Central Park outdoor swing
music happens every summer.
One of Central Park's many
hidden charms each summer is
the dispirate variety of
outdoor music events, many of
them relatively unknown except
to their ardent followers and
those who happen upon them by
accident. Examples include
swing dancing, Tango and House
music. For t
more

Central Park outdoor swing
music happens every summer.
One of Central Park's many
hidden charms each summer is
the dispirate variety of
outdoor music events, many of
them relatively unknown except
to their ardent followers and
those who happen upon them by
accident. Examples include
swing dancing, Tango and House
music. For the most part
they're held fairly close to
the Bandshell, in the heart of
Central Park.

Swing calander, 2008 Season

Sunday May 11th 3:00pm -
6:00pm
Sunday June 15th 1:00pm -
4:00pm
Sunday July 27th 1:00pm -
4:00pm Band: Neon Swing
X-perience! neonswing.net
Sunday August 31st 2:00pm -
6:00pm
Saturday Sept. 20th 2:00pm -
6:00pm (pending)
Sunday Oct 26th 2:00pm -
6:00pm (pending)

Location: BandShell in Central
Park, NYC (72nd street,
between East and West side)
Time: 3:00 - 6:30pm unless
otherwise posted
Date: Selected Sundays Spring,
Summer and Fall.
Cost: Free, but a $4 donation
is suggested

http://www.centralparkswings.c
om/calendar/index.htm

http://www.centralparkswings.c
om/


Article:
Once the dour winter weather
in Manhattan turns to spring
and sunshine, Paolo Lanna gets
e-mails from friends and
strangers who want to dance in
Central Park.

For five years now, Lanna has
hosted Central Park Swings, a
Sunday-in-the-summers event
where he plays jazz and
dancers do their thing. What
originally began with little
more than a boom box and some
friends loitering by the steps
of the Bethesda Fountain has
grown into a weekly
celebration with hundreds of
dancers and live bands.




The ambience of the event
extends to the passersby who
are
drawn to the bandshell by the
music and stay
for the dancing.
Lanna always loved swing
dancing, but dances were held
indoors and the dance teacher
longed to be outside on warm
sunny days or perfect summer
nights. 'I'm an outdoors kind
of guy,' Lanna, 39, of Inwood,
said.




Frustrated with the city's
limited venues for outdoor
dancing (Lincoln Center's
Midsummer Night Sings series
plays swing music for only
part of its run, but only
lasts one month), Lanna was
determined to improve the
scene. Today, Central Park
Swings at the Naumburg
Bandshell has become the
city's preeminent destination
for outdoor dance.

With Central Park Swings
bustling more than ever, Lanna
now plays recorded big band
music during live band breaks.
He tries to find music that
projects well, he said. 'The
big bands work best,' he said.
Count Basie, Duke Ellington
and Irene Reed are favorites.

Eli Pritykin, a 29-year-old
freelance graphic designer
from Brooklyn Heights, has
been dancing at Central Park
Swings for three years. He
enjoys being outdoors, he
said, even if the stone tile
is not the most
dancer-friendly. But dancing
outside outweighs any
discomfort his knees might
feel afterwards. 'It's great
people-watching. And people
watching you,' he said.

Damon Stone, a 32-year-old
dance instructor from
Sacramento, Calif., tries to
catch the park dance every
time he visits New York. 'You
can't beat the park for
friendliness,' Stone said. The
ambience of the event extends
to the passersby who are drawn
to the bandshell by the music
and stay for the dancing.
'That's my second favorite
thing about the park,' Stone
said. 'The spectators.'

Stone plans to visit New York
in September or October, in
time to catch at least one
Central Park Swings event, he
said.

Central Park Swings typically
runs from July through
October, depending on how many
permits Lanna is granted. The
dances, which run from 3 p.m.
to 6:30 p.m., might happen
anywhere from one to three
times a month, also depending
upon permit availability. Even
then, the dance might be
cancelled if there is rain, or
'even the threat of rain,'
Lanna said.

'The only thing that's
definitive is that it's on
Sundays,' he said with a wry
laugh.
http://www.nyc24.org/2005/cent
ralpark/play/swing.html

Category Autos & Vehicles

Tags NEW, YORK, SWING, DANCE