Lindy Hop
Biography
I began teaching Lindy Hop in 1999, and taught beginners, intermediate and advanced classes at Swing Central in Melbourne for 6 years before relocating to Cambridge in early 2006. I have also taught at various Lindy Hop workshops with my partner and wife Lotte, both in Australia and in the UK. I’ve studied swing dancing around the world, taking classes from the best teachers I can find. I’m probably best known as the original organiser of one of Australia’s best loved international Lindy Hop events, the Melbourne Lindy Exchange, from 2001-2004.
In 2002 I established the Australian Hellzapoppin’ Prize (AHP), now regarded as one of Australia’s finest Lindy Hop contests, and I remain the custodian of the event as it travels between cities each year. I was Head Judge for the Australian Jitterbug Championships in 2005 and for AHP in 2009, 2010 and 2011. I was a founding member of the Lindy troupe Crazy Rhythm Revue in Melbourne, and after moving to Cambridge helped form the Cambridge Lindy Hoppers, serving as its inaugural President and teacher. I have been invited to DJ at events around the world, including SwingCity 2003 in Harlem, the Herräng Dance Camp in Sweden in 2004, 2005 and 2006, and won DJ battles at the Paris Lindy Exchange in 2004 and in Perth in 2005.
Dance Instruction
2023 – present
Teacher, Lindyhop drop-in classes, Hopspot, SwingInUtrecht, Utrecht.
Teacher with Lotte, Lindyhop 1A course, SwingInUtrecht, Utrecht.
2014, March
Senior instructor with Lotte, Lindyhop Charleston dance workshop, Port Fairy Folk Festival
2009, May-July
Senior instructor with Lotte, 8 week swing master class course, Cuban Dance Academy
2008, Nov
Senior instructor with Lotte, 5 week swing rueda course, Cuban Dance Academy
2008, Aug – Dec
Senior instructor with Lotte, Carnivale, Suede Bar
2006, Oct – 2008, Feb
Senior Instructor with Lotte, Cambridge Lindy Hoppers
2007, Nov
Workshop Instructor with Lotte, Future Sounds of Swing, Leeds, England
2000
Instructor, Lindy Hop Swing Dancing, MUSU Short Course, University of Melbourne
1999, August – 2006, Jan
Senior Instructor, Swing Central and SwingShift Melbourne
Dance Organisation and Management
2011, June
Head Judge, Australian Hellzapoppin’ Prize, annual national Lindy Hop contest, Hobart
2010, Nov
Head Judge, Australian Hellzapoppin’ Prize, annual national Lindy Hop contest, Melbourne
2009, Oct
Head Judge, Australian Hellzapoppin’ Prize, annual national Lindy Hop contest, Sydney
2008, Aug – 2009, May
Organiser with Lotte, Monday Night Workout, weekly social learning dance workshop.
2008, Aug – Dec
Resident DJ, Carnivale, Suede Bar
2008, Nov
Judge, Australian Hellzapoppin’ Prize, annual national Lindy Hop contest, Melbourne
2007, October
Cambridge Lindy Exchange, UK, Chair
2006, Oct – 2008, Feb
President, Cambridge Lindy Hoppers
2007, Aug – 2008, Feb
DJ and organiser for The Speakeasy, regular live jazz night, Cambridge, England
2005
Head Judge, Australian Jitterbug Championships
2004, November
Swing City Melbourne: International Swing Festival, Artistic Director & Coordinator
2004, November
Hellzapoppin’ World Championships: International Lindy Hop Contest, Coordinator
2004, April
Easter Hop, Annual Ball, Organiser
2004, March
Judge, Jack & Jill and Strictly Lindy sections, Australian Jitterbug Championships
2004, February
Founding member of Crazy Rhythm Revue, Lindy Hop dance troupe.
2004, January
Bill and Julee’s European Tour (Amsterdam, Zurich and Helsinki) Organiser
2003, November
Australian Hellzapoppin’ Prize 2003, annual dance award and contest, Chair
2003, November
Melbourne Lindy Exchange, Annual Dance Camp & Workshop, Chair
2003, April
Anzac Hop (Easter Hop), Annual Ball, Organiser
2003, April
Rusty Frank’s Down Under Tour, Organiser
2003, February
Judge, Jack & Jill section, Australian Jitterbug Championships 2003
2002, November
Australian Hellzapoppin’ Prize, inaugural dance award and contest, Chair
2002, November
Melbourne Lindy Exchange, Annual Exchange, Dance Camp & Workshop, Chair
2002, October
Rob and Diane’s Surprise Tour, Organiser
2002, September – May 2004
‘Ballyhoo’, mid-week social dance event, Organiser.
2002, March
Easter Hop, Annual Ball, Organiser
2002, January
Established Sweet Hot & Blue Website to support swing dancing in Australia
2001, November
Melbourne Lindy Exchange, inaugural Dance Camp & Workshop, Chair
2001, April
Easter Hop, Annual Ball, Organiser
2000, April
Easter Hop, Annual Ball, Organiser
2000, April
Founded SwingShift Melbourne, Swing Dance Instruction and Events
2000 – 2004
Resident weekly Swing DJ, Mayfields, Fitzroy
Dance Performances and Appearances
2009, July
Choreography, teaching and performance with students of ‘A Tribute to Frankie Manning’, ‘Roots of Rhythm’, St Martin’s Youth Theatre, Melbourne.
2007, May
Lindy Hop workshop for CUCDW at St John’s College.
2007, Jan
CUCDW production of Elemental at the ADC Theatre, Cambridge.
2006, Nov
Fitzwilliam College Ball: Masked at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.
2006, Nov
Lead a short dance class at the BBC Children in Need event in Duxford, and appeared on the BBC News.
2006, September
Babylon Gallery, Ely – Dance demonstration on the History of Swing Dancing
2006, June
CUCDW Garden Party at St John’s.
2005, February
Performance with Crazy Rhythm Revue at The Holland Festival, Sandown Entertainment Centre, Melbourne.
2004, November
Performance with Crazy Rhythm Revue at SwingCity Melbourne.
2004, July
Performance with Crazy Rhythm Revue at the Hungarian Community Centre, Melbourne.
2004, March
Performance with Crazy Rhythm Revue at The Heart of Variety Ball, Plaza Ballroom, Melbourne.
2004, March
Performance with Crazy Rhythm Revue at Seniors Festival, Hawthorn Town Hall.
2003, April
Interviewed on Time of Your Life, Channel 31 TV show [Quicktime: 15Mb]
2002, August
Interviewed for Yehoodi Talk Show, Internet radio programme, New York City
2002, February
Interviewed with Pat Noakes on the swing revival, Williamstown Jazz Festival, WIN FM radio station
2001, November
Zip Gun Bop Routine, Swing Central Dance Troup with Jitterbugs New Zealand, Melbourne Lindy Exchange
2001, June
Featured Dancer, Pearl Harbor VIP Australian Movie Premier, Melbourne
2001, January
Performance at ‘A Tribute to Louis Armstrong’ by Peter Gaudion, Athaneum Theatre, Melbourne International Jazz Festival
1999 – 2006
Principal dancer, Swing Central Dance Troupe (regular performances)
DJ Bio
Matt has been DJing since 1999, and particularly loves to work the floor with a combination of tunes from swingin’ small bands, riffs straight out of New Orleans and Kansas City, and Savoy big band classics. He has been a DJ at some of the biggest Lindy Hop events around the globe, including 4 times in Herräng (Sweden), SwingCity 2003 (Harlem) and SwingCity 2004 (Melbourne), Hop in the Spring (Hamburg), Barswingona, The Snowball (Stockholm) and the London Lindy Exchange. He was the first Australian guest DJ on Yehoodi Radio, has won DJ battles from Paris to Perth and recently ran his first ever DJ Masterclass.
Manu Smith, International Lindy Hop instructor and DJ
“Matt kicked my butt at last year’s Melbourne Lindy Exchange. The only reason I won was because it would look bad if the guy who was running the event, won the DJ battle also. It was a pleasure DJing with him. He and I share a common passion for music that really swings and I must say, he’s an excellent choice…besides myself of course!”
Solomon Douglas, International Lindy Hop instructor and DJ
“Matt’s DJing reminds me eerily of my own. He plays lots of really great music and no fluff, and it all swings like mad and makes me want to either stay on the dancefloor or jog over to the DJ booth and ask what’s playing!”
DJ Highlights
2022 – present
Regular DJ appearances at HopSpot, Utrecht.
2009 – 2019
Regular DJ appearances at The Fun Pit, Melbourne.
2009, Oct
Invited Swing DJ, Sydney Lindy Exchange
2009, 19 June & 14 August
Invited Swing DJ, The Fun Pit, Melbourne
2008, November
Invited Swing DJ, Melbourne Lindy Exchange
2008
Resident Swing DJ, Carnivale, weekly social dance event, Melbourne
2007, December
Invited Swing DJ, The Snowball, Sweden
2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007
Invited Swing DJ, Herräng Dance Camp, Sweden
2007, April
Invited Swing DJ, Barswingona, Barcelona, Spain
2006, July
Invited Swing DJ, Dublin, Ireland
2006, March
Invited Swing DJ and DJ Battle, Hop in the Spring, Hamburg, Germany
2006, March
Invited Swing DJ, London Lindy Exchange, England
2004, November
1st Place, Battle of the DJs, Club Splanky Xmas Bash, Perth Swing Dance Society, Perth
2004, April
Guest DJ, Diga Diga Doo, social dance event, Melbourne
2004, February
Guest DJ, Yehoodi Radio Show, Internet radio programme, New York City
2004, January
1st Place, Battle of the DJs, Paris Lindy Exchange, France
2003, June
2nd Place, International Battle of the DJs, Melbourne Lindy Exchange
2003, June
Invited Swing DJ and competitor in Battle of the DJs at SwingCity, Harlem Jazz Dance Festival, New York City
2002, September – May 2004
‘Ballyhoo’, mid-week social dance event, Resident DJ
2002, January
Invited Swing DJ, Lismore Dance Camp 2002
2001
Two appearances as Guest Swing DJ on ‘Rock N Roll Heaven’, 96.5 Inner FM radio station
Dance Training
2007, Oct
Workshops, London Balboa Festival, London, England
2006, March
Workshops, Hop in the Spring, Hamburg, Germany
2004, April
Workshops, Hullabaloo, Perth Lindy Exchange
2004, January
Workshops, Bill Borgida & Julee Mertz, Amsterdam
2003, June
Workshops, Harlem Jazz Dance Festival/Swing City Harlem
2003, April
Rusty Frank Workshops, Melbourne (assistant teacher)
2003, February
SEA Jam, Singapore
2000, 2001 and 2002
Herräng Dance Camp, Sweden: participated in intensive workshops up to Advanced level by The Rhythm Hot Shots, Frankie Manning, Paul Overton & Sharon Ashe, Rob and Diane Van Haaren, Steven Mitchell and Virginie Jensen, Bill Borgida, Dawn Hampton, Chester Whitmore, Peter Loggins & Lisa Ferguson, Janice Wilson, and many others (6 weeks total).
2002, February
Frankie Manning Workshop, Melbourne
2002, January
Lismore Dance Camp 2002, Steven Mitchell & Virginie Jensen Lindy Hop workshops
2001, April
Lismore Dance Camp 2001, Steven Mitchell & Virginie Jensen Lindy Hop workshops
2001, March
Hollywood Down Under Workshop: Hollywood Style and Boogie Woogie workshop by Marcus Koch & Bärbl Kaufer (Munich), Geelong.
2000, September
Hoppin’ With The Hotshots: Lindy Hop workshop with Eddie Jansson and Eva Lagerqvist (Sweden), Melbourne
1999
Lindy Hop workshop with Mattias Lundmark and Ewa Staremo (Sweden), Melbourne
1999 – 2006
Studied Lindy Hop Swing, Charleston, Blues and Balboa with Pat Noakes, Swing Central