Interview AHB

Ugh, writing a bio is always so complicated! We've decided to change things up and share our answers to the questions dancers regularly ask us.
Dear organizers, we invite you to choose the points that are important to you—that is, why you trust us with your event :)

- Where are you from?

We are both French.
Anne-Hélène is Breton and comes from Binic in the Côtes-d'Armor department. 100% Breton!

Bernard was born in Toulouse and lived in Pibrac. He has a slight Toulouse accent.

-How did you two meet?

We met in Paris in September 1989 at the Lycée Fresnel, where we were both studying to become opticians!

We fell in love in April 1990 and have been inseparable ever since. After obtaining our BTS Optician-Eyewear diploma, we settled in Toulouse.

We have been married since September 1992..

- Do you have children? Do they dance?

Yes, we have three children, two boys and one girl. They all know how to dance, some a little, some a lot.

Edgar, in addition to being a farrier, teaches dance with his wife Céline at their farm in the Landes region.

- What did you do before dancing? 

Anne-Hélène had always danced since she was 8 years old. She was passionate about ballet, modern jazz, and contemporary dance. She would have loved to be a dance teacher! She stopped dancing for a while between 1993 and 1997 to take care of our first two children.

Bernard played tennis, football, and played the folk guitar (fingerpicking). He also enjoyed drawing comics and caricatures.

And for work, we were opticians in Toulouse, in different shops, because we didn't want to work together!

- How did you start Swing dancing? Where? When? 

After the birth of our two boys, we wanted to do something together. Several of our friends were getting married, and we wanted to learn to dance french rock.

In 1997, we took a beginner class at a dance school near our home. The class was a mix of rock, tango, and waltz. We just wanted to dance french rock, so we went to TRAC (dance school in Toulouse). Our teacher was Michèle Planques. We learned variations quite quickly and went to many dance parties.

We dabbled a bit in Lindy Hop because Michèle let us join the end of her Lindy Hop class just before our french rock class, and we even tried a Boogie competition training class!

As a side note: the first time we went to a dance party at TRAC, we sat for an hour watching the more advanced dancers. We just couldn't bring ourselves to join in! We got up to leave, and that's when Michèle and Michel invited us to dance. From that moment on, we never left the dance floor :)
We did french rock for six months, then Michèle and Michel stopped, and so did we.

That's when we heard about 144 Dance Avenue, which offered Lindy Hop. The first dance school in France specializing in Lindy Hop!!!

We enrolled in Véronique and Bruno David's classes in November 1997. And that's when we fell in love with Lindy Hop, and it all really began!

We'd barely been taking classes for three months when we went with Véro and Bruno on the trip they organized to New York. We were lucky enough to meet Frankie Manning, Norma Miller, and Dawn Hampton at a party at the Supper Club with George Gee's orchestra. We went to a memorable party on the top floor of one of the World Trade Center towers! It was incredible!

In July of the same year, we followed Véro and Bruno to Herrang Dance Camp. Just wow!!!!

In 1999, Anne-Hélène was pregnant and had to stay in bed, so Bernard continued taking classes at 144 for another year.

In early 2000, after the birth of our daughter, we wanted to continue learning and went to workshops in Europe, the USA, and Canada.

It was really in July 2001, during a swing dance workshop combined with the Montreal Jazz Festival, that we had two major triggers:

- Connection, that is, the communication between lead/follow and the superpower of followers. Dancers back then danced to groovy music and all the movements were connected! In classes, some teachers would spend an hour explaining the whys and wherefores, what to do, what to feel.

- Balboa. We had already experienced Balboa during tasters taught by Rob and Diane Van Haaren in France. Franck Balbin in Lyon was also passionate about Balboa and was starting to promote the dance. We used Balboa in Lindy Hop, especially to fast music. In Montreal, we met Sylvia Sykes! What a stroke of luck to participate in her classes and take private lessons with her. That's when we realized that Balboa was a dance in its own right, with a history, styles, that it could be danced to all tempos, had basic steps (single, double, triple, etc.), and variations named (out & in, transitions, paddle, etc.).

- We had already seen some Blues during a Blues evening at Herrang dance camp in 1998, and it was really in 2001
that we fell in love with the Blues. It's a dance that immediately resonated with us. SM and Virginie Jensen taught us a great deal in terms of technique and feeling.

- What do you like about Swing and Blues dances? Which dance do you prefer?

We love all our dances: Lindy Hop, Balboa, Blues, Solo Blues, Jazz Roots. Some days, depending on our mood and the general atmosphere around us, we'll choose one or more dances for the evening.

We love these dances first and foremost because we're crazy about Swing and Blues music—the kind that grooves and makes us want to move.

- Lindy Hop is a very rich African American dance that offers a lot for musical interpretation, creativity, and freedom for both partners because it incorporates several dance styles, including many basic steps! Depending on the music, we can choose the groove walk, steps based on kicks (side-by-side Charleston, tandem, etc.), triple steps (swing out, tuck turn, etc.), 8/6/4 counts, and more.

- We love the Balboa for its subtle lead/follow connection, the feeling of floating, the richness of the footwork, the creation of variations, and its intimate nature. We particularly appreciate the fusion between the two dance partners.

- As for the Blues, we particularly enjoy the slow to medium tempos.

There are also different styles that allow us to trace the history of the music and dance, and which serve as tools for interpreting the music. There is a great deal of freedom for each dancer.

In any case, what we love most of all is improvisation! Thanks to the connection, to listening to the music, we love these magical moments of creativity in the present moment, the dialogue between lead and follow.

- When did you start teaching?

In early 2000, someone asked us to teach at their school. We immediately replied that we weren't teachers.

It still intrigued us, though, and eventually we decided to give it a try. We offered to teach beginner Lindy Hop classes, free of charge, at the Pasorock association, run by Sandrine Roques. The association helped people facing difficulties discover partner dancing.

In January 2001, we took the plunge:

For over a week, we prepared our first Lindy Hop class. And just like that! We left the class completely motivated by teaching. That's what we wanted to do: find ways to teach, to share our dances with others. It was fantastic to feel that way.

We are the second generation of Swing Dance teachers in France. We've witnessed the entire evolution of the scene. We could almost tell the story of Swing dances in France ;)

- Have you received any professional training?
We're glad we started at a time when organizers invited teachers to teach based on their pedagogy and dance skills.
There was no need for competition or videos/reels of one's own life.

We trained ourselves, by watching and listening to other teachers, and by trying things out.
We researched pedagogy and took private classes in positive pedagogy with Sab Will in Paris in 2017.
Anne-Hélène participated in a Franklin Method workshop to better understand the movements from the inside and to be able to use imagery to help convey sensations. She also draws inspiration from several books by Erik Franklin, books on anatomy and movement, and has started practicing Iyengar Yoga.
Furthermore, we organize workshops dedicated to pedagogy for people who want to teach or continue to develop their skills.

- How did you develop your school?

In the very beginning, it was very small. We had two things: our classes and an association.

We created the association "La Cave à Swing" in March 2001. The association's goal was to help all dancers find parties, workshops, and regular classes, and it organized dance workshops and bus trips to events from Toulouse.

There was a website (it was the early days of the internet!) that listed dance schools and associations in France. There was also the Swing Calendar, which listed all the events in France and abroad. And two Swing Gazettes were published. Anne-Hélène kept the calendar up to date. She collected all the workshop flyers and looked for information on the schools' and associations' websites.

When we stopped teaching classes at PasoRock in June 2001, our students asked us to set up classes to continue the tradition, since the PasoRock classes were starting from scratch. Jean-Marc, aka Pti-Jean, and Sandryne will recognize themselves ;) So we started by renting a room for one hour a week, then two hours for our dancers' friends, and so on.

We realized that renting rooms by the hour was more expensive than renting an entire space. We found a space in an old printing shop, which we renovated. After the renovations were complete, the school opened on January 1, 2003. Studio Hop was born at that moment. Just in time for the first Lindy Hop exchange organized in France!

We went dancing in the streets of Toulouse whenever we could to promote Swing dances. In fact, we organized the first outdoor social dances in France. We were greatly influenced by the dancers from Barcelona who danced in the parks.

Bernard continued to work part-time, and Anne-Hélène was on parental leave.

Just when we were considering choosing between optics and dance full-time, Bernard lost his job. The decision was clear.

We stayed in that studio until 2011. Then, we were lucky enough to buy a large space. The renovations were extensive, done partly by Bernard, Michel VS, and especially Yves, the master builder (a dancer and bricklayer). Felix, a dancer and architect friend, helped us create the plans. Other people came to lend a hand, like Benoit. With 2 dance studios, we were able to further develop our dances.

We had 750 students a year, 14 teachers, organized numerous workshops, and had a dance troupe, the Tagada Swing Swing (2002 to 2018). avons été bien influencés par les danseurs Barcelonais qui dansaient dans les parcs.

It's worth noting that in 2002, we also offered regular Balboa classes; there were 3 students at the very beginning! Then 10, then 2 classes, and so on! To our knowledge, there were no regular classes in France before 2002, or even in Europe.

- Have you done any choreography?

Yes, we started choreographing in April 2000. Our first demonstration was during an evening at the Boogie & Swing In Toulouse (BST) workshop.

We then created Tagada Swing Swing, which won every dance troupe competition in Europe from 2003 to 2018.

We also had a second troupe, Dragibus. Intermediate to advanced dancers from the school could participate for the pleasure of sharing moments on stage.

The Mistinguettes also graced the dance floors with their solo, cabaret-style choreography.

And then, between 2010 and 2011, we created choreography for the play Black & White Rhythm. Evelyne Jean wrote the script, which featured a white musician and a Black musician arguing during the intermission of a concert. The audience thus followed the evolution of African Americans from the arrival of slaves in the United States to the Swing era. The scenes unfolded, each depicting different living conditions, injustices, the creation and evolution of musical styles (African rhythms, Blues, New Orleans, Swing), and dances (African dances, Cake Walk, Break Away, Blues, Lindy Hop). There were more than 20 people on stage, including actors, singers, musicians, and dancers.

We are very proud to have contributed to this artistic creation.

- What events have you organized? 

Wow!!! That's quite a lot :) Between the very big events and the much smaller ones, it's impossible to count them all. We'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who helped us so much; here are a few names: Stéphanie, Paco, Titi and Steph, Véro, Gigi, Stephane, Clotilde, Aurélie, Eric 😍

Here are some of the events:

. Pink City Swing Festival (PCSF): Our very first event was on the weekend of September 21, 2001!

. Pink City Balboa Festival (PCBF): Our very first 100% Balboa workshop was in March 2002. It was also the first 100% Balboa festival in Europe and the second in the world after All Balboa Weekend in Cleveland. The instructors were Sylvia Sykes, Jason Cristodolous, Franck Balbin, and the two of us. Among the students were Dan and Christie from London, who had made the trip. They would go on to organize the London Balboa Festival in November or December of the same year.

The PCBF subsequently changed its name, location, and dates. It went from the Frenchie Balboa Festival (FBF) to the European Balboa Festival (EBF).

. Hot Blues in Toulouse: Blues dance workshop in May
The first 100% Blues workshop we organized was in 2003!

. Crazy Rhythm Challenge: Lindy Hop workshop and troupe competition! A weekend in February

. Studio Hop Summer Camp: The very first one was in the summer of 2002 in Arreau in the Pyrenees. One week, one day of Lindy Hop, and one day of Balboa! There were about fifty dancers and lots of children. In 2004, the workshop was held in Eauze in the Gers region. Then we created one week of Lindy Hop and one week of Balboa. Then one week of Lindy Hop, one week of Balboa, and one week of Blues and Jazz Roots, and finally one week of Lindy Hop, one week of Balboa, and one week of Blues. The camp was in the countryside, and we wanted a maximum of 250 dancers for everyone's comfort.

. Musicality workshops for dancers

We did workshops that were 100% focused on musicality: what to hear and feel in music and how to use that as dancers, all without any prior knowledge of musical structure theory. This allows you to perform live ;) These workshops could be just the two of us or with the fabulous Hot Swing Sextet!

P.S. from Anne-Hélène: I think I'm very lucky to have Bernard by my side. He's the one who helped me understand music! I've never played music before, and the technical terms musicians use are difficult for me to grasp. Bernard was able to explain what happens on stage between the musicians and the theories in terms everyone could understand.

. several workshops with a couple of international instructors, focusing on specific themes such as 20's Charleston, Aerials, Blues, etc.

- Have you participated in any competitions and why? What were your results?

Yes, especially in Balboa and in the United States.

Instead of just watching the competitions, we decided to give it a try! It was a little challenge and it allowed us to see where we stood. The goal was to have fun.

So we participated in the All Balboa Weekend competition in Cleveland and the Balboa Rendez-Vous in San Diego. They were Strictly, meaning we danced to music chosen by the DJs, and the goal was to socialize, so to improvise.

3rd at the Balboa Rendez-Vous in 2003

1st in 2007 in Cleveland (we were the first non-Americans to win this competition) and 2nd in 2011.

1st at the IHLC 2018

- How did you prepare to participate in the competitions?

We've always prioritized the social/improvisational aspect of our dances. So we've participated in Mix'n'Match (changing partners each round) and Strictly (improvising with your partner to music chosen by the organizer/DJ). 

Generally, a month beforehand, we practice all kinds of tempos and work on a lot of partner dance techniques—practicing the basics, the fundamentals. 

Then, we look for original effects: footwork, variations, and practice them to the music so that our dance is as musical as possible. So our dance will be made up of basic elements and a few original touches, and we let ourselves be influenced/carried by the music. Basically, we have three or four effects that we want to incorporate into the music. The risk is not being inspired. That's what improvisation is all about: if it works, it's magic; if it doesn't, your performance is "classic."

- How long has Bernard been a musician? What style does he prefer? Does he play in any bands? 

I started playing music around the age of eight, I think, at the Toulouse Conservatory, studying piano and classical music. It wasn't really my passion, more my older sister's, whom I followed. Then I tried the saxophone for a year. It was a bit expensive to buy at that time… so I gave it up. Then I met a finger-picking guitar enthusiast, Jean-Claude from the next village, who became my teacher. I worked intensively on "Dadi's method." For ten years I played this folk and blues finger-picking style, only performing solo, with encounters with Marcel Dadi and small concerts… After the birth of my first two children, I discovered the world of Swing & Blues dancing, and I gave up the guitar to dedicate myself to this new passion and become a professional dancer. It was at the end of 2013, thanks to Valentin Oustiakine (a Gypsy Jazz guitarist in Toulouse), that I picked up the guitar again to play in a small quartet: the "Little Hot Gang." This was followed by the groups "The Raggedy Junkers" (Swing and Blues in Sextet and Septet formats), the Blues duo "The Blues & Bones" for Swing, the Ol' Jazz Quartet, and the Blues group "Backyard Blues." My travels around the world for dance festivals have created opportunities and encounters everywhere: I've had the chance to give solo concerts, sometimes with other musicians, in Blues and Swing dance communities in Australia, Korea, Thailand, China, Japan, Israel, Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, England, Italy, and elsewhere. With "The Raggedy Junkers," we were the resident band at the prestigious Shanghai Jazz club "House of Blues & Jazz" for three months. I don't have a preference for any particular style; I have a blast in Swing groups, where I play rhythm guitar and enjoy listening to others and "blending" into the collective, and I love my small Blues groups, or my solo concerts, a completely different atmosphere!

- Why this new life change since December 2020?

We had been wanting to make a change in our lives for a while.

Before Covid, we taught two to three weekends a month in France and internationally, including at festivals in Asia and Australia/New Zealand.

We were constantly on planes, organizing numerous workshops and managing the school with 750 students and 14 teachers. Essentially, we had become school and workshop managers with a lot of administrative work. Managing the school was taking precedence over our artistic lives.

So, we wanted to be more dancers and teachers, we wanted to be closer to the students and share moments of dance and moments of relaxation/fun.

We also needed to reconnect with nature and contribute to its preservation in our own way.

At the end of Covid, we sold our school, all the associated workshops, the clientele, and the building. We found a lovely 16th-century farmhouse to renovate in the Gers region. We moved in on December 29, 2020. There was no heating yet, and we were happy about that :) Now, the place has evolved with the renovations, vegetable gardens, dance studio, and animals. There's still plenty to do; our life is full, lived at our own pace and in harmony with nature.

- What do you like about your new place?

Tranquility!

Nature, witnessing the changing seasons

Birds and other animals

Our animals

We especially love seeing that our guests feel at home. It's our little corner of paradise; the barn has been renovated into a dance studio. We offer a few regular classes, and most importantly, we organize workshops. These workshops are limited to 20 people, with a single group encompassing various skill levels. We have time to meet the dancers during meals, walks, or other activities. We can adapt the workshop program based on dancer requests and observations. We're also receiving more and more requests for private workshops. Simply form a group of 10 to 20 people, find a date together, and we'll create a tailor-made workshop. 100% Balboa, 100% Lindy Hop, 100% Slow Dance, 100% Blues, a mix of dances, all with a focus on musicality.
We continue to dance and have more time to create, to think about our teaching methods.

- Do you still travel?

Yes, yes, yes! :) We're still traveling, and we still want to teach our dances in other cities and countries! 👍 And most importantly, we can dance more than ever before. We aim to attend workshops about once a month. Since the end of the COVID period, we've participated in several workshops in France, Italy, and Germany.

We always enjoy traveling, preferring trains, carpooling, and buses. We are incredibly grateful to all the organizers who help us with this! ♥️

There you have it, we're still passionate. 😉