Podcasts by From the Top
From the Top is a podcast from IG HOP, a swing dance collective based in Vienna, Austria.
It looks at the big issues in contemporary swing dance culture.
Researched, produced and presented by a dedicated team, it brings you the best expertise and knowledge from around the world.
Feel free to contact us with comments and questions at contact@ighop.at or on Facebook.
Further podcasts by From the Top podcast
Podcast on the topic Darstellende Kunst
All episodes
Swing dance and drugs from 2017-10-19T10:13:10
Drugs don't seem to play a big role in the swing dance community but they are there - though it's mostly just cannabis and other soft drugs. In this episode, we hear from two anonymous dancers that...
Listen
Small and tall from 2017-08-29T15:05:23
A person's height affects all aspects of their life, and it matters when it comes to dancing, too. We hear from both ends of the spectrum.
***
Contributors to this episode:
Swing dance and disability from 2017-06-05T10:28:21
Swing dancing may seem like a carefree world that is "open to all" but even some perfectly fit and healthy people can have a hard time entering it, to say nothing of people with disabilities. In th...
Listen
The economy of swing dance from 2017-04-25T13:55:22
Swing dancing seems far removed from the daily grind of business life but in fact it's just as much about money and value as any other human activity. It's just that its financial system is extreme...
Listen
Peter Loggins: Enough with the shoebox mentality from 2017-02-13T12:01:55
Veteran performer and instructor Peter Loggins has a powerful message for his fellow dancers: go out and do it in public.
Peter is also featured in Episode 12 - Swing dance: art or what?<...
A world without borders from 2017-02-08T16:06:07
We return to the topic of globalisation with an episode that is full of stories of border-crossing. From London to Vienna to Leipzig to Seoul, we hear from those who started dancing in one place bu...
Listen
Anai?s Se?kine?: swinging academic from 2016-12-14T16:10:26
In this fourth of our special series, we talk to Anaïs Sékiné, a dancer and researcher (or, to use her own definition, a dancing researcher) in Montreal who is conducting PhD research in modern swi...
Listen
Swing dance: art or what? from 2016-11-26T11:15:20
Swing dance isn't usually classified as art. This title is normally applied to ballet, tango, folk dance or contemporary dance. But is this fair? And does swing dance need to be on a par with these...
Listen
Dave King: loving irony from 2016-10-18T12:39:33
Drummer and composer Dave King is perhaps best-known as a co-founder and one-third of the U.S. jazz trio The Bad Plus. He has also co-founded a number of other groups, including Happy Apple and Hal...
Listen
Travel and swing dance from 2016-07-07T08:56:22
In this our summer-minded episode, we look at something that binds us all together: travel. Man's deep-rooted desire to travel and explore, coupled with the increasing globalisation of the swing da...
Listen
Alina Sokulska: Rebel Rebel from 2016-05-19T12:16:12
In this second of our special features, we hear from Alina Sokulska about how she sees herself in the world of swing and jazz dance.
Originally from Kiev, Ukraine, Alina is IG HOP's Dance...
Video and swing dance from 2016-05-08T13:01:59
Modern swing dancing has been deeply influenced by the rapid dissemination of video content and the corresponding revolution in video recording technology: videos have become much easier to get and...
Listen
Take Five: the other side of the story from 2016-03-29T16:54:03
Jean-Charles Zambo, a.k.a. Joyss, shot to overnight fame after this video of his Take Five routine at Montreal Swing Riot 2015 went viral.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5iMNzDG_g4
In ...
Beginner dancing from 2016-03-17T12:26:51
We look at the trials and tribulations of being a beginner dancer, with personal stories and anecdotes mixed in with some professional advice as well as insights from Alexei and Marcus.
*...
The limits of swing dance from 2016-01-22T15:58:29
Swing dance can be many things, but where exactly does it begin and end? We ask four swing dancers who push it to the limit.
***
Contributors to this episode:
Ksenia Pa...
Teaching the Lindy Hop from 2015-12-04T13:29:48
In this special episode recorded live at Lindy Shock University 2015, From the Top sits down with eight swing dance instructors to talk shop.
We ask what it's like to start out as a Lindy ...
Fashion and swing dance from 2015-10-29T20:49:28
The Lindy Hop does not necessarily involve dressing up, retro or otherwise - indeed, when a group of Swedish pioneers revived swing dancing in the 1980s, they did it in true 1980s style. Even so, m...
Listen
Gender roles in dance from 2015-07-24T08:01
This episode is all about gender roles in swing dance and society. Does the Lindy Hop accentuate the divide between men and women or mitigate it? And what effect has the feminist project had on swi...
Listen
Health, well-being and social conventions from 2015-05-24T20:18:24
Episode 4 is all about health and well-being for dancers: staying in shape with Jo Hoffberg, alcohol and social conventions with Kevin St. Laurent, plus some disturbing injury statistics from Dance...
Listen
What's it like to be a swing musician today? from 2015-04-16T08:23:39
Episode 3 looks at what it's like to be a swing musician today. How close can you get to the true sound? Do you need to? And it is possible to make original swing music in our technology-savvy age?...
Listen
What is globalisation doing to swing dancing? from 2015-02-26T17:06:24
In this episode, we debate regionalism vs globalisation in swing music and dance: what role do regional or historic styles and traditions play in an increasingly globalised world?
***
What if we travelled back in time to Swing-era New York? from 2015-01-30T18:23:47
In the first episode, we look at the intricacies of time travel: would a present-day Lindy Hop dancer be able to social dance if they travelled back in time to 1930s or 1940s New York?
***...