As regular readers will be well aware, I love swing dance. Whether Lindy hop, Balboa or St. Louis shag is my current thing, I just can’t critique a track without considering how I would move to it. If my imaginary dance-along is satisfying, the write-up is likely to be favorable—if I can’t catch a good groove to a side, then that fact might count against it. (That said, my lust for dance is such that I could probably bop to a ticking clock.) More than once have I questioned whether this is a fair way to rate records. After all, scoring songs on how danceable they are might strike some as rather one-dimensional.
But then I remember this publication’s unwavering commitment to old-time jazz: that foot-tapping stuff which just demands to be danced to—even if only from the ankle down. And so I remained confident in my assertion that danceability was a fair metric for rating music. When I sat down with esteemed reed man Ewan Bleach (see the May edition) he only entrenched my position deeper. Then I had a chat with renowned jazz dance teacher Clàudia Fonte—now, I’m entirely at peace with the idea.
The Spanish physiotherapist and pro performer has spent half her lifetime moving to music. Based in Barcelona, her expertise is sought all over the world—Clàudia has been invited to major festivals in Poland, France, Bulgaria, and the USA, as well as across Spain. She is a membe
