Aesthetics

Blues dance aesthetics are deeply intertwined with African American cultural traditions and makes a dance identifiable as blues and connects it to the larger lineage of Black American social dances.

By understanding and embracing these principles, dancers can honor the roots of the form while fostering their own creative expression within it.

Call & Response

Dancers respond to the music’s call and response, echoing it within their own movements or exchanging steps with their partner.

Coolness

Dancers move with energetic ease, combining a relaxed, laid-back feel with strength and confidence.

Ephebism

Ephebism, or youthfulness is universally admired in Africa as an aspect of fine form.

Groundedness

All good dancers are ''grounded', but African and Black American dancers are visually grounded.

Improvisation

Dancers interpret the music by using, blending, and creating steps and movements, rather than adhering to a fixed sequence of repeated steps.

Lag

Dancers respond to the music, pushing off with the beat and landing slightly after. A follower’s step may lag, and sustained notes inspire delayed movement for flow.

Polycentrism

Movements originate from multiple body parts at once, such as creating foot patterns while rolling the chest.

Polymorphism

Dancers form asymmetrical yet balanced shapes, contrasting movements and highlighting angles in the knees, hips, arms, feet, and torso.

Polyrhythmic

Dancers embody rhythmic layers through movement, sometimes expressing multiple rhythms at once while dynamically engaging with their partner.

Pulse

Dancers mirror the main beat with a steady pulse, often through rhythmic knee bends, hip drops, or a pendular hip motion.