Standard songs for ballroom dancing. Popular and well-known tracks.
When people hear “ballroom dance,” many tend to imagine something formal and a bit intimidating.
In reality, there aren’t many occasions in everyday life where you’d encounter a chance to show off ballroom dancing.
That said, there are surely people who enjoy it as a hobby, as well as those planning to take on ballroom dance for events or as entertainment.
So this time, we’ve put together a wide-ranging selection of popular songs frequently used for ballroom dance, spanning genres and eras.
For some tracks, we’ve also included videos showing them actually used for dancing.
Please enjoy a repertoire that adds popular music like pop to the classic standards—waltz, tango, and Latin!
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Standard ballroom dance songs. Popular and famous tracks (11–20)
Sing,Sing,SingLouis Prima
A quintessential swing jazz number, “Sing, Sing, Sing.” Because Benny Goodman’s version is the most famous, people often think it’s his original, but it was actually written by trumpeter Louis Prima.
Swing jazz pairs extremely well with ballroom dancing, and “Sing, Sing, Sing” in particular is always up-tempo, making it easy to dance to.
Nowadays, the electro-swing genre has developed, and you can hear a more contemporary, faster-paced take on “Sing, Sing, Sing” in those versions—definitely worth checking out.
SerenadeFranz Schubert
This celebrated piece known as “Serenade” is a famous work by the Austrian-born genius composer Franz Schubert.
It is the fourth song in Schubert’s posthumous collection Schwanengesang, which comprises 14 lieder set to poems by three poets, and it is among his most renowned works.
The lyrics, expressing a heartfelt longing for a lover, are intensely passionate and romantic, and the beautiful melody that matches them is likely one you’ve heard at least once.
There is also a solo piano arrangement by the prominent Hungarian composer Franz Liszt, and this version, too, has remained popular to the present day.
The piece is often chosen for omnibus CDs for ballroom dancing, so if you’re drawn to dancing to the graceful melodies characteristic of classical music, why not give it a try?
Tennessee WaltzPatti Page
Patti Page was one of the most prominent standard popular singers of the 1940s and 1950s.
While primarily a popular music artist, the era gave her music strong jazz characteristics, and her vocal quality is very similar to that of a jazz singer.
One of her signature songs is “Tennessee Waltz.” As the title suggests, it’s arranged in a waltz style and carries an overall romantic atmosphere.
If you’d like to dance a relaxed social dance, be sure to give it a listen.
Let’s Get LoudJennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lopez is a singer who is also active as an actress.
Since she has appeared in many famous movies, many of you may already know her.
Among her works, one that is especially perfect for ballroom dancing is “Let’s Get Loud.” It’s a cha-cha-style track that carries a Latin vibe throughout.
As a ballroom dance song, because it’s a cha-cha, I think it’s somewhat challenging, but please give it a try.
Por una cabezaCarlos Gardel
“Por una cabeza,” which literally means “by a head” in horse racing parlance, is one of the most famous pieces in the tango genre.
Composed by Argentina’s legendary tango singer Carlos Gardel in 1935 as an insert song for the film Tango Bar, it has since transcended tango, appearing in various arrangements across films, TV dramas, and as background music for figure skating—an enduring classic.
The piece is also the music used in the iconic scene from Scent of a Woman, in which Al Pacino, playing a blind retired officer, dances exquisitely with a young woman.
In fact, this same piece was played in 2016 when former President Obama visited Argentina and, without prior notice, was invited by a dancer to perform an impressive dance at a state dinner.
Obama reportedly had not danced tango before then, but in the world of social dancing, being able to dance to this piece could be considered a mark of cultural refinement.
Beyond The SeaBobby Darin
The classic, romantically mood-filled masterpiece “Beyond the Sea” is a signature song by Bobby Darin, a composer-singer who also worked as an actor and scored hits in the 1950s and ’60s.
Darin sang an English-lyric version of French singer Charles Trenet’s song “La Mer,” releasing it in 1960 and turning it into a world-famous hit.
The title of the 2004 biographical film about Darin, “Beyond the Sea,” directly uses the song’s name.
In this article, we also introduce a video of a dance performed to this song on the BBC dance reality show “Strictly Come Dancing,” so be sure to check it out as well!
Standard songs for ballroom dancing. Popular and well-known tracks (21–30)
Part Time LoverStevie Wonder
“Part-Time Lover,” one of Stevie Wonder’s timeless signature songs that reached No.
1 in five categories including the Billboard Hot 100, is a classic frequently used for social dances like Jitterbug and Jive.