What Makes A Great Dance Night?

[michael]

Just wondered what the majority of forum members felt were crucial to a great dance night. In order of importance perhaps?

What is thee single most important aspect Music.....or

Looking back on the last two Glasgow Dances i notice that cerocers appear to be in broad aggreement in certain areas.

Take the Leroc Dance Night with Guest DJ Lounge Lizard.

The stage and lighting plus banners etc were all as good as it gets.....and possibly more. A busy dance floor but again no complaints.....great so far

The stage dancing with Sheena & Lizard like wise

Most unusual, i never heard a complaint about the music played
but wondered if the lizard was er........ politely told to tone the music down so to speak........???? We must know Lizard

No real complaints about the hall............

For me it was the best dance night yet so far..........
Overall Feedback...............Great Dance Night Well done:D


Then we had last weeks Ceroc Dance night

No complaints about the hall......I think it looks the better of the two Between Woodside and Henry Wood etc..........Great start

Great crowd more than usual and plenty from all over Scotland............. great so far

The Dance Routine with Nicky & Partner .........absolutely brilliant

The Music.......................:confused: :confused: :confused:

That was THE talking point everywhere by everyone!!!!

What a terrible shame................ To have everything in place and get so much right yet the feedback from Edinburgh and Glasgow cerocers was The Music................

I enjoyed the Dance but i always do anyway and i dance to anything (well try). But i must say the little bits in between the ending of the first tune and start of the next was leaving me totally :confused: or were those little sounds another tune :confused:

Should we have advance notice of such "Theme Music Nights"

Music seems to have the biggest influence on peoples perception of how the night went....

Should Ceroc Management exert more influence on what the Dj Plays...........up to 75% anyway??? or 50%????

For me i enjoy all types of music but since the dancing and the music is fairly new to me it is all great. What i didnt like was the DJ adding his own attempts at music.......... re-above which managed to depress even me. In fact i felt most sorry for the much more experienced dancers who were every bit as confused?

I sat down for a couple of tunes (a record for me) and what i saw brought my happy wee vision of ceroc down somewhat:sad:

It made me realise the sheer power a DJ has on influencing the night. I want to see the really good dancers dancing and enjoying themselves it cheers me up and everyone else too. If they are confused how does that make us newcomers feel...

Professionally recorded tracks is one thing...........but......

Me thought it was not good for ceroc.......slightly worried now.

[Jon]

People
Music
Well taught Fun Classes

[Alfie]

:waycool: Well said!:waycool:

[Lounge Lizard]

Originally posted by Michael
Just wondered what the majority of forum members felt were crucial to a great dance night. In order of importance perhaps?

What is thee single most important aspect Music.....or

Looking back on the last two Glasgow Dances I notice that cerocers appear to be in broad aggreement in certain areas.

Take the Leroc Dance Night with Guest DJ Lounge Lizard.

The stage and lighting plus banners etc were all as good as it gets.....and possibly more. A busy dance floor but again no complaints.....great so far

The stage dancing with Sheena & Lizard like wise

Most unusual, I never heard a complaint about the music played
but wondered if the lizard was er........ politely told to tone the music down so to speak........???? We must know Lizard

No real complaints about the hall............

For me it was the best dance night yet so far..........
Overall Feedback...............Great Dance Night Well done:D


Hi
Thanks for the comments, I think Bill's sound and light system was great.

Did I tone anything down.....not sure what you mean, but I would say no, as I only play what I feel the dancers would like.
Billy did ask me to play that Tractor song - Baby likes to rock - apart from that I take the blame/credit for any set I play.

Should Ceroc select tracks - IMHO no, not unless you want to hear the same music at every venue you dance at.
Being a good venue manager does not make you a good DJ.
The same works in reverse, I DJ and teach throughout the country and get good crowds, yet a few months ago I held a dance in Brighton on a Friday - it was the only event on during that weekend and one (yes one) dancer turned up :tears:
I'm sure if Adam, Franck etc. had organised the event it would have been busy - so being a good DJ does not make me a good promoter.

Back to the tone down comment......I have a reputation for swing music, because I get asked to play at these events more than main stream nights.
I play the music for the venue - Hipsters is a swing/jive night so I will always try to play music that either styles can dance to all night. (as opposed to two ceroc tracks then a fast Lindy track)
Fleet (my regular DJ venue) is a modern jive venue with a small Lindy class, so the music is a mix of both styles.
I welcome the opportunity to play new modern music (this was mentioned elsewhere on the forum) but anything with a 'clubby' feel does not work that well (shame)
I will always play new music and know of a number of standard tracks now used throughout the country which started out by me trying it at Hastings (my regular teaching venue) - JB is also great at this

Gaps in the music - the DJ was probably using mini disc or laptop where the music is pre-planned either before the event or during the night.
This works ok on a class night where the DJ is often a dancer/teacher and is needed on the dance floor, but at a dance...........not for me.

Personally, I need to look at the dancers body language to know what to play next (you guys will dance to anything, so the fact there are dancers on the floor does not necessarily mean the DJ is doing a good job). I also look at who is not dancing and what makes them get up....pop swing blues or the bar :rofl:

On Saturday at Fleet we had a quiet night due to the jive masters event. I played music that kept them dancing all night, but If the usual crowd had been there I would have played a completely different set - so anyone who can pre-determine the nights music is either very good or........................

Peter

[Graham]

Originally posted by michael
The Music.......................:confused: :confused: :confused:
Should we have advance notice of such "Theme Music Nights"

What i didnt like was the DJ adding his own attempts at music.......... re-above which managed to depress even me. Personally I was perfectly happy with the music, but I do acknowledge that you and a number of other people weren't.

For the benefit of anyone who wasn't there, however, I'd like to point out that there wasn't any kind of theme to the set - it was a mixed set consisting of tracks which could have been played at any modern jive event, including lots which indeed are regularly played in Glasgow. Also, there were no tracks played which weren't professionally recorded tracks by recognised artists - I don't recognise what you mean about "extra bits".

Incidentally, as has been mentioned a number of times in various threads, most DJs would far rather have (constructive) feedback at the event itself than afterwards.

[Lou]

Originally posted by Jon
People
Music
Well taught Fun Classes (I'm not so bothered about the class bit - more the freestyle....)

1. Music
2. Plenty of men ;)
3. Good dancers to space ratio

[Dreadful Scathe]

Originally posted by Lou

1. Music
2. Plenty of men ;)
3. Good dancers to space ratio

i must disagree completely with point 2 :)

[Rachel]

Originally posted by michael
Just wondered what the majority of forum members felt were crucial to a great dance night. In order of importance perhaps?

1. Music
2. Music
3. Music

A decent floor also helps. And at least one person to dance with. That's all ...
Rachel

[Dreadful Scathe]

Originally posted by michael
Should we have advance notice of such "Theme Music Nights"

Music seems to have the biggest influence on peoples perception of how the night went....

Should Ceroc Management exert more influence on what the Dj Plays...........up to 75% anyway??? or 50%????

Ceroc management are going to have much less of an idea about local tastes than a decent DJ. And if you think the DJ is that bad - mention it! Was it really a "theme music" night ? what theme did it have ?



For me i enjoy all types of music but since the dancing and the music is fairly new to me it is all great. What i didnt like was the DJ adding his own attempts at music..........

I want to know what you mean by this as well. As someone who wasnt there i dont know what the music was like but it sounds like you're suggesting he did his own mixes ! Thats quite a confusing paragraph you have there :D i.e. you enjoy all types of music but not the DJs own attempts ? :)

[stewart38]

Women out numbering men by 30% is about ideal

About 8yrs at Guildford women out numbered men 2 to 1 you don't see that now

Space to dance


Music

[Sheepman]

Originally posted by Rachel
1. Music
2. Music
3. Music

A decent floor also helps. And at least one person to dance with. That's all ...
Rachel

That sounds good to me, where and when shall we do it? :wink:

The ideal for a perfect blend has to be (sort of in priority order) -

1. Great music, JB/LL/Trampy/John Miller, but not so loud as to burst eardrums.
2. The best people (not necessarily the same as the best dancers!)
3. Perfect floor, and lots of space
4. Lots of fresh air and no smoking
5. Free water/decently priced drinks
6. A late, late, finish
7. Fun/interesting/challenging lessons.

Looks like I've just described Beach Boogie.
Greg

[Chris]

Originally posted by michael
What Makes A Great Dance Night?

A magical moment? :innocent:

[Tiggerbabe]

Originally posted by Chris
A magical moment? :innocent:

Good point! :D

[Dreadful Scathe]

Isnt it

[list=a]
sun
sea
sand
sex
[/list=a]

or am i thinking of something else :confused:

[Boomer]

The simple things:
A couple of Buds/Becks;
A double shot of relaxed;
A good tune;
And the feeling you and the fellow newbie
get when you hit and finish a move on the
beat – you may not ‘look the biz’ but you
sure do feel it:nice: ;
And last, but by no means least, laughter.
:cheers:

[Dreadful Scathe]

Originally posted by Boomer

And last, but by no means least, laughter.
:cheers:

At you or with you? :D

[Boomer]

Originally posted by Dreadful Scathe
At you or with you? :D

Either, as that’s what I usually get - ‘call that an arm-jive ape!?! You’re tick-tocking man!’. But that’s ok, I’m thick-skinned, I can handle it, water off a duck's back to me...:tears: as long as people are happy, I dont care, I'm obliging.

:wink:

[Gadget]

A good night for me is one that I can dance.
A very good night is one where I can dance with every lady in the room, then go back and dance with a select few again (depending on the first dance).
A Great night is one where I get a partner that follows everything I lead her into, she improvises in the areas I leave blank, she hears the same music as I do and we are both dissapointed that the track played ends so soon.

I don't really care about the music - If it's got a pulse I'll dance to it.
I don't really care about the class - It gives a common set of moves that I know everyone will be able to do, but I can get by without that.
I don't really care about the ability of people - If they want to dance, then that's all that matters.
I don't really care about the floor - as long as my feet don't stick to it.
If I get a partner who smiles when they dance and when they leave the floor, then I'm happy.

[Boomer]

Originally posted by Gadget

I don't really care about the ability of people - If they want to dance, then that's all that matters.

If I get a partner who smiles when they dance and when they leave the floor, then I'm happy.

Chin-chin :cheers:

[cerocmetro]

Originally posted by Dreadful Scathe
Isnt it

[list=a]
sun
sea
sand
sex
[/list=a]

or am i thinking of something else :confused:

I hate to blatantly market like this but you have just described www.danceandsail.com

See you there:waycool:

[Emma]

Originally posted by cerocmetro
I hate to blatantly market Lies!!! :wink: :devil: :grin:

[Jon L]

1) Friendlyness of venue and dancers. Dancer's who will dance with anybody regardless of standard.

2) Good music and DJ's with some older stuff in amongst the new stuff.

[Daphne]

free crisps and treats (thanks franck)

[Dance Demon]

Originally posted by Jon L
1) Friendlyness of venue and dancers. Dancer's who will dance with anybody regardless of standard.

2) Good music and DJ's with some older stuff in amongst the new stuff.

Hey Jon......Sounds like you'd enjoy Route 66......If you are ever up Edinburgh way give us a try:waycool:

[Chris]

Another thing that makes it a great dance night for me, I think, is when people are interested in chatting about dance when not dancing.

Last Saturday at BAWA was my definitely my most enjoyable dance night this year (so far!). Sure, there was a sprung dance floor, great music, and lovely dancers, but every so often I was too tired to dance a track or accept a dance. Yet the number of conversations I had about dancing, sharing ideas on dancing, etc, was fabulous, and also made me feel that people were interested in me as a person (at least inasmuch as I can dance a bit) rather than them being short of men. Guys stopped to chat too though, which was great. Really nice bunch of people.

A fab night all told - hope to make it for next year's bash!
:cheers:
Chris

ps I know I don't make it in to Edinburgh jive nights that often, but I should say that it was a lovely warm welcome, from staff and dancers, when I did pop in last week (Mon) - left a nice warm smile on my face all the way home.
:nice: Thanks!!