Dance Tempos
As a social dance club with dancers of all levels we aim to ensure our music is played at the current BPM (Beats per minute) for each dance. Here is the current information on the speed each dance should be played at:
| Dance | Bars per Minute | Beats per Minute |
|---|---|---|
| Waltz | 28-30 | 84-90 |
| Tango | 32-34 | 128-136 |
| Foxtrot | 28-30 | 112-120 |
| Quickstep | 48-50 | 192-200 |
| Viennese Waltz | 56-60 | 168-180 |
| Cha Cha Cha | 28-30 | 112-120 |
| Samba | 50-52 | 200-208 |
| Rumba | 25-27 | 100-108 |
| Paso Doble | 56-60 | 224-240 |
| Jive | 42-44 | 168-176 |
Some people sometimes like to play a track with a slower temp for some of the faster dances such as Jive and Viennese Waltz to make practising easier. This is fine and these can be announced as a slower version beforehand so that people are aware that this is intentional.
Checking Tempos
Simple tools are available to check the tempo of a track by tapping along. Tap Tempo is a web based version, while phone based options are also available such as Tap That Tempo for iPhone and Tap Tempo for Android. All of these allow the Beats per Minute to be easily checked.
Strict Tempo
To be suitable for dancing a piece of music should have a consistent tempo throughout. One way to ensure this is to stick to pieces in Strict Tempo. These are designed for dancing and ensure this consistency along with other often subtle differences to aid dancing.
Strict Tempo versions of songs can be found at Casa Musica and WRD Music.
Of course we all like to hear and dance to versions of music that we are familiar with and that’s absolutely fine as long as the tempo is consistent. If you have any concerns or questions about the suitability of a particular piece Hilary will be happy to help.
It is worth remembering that while one version of a song might be suitable for dancing, another version of the same song might not. For example here are two versions of a song where one is strict tempo, while the other is not and wouldn’t be suitable for dancing: