How to Count Jazz Dance: Eights, the & and the Swing Feel

How do you count jazz dance?

Count jazz in eights, after a 5, 6, 7, 8 lead-in: 5 6 7 8 | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8. When the steps get quick, say the & between the numbers: 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5 & 6 & 7 & 8 &. If the music swings, say each & a little late, so the pair sounds long-short instead of even.

That's the whole method. The rest of this guide takes it one part at a time. Jazz dance is a broad label: Wikipedia notes that it can mean vernacular jazz, Broadway or dramatic jazz, and that commercial jazz often blends with hip hop and is danced to pop music. The counting below works for all of them. Only the feel changes.

Step by step: the eight

Start with the plain eight. If you want the background first, here is what an 8-count is.

1. Say the lead-in. "5, 6, 7, 8" is your breath before the first move. Why the lead-in is 5, 6, 7, 8 is its own short read.
2. Land the 1. Your first step or hit goes on the 1, and it is the strongest count of the eight.
3. Hear two groups of four. Count 1 2 3 4, then 5 6 7 8. The 5 is a smaller landmark, the start of the second group.
4. Count the next eight. Eight 2 starts on a new 1. Keep a running tally of eights ("eight 3 of 8") so you know where you are in the phrase.

Count Studio's 8-count with & in the library is built on exactly this shape:

Where does the & go?

The & is the half-beat between two numbers. When you count a rhythm in eighth notes, you say 1-and-2-and-3-and-4-and: the numbers are on the beat, and the & is the off-beat. Stressing the & instead of the number is what musicians call syncopation.

For dancers that means two things:

• Quick footwork gets the &. A step on 1, a step on &, and a step on 2 takes one beat and a half. Without the & you cannot say where the middle step lands.
• Hits can sit on the &. An accent that lands between two numbers is an off-beat hit. Count it as "3 &" and hold the weight until the & arrives, rather than rushing into 4.

Try it with a clap before your feet get involved. Clap the numbers only, then the &s only. The second feels odd for a minute. Then it feels like jazz.

Straight or swung?

Say 1 & 2 & evenly and you are counting a straight feel. Plenty of jazz class music is straight, especially commercial jazz to pop tracks. Swing is different. Swing time describes it as a ratio: in jazz it typically lies between 1:1, which is even, and 3:1, which is hard swing. The textbook version is 2:1, the triplet feel, where the number is twice as long as the &.

Two details from the same source help you in the studio. First, the first note of each pair is often understood to be twice as long as the second, but in practice the ratio is less definitive and often much more subtle. Second, swing ratios tend to be wider at slower tempos and narrower at faster ones. So do not force an exact "long-short" on every song. Listen, then place the & where the music puts it.

The numbers stay put in both. Only the & moves. For tempos across styles, see the dance tempo chart.

Find the 1 in the music

You can count perfectly and still be off if you started on the wrong beat. Listen for the strongest downbeat, usually where the bass or the kick drum lands after a pause or a change. Count the lead-in backwards from it: the 8 sits just before the 1, the 7 before that, and so on.

If your teacher says "from the top", the 5, 6, 7, 8 should end right as the phrase begins. If it does not, you are a beat early or late, and the fix is to shift the whole count, not to speed up your feet.

Common problems

• Rushing the &. The & lands halfway, not early. Slow your voice down and let the next number arrive on its own.
• Counting swung music too evenly. If the track swings and your & is dead centre, the step will look stiff against it. Say the & a little late.
• Losing the 1 after eight 2. Keep a second count running in your head: the number of the eight. It is the easiest way to stay with a long combination.
• Mixing numbers and &s. Pick one counting speed per phrase: the & in the quick parts, plain numbers in the slow ones.

More counting help for the style is in our jazz articles.

Practise it with Count Studio

Drill it in three passes. First, say 5 6 7 8 and then 1 & 2 & through to 8 & with the music on, clapping the numbers. Second, clap only the &s. Third, add your feet, and mark one step per number, then one per &.

Count Studio counts it the same way. Its 8-count with & puts the 5, 6, 7, 8 lead-in and the 1 & 2 & tape on the screen, so you can follow the eight and see where each & falls. Count Studio is coming November 27 to iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.

Bottom line

Jazz is counted in eights, with the & as the half-beat between numbers. Learn the plain eight first, add the & for quick steps, then listen for whether the music is straight or swung and place the & to match.