It's that spooky time of year! Time to plan your Halloween dance classes. I've put together a list of 20+ unique Halloween songs to give you inspiration for your classes in October and Halloween choreography. If you'd like even more ideas for Halloween songs, you should also check out my post "15 Fun Halloween Dance Songs" that I wrote a few years ago. I love this jazzy, soulful song originally sung by Donovan. Lana Del Ray brings a modern sound to it and it is great for an older jazz or contemporary class. 2.The Halloween CD by Craig Wingrove This album is perfect for planning your October ballet classes! 3.My Family (from the Addams Family Motion Picture) Hip hop dancers of all ages would enjoy dancing to this song from the new Addams Family movie. 4.Skeletone by Caspar Babypants (mention Them Bones) Caspar Babypants has a very large collection of songs for young children. This particular song definitely has a spooky feel with a skeleton theme and a bit of The Hall of the Mountain King by Edvard Grieg. Them Bones is another Babypants song that is great for Halloween. 5.Monster Methuselah by Mary Lambert Mary Lambert is also a great artist for young children. Kids will like this song because of the repeating chorus that would be easy to choreograph some fun hand gestures or simple choreography to. 6.Spooky Halloween by John Maxim (mention The Witch & Her Cat) This song, along with John Maxim's The Witch and Her Cat are perfect for a little Halloween fun in a pre-ballet class. 7.Castin' My Spell by Johnny Otis I happen to love Johnny Otis and his boppy 50s sound. If you like that too, this song would be a lot of fun for a jazz class. 8.Spooky Walk by Jacob Johnson This is a great song for preschoolers! As you go on a spooky walk, you see a tiger, an alligator, and a bear. You could use simple actions for each of the creatures you come across on your spooky walk or let the children improvise. There are no YouTube videos of the song, but it can be found on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Spooky-Walk/dp/B01MXRS21K or on Spotify or Apple Music. 9.Ghostbusters (version for Frappe) by Nate Fifield If you teach ballet and you have not checked out Nate Fifield's albums, you need to. This song is perfect for a Halloween ballet class. 10.Do You Know How Pumpkins Grow? by the Kiboomers Another great song for a preschool dance class. It could be fun to bring in real pumpkins for the children to dance around. 11.Ghosts by On An On This is a dynamic, yet steady and somewhat ambient song that would be great for an older contemporary class. 12.Dance-A-Story "Enchanted Toy Store" by Richard Maddock This song is perfect for guided improvisation for young children. It is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Dance-Story-Enchanted-Toy-Store/dp/B01EH2GMTY. It is also available on Spotify and Apple Music. 13.Witchy Woman by the Eagles This is a great 70s rock song with some twang by the Eagles. I also love the cover done by the Hollies. 14.Bats by Daniel Ingram (from My Little Pony) This song from My Little Pony would be fun for a Preschool or young elementary school age tap or jazz dance class. 15.Batty Bat (From Sesame Street) I used to dance with this song when I was a young child! Your dance students will love this classic Sesame Street Song. You could even bring towels for scarves for the students to use as their "wings". 16.Monsters Under the Bed by Dylan Cartlidge I can see this unique, high energy song being used for an older hip hop or jazz class. 17.Do the Skeleton Scat! by the Wiggles Little kids love the Wiggles! Their songs are easy to dance to! This is perfect for a tap class. 18.We are Monsters by Mr. Eric & Mr. Michael This song would be great for any kind of stomps or marches in young childrens class. This song is great for teaching children to stay on the beat of the music. It could also be fun for improvisation. 19.Heffalumps and Woozles (From Winnie the Pooh) Have fun doing a Halloween Combination to this classic from Winnie the Pooh! 20. I Put A Spell On You by Screamin' Jay Hawkins I personally love the energy that Screamin' Jay Hawkins brings to this song. This would be awesome for an older jazz class. Or, if the older sound isn't your thing, try this newer version by Annie Lennox. 21.Grim Grinning Ghosts by VoicePlay Last, but not least, I love this fun version of the Disneyland classic from the Haunted Mansion! I plan to use it for some Halloween tap choreography.
What Halloween songs do you love to dance to? Let me know in the comments!
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It's officially arrived - the week of Halloween! Dance teachers everywhere will be doing fun Halloween inspired classes this week. This time of year is so fun for students. I still remember when I was in school and my ballet teacher taught us barre exercises to Halloween music during the month of October. We had a blast and it made a great impression on me. Over my years of teaching, I've realized that finding new Halloween music can be hard. Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and Ray Parker Jr's "Ghostbusters" are always go-to choices, but after you've heard them over and over, sometimes you just need something new and the students do too. I've compiled a list of 15 Halloween songs I've used or plan to use. Some are traditional, while others are more obscure. Hopefully this will help all teachers looking for spooky new music. Maybe you're just looking for songs to add to your Halloween party playlist? This is for you as well! 1. This is Halloween by Danny Elfman from Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas In all honesty, this movie has always terrified me...but this song makes for great Halloween choreography. 2. Sally's Song by Fiona Apple (also from The Nightmare Before Christmas) Though I'm not a fan of the movie, I really enjoy this song. As a senior in high school, I choreographed a solo to this song that I used in auditions for several university dance programs as well as my senior solo at my studio. 3. The Monster Mash by Bobbby "Boris" Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers Check out this awesome clip with Dick Clark on American Bandstand! This song will always be a Halloween freeze dance classic. 4. Purple People Eater by Sheb Wooley This song is great for young kids because it lends itself perfectly to actions. Also, they think the silly voices are HILARIOUS. 5. The Addams Family Theme Short and sweet...or should I say short and spooky? This year I'm choreographing a combo en pointe to this song. 6. Rama Lama (Bang Bang) by Roisin Murphy I have no idea what she is actually singing about, but this song just sounds Halloweeny, doesn't it? If you don't agree, surely Wade Robson's choreography to this song on So You Think You Can Dance will change your mind. I've taught a combo to this song in many teen jazz classes and it's always a hit. 7. Walking with a Ghost by Tegan & Sara This song has a great tempo for warm-up and conditioning. 8. Walking with a Ghost by KADEBOSTANY No, this is not a Tegan and Sara cover. (Though, if you want one of those, check out this one by The White Stripes). This is a much different song that just happens to have the same title. I'd describe it as a mix of piano, tango, Adele, rap, and a horn section. Intrigued? 9. Ghost in My House by Lucy Schwartz Click here to see my post featuring this song and more of Lucy Schwatz's music. 10. The Ghost Inside by Broken Bells While we are on the topic of ghosts, why not throw in this groovy song? 11. Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon They'll be howling with this one. 12. The X-Files Theme Believe it or not, I've seen some great choreography to this song! 13. Disney's Grim Grinning Ghosts This song may or may not have scared me as I watched it on the Disneyland Sing-Along VHS as a child. 14. Love Potion Number 9 by the Clovers Why do so many of the good Halloween songs come from the 50s? 15. Double Trouble by John Williams from Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban Who doesn't love Harry Potter? This beautifully spooky song would be prefect for a Halloween ballet class!
What are your favorite Halloween songs? Feel free to share! I hope you all have a safe and happy Halloween. Keep dancing! Haley |
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