<p>Musicality is such a broad topic, but if there is one thing you NEED to know in order to dance west coast swing, it is the concept of downbeat and upbeat and how we dance through them.<br></p>

<p>Let's do this drill together!</p>

<p>Ouf... this is an interesting one for a lot of people.&nbsp; When we start west coast swing, we often learn the counts of the patterns, so count to 6 for a sugar push and start back on 1.&nbsp; But most of the music we dance to is built in 8 counts, that's why it is a good idea to start counting your patterns to the music so you can access a new layer of musicality.<br></p>

<p>Let's do this drill together!</p>

<p>Song mapping is an important tool to have in your dancing bag if you eventually want to do choreography, but also to help you explore musicality in a new and deeper way.&nbsp; <br></p>

<p>The ability to do a song map is so important for creating routines, but also just to help develop your ears to new sounds and see what you want to play with inside of your dancing.&nbsp; Make sure you've watched the Mapping for phrasing video before you attempt this one.<br></p>