Berlin in the Mood for Swing Music
German Nightclubs, Ballrooms and Shops Recreate the 1930s
Aug 28, 2008
Germany's capital lures young people, artists and trendsetters with cheap rents, urban flair and a multifaceted lively cultural scene. It is in Berlin where trend scouts detect the first stirrings of new fashions. Here is one of them: Nostalgically many young people are embracing the sounds and looks of the 1930s and 1940s, they listen and dance to swing music again. While the USA already saw a swing-revival – NeoSwing – during the 1990s, it took about a decade to really take off in Germany.
The troubled decades between the wars with economic crises and mass unemployment, political choas followed by the Nazi terror and finally the second world war seem to be no time to long back to – but all these insecurities might offer potential for identification as well. But most importantly these years had something else that catches the imagination in a positive way: Swing music inspires joy of life, and dancing the night away allows to forget the daytime hardships.
Swing-Kids of Today Celebrate Retro-Look
The rebellious Swing-Jugend of the 1940s distanced themselves from the Nazi-regime through music and expressed their sympathy for the American way of life. Condemned as un-german and degenerated, swing and jazz were the sound of a young oppostion. Today the attraction is a different one: Many swing-lovers of today long back today to the elegance of fashion, they enjoy the confident feminity and masculinity of its style; their desire for wild parties meets an appreciation of good manners. Shops like Charming Styles in the trendy quarter of Prenzlauer Berg offer authentic wardrobe, vintage fashion, tailoring and advice for novices and connaisseurs. Call it a rebellion against the uniformity of mainstream nightlife and dresscodes.
Where to Join the Party - Swing Ballrooms and Parties
- Beginners learn to get their steps right in a dance class at Clärchens Ballhaus. Booking required.
- Jeder ist tanzbar offers open classes for those who just need refresh their memories a little bit before entering the dancefloor.
- In summer board the MS Marie to dance the night away under the stars while the boat floats through Berlin. Sailing every friday at 9 pm, no admission fee.
- Open-minded swing-fans might like to mix with Rockabilly kids and other dancers in trendy Kreuzberg at the HoneyBall 2008 on September 6.
- Monthly Hop Swing-event at the bebop-institute in Kreuzberg, which also offers classes and workshops.
- The Admiralspalast already was a popular venue in the 1920s and lured their audience with naughty dancers, latest jazz bands and big swing orchestras. Now home of the Swing Royal-events, which try to relive the old glory every three months, next on October 4, 2008.
All adresses and events plus many more can be found in the swing and dance calendar Triple Step.
Read more about Berlin: A charming and reasonable hotel in the trendy quarter of Kreuzberg: Budget Berlin - Hotel Die Fabrik
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