"Salsa"?

"Salsa" is in Spanish means "sauce"! This name was created in the early 70's in New York for marketing purposes, but the creation of the music has been there for many decades. Much like the word "sauce" in itself, it contains many ingredients such as: Son from Cuba, ( the music that gave birth to Salsa! ) Afro Rumba, Cha Cha Cha, Mambo, Jazz, Bomba and a strong mixture of African Rhythm.

Salsa has it's own unique Rhythm, the key rhythm of Salsa called "La Clave". It gives an unmistaken define sound that makes the dance Steps unique and interesting. “ Salsa” the “Sauce”: is one of the dance art that allows and mixed with many different dance elements as it evolved through time.

Today Salsa known as an exotic Latin Dance and it can be found in almost every major cities on this planet, throughout the U.S. Europe or Asia. Thanks to its popularity, Salsa is no longer a dance that only belongs to the Caribbean or South America; rather it is available to everyone, every colour, every age and every shape.

So why just dance when you can also “SALSA”!! :-) (to top)

The Art of Teaching (to top)

If you would get this far to read the Information below, we'll assume that you'll want to learn salsa properly or seriously.

Salsa has become such a bloom worldwide in the last couples of years. Many opportunists would take advantage of this and start to teach even without much knowledge or any cultivated back ground themselves.

Many school systems are designed to retain students through social events and big classes without cultivating their real needs in terms of learning and artistic growth. To accomplish such a feat, instructors have to take individuality into account, thus creating more work for themselves in the process. It is not the most profitable way to run a business but it's the most honest.

Some instructors might have good intention, but simply don't have the knowledge to teach so because - Teaching is an ART FORM in itself!

Unfortunately, for the most beginners who do not know much about the industry, could have been taking to a long financial ride before they realized that it has lead them to nowhere.

Therefore, the best way to see if you have chosen the right instructor is simply not just to ask the question but also try out a class!

Before signing up for any discounted package, try at least a few lessons or just one course and be prepared to lose a bit of money. Honest, professional dance schools should feel confident of their teaching system and have absolutely nothing to hide.

Good teaching strategies can be borrowed, but a good teaching heart is unique and cannot be replicated. Run away if a dance school does not allow you, at the very least, to watch a beginner class. When trying out classes, observe the instructor and keep these several points in mind:

Instructor Check List: (to top)

1. Can the Instructor answer your questions regarding to Salsa?

Yes. A good Instructor should be able to answer any technical question regarding to Salsa clearly and promptly, from Music theory point of view to dancing techniques.

No. If the answer is always somewhat in doubt or something like"that's just the way it is", " just follow me, in time you'd get better." It likely means that they themselves might not even have enough knowledge to answer your question.

2. Dose the Instructor care about how good you can dance and not just how good they can dance?

Yes. A good Instructor should care about how you dance.

Yes. They should be able to break down the technique and method clearly to you, and show you how YOU can become a better dancer.

No. He or she just dance away, showing how good they can dance, shine, styling and all that jazz, but not bother with much of the breakdowns and method to show the students how they can achieve the effect. Some people can simply watch and copy the movement from the instructor, but that does not work for everyone!!

No, he or she never breaks it down to details but the movement is shown.
*Did we learn how to write by just copying sentence after sentence or by the understanding in the usage of a rule and method? Use you common sense!!

3. Does he or she check on individual student and correcting mistake during the lesson?

Yes. A good school and a good Instructor will make the effort to check on individual student and correct mistake during the lesson.

Yes. A good instructor should be able to spot the mistake and correct it. Otherwise you might ended up dancing years with the wrong techniques.

No. "you are too hard" "too soft" "too slow, wrong timing" have you ever experience this and getting frustrated because the one who told you were only able to point out the mistakes but not able to show you how and what you can do to correct it. (Correcting doesn't mean just pointing out the mistake, it's knowing how to correct does the trick.)

No. The students were never looked upon closely.
Usually a student cannot tell or even knowing there is a mistake. There is a good chance the student could have made the same mistake time after time, or even year after year, by not realising it and just keep on practicing the wrong techniques.

4. Is the Instructor able to demonstrate both men's and women's steps?

Yes. A good Instructor should be able to demonstrate both men's and women's steps.

No. Imagine a man teaching a woman how to execute a spin or a traveling turn if he himself cannot do it; or a woman shows the man how to lead when she knows nothing of leading. Again use your most important sense: the common sense!

5. If you are given an assessment, is it based on how well you execute your basics, or how much choreography you can memorized?

Yes. The Instructor emphasis on the execution of the Choreograph with the breakdowns and details and not just the sequence. The students are shown how to execute the move and not how MUCH they can remember and follow.

No. The Instructor shows all the movement and sequence but very little break down and explanation of how to execute it. In this case, the students are being tested more of the capacity of their memory system instead of learning how to do it.

6. Do the instructors themselves dance outside of their social circle? Do they dance with someone else other than just their own Partner?

Yes. A good dancer and a good instructor should certainly be able to lead and follow anyone. (Providing with the one who knows how to dance!)

No. They hardly dance with anybody else but their own Partner.
Dance well with a regular or same Partner is not an art. The question is, can they really lead and follow anyone other than just their own partner.

No, they hardly even dance outside of their own School at all. In this case, it's more likely that they treat this just as a job. Salsa is an art that fills with passion and feeling. Someone who just treats it as a job might not be able to delivery the "real" thing.

On the dance Floor... (to top)

• You go out to dance to have fun, right? Dance with a smile and don't be too serious!! So what, if you have made a mistake while dancing, just smile and move on.

• When you are dancing, your focus should be on your Partner, not the one who is around. Look at your Partner in the eyes, show them you are dancing WITH he or she!

• As a dancer, we were trained always to use the ball part of our feet to dance. This will make you dance better, lighter and faster at your foot work. Especially if you are a lady and wearing high-heel, NEVER should you use power or your weight on the heel part of the foot, otherwise you would really dangerous and you "land" on the floor, or someone else foot.

The Art of Partner Dance (to top)

"Partner Dance is about complimenting each other not about completing with each other."

Partner-dance in Salsa is spontaneous based in it’s leading and following technique, there is no set program or pre-arrangement, (that’s why it’s so interesting and challenging!!) That's why the first thing you need to learn is the 2 Person but only 1 system, in order to dance in harmony with each other. Once you master the technique-how-to-lead-or-follow, it’s a lot of fun! Especially when one is able to express oneself through the wonder of this amazing sound of music. It brings you smile and brighten up your day!!

LITTLE DETAIL makes a BIG DIFFERENCE. Learn the technique porperly. What is "leadable" or the other way around. What makes it look and feels great or the opposite.

Leading and following each has it's owe roll to manage. Each combination in partner work lies into the little details that make it works. The better the technique and the detail you can master, the more fun you can have in dancing. Any body can just crab or force someone to do something, but a good leader can lead with porper timing and show a signal in advance before each move without hurting or forcing the other person, and a good follower should never turn into a "automatic gear", meaning doing everything on her owe, rather than being led. (As the ladies never know and should not be anticipating what is coming up next.)

Using your thumb to lead or grabbing the guys finger is a NO NO NO! Who wants to be hurt and bruised from a dance, after all, it's about fun and not Kung Fu fighting. Think also the fun aspect, the harmony and the joy that you both share on the dance floor, that's what makes it memorable and lasting.

Tricks and Tips on Leading and following Techniques:

When you are leading, a few points are important to bear in mind:

• Which dance Style does your Partner dance? Cuban in circle motion or Cross-body-lead in line? (DON'T mix the two styles together; this makes it really hard for the lady to follow, because for her the following techniques in the two different styles are almost exactly the opposite.)

• When you're dancing with a Partner, your connection with her is the most important thing. "Open break" is often a good way to test whether your Partner has a good "hand connection" to you or not. Don't just go on the floor and start all the fancy moves away, hold her and go around in Basis Position a few times and do a couple of open breaks to see where the connection level is.

• What is her level? Don't just get on the dance floor and start practicing your difficult, complicated moves away. Starting off with just a few basis moves and gradually more.

• When you're leading, keep your shoulder relax at all time, especially if you've to raise her hand. You'd be amaze how much better you could lead and how much better she would follow, because when you raise your shoulder during the lead, you would raise hers too, and it would make her block the figure that you want to lead.

• During leading, you shouldn't need to use your thumb at any time, which can really HURT!! You will do that likely because, you feel that she is "slipping away"; so, use more of a "hook" technique with your fingers, or one that I have developed called " scissor hand-hold" (Sorry, can't explain this in writing but can show you in my class. :-) There's also many tricks to hold her without crabbing and still remain the connection with her. Ask your Instructor how.

• Remember the lady follows your hand only! This is almost the only connection between you and her during "Partner Work". If you push or pull too hard, she is going to go off balance and likely just getting hurt or confuss.

• If you don't want the lady to turn, keep your hands low. Many women are confused and turn by themselves as soon as you raise your hand. (That shouldn't be the case, if she learned the follow technique porperly.) If you are the one wants to turn instead, make sure you have your hand low or either aim you hand directly above your owe head but not side way, this will be less confussing for her. (and hoffully, she stays rather than turn at the same time to bump into you.)

• Ask any one given female Salsera, I bet almost all of them would agree, they would prefer a Salsero who knows less moves but leads well then someone try to make many moves that are not clear or even worst, ending hurting them all the times! (guess that's works both way. A Salsero would prefer a lady dance less "Styling" but follow well, instead of just do what they want only or turn into automactic gear.

• You don't need a million moves to impress her! It's also nice from time to time just to hold her. Just make sure you smile and look at her in the eyes. (She would remember you more and likely dancing with you again. :)

• Try not to be too concern just about the figure. You're not going to impress her if you only concentrate at the "move" and not her, no one likes to be a "practice object", and that's most likely how she would feel. Remember, at the end of the day, it's about having fun, sharing the joy and connection on the floor.

Wish you all becoming a happy dancer. Let's Salsa, and salsa with passion!

Tips on following: Tips on Leading

• "Keep your eyes on him!" :-) Yes, lady, that will make you dance better and keep your orientation.
  This way, you can response accordingly when he for example wants both hands all of a sudden. Also in turing technique, you need to "spot". Ask your instructors how to do it properly.

• Keep your weight at the ball part of your feet at all time. As a dancer, we were trained always to use the ball part of our feet to dance. This will make you dance better, and much less chance to hurt someone else especially when it's crowded on the dance floor. Like this, when you are "landing", your weight is already in the ball part of the foot and not on the heel. (Especially when you're wearing a high-heel.) And Ladies, keep you feet always LOW on the ground, don't go stepping around like walking on the heel or kicking it up in the air.

• You got to feel more and think less! Dancing is not like completing a project, it enquires no brain power but rather much more so - feeling. Listen to the music, feel what your partner is doing. No matter how much you try to guess and think what moves coming up next, you will never get it right, unless you can read his brain. He is the one who has to study, make decision, how and when to do what, that's why you need to feel more than think. Should you be confused with his lead, just make sure you keep your basis steps intact at all time!

• Since the only connection you have with him is through his hand. Your "hand-hold" technique obviously is very important. (It's hard to put these techniques down on writing!!) Ask your instructor how to do it properly. Having someone just to tell you, "you're too hard", "too soft" is not going to help you. (Anyone can make that commen, you don't have to be an instructor to do that!) Your instructor should be to be able to show you HOW to do it with an exsample, for instance.

• Many "entrance" of the figures and combinations are very similar which is why more so, you should concentrate more on your connection with him. Most the time you only connect with him through his hand (actually to be more accuate it's his finger), this is also why, you've to maintain your upper body "calm", so that you can feel and follow his leading direction at all time.

• Don't swing your arm all over the place, let him swing yours!! Many ladies think, "hands up" is just part of the styling, and they ended up doing it all the times. If you do this at the wrong moment, you might give your partner an "black eye" or your hands are simply in the way of the move. Good dancers "styling" in the appropriate moment and never conflicted with the guys leading. Ask your instructor with some standard rules, when and how.

• If a figure happens to be "nothing for you to do", don't just stand there; once again, make sure you keep your weight always on the "correct" foot at the "correct" time (meaning, your basis steps. R.L.R, L.R.L. not R.LRL or simply just stand there...) Therefore you're always prepare for the next move to come. Concentrate more at your basis steps and weight change techniques. This will help you become a better follower too!

Wish you all becoming a happy dancer. Let's Salsa, and salsa with passion! (to top)