The International Standard Style consists of five dances: the Foxtrot, the Tango, the QuickStep, the Waltz, and the Viennese Waltz.
Foxtrot
The Foxtrot was invented in New York in the early 1900s. It was popularized by Harry Fox, as performed in the Ziegfeld Follies. Historians disagree as to whether it was invented by Fox himself, or by Vernon Irene Castle, whose "Castle Walk" dance is purported to have been extremely similar, but the name that comes down to us today is the Foxtrot.
Versions of this dance exist in both Smooth and Standard. Standard Foxtrot is danced to 4/4 time music played in the range of 28-30 measures per minute. It is danced in closed ballroom frame with body contact, and is characterized by sophistication and confidence, with a gliding step and a smooth, controlled, level motion.
Tango
All modern Tangos originated in Argentina, with a dance called the Milonga, a mixture of European, African and Indian influences. Tango came to Europe late in the nineteenth century with Argentinian students attending University in Paris. Standard Tango is much slower the original, with a more formal ballroom dance frame and significantly less emphasis on complicated footwork.
Versions of this dance exist in both Smooth and Standard. Standard Tango is danced to 4/4 time music played in the range of 31-33 measures per minute. It is danced in closed ballroom frame with body contact and a rotated upper-body (contra-body motion), and is characterized by passion (the dance of love and hate), with a light, quick, stacatto motion.
Quickstep
Quickstep is derived from a mixture of North American Jazz dances. Primarily a combination of the Quick Foxtrot and the Peabody, it includes parts from the One Step, The March, The Black Bottom, and Charleston. It was brought to Great Britain from the United States by Jazz Big-Bands in the early 1920s, and rapidly gained popularity in Europe.
This dance exists exclusively in Standard. Quickstep is danced to 4/4 time music played in the range of 50-52 measures per minute. It is danced in closed ballroom frame with body contact, and is characterized by unbridled energy, with a fast, controlled, level motion.
Waltz
The Waltz, or Slow Waltz, descends from the Viennese Waltz. It was created in Boston in 1834 by a professional dancer Lorenzo Papatino, who wished to do Waltz demonstrations to music significantly slower than that used for the classic Viennese Waltz. It was originally called "the Boston", or "the Boston Waltz". The Standard Waltz was derived from the Boston in Great Britain around 1910.
Versions of this dance exist in both Smooth and Standard. Both versions of this dance are almost identical, save for the addition of some open-frame figures in the Smooth version. Standard Waltz is danced to 3/4 time music played in the range of 28-30 measures per minute. It is danced in closed ballroom frame with body contact, and is characterized by grace and beauty, with a gliding step and a unique rise-and-fall motion.
Viennese Waltz
The Viennese Waltz is descended from German folk dances. It was the very first dance to which aristocrats danced in closed-position, and in the late eighteenth century was considered "scandalous" and "immoral".
Versions of this dance exist in both Smooth and Standard. Both versions of this dance are almost identical, save for the addition of some open-frame figures in the Smooth version. Standard Viennese Waltz is danced to 3/4 time music played in the range of 58-60 measures per minute. It is danced in closed ballroom frame with body contact, and is characterized by speed and energy, with a light, quick step, nearly constant rotation, and a level motion.
