Considered the basis for contemporary dances, the Waltz dates back as far as the late 17th century in Europe. It is a graceful dance, consisting of gliding and turning steps. Early Waltz is a rotary dance consisting of turns (both clockwise and counterclockwise) and change steps.
The Waltz has numerous names ranging from Volta in Italy to Weller in Germany to Landler in Austria. The Landler is most thought to be the forerunner of modern Waltz. The Waltzen became very popular in early 19th century, helped by the music of Josef and Johann Strauss.
The Waltz’s popularity began to decline until around 1913. The arrival of the Hesitation Waltz changed the way the Waltz was danced, slowing it down by incorporating poses and hesitations throughout the dance, rather than the continual, dizzying circles that was characteristic of the Waltz before.
It is not difficult to master the Waltz and it is very graceful and elegant to watch. There is a fast version called the Viennese Waltz and the slower version, called the English Waltz.
Waltz music has a three-quarter tempo and has only 3 steps with a simple 1-2-3 rhythm. First step is forward (backward for the woman), then one to the side and then the third step is to bring your feet together again. It is graceful dance with long sweeping movement, poses and turns.
The Waltz is found in many venues, from classical to Country Western Waltz. Country Western Waltz consists of moves going counter clockwise around the dance floor with a relaxed, and even slouching posture, without the exaggerated hand and arm gestures of some ballroom styles.
The Waltz was banned in California by Mission fathers until after 1834 because of the very close dance position. Thereafter a Spanish Waltz was danced. This Spanish Waltz was a combination of dancing around the room in closed position, and a “formation” dance of two couples facing each other and performing a sequence of steps.
At competition level, there has to be a clear pendulum action, which is somewhat like the movement of a bell clapper. It must also have the right level of up-and-down swing in balance with the required spatial movement. As in all dances, dancing from the supporting foot is essential. The “moment when” to start rising from your supporting foot is crucial in the Waltz. There should be lots of rotation.
The American Smooth style of Waltz is used in some competitions, which allows couples to occasionally break the hold, thereby enabling more open moves and underarm turns. To this day, the Waltz remains a very popular dance world wide.
