appeldance (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} appeldance) wrote,@ 2006-07-25 13:42:00 |
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Appel Country Party - Saturday, July 22
There are many things that define Houston, TX as a city. But, one of the most enjoyable differences that sets us apart from other major cities is country and western dancing. It started here in Houston and it is still very much alive and well. I had a country party this last Saturday evening and for a debut of the country format I had a fabulous turn out. There was a little less than 100 people at the party and everyone had a good time!
Leading up to the party I worked on the music or six or eight weeks. I wanted to have the best mix of dance music to play which included both old favorites and new and popular songs. The tempo of the music was also very important. Not everyone likes to dance to the fast 2-steps. So, it was critical to have good feel good 2-steps at a moderate tempo. I only played faster polkas and East Coast Swing once or twice. Most people danced polkas to the song that were more in the Triple Two-Step range. I played one or two Cha Cha's and more of the Nite Club Two and Waltz. The bulk of the music that I concentrated on was 2-Step's and West Coast Swing. I played a Country Night Club format...country music except for the West Swing's were my normal swing mix of R&B, Hip Hop and Jazz, etc. The music mix turned out really good and all of the dancers had a good variety of music types and tempos to choose from. All in all, it was a huge success!
There are a few things that I wished come have been a little different. For one, the air conditioning at the studio was not working well. Unfortunately, there were two out of the four units that were not working. So, it was really warm...HOT! This is not usually the norm for the studio and was really out of my hands. But, nonetheless I felt bad for the dancer's. Also, I will plan to start the party earlier next time, probably around 7:00p and ending at 11:00 or so. The Houston C&W dance crowd are used to going out early and then leaving as the clubs get crowded and by 10:00p people started funneling out the door. Each stopping by to say how much they enjoyed the party and that they would be looking forward to the next party. So, next time I will definitely start earlier in the evening. I will plan on having workshops next time as well. I think that having workshops before the party helps to kick the party off and gives an good overall experience for the whole event. I was trying to get one of the C&W competitors to do an exhibition, but this didn't work out this time either. I will start a little earlier next time and make sure there is some entertainment in the form of exhibitions.
But. when all is said and done I had a really good turn out for a first time party...100 dancers!
The next country party should be sometime next year after worlds. It will be a good time for dancers to come out and enjoy dancing without having to worry about the competitive edge.
There are many things that define Houston, TX as a city. But, one of the most enjoyable differences that sets us apart from other major cities is country and western dancing. It started here in Houston and it is still very much alive and well. I had a country party this last Saturday evening and for a debut of the country format I had a fabulous turn out. There was a little less than 100 people at the party and everyone had a good time!
Leading up to the party I worked on the music or six or eight weeks. I wanted to have the best mix of dance music to play which included both old favorites and new and popular songs. The tempo of the music was also very important. Not everyone likes to dance to the fast 2-steps. So, it was critical to have good feel good 2-steps at a moderate tempo. I only played faster polkas and East Coast Swing once or twice. Most people danced polkas to the song that were more in the Triple Two-Step range. I played one or two Cha Cha's and more of the Nite Club Two and Waltz. The bulk of the music that I concentrated on was 2-Step's and West Coast Swing. I played a Country Night Club format...country music except for the West Swing's were my normal swing mix of R&B, Hip Hop and Jazz, etc. The music mix turned out really good and all of the dancers had a good variety of music types and tempos to choose from. All in all, it was a huge success!
There are a few things that I wished come have been a little different. For one, the air conditioning at the studio was not working well. Unfortunately, there were two out of the four units that were not working. So, it was really warm...HOT! This is not usually the norm for the studio and was really out of my hands. But, nonetheless I felt bad for the dancer's. Also, I will plan to start the party earlier next time, probably around 7:00p and ending at 11:00 or so. The Houston C&W dance crowd are used to going out early and then leaving as the clubs get crowded and by 10:00p people started funneling out the door. Each stopping by to say how much they enjoyed the party and that they would be looking forward to the next party. So, next time I will definitely start earlier in the evening. I will plan on having workshops next time as well. I think that having workshops before the party helps to kick the party off and gives an good overall experience for the whole event. I was trying to get one of the C&W competitors to do an exhibition, but this didn't work out this time either. I will start a little earlier next time and make sure there is some entertainment in the form of exhibitions.
But. when all is said and done I had a really good turn out for a first time party...100 dancers!
The next country party should be sometime next year after worlds. It will be a good time for dancers to come out and enjoy dancing without having to worry about the competitive edge.
