中国最大摇摆舞社团第一人带你领略“肢体语言中的爵士” | Swing Together

The 1930s marked the start of the "jazz age" in the United States. People felt free to swing their bodies to the upbeat melodies, with the earliest street dances occurring in African American communities. In the 1940s, swing dancing became popular together with the rise of big bands and eventually found a home in Hollywood. 

20世纪30年代，美国迎来爵士时代。伴随着爵士乐轻松旋律，人们率性洒脱地摇摆起来，在黑人社区形成了最初的街头舞蹈。40年代，这种舞蹈和大乐队一起变得流行，甚至占据了好莱坞的银幕。

"Actually, today's street dance evolved from swing dance," says Zeng Weiming, a swing dancer who runs his own studio in Beijing.

“所以我们现在说街舞，其实街舞的祖宗就是摇摆舞。”曾威铭说。他是生活在北京的摇摆舞爱好者，开办了自己的摇摆舞工作室。

Zeng Weiming leads dancers on the floor /by CGTN

Zeng used to play saxophone in a big band. "It was around 2007. I really liked the swing music. The band leader asked me if I wanted to try some ballroom dances," he said.

如同摇摆舞起源于爵士，舞者曾威铭曾经是大乐队的萨克斯手。“那时候大约是2007年，我特别喜欢这种摇摆的音乐。当时那个leader就跟我说，要不要尝试一下跳舞，社交舞。”

Zeng had second thoughts at first. "Ballroom dances emerged decades ago in China, and reached the peak of popularity in the 1990s. My parents used to go out dancing, before wrong things started to happen in the dancing halls. I didn't feel right about ballroom dancing in the first place."

然而，起初曾威铭并不想跳社交舞。“其实在我们国家，社交舞在解放前就有，90年代达到了一个流行的高峰。我记得我爸妈都会去舞厅跳舞什么的。但有一段时间，这个东西就给弄得不是特别健康。所以一说社交舞，就有那么一种不好的感觉。”

Zeng's stereotypes broke down when he began learning to swing dance. "There are no fixed routines or partners. You just swing your body to the music, expressing yourself without saying a word."

但接触了摇摆舞之后，曾威铭对社交舞的印象被颠覆了。这种舞蹈没有固定动作，也没有固定舞伴，只是即兴地随着音乐摆动身体，是一种不使用语言的自我表达。

"When the music is on, you move your body with the rhythm. You raise your arm, turn around, or your partner leads you. It's a communication between you two," he said.

“跳摇摆舞的人就是和音乐在一起，练习一种律动。抬手就是一个转圈，或者由舞伴带领转一个方向。在这个过程当中，就是两个人的一种对话。”

Unlike other ballroom dances, people often switch partners in a group swing dance. Participants often dance with strangers and get acquainted with each other by moving together to the music.

而且，和其它交际舞不太一样，一群人一起跳摇摆舞，会频繁地交换舞伴。因此，人们往往和陌生人一起跳舞，然后迅速变得熟络，分享快乐。

At first, most swing dancers in China were foreigners. Zeng joined them and practiced in a bar on Mondays after hours.

刚开始，在中国，跳摇摆舞的都是外国人。曾威铭加入了他们，在周一休息的酒吧里练习跳舞。

"There were fewer dancers, even less were local. I was 22, and people treated me like their little brother," Zeng said. Having practiced for less than two years, Zeng already won two domestic championships in both improvised dancing and performance. Then he began to teach.

“那个时候人特别少，像我这样的本土的更少。而且我那时候比较小，22岁，所以大家都特别照顾我。”学了一年多，他就在国内比赛获得了即兴和表演两项冠军，并且开始带学生。

In 2009, Zeng went abroad to dance for the first time. "I was quite poor. The dancers pooled the money for me. Some bought me the plane ticket, others paid the entrance fee for dancing parties. I got all the support to go to Korea," said Zeng. "Seeing so many swing dancers there, I wished there were as many in China." He started to think about promoting it in his homeland.

2009年，他第一次出国跳舞。 “当时也没有钱，是大家帮着我出国的。有的舞者说我给你出个飞机票，有的说我给你出派对钱，有的又说给我出个什么……所以后来我就去了韩国。” 曾威铭说，“在那里，感觉怎么有这么多人喜欢摇摆舞，什么时候我们也有这么多人。”慢慢地，他开始萌生了在国内推广这一舞蹈的想法。

The dancers pooled their resources again in 2012 to send him to study in Europe for a month. A couple of years later, he opened his studio and set about organizing the annual Swingtime Ball. 

2012年，再次由舞者“众筹”，曾威铭去欧洲学习了一个月。几年后，他成立了自己的工作室，并开始接手组织一年一度的摇摆盛典。

China embraced the Swingtime Ball back in 2003. It used to be a small event with fewer than 100 participants. In 2018, it became a grand festival with over 500 guest dancers. Everyone performed and competed on and off stage. During the organization of the event, Zeng felt that he became a sort of parent, assuming responsibility for the dancers.

摇摆盛典在2003年就来到中国，但一直以来都是7、80人参加的小型活动。2018年，它才成为真正的有500人参加的盛会。台上台下，都有人在表演、比赛，所有人聚在一起，度过欢乐的时光。在组织的过程中，曾威铭觉得自己逐渐开始扮演家长的角色，更多地考虑每个人需要什么，他要担负起怎样的责任。

"I've been very lucky," said Zeng. "I didn't have really hard setbacks. I got help from people all the time. The first event was a bit difficult, but things are getting better now. While preparing for the ball, many people are willing to devote to it. Our tuner said he regained confidence through swing dance, and he'd like to be a giver. Our whole team sticks together and works hard for a common objective."

“我真的非常幸运，从开始到现在都没有遇到特别大的坎。而且在不同时期都有人帮助我。所以第一年坚持过来以后，后面就越来越好。而且办舞会的时候，很多人都愿意为这个东西付出，就像我们那个调音师，他说摇摆舞给了他很多东西，比如自信什么的，所以他一定要去付出。我们整个团队都是这样为了共同的目标努力。”

Most of the participants are younger white collar workers in office buildings. After work, however, they throw themselves willingly onto the dance floor.

来参加摇摆盛典的大都是年轻人。白天，他们是写字楼里中规中矩的上班族；晚上和周末，他们成为舞池中的狂热分子。

"I think young people really need a touch of the swing dance culture, because it helps you communicate and express your emotions," Zeng said. "They'd rather talk to the computers than to humans, except when they have to talk to their bosses and colleagues. Then they get home and talk to their TV and cellphones. There were really few emotional communications among people."

“我觉得，现在的年轻人特别需要这种摇摆舞的文化。因为它是人与人之间情感上的交流和表达。”曾威铭对此体会很深，“我们现在工作都是面对电脑的，很少去面对人。面对的人可能也就是上级和同事，回家就是看电视和手机，所以很缺少人与人之间情感上的交流。”

Swing dancing offers a means of communication. Zeng hopes that more young people will join them in China, and enjoy the excitement stirred up by the lively rhythms.

而摇摆舞带给他们的，正是这种交流。他希望，更多中国的年轻人可以加入这个群体，分享轻松节奏带来的纯粹快乐。

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