March 8, 2026

Why do musicians count ā€œ1, 2, 3, 4ā€, and dancers count ā€œ5, 6, 7, 8ā€?
Thoughts

Why do musicians count ā€œ1, 2, 3, 4ā€, and dancers count ā€œ5, 6, 7, 8ā€?

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By saying ā€œ5678ā€ I am saying to my dancers ā€œHere are the last 4 beats of the intro or right foot measure and the timing. Get ready to start on 1 with your left footā€. If I am rehearsing a figure and I need my dancers to start on their right foot, I would actually count ā€œ1234ā€ and they would know that the next count is 5. This is done very often when practicing but rarely when performing.

Loving to dance
Thoughts

What do you enjoy about dancing when you dance?

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Dancing is a way to express myself and fully enjoy the music I hear. I prefer partner dancing (since Iā€™m not so skilled in other forms of single dancing such as contemporary, ballet, hip-hop etcā€¦). The better you get though, there is a bit of an ego boost where the attention draw from onlookers is appreciated. You get to show-off a little too!

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