Save the Fast Dance: The Talent
Larissa and Heiko
Larissa and Heiko have been dancing and teaching together for more than a decade. They love to spread the joy of swing dancing in their local dance school Basel Jitterbugs and all around Europe. Both dance various swing dance styles and mix them based on the tempo and energy of the music. In class they share their immense passion for swing dancing to help you grow as a swing dancer and develop your own voice on the dance floor. You might have seen them in the teachers' line up of many festivals like Barcelona Shag Festival or Swing Paradise. They are also the hosts of their own Festival Jitterbugs Delight in Basel.
Amy and Alex
Amy Lu and Alexander Lieu are Swiss-American dancers based out of Geneva, Switzerland where they teach weekly Balboa, Collegiate Shag, and Lindy Hop classes for Geneva Swing. They provide tools and advice to physically and mentally empower individuality within partner dance. Authenticity, personal expression, play and joy are their core values. For them, connection and accessibility for all dancers are essential. They study and consider the origins of the dances to better understand the biomechanics. Combining their values for healthy bodies and pedagogical backgrounds in education, yoga, and somatic movement, Amy and Alex teach fun classes suitable for all to inspire curiosity, exploration, and creativity.
Some of Amy and Alex’s accomplishments include: 1st place Pro-Strictly European Balboa Festival 2019 & 2022, 1st and 3rd PRO Mix & Match European Balboa Festival 2022, 1st and 3rd place Open Mix & Match Snowball 2019, 1st place Mix & Match Jitterbugs Delight 2022, and 1st place Strictly Jitterbugs Delight 2023.
DJ Viv
DJ Viv started as a local DJ to push the Darmstadt Shag scene. A long-time passionate and festival tested shag dancer herself, her heart begins to race in delight when the music quickens. She has been collecting music since COVID lockdown and cannot wait to play some really fast tunes she has been saving for just the right opportunity.
Starting with a little Jive at five, she'll have you scratching circles on the dance floor in your blue suede shoes. Good music, especially the new swing classics, has always got a home in her DJ sets. So come shake, rattle & roll to a mix of styles before flying home.
Jack Childs
Since Jack began his first Lindy Hop lesson in early 2017, swing dancing has become a significant part of his life. Over time, this passion expanded into his professional work in sound, videography, and photography. Jack now also teaches collegiate shag and lindy hop classes locally in Essex, and while he thoroughly enjoys the various forms of swing dance, it’s the people involved that he values the most. Naturally, swing dancing has become his favourite subject to photograph, as he feels privileged to capture the pure joy that fills the room at every event. Jack also loves to social dance and meet new people, so don't hesitate to ask him for a dance between his photography duties at events.
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If you do not want to be photographed, please let Jack know directly, or have a word with one of the safety secretaries at the event.
Tenement Jazz Band
Joining us all the way from Scotland, the Tenement Jazz Band are a traditional jazz band formed in early 2018 in Edinburgh. Brought together by their shared love of New Orleans music. They comprise musicians from various corners of Edinburgh’s vibrant jazz scene, they are on a journey of exploration back to the roots of the music that they play.
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Their aims are to capture the raw energy and excitement of the early jazz recordings, to find and revive lesser-heard songs and cultivate their own interpretations of these, all in order to captivate experienced jazzers, dancing persons, and uninitiated ears alike.
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Most recently playing in Jazz Festivals across, Scotland, France, England and Denmark, they were the winners of Best Band in the Scottish Jazz Awards 2022.
Elise Roth and Her High Standards
Elise Roth & her High Standards are a 6 piece band specialising in swing music from the 20s, 30s, and 40s for dancers and devotees alike! They delight in playing danceable tempos and sharing lesser known tunes for listeners to fall in love with. Elise and her bands have played for regular dances and vintage venues in London such as C Jam, the Mildmay Jazz Club, Paper Moon, the Candlelight Club, and Jamboree, and most recently played two nights at the Brescia Balboa Festival in Lombardy, Italy. See you on the dance floor!
Django's Tiger
A firm cambridge favourite, and following their success of bringing fast music to this festival in 2024, Django's Tiger will return to finish off our festival. ​Django's Tiger play “gypsy swing” in the tradition of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli. This music (also known as “gypsy jazz” or “jazz manouche”) grew out of a fusion of American swing jazz of the 1920s to 40s, French “musette”, and traditional gypsy tunes. It is melodic, and with an infectious sense of fun.
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The band was formed in May 2011 and has been busy ever since. The current lineup is Louis
Thorne on lead guitar, Damian Glasfurd-Brown on rhythm guitar, Joel Humann on double bass,
Pete Newman on clarinet and Tiffany Lovegrove on vocals. Over the years these musicians have,
between them, worked with a wide range of jazz, and jazz-influenced line-ups, performed at
Ronnie Scott's, the 606 and the Jazz Cafe, toured extensively across the UK, Europe and Canada,
performed at festivals such as Glastonbury, The Big Chill and Bestival, and featured on TV and film soundtracks.
