Welcome!
Want to experience Bristol's lively swing dance scene? Then come check out our nights at Bristol's Folk House.
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Whether you're a beginner or you've been dancing for years, everyone has a great time swinging out to some of the city's best live bands.
We run Swing at the Folk House in a venue with a large, air conditioned hall with lots of space and a bar right in the middle of Bristol.
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Keep an eye on our events page to see what gigs we've got coming up at Bristol's Folk House and pop up gigs held elsewhere. Or you can sign up to our mailing list below.
Our aim is to bring joy to the city's swing dance scene! We hope you'll join us.
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Jess & Simon
Jess and Simon with Honeymoon Swing
New to Lindy Hop in Bristol?
We put on events and socials but there's a whole host of places you can learn or take classes and do workshops in Bristol. For most weekly classes you won't need a partner!
Classes and workshops:
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We're also lucky to have a huge range of events on each month. Ain't Mis is a very popular monthly social run by Swing Dance Bristol at the Southbank on Dean Lane.
Bristol Swing Dancers Facebook page is the best place to see what's on and where each week.
What is Lindy Hop and swing dancing?
Lindy Hop is a vernacular dance that emerged from Harlem's Savoy Ballroom in New York in the 1920s. It’s the mother of many other dances that followed and its roots are firmly African-American.
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Lindy Hop was a response to the music by legendary band leaders like Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Buddy Johnson and the many swing orchestras that graced the Savoy’s stage.
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The beat of the music ‘swings’, which is what you’re doing when you’re dancing, and nowadays the genre includes tunes from times gone by and today.
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Other dances that are part of the same family which you’re likely to come across in Bristol and beyond are jazz, balboa, collegiate shag..and lots more!
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There’s a whole host of resources if you’d like to find out about Lindy Hop’s history. An inspiring starting point is learning about the Savoy, without which thousands of people wouldn't be experiencing the sheer joy of Lindy Hop around the world today.
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