1. Freitag im Monat statt; ausser August (Sommerpause)

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DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #5: The Game Of Love

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Fairground Attraction Ay Fond Kiss

This is a beautiful song by Fairground Attraction, a Scottish pop band which only existed from 1987-1990. They are most known for their world hit “Perfect”, released 1988. “The Game Of Love” is a wonderful swinging song, although I wouldn’t play it at every Swing night. But sometimes it’s just the perfect song! Title: The Game Of Love Artist: Fairground Attraction Released: 1990 Album: Ay Fond Kiss Tempo: 144 bpm Dance: Lindy Hop Click the link to prelisten and download the song (mp3/mp4a) at iTunes — Amazon.de (CH/D/A) — Amazon.com — eMusic What do you think about this song? Do [...]

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