There are several forms of swinging in dancing: the Buzz Step Swing, the Waist Swing, the Two Hands Swing, the Elbow Swing, and the Walk Around Swing. All these have their origin in Europe. The two forms of swinging today in Modern Western Square Dancing are the Walk Around and Buzz Step Swing. In the early days of Modern Western Square Dancing (late 40's and 50"s) the Buzz Step Swing was very popular. Couples would often swing several times around before the woman would Twirl out of the Swing. Callers would cue the dancers how many rotations to make. The Buzz Step Swing has become less popular in the United States over the past 40 years. The Walk Around Swing is now the most popular Swing in America. The Buzz Step Swing is still very popular in Europe.

STYLING: (from CALLERLAB) Men -left arm bent at the elbow, palm slightly up, right hand on lady's back slightly above the waist, posture should be erect. Ladies - right hand palm down on man's left hand, left hand on man's right shoulder, arm resting on man's right arm. Footwork: BUZZ STEP -right foot moves in small steps around the pivot point between the two dancers while the left foot pushes, as in a scooter motion. Ending position: Lady rolls off man's right arm blending smoothly to position for the next call or twirls (to a promenade position only -lady's option). To twirl, the man raises his left hand over the lady's head, holding lady's right hand loosely. Her hand revolves around his for stability as she turns clockwise moving down line of dance three steps, into a promenade position, joining inside hands on the 4th step. While the lady turns, the man will move forward down the line of dance to be in position for the promenade.

How to learn the Buzz Step Swing: The only way to learn is to rotate more than once. You can only get the feel of swinging around a pivot point by swinging several times around while making small steps with the right foot while the left foot pushes in a scooter motion. This does not mean you have to go several revolutions every time you Swing, but in order to get the "feel" of the Swing for learning purposes it is necessary.

Tips:

1. To keep from getting dizzy look at the person you are swinging with. If you look at the walls of the room going around you'll get dizzy. By looking at your partner, they appear as a stationary point of reference and you don't sense the room going around.
2. The woman may feel more secure with the Swing by moving your left hand from his shoulder down the man's arm about 6-8 inch from the shoulder so you can have a light grip on the arm. This will give the ladies a sense of security. This is also necessary for women dancing with men who are a lot taller and it is impossible to reach his shoulders. The more "pull back" she applies with her left hand the less pressure there will be on her back from the man's right hand. Also, if the man loses his grip on her back the woman will not "fling" out of control away from him.
3. The most important thing about the Swing is to offer your partner some "counter balance" or "pull back". Without "pull back" it is impossible to swing around a pivot point. The amount of "pull back" differs with dancers. Only a small "pull back" is necessary, but some dancers enjoy a strong "pull back". Men - keep your right hand high up on the ladies back, just under her shoulder blades, let her feel a slight pull inward so she knows you sense her presence. Ladies - lean into the man's right arm hold. Beginning dancers on hearing the advice to "lean back" during a swing often react by bending back at the waist, which is awkward. A better way to counterpoise your swinging partner is by leaning back slightly *from the ankles* (not from the waist) and slightly "sitting" (knees slightly bent, waist bent *slightly forward*) back against your partner's arm. The centrifugal action of the swing can create the sensation of leaning/sitting back against your partner's arm even if your actual posture is pretty much vertical.
4. Practice swinging with lots of people. Everyone does it a little differently and you can learn a lot from the variety.
5. Don't hop, skip, or bounce up and down. A good swing requires very little energy to keep it going, turning as smoothly as a well-oiled machine.
6. The woman is in charge of the styling of the Swing. When a man is Swinging someone he does not know it is important to start out in a very gentle way. Very quickly a man can tell what kind of a Swinger a woman is by the amount of "pull back" the woman gives. If she offers no "pull back" then it can be assumed she does not want to Buzz Step Swing and instead prefers the Walk Around style or no swing at all.

A buzz swing is a lot like a kiss. When done correctly it gives you all sorts of pleasure. A good buzz swing can be done a dozen times around or just twice. When two dancers are doing a proper buzz swing neither will really want to stop.

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