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hepcat
04-26-2004, 11:52 PM
Hi,

I've been job hunting and I figured that I'd be able to apply to jobs in cities where I was unaware of what the swing scene was like. I would just check out the scene when I interviewed. However, this has lead me to stressful dilemmas. One place I checked out on a recent interview didn't quite come up to my expectations as far as swing dancing goes. However, the job was very nice and they REALLY want me to take the job, so much so that after I first declined the offer, they're making counter offers. I hate to tell them that the only thing that gives me pause is the swing scene. So I've decided I must change my strategy: only apply to places where I know I'll like the swing scene. My travels though have been rather limited and I was hoping people in this forum might be able to help me out. While the scene was nice in the place I checked out, the music was too slow to get my adrenaline pumping. I like energy and mix of styles: jitterbug, lindy, balboa, shag, charleston, fast lindy, boogie woogie, etc. Big bands, a little hip-hop, rat pack, some oldies, rockabillie, and some other music styles every once in a while are what I like to hear. While I prefer fast music, a mix of fast and slow is best.

So where do you think I should be looking? I was thinking of places like: San Francisco, LA, Seattle, Denver, Boston, and New York. Smaller cities are fine as long as the scene is solid and the music is right. I live in Santa Fe right now and while I like the music, the scene's really small. Oh yeah, I'd probably shy away from scenes that are populated by all one age (unless that age is mid twenties to early thirties). :wink:

SDsalsaguy
04-27-2004, 01:06 AM
Just wanted to say welcome to the DF hepcat! :D

Hopefully those "in the know" regarding swing can help you out.

jon
04-27-2004, 02:30 AM
I'm thinking you would be better off asking this on Yehoodi since there are so many more Lindy dancers there. One comment about the SF Bay Area: there is a great deal of dancing of many sorts, but depending on where you live you may be looking at a great deal of driving to get there. That can get to be a drag pretty fast. Much of the Lindy activity seems to reside in San Francisco and Oakland. If you live in San Francisco you're in good shape dancewise but that's not where most of the jobs are, by a long shot.

Spitfire
04-27-2004, 10:37 AM
Yehoodi has been mentioned; it has sections for regional areas.

If I'm not mistaken Lindy is pretty strong in California from what I understand.

Here in Arizona? I'm not sure about Phoenix, but the Lindy scene here in Tucson is in a decline. WCS is the more popular of the two currently.

Welcome to the forums.

Dancegal
04-27-2004, 02:48 PM
Welcome to the Forums Hepcat!

Houston and Austin have active Lindy scenes. Houston could use some more good male Bal and Charleston leads :wink: ...

Dancegal

LindyKeya
04-27-2004, 06:45 PM
Well, since you like fast music, Seattle would be a great place for you! When I went to the Seattle Exchange a couple years ago, it was all about fast- even at 4 in the morning! (And I too love boogie woogie! I don't know how prevalent that is there- I have one friend there who also loves it, but other than that, I don't know)
And Denver has a great scene, but they are much more into Blues dancing. You'd find it more difficult to get your fix.

swinginstyle
04-28-2004, 04:42 AM
And Denver has a great scene, but they are much more into Blues dancing. You'd find it more difficult to get your fix.

Excuse me? Blues? Hardly. Denver's scene flat out rocks. They are a scene that is moving into faster tempos. I was at their exchange in March and I did not leave with a "blues" impression. I was left with an impression of a city with several great swing organizations, excellent djs, even better dancers, etc. I cannot speak highly enough about Denver. If I could, I would probably move out there. If you're looking for more info, check out their board at http://www.23skidooland.com and start asking people questions. They are a friendly bunch.

LindyKeya
04-28-2004, 01:21 PM
Wow! No disrepect meant for Denver! They do have all of the things you described, and more. I'm not saying they just do Blues- but in general I have found that fast music is not so prevalent there. I'm just saying if I was specifically looking for a scene with lots of people who like fast dancing/music, Denver would not be my first pick.

swinginstyle
04-29-2004, 12:54 AM
If it's fast you want, Seattle seems to be the place from what I've heard.

Spitfire
04-29-2004, 07:38 AM
If it's fast you want, Seattle seems to be the place from what I've heard.

Yes, there is a pretty active scene there from what I've seen during my three visits to that area.

etchuck
04-29-2004, 06:29 PM
The Raleigh-Durham (NC) area: http://www.triangleswingdance.org/ .
Local BB (with some DC lurkers): http://www.heckzapoppin.com/ .

There are other swing dance clubs also around these here parts.

Pitching the place where I used to live (though I wasn't much into their dance scene): Cleveland area: http://www.clevelandswings.org/forum/portal.php . Note the lower right sidebar where there are more message boards of local swing communities.

rails
04-30-2004, 02:40 PM
I was thinking of places like: San Francisco, LA, Seattle, Denver, Boston, and New York.

Why does San Francisco make so many lists? I'd recommend at least taking a look at the rents and the weather here before you make any decisions. Both would be quite a change from Santa Fe.

Anyway, as for the swing scene: There are weekly venues every night except Friday. You can buy a drink Mondays and Tuesdays. Otherwise, it's just water out of paper cups. The style tends toward groove and a lot of slow music (with exceptions, of course). It's also lead-heavy. Sometimes really lead-heavy.

Swing Kitten
05-01-2004, 04:30 PM
It's also lead-heavy. Sometimes really lead-heavy.

note to self-- frequent SF dancing! :D