Dancing Foxtrot
Foxtrot is a very well-known and popular ballroom dance that originated in North America. It is danced with a partner in a 4/4 beat, which makes it a very lively dance. The basic steps of dancing Foxtrot are also very simple, which is why many beginners like this dance. It can also be danced to a wide variety of music, which appeals to many dancers.
Table of Contents
History of origin
Worldwide Spread
After the First World War, the dance became popular all over the world. It started in Europe, especially in England, where the dance was shown and taught to the locals. Today the Foxtrot is one of the best known and most widespread dances in the world.
Music
Dance styles
Over time, several subcategories of dancing Foxtrot have emerged. Particularly worth mentioning are the Slowfox and the Quickstep. As you can already guess from the names, these were mainly slower or faster versions of Foxtrot. Over time, however, the variations have changed further, so that completely new dances have emerged.
Slowfox
Slowfox is the short version of Slow Foxtrot. It is a quiet and gentle version of the Foxtrot, which is mainly characterised by its flowing movements. Despite the soft nature of this dance, Slowfox is a relatively demanding dance that is not so easy to learn. This is mainly because the dance steps vary in speed and the movements should still look fluid. It is also difficult to stay on the beat, as the music in Slowfox usually does not have drums.
Quickstep
Quickstep also takes its name from the English word “quick”. It used to be called Quick Foxtrot and is unsurprisingly a somewhat faster version of the dance. In contrast to Slowfox, it is a very lively and animating dance and is often called the “champagne of dances” because of its effervescence. Classic elements of the Quickstep are quick lifting and lowering of the feet, long steps and smaller jumps. In contrast to Slowfox, Quickstep is accompanied by drums, which give the dance a very rhythmic note.
Description of dancing Foxtrot
Compared to the Slowfox and the Quickstep, dancing Foxtrot is comparatively easy to learn. Similar to the Quickstep, the Foxtrot is also a very lively and cheerful dance, which with a tempo of 36 to 48 beats per minute is not particularly fast, but not slow either. The dance partners stand opposite each other and either hold on to both hands or adopt a classical dance posture in which the man’s right hand grips the woman’s upper back and the woman’s left hand rests on the man’s shoulder.
Basic Steps
The basic steps of the Foxtrot are described simply and can be danced just as easily. The man starts with the left foot and a long step forward, followed by the right foot and a longer step forward. The left foot then takes a small step to the left and the right foot is trailed next to the left foot. The last two steps are twice as fast as the first two. Then this movement is performed backwards, i.e. a long step back with the left foot, a long step back with the right foot and finally a small step to the left with the left foot, followed by the dragging of the right foot. The woman’s steps are exactly the same, but logically she performs them in reverse.
Further steps
Even though the basic steps in Foxtrot are very easy to learn, the dance can become more demanding for dancers through further steps and movements. Compared to many other dances, however, Foxtrot does not have a huge number of special figures.
Figures
Other movements
In Foxtrot, many dance classes teach other figures and steps that do not necessarily belong to this dance, but rather to Quickstep. However, since the dances are related and often taught one after the other, these figures find a place in the classes. These are promenades, ladies’ solos and cross steps. ions” and body movement.
Worth mentioning about dancing Foxtrot
It is not only Harry Fox who probably gave the dance its name, but also a gait of horses. The word “trot” refers to the process when a horse changes from trot to walk, i.e. slows down its gait. This is the same as in the foxtrot, where fast steps are combined with slow ones.