20: More About Sequence Music
Believe it or not, this can be a very thorny subject with some people, while others remain completely oblivious. A sequence waltz (for example) is a waltz, right? So any waltz music will do, right? No, definitely wrong!
The vast majority of sequence dances have a script that is 16 bars in length – for waltz, that means 1-2-3, 16 times over – which then repeats until the music ends. A few dances are 32 bars (eg Viennese Swing) or other lengths, but these are very rare.
Suitable music for sequence dancing has 16-bar phrasing – that means it has a regularity which fits the 16-bar script that is being danced to it. However, within the overall 16-bar phrase, there are likely to be 4-bar sub-phrases, and quite often the script is also in 4-bar movements, so it all fits.
Does this matter? You should have already worked out... it does! Dancing is about the enjoyment of movement to music, and that includes sequence dancing no less. Dancing sequence to music that does not have the compatible phrasing is like trying to dance waltz when a foxtrot is playing – it grates. Those who move flowingly to the music and are not just putting one foot in front of the other by rote, get completely put off if the music starts a new phrase at the wrong point – they subconsciously want to restart the script instead of completing it.
Ideally, sequence music has a 4-bar intro, 16-bar phrasing, and finishes exactly at the end of a phrase. Typically it will be 5 or 6 repeats in length, so that’s 84 or 100 bars in total. The intro is important, it makes everyone aware of the tempo and cues them to start at the beginning of the first 16-bar phrase. The intro needs to sound like an intro, with a recognisable lead into the main tune.
The main sin is when the music is not 16-bar phrasing at all. Lots of dance music is, but quite a lot is not and a DJ can’t assume that it is without checking. Some music is mostly 16-bar phrasing but with a 4- or 2-bar break somewhere in the middle – that makes it “not in sequence”. Line dancers specifically accommodate this by scripting to a specific track and including breaks in the script.
The intro is a lesser sin. 4 bars are the ideal, but it doesn’t have to be 4 bars, so long as it is recognisable and isn’t too long, and the DJ might count it in if necessary. What doesn’t work is an intro of less than 2 bars. When the intro is short, the DJ might be tempted to count in at the next minor phrase point in the music (the 8-bar or 4-bar subdivision) instead of hitting the start or waiting until the next 16-bar phrase, but this just puts the dancers out of sequence even when the music isn’t.
Finally in the sin list, but by no means least, is when the music ends. It really isn’t very nice for the music to end somewhere in the middle of the script (ie without completing a 16-bar phrase) – to a dancer, it is unfinished. Serious sequence dancers really gripe about this. A short coda (AKA “out-tro”) is acceptable, so long as it is audibly recognisable as the coda (skilled dancers might improvise a final flourish).
One reason these “rules” get broken is that music recorded specifically for sequence dancing is typically by the well-known organists, and quite often (with a few notable exceptions, eg David Read’s ‘I Dreamed A Dream’) rather dull or twee to the ballroom dancer’s ear. Hunting for other material with a more inspiring essence is not easy, and sometimes insufficient care is taken to ensure its suitability.
Some DJs are either not aware of the criteria for suitability, have a “tin ear” and simply can’t tell, or, I regret, just don’t care. If you are aware of the “correctness” of dancing Latin on the 2 beat, then you should also understand the appropriate phrasing in sequence. Yes, some of the dancers might not know the difference, but the real dancers will, and to them, it matters... not as a snooty niggle, but because it affects their dancing!
Similarly unfortunate, is when the DJ puts on music recorded specifically for sequence dancing... but not for sequence! That, I grant, is a matter of personal taste, but if you are going to play sequence music, wouldn’t you reserve it for a sequence dance?
The KCT music library includes tracks I have personally edited to make them suitable for sequence, and just a few tracks that are not properly in sequence but so enjoyable (in my opinion) they can be forgiven. Be guided by the rules, but break them with artistic licence when justified.