Balboa Workshop
24-26th of May, 2019
Gothenburg, Sweden
Intro Teachers Music Classes Schedule Food & Drinks Registration Location FAQ

Introduction

Minor Swing is back for its 8th year running. This year we will do all the things we've always loved to do, the things we’ve always wanted to do, and then some... and we invite you all to join us! Please follow us here and on our Facebook event to get all the latest updates.

Wanna reminisce about Minor Swing 2018? Visit the 2018 site here.

Updates

Contact us

You can reach us at minorswing@wcj.se.

The Teachers

Coming from way out west, and way out east, this group of teachers promise to leave you physically and mentally excited and exhausted, both in the best way imaginable. They will accomplish this in their own unique ways, but all of them by sharing their love of Balboa!

Watch on YouTube
Jenn & Mickey

Jenn Lee has Seattle, Washington as her home dance scene, but you can find her traveling all over the world for Balboa events. Jenn is a woman of many talents. She is an Ophthalmologist by trade, is a talented musician, holds a black belt in Shotokan karate, among many other things. In the Balboa scene she holds 1st place titles from all the top competitions, as well as being an avid social dancer.

Mickey began swing dancing in Los Angeles in '99. A year later he was teaching local swing classes at NYU. Mickey has a strong sence of showmanship and innovation, and a strong love of dance history. This has led him to be one of the world's most popular teacher and competitor, in both Lindy Hop and in Balboa.

Jenn and Mickey are teachers we have wanted to bring to Gothenburg for a long time. We managed to get Jenn here last year, and this year we finally managed to get the timing right for her to be joined by Mickey. We can't wait to see what they will share with us!

Watch on YouTube
Masha & Albert

Masha considers it her mission to get people to fall in love with the dance in general - as in living the music through the body. Bal happens to be her favorite way of doing that. While teaching, she practices an individual approach to each student, strives to pay attention to details and exercise precision in technique, and most of all - to inspire musicality, creativity and personal style in her students. Masha describes herself as a multi-style dancer, a Show-off, and a social floor animal. :)

Albert has been dancing Balboa since 2005 and he teaches internationally since 2011. His passion for this dance has made him one of the driving forces behind the creation and growth of a community of Balboa dancers in Barcelona, which is increasing day by day. He has developed his own style with a particular way of combining Pure Bal and Bal Swing that makes his dancing very musical.

Masha and Albert are coming to Gothenburg for the first time. We hope to find yet another favourite teacher couple, as we have done every time we brought new teachers to Minor Swing!

Watch on YouTube
Olga & Andreas

Olga Marina is from Moscow and was born into a family of teachers (language and music) and since early years has been an energetic live wire – studying music, doing athletics, martial arts and gymnastics. Olga has been teaching and competing all over Europe and is regarded as one of the best balboa followers in Europe.

Andreas lives in Stockholm. He has been teaching, competing and performing Balboa, Lindy Hop, Charleston, Collegiate and St. Louis Shag internationally for more than a decade. Andreas is regarded as one of the top Balboa teachers and dancers of the world.

As instructors, Andreas and Olga emphasize partnership, musicality and follow-leading abilities. They have an easy-going, relaxed way of teaching. They are known for giving well-structured classes and they always try to give their students lots of individual feedback. Their ambition is to create playful classes filled with interesting footwork, figures, fun tasks and laughter.

We welcome these two amazing almost-local but world-famous teachers to Gothenburg!

The Music

Thursday night Pre-party - Speakeasy Club at 2lång

The fantastic local band Gentlemen & Gangsters arranges a monthly Speakeasy Club downtown. One is scheduled for the 23rd of May, the day before the start of Minor Swing. Live music, bar, food and a great atmosphere guaranteed! You can find more information in their facebook event.

Please note that this is a separate event and the entrance fee is not included in the Minor Swing workshop price. You can pay the entrance fee of 150 SEK at the door, or if you want to be completely sure to get in even if it gets full, you can prebook your tickets here.

Friday night - Professor Cunningham and his Old School

Professor Cunningham and His Old School is one of the most sought after bands on the international swing scene, performing around the world at major events and festivals. This award-winning New York based band performs the most swinging and grooving repetoire deeply steeped in the New Orleans tradition. And they LOVE playing for Balboa dancers! <3

We’ve had our eyes on this band ever since that one amazing night of Balboa dancing... it was at "The Snowball" back in 2015 and they just knocked our socks off with their energy and skill! This year we finally get the pleasure of their company. As you can imagine, our epectations are high, but we have no doublt they will fulfill and exceed both yours and our expectations.

Saturday night - Gentlemen and Gangsters

Oh the joy, G&G will enter the main stage of Minor Swing again! We will get the pleasure of their company not once, not twice, but three times this weekend! Starting with the pre-party at their own Speakeasy club at 2Lång on Thursday, continuing as the main act on Saturday night, and rounding if off on Sunday at the Jam Sessison. What a pleasure!

Gentlemen & Gangsters play hot jazz with all the flair and sophistication of true gentlemen, coupled with the ruthless brutality of hardened gangsters. Like a devious conspiracy from a bygone era, this shady syndicate of jazz kingpins plot for world domination from their secret location in a run down part of Gothenburg. Armed with drumsticks instead of knuckle dusters and trombones instead of tommy guns these deranged masterminds spread mayhem, joy, and decadence wherever they go!

Sunday evening - Jam session

Are you one of those awesome multi-talented people who cannot only dance to the music, but also play it yourself?! :) Want to share your passion with your fellow dancers? Well here is your chance!

Introducing Minor Swing Jam Session!

We invite you to bring your instrument along and come have a jam. There will be a space prepared for you during the Sunday tea dance. There will be a piano, a drum set and a double bass available, so anyone with those skills can also look forward to joining in!

We hope that many of you will feel inspired to join in the jam, and just as last year, we hope it will be an un-pretentious and open space for all to feel welcome to!

If you do not want to join in the jam yourself you will of course be welcome to listen or have a dance to whatever music is created :) The jam will be in the small hall, in parallel with the dancing to DJ music in the big hall.

The DJs

DJ Janne

Janne is our DJ coordinator, and he has gathered a solid team of DJs for your enjoyment this weekend.

Building an atmosphere, giving content to the dance floor and at the same time keep it swinging, that’s what Janne aims for. Janne has refined this skill at many of the well known camps and dance floors in Europe and in Canada, as well as in his hometown: Gothenburg, Sweden.

DJ Heidi

A long time friend of Minor Swing is Heidi, who has granted us the pleasure of DJing for us this year.

Heidi is here for all your swingin’ pleasure, to make you sweat, put that happy grin on your face and not allowing your feet a rest. If you heard Heidi's tunes at her stompin ground in Rotterdam or elsewhere you know she's having all the fun in DJing for any kind of swing dancer. Her music tastes are pretty broad (try her!), but she'll tell you this; the 1930s were really exciting!

DJ Oskar

As the founder of Minor Swing, we are so pleased that Oskar will be able to join the workshop this year as a participant, and that he will DJ for us aswell!

Someone once said that Oskar gives other djs swing-anxiety because his choices blend so well with the mood of the room. With a love for playful melodies and driving energies he aims to create an atmosphere that leave the dancers breathless, happy and wanting more. "If they are not smiling, I am not doing my job", is his motto and it reflects in his choice in music. A veteran on the swingdance scene, both on and off the dancefloor, he will be sure to give it his best to keep you all entertained throughout the evenings.

DJ Gašper

You really don't have to look far in Gothenburg to find a whole bunch of the best DJs in Europe... and what would we do without Gašper as a DJ at Minor Swing, the king of Late nights!? ;)

Gašper is a dance instructor, a record collector and researcher, a blogger of "Balboa Special", an innovator of musicality device named Musicalidy 4.0, and a Disk Jockey! It has now been more than twelve years of his engagement as an international DJ, but nothing can give him more kicks than spinning records for the dancers. What he enjoys the most as a DJ is to create an atmosphere where dancers can really reveal their full potential.

Classes

We will offer classes on four levels. There will be three levels to sign up for, the fourth and highest level will be picked at the audition on Saturday morning.

Class Level Descriptions

Guldheden

(At the top of the hill)

You like to geek and tweak on those basics and moves, and challenge yourself and your way of dancing balboa. You are relaxed and comfortable in your dancing and that’s what makes you look so darn elegant. You can adapt your style to the different partners you meet and you like to inspire and be inspired by your dance partners. Tempo is not a problem, you embrace it! Taking classes is not so much about the moves anymore, it’s about musicality and inspiration.

Linné

(There is some really cool stuff going on)

You like learning new moves and adapting them to your own style. You know a wide variety of moves and the faster it gets, the more fun you have. You are working on making the dance your own and being able to be comfortable and elegant at the higher tempos or with a partner that is new to you.

Majorna

(A hidden treasure just waiting to be discovered)

You want to learn more moves and variations. Dancing and mixing up fundamentals is fun and effortless at lower tempos. At the higher tempos you feel safer sticking to your basics but of course you risk it and throw in the cooler moves every now and again – and hey there’s no wrong there’s only variations, right? You know Balboa is the thing, and you are ready to continue your learning experience.

Schedule

The weekend will start with a social dance on Friday at 20:00, and end with a tea dance on Sunday.

If you arrive early and need a place to leave your bags or hang out before 20:00 on Friday night, you are of course welcome to show up earlier, the doors will be open! (We might ask you join in the preparations though… :))

Below is the schedule for the weekend.

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Food and Drinks

The Cafe

There will be light food, sweets, tea and coffee available during the whole weekend. Vegetarian, vegan, lactose and gluten free options will be available. Please bring cash, and as even money as possible, as we will have limited possibilities to offer change. The price will be 40/60 SEK for a Small/Large meal.

The BYO bar

Because of our strict laws of selling alcohol in Sweden, we can not sell any alcohol at our event. But we want to offer you a bar anyway! So here comes the concept of our Bring-Your-Own bar.

We will offer a menu of vintage drinks, where we will make sure to provide everything needed for the drink except the alcohol. So you bring a bottle to place in the bar and then you get drinks.

This year we have the pleasure of being joined by a bunch of especially familiar faces... Sanna, Adam and Jo will be hosting the bar, and Mel will be our MC for the weekend!

The drinks that will be on offer are:

The alcohol that goes with these are:

The rest plus recipes we will provide!

If you prefer wine, beer, or any beverage of your choice, it is of course up to you to share it in the bar or not!

We know from previous years that if everyone who wants one or a few drinks in the bar brings a whole bottle we will have waaay too much left over, so bringing a smaller amount or bringing a bottle together with a few friends is often a good idea!

We encourage all Minor Swing participants to drink responsibly! :)

How To Register

Registration is open.

You can sign up for three levels of full workshop passes. The highest level (Track "Guldheden") will then be split into two groups (Track "Guldheden" and Track "Guldhedstornet") in an audition at the start of the workshop, to create the fourth level.

There is also be party passes available for those who only want to attend the evenings.

Minor Swing T-shirt

Specially designed for Minor Swing participants, we hope you will enjoy this off-white garment made from organic cotton.

In your registration you will be able to include an order for your very own Minor Swing t-shirt. You can choose from a "Men's style" or a "Ladies style" t-shirt. Sizes range from XS to XL. The price is 179 SEK.

Registration lottery

In previous years we have experienced a big pressure on registration in the first minutes and hours of registration opening. Especially for followers. We are of course very happy to see such a big interest!

We would however like to take away some of the pressure of signing up in the first minutes to avoid ending up on the waiting list. We don’t want your registration to be dependent on the speed of your internet connection, or a crying baby, or whether you needed to visit the bathroom exactly at 6pm on the 1st of February! ;)

We also want to you to be able to take your time filling in the registration, to think about if you want to sign up for some volunteering (yes! ;)), think about if you want to include some merchandise in your registration, etc, without the stress of this affecting your chance of getting accepted or not!

This is why we will make a “Registration lottery” for everyone signing up during the first weekend, from 6pm Friday the 1st of February until 6pm Sunday the 3rd of February. Everyone who signs up during this time will have an equal chance of being accepted to the workshop. Those who we cannot accept immediately (because of a lack of leads for example) will be assigned a random number in the waiting list.

Anyone signing up after 6pm on Sunday will be accepted/placed on the waiting list in the regular manner. The lottery will be made for full-workshop registration, not for party pass registration that opens two weeks later.

Location

All activities will take place at Forum, the venue of West Coast Jitterbugs:

West Coast Jitterbugs, Dr. Fries Torg 7, 413 23 Göteborg, Sweden

Public transportation

Forum is located by tram stop Doktor Fries Torg where tram number 10 stops. More trams and buses stop at Wavrinskys Plats (ca 10 min walk from the venue). Bus 52 stops at Doktor Westrings Gata (ca 10 min walk from the venue).

Bus and tram drivers don‘t sell tickets! Please check www.vasttrafik.se or the app “Västtrafik Reseplanerare” for more info.

Places to buy tickets:

FAQ

Q: Are there any classes on Friday?
A: No. Classes are only on Saturday and Sunday.

Q: What time does the party end on Sunday?
A: It depends on how many are still on the dancefloor... ;) In previous years we've ended around 10pm.

Q: I’m on the waiting list, what are the chances that I will get a spot?
A: It’s almost always difficult for us to say. It depends on many different factors and varies from case to case. On the one hand we can never give any promises, on the other hand anything can happen with late signups and cancellations... We ask you to be patient, but you can always contact us if you need to, and you will get our best guess.

Q: I don´t want to use Transferwise, can I pay in another way?
A: Our system only works with Transferwise so please try again. You can also ask a Swedish friend to pay via Swedish Bankgiro.

Q: I registered together with a partner. Now it happened that my partner won´t be able to make it. Will I also loose my spot?
A: Yes, couples registration is couples registration. It means that if your partner unregisters, you will also loose your spot. You will be placed on the waiting list (according to the time that you registered compared to the other people on the waiting list).

We have chosen to be a bit strict regarding couples registration. Our belief is that it should be used primarily for people who do not want to attend the workshop if the other person does not attend. In the long run, this will increase the chances for single leads and single follows to be accepted on their own.

Q: I won’t be able to make it to Minor Swing. How do I cancel and do I get a refund?
A: There is no refund when cancelling your registration after due date of payment. The only exception is in case of illness, in which case we require a doctor’s note.

To unregister to the event before the due date of payment, please do so by replying to your acceptance letter as soon as possible. Neglecting to pay the fee does not count as an unregistration, and we will still be expecting your payment. If full payment is not received before the due date of payment, the organizer may cancel your registration.

Q: Will there be a registration lottery also for the Party Pass registration?
A: No, Party Pass registration is first-come-first-serve.

Q: I'm on the waiting list for the full workshop, and would like to get a Party Pass if I am not accepted to classes. What do I need to do?
A: You need to make an additional registration for a Party Pass!
If you are accepted to classes after you have been accepted to the Party Pass, your Party Pass registration will be cancelled. If you change your mind and only want to attend Party Pass even if you are accepted to classes, please let us know.

Q: I could not find the answer to my question here, how can I contact you?
A: You can always email us at minorswing@wcj.se!