Learning Resources
A curated collection of books, movies, and videos that inspire our dance and life.
12-Bar Talk: A Blues Podcast
A podcast dedicated to exploring the history, culture, and music of the blues through deep conversations and expert insights.
African Dance: An Artistic, Historical and Philosophical Inquiry
By Kariamu Welsh-Asante
A deep dive into the roots and meaning of dance across the African continent.
All Music: Blues Genre
A comprehensive database and guide to the blues genre, featuring styles, artists, and key albums.
All Music Guide to the Blues
By Vladimir Bogdanov (Editor)
The definitive guide to the world of blues music, recordings, and artists.
All Music Guide to Jazz
By Vladimir Bogdanov (Editor)
The definitive guide to the greatest jazz recordings and performers.
2025 Beijing Blues Bash -- Idiom Dance Lecture by Damon Stone
A recap of Damon Stone's lecture on Idiom Dance during the 2025 Beijing Blues Bash, exploring the essence of blues movement.
The Big Book of Blues
By Robert Santelli
A biographical encyclopedia covering the most important figures in the history of the blues.
Black Atlantic Rhythm Map
An interactive map by Unity Atlantic exploring the rhythms and musical connections across the Black Atlantic.
Black Dance in America: A History Through its People
By James Haskins
A compelling narrative of the figures who shaped the history of Black dance.
Black Dance: From 1619 to Today
By Lynne Fauley Emery
A comprehensive historical overview of the development of Black dance in America.
The Black Dancing Body
By Brenda Dixon Gottschild
A Geography from Coon to Cool. Examining the history and cultural significance of the Black dancing body.
Blues Brothers 2000
Elwood Blues must reunite the band to do one more mission from God, leading to another rhythm and blues extravaganza.
The Blues Brothers
Jake Blues, just out from prison, puts together his old band to save the Catholic orphanage where he and brother Elwood were raised.
Blues People: Negro Music in White America
By Leroi Jones (Amiri Baraka)
A profound exploration of how Black music reflects the Black experience in America.
Blues Legacies and Black Feminism
By Angela Y. Davis
Gertrude \"Ma\" Rainey, Bessie Smith, and Billie Holiday. A classic work of scholarship on the blues icons.
Chicago Blues: 1930
Exploring the evolution and key figures of the Chicago Blues scene during the 1930s, a pivotal era for the genre's urban development.
The history of African-American social dance
Camille A. Brown traces the history of African-American social dance, from the Ring Shout to the Twist.
Stereotypes of Blues: A Conversation with Damon Stone
An insightful interview exploring common stereotypes and misconceptions about Blues dance, hosted by Beijing Cat's Corner Studio.
Dancing Many Drums
By Thomas F. Defrantz
Excavations in African American Dance. A seminal anthology of Black dance history.
Deep Blues
By Robert Palmer
A Musical and Cultural History of the Mississippi Delta. A gritty and passionate history of the delta blues.
ReMastered: Devil at the Crossroads
A look at the life and legacy of Robert Johnson, the mysterious blues musician who allegedly made a deal with the devil.
The Devil’s Music: A History of the Blues
By Giles Oakley
Tracing the growth of the blues from the rural South to the urban North.
Digging the Africanist Presence in American Performance
By Brenda Dixon Gottschild
Dance and Other Contexts. Exploring the profound influence of African traditions on American performance.
The Games Black Girls Play
By Kyra D. Gaunt
Learning the Ropes from Double Dutch to Hip-hop. Exploring the musical and social world of Black girls.
Green Book
A working-class Italian-American bouncer becomes the driver of an African-American classical pianist on a tour through the 1960s American South.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.1 [16th-17th century]
Exploring the roots of the blues in the 16th and 17th centuries.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.10 [1950s]
The electrification and peak of the blues in the 1950s.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.2 [18th-19th century]
The development of pre-blues music in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.3 [Gospel, Minstrelsy & Vaudeville]
The influence of Gospel, Minstrelsy, and Vaudeville on the blues.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.4 [Pop, Ragtime & Jazz]
The intersection of Pop, Ragtime, and Jazz with the evolving blues.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.5 [Proto-Blues]
Understanding the Proto-Blues era and its significance.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.6 [1900-1920]
The transition and growth of the blues from 1900 to 1920.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.7 [1920s]
The blues during the Roaring Twenties.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.8 [1930s]
The blues during the Great Depression and the 1930s.
The History and Evolution of the Blues p.9 [1940s]
The expansion and urbanization of the blues in the 1940s.
The History of the Blues
By Francis Davis
The Roots, the Music, the People. A comprehensive cultural history of the blues.
Jazz Dance: The Story of American Vernacular Dance
By Marshall Winslow Stearns
The essential history of American vernacular dance from its roots to its modern forms.
Jookin': The Rise of Social Dance Formations
By Katrina Hazzard-Gordon
African-American Culture and the history of social dance spaces.
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Tensions and temperatures rise over the course of an afternoon recording session in 1920s Chicago as a band of musicians wait for trailblazing performer, the legendary Mother of the Blues, Ma Rainey.
Has Blues helped us become who we want to be? (Part 1)
A conversation with Penny and Lucas in Wuhan about their blues journey and how it shapes their identity.
Has Blues helped us become who we want to be? (Part 2)
The continuation of the conversation with Penny and Lucas in Wuhan about blues, dance, and life.
Ring Shout
A demonstration and explanation of the Ring Shout, one of the oldest African-American religious and dance traditions.
The Savoy Ballroom: Rejecting Black Exoticism Through Community-Driven Design
An architectural analysis of how the Savoy Ballroom served its community and rejected racial stereotypes.
The Souls of Your Feet
By Acia Gray
A Tap Dance Guidebook for Rhythm Explorers. A creative guide to understanding tap rhythm.
Steppin’ on the Blues
By Jacqui Malone
The Visible Rhythms of African American Dance. Exploring the social and cultural roots of Black dance.
Stomping The Blues
By Albert Murray
A philosophical and aesthetic look at the tradition of the blues as an affirmative art form.
TAP! The Greatest Tap Dance Stars and Their Stories 1900-1955
By Rusty E. Frank
A comprehensive history of tap dance during its golden age, featuring the biggest stars.
Slow Bal and Blues: Differences, Similarities, and Where They Meet
A detailed technical breakdown of the characteristics of Slow Balboa and Blues dance, and the artistic intersection between them.
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