Newcomers to ballroom dancing face the challenge of learning how to tell the difference between the various music styles such as waltzes and foxtrots. Indeed with at least ten different rhythm patterns involved, the learning curve can be slow and frustrating.
The audio clips below are intended to help you identify and understand the music rhythm patterns used in ballroom dancing. Analyzing the music entails listening to the underlying rhythm pattern. Usually this means listening not to the melody, but to the underlying percussion pattern. The audio clips below teach you the underlying percussion patterns and they teach you how to count the music and how to count the step timing in accordance with the music.
Whether you are an experienced dancer or a complete beginner, I think you’ll get a much deeper understanding of ballroom music after listening to the clips below. To get the best audio quality, I suggest listening with headphones.
