History of Jazz Dance

The Jazz dance was originated from the African American vernacular dance of the late 1800s to the mid-1900s; the name was first heard during the First World War. In the seamy dance halls and brothels of the South and Midwest where the word Jazz usually referred to sexual intercourse. Some Southern blacks were carried from slavery a few decades before; they mixed European music with Afro modifications.
The birthplace of jazz has various origins: New Orleans, St. Louis, Memphis and Kansas City are just a few. But New Orleans was and still remainders a main jazz center. The ethnic rainbow of people who walked through bars and brothels were the most important factor in the expansion of jazz.
In the 1910s, an early popular “jazz dancer” was vaudeville star Joe Frisco. He danced in a loose-limbed style close to the ground while juggling his derby and cigar.

Until the middle of 1950s, the expression "jazz dance" frequently referred to tap dance, because tap dancing (set to jazz music) was the major performance dance of the era. During the later jazz age were developed different popular forms of jazz dance were the Cakewalk, Black Bottom, Charleston, Jitterbug, Boogie Woogie, Swing dancing and the related Lindy Hop.
Its presentation into show business, during exposure in films, on television, and on Broadway, guaranteed it a huge and continuing audience. The first jazz bands included a "rhythm section" consisting of a string bass, drums, and a guitar or banjo, and a "melodic section" with one or two cornets, a trombone, a clarinet, and occasionally even a violin. After, jazz was taken over by large orchestras; that contained fifteen or more musicians. Actually, there is a renewed attention in the "big band" era, even though the music has very little to do with real jazz.

Today, jazz dance is presented in different shows and different forms. Jazz dance flourish in dance schools and remains an important part of musical theater choreography; it is sometimes mixed with other dance styles as suitable for the particular show. Jazz dancing can be seen in some music videos, and even a number of Las Vegas showgirls are jazz dancers.

A brief history of some styles of dance:

» History of Argentine Tango	» Breakdance History
» Cha Cha Dance History	» Disco & Hustle History
» Flamenco Dance History	» Foxtrot Dance History
» History of Jazz Dance	» History of Merengue
» History of Polka	» History of Salsa
» Samba History	» History Of Waltz