Disclaimer: The following text is a filler, this page is still under construction and the text below is just intended to serve only as a space filler until this page is completed When I was little, dancing was a common part of life in Mexico. There had to be dancing at every party or social gathering. There was no written system. You would just feel the music, get up, and move to it. Nobody was paying attention to you in particular, or what beat you were dancing on. Dancing was just another everyday activity, another form of communicating with everyone else. To my surprise, when I immigrated to the US there was a form of organized dancing that just blew me away: elegant, sensual, flashy, performative, and rhythmical at the same time. It was so new to me and I wanted to learn it! I went to every class I could and studied different dancing styles. I tried to copy some, while at the same time, I tried creating my own style. After that I decided to study other dance disciplines as well, and other types of dance.

I wanted to know what makes a dancer a good dancer because I wanted to be a good dancer myself. You usually enjoy more the things you can do really well, so I decided to research popular salsa dancing. This meeting is a result of those studies. I will give you a brief explanation of the music, its evolution, and its structure; and I will show you the dance rhythms that are most common throughout the world, direction of movement, basic footwork, ideal posture, techniques for perfect partnering, and some basic figures.

This video is not intended to just show you some steps or patterns (there are plenty of videos out there that will do just that). The purpose of this video is to inform you of the structure of steps, to show you the whys and hows of the dance, and to give you a very detailed explanation of the popular dance that many people call " street dancing" which has a specific technique.

The term salsa has a wide variety of meanings. Of course, we use it everyday to refer to that spicy sauce made of fruits, vegetables, and chili peppers, used as a condiment. There are so many ingredients and so many different flavors. The same happens with Salsa music. It, too, has a wide variety of different rhythms: African, Caribbean, and Latin American traditional rhythms. Although the term "salsa" referring to music was originally used in New York merely as a marketing label, it was there in New York, where the rhythmical and musical melting pot helped pave the way for what we today call Salsa music. Today we also use the term "Salsa" to refer to a specific type of dance. There are many different styles of Salsa dancing. I would like to share with you my preferred style—Salsa Hollywood Style. I hope you enjoy it!

Intro cont’d

The information in this classis arranged in the form of building blocks. Every section builds on top of the previous one, which is why the dance figures appear at the end of the video. If you feel the urge to learn them right away, fast forward this tape to the last section and observe them. But if you'd like to study them in a more organized fashion, advance your learning curve, and get the most out of your learning experience, I suggest you be patient-I know it's hard- and build upon one section at a time. I assure you, you will learn how to dance. The purpose of this video is to help you remember these steps anywhere and get you dancing by the end of your study. I've created a symbology that will help you memorize patterns and simplify writing down any pattern.

Music

Musical Structure

In salsa, as well as many other musical genres, the main rhythmical and musical patterns are arranged in groups of 8 beats of music. Since the musical structure consists of 4 beats--or 4 quarter notes--per measure, or 4/4, we will then use two of those measures to get the 8 beats we need. The main rhythm patterns in salsa are also arranged in groups of 8 beats. They, as well, use two times those 4-beat measures or bars to complete their patterns. Let’s see some examples of this.

Rhythmical Patterns

Tumbao

First, listen to the congas. This pattern is called tumbao and it uses 8 beats of music.

tumbao is played on congas

Son Montuno

This next pattern is called Son Montuno. It is played on the piano and also uses 8 beats.

Montuno is played on the piano

Son Clave

This pattern is called son clave and it also uses 8 beats.

Clave is played on the claves

A very popular variation of clave is called reverse clave or 2/3 clave and it goes like this:

2/3 clave is played

As you can see all of these rhythmical patterns are enclosed within 8 beats of music. It doesn’t necessarily mean that are played on every beat. Some instruments, like the clave, are played only 5 times throughout the 8 beat pattern, but others like the congas, are played every half beat. What is important is that you become familiar with these patterns so you can identify the beginning of the pattern, the middle, and the end.

[In the next video I will talk more about these patterns.]

Importance of recognizing rhythmical patterns

Recognizing rhythmical patterns is important because we will also dance in patterns of 8 beats (using two bars of 4 beats each). Our goal is to start our dancing at the same time those rhythmical patterns start. (Patterns always start on beat one even if beat one starts with a silence like in the case of the 2/3 clave pattern). Otherwise you will just be moving on top of the music without any relation to the music.

Remember, I don’t want to just teach you some dance figures. I want to teach you how to use those figures within the music.

So the first thing we need to do is to identify when those patterns start. Let me again play you some rhythmical patterns. See if you can identify them.

Congas, piano, and claves play at the same time

Finding the "One"

If you clap to any type of music, you might—like the majority of people—clap on beats 1 3 5 and 7. Those are called the downbeats. Of those downbeats, the first beats of each bar are the ones that are usually accentuated, which are beats 1 and 5 of our 8 beat pattern.

Here comes the real test. Many people cannot differentiate between beat 1 and beat 5. To be able to differentiate between beat 1 of the first bar, and beat 1 of the second bar you will need to pay attention to the whole 8 beat pattern.

Remember that we are using two bars of music to get our 8 beats? Well the first bar is called the heavy bar (consisting of beats 1-4) and the second is called the soft bar (containing beats 5-8). The heavy bar is the bar that has more emphasis. The first beat in every group of 8 is the beat that is accentuated the most out of all beats throughout the whole song. Let’s listen...

Instrumental salsa played in the background

Once that you are able to identify the beginning of the musical pattern, you are ready to learn what to do next. It’s now time to add your own instrument to the band.

Dance rhythm

Your body, which is your instrument, is going to start "playing" on beat 1. Since we only have 8 beat dance patterns, if you start on beat one your patterns will always start at the beginning of the rhythmical pattern.

Although, other styles of dance might start on beat 2 or 5 or any other beat, it is still essential to identify the beginning of the rhythmical pattern, or beat 1.

Your instrument (your body) will play on beats 1 2 3 and 5 6 7. It is important to note that you will not play, or step, on beats 4 and 8. We will call this the Salsa dance rhythm.

You are going to use your instrument by stepping, which involves shifting your body weight to the foot you are stepping with, and not just tapping. This is very important because when you transfer weight completely you free the other foot to take the next step. Want an exercise? Try marching. This is a good example of body weight transfer. An example of not transferring your body weight? Try killing a cockroach with your foot, which involves a series of foot tapping without transferring body weight from one leg to the other.

Tip: Remember, now, that movement should start earlier than the beat you plan to execute it. Imagine that you need to step on beat one of the music, but you start your movement on beat one. By the time you actually step (intending for beat 1), you will probably step on beat 1.5 and as a result be late. In other words, prepare before the beat you want to step on so that you step at the right time.

So which foot should you use? Okay, here comes the first rule of this method. The leader will always step with his left foot on beat #1 and the follower will always step with her right foot on beat #1, always opposite to each other unless otherwise specified. After that, you simply alternate your feet on the steps that follow. Here is the basic footwork for the salsa rhythm. From now on, whenever I refer to beat #1, if you are the leader you know to start with your left foot, and if you are the follower you know to start with your right foot.

BEAT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Leader’s L R L R L R

foot

Follower’s R L R L R L

foot

First, practice this pattern in place. Second, try what I call "salsa walks" and walk around your house stepping this pattern. Count from one to eight and step with the appropriate foot every time. [I recommend leaders to memorize both parts. Trust me, it will help you a lot.]

Direction of movement

The direction of movement will depend on the figure you are doing. The different salsa styles around the world feature steps in 9 main directions.

With any step, you can:

a) step in place ?

b) step forward ?

c) step backward ?

d) step to the side <==?==>

e) step diagonal ???????

You can also mix directions and try creating your own combinations.

This is a chart of the 9 main directions based on the understanding that the arrow facing "up" means "to take a step forward" and the dot means "to take a step in place" without moving in any direction. Try stepping the salsa rhythm using each of the directions of movement. Try making combinations and creating your own style of dancing.

Remember to transfer weight every time you step or you will get confused.

? ? ?

<== ? ==>

? ? ?

Throughout the series, I will use symbols to make it easier for you to learn the steps. Here are 2 examples that use some of those symbols. You see the beat number (already knowing which foot to step with on this beat depending on whether you are a follower or leader). The color blue represents the leader and the color red represents the follower.

Example 1:

1 ?

??

This means that on beat 1 the leader takes a step forward (with his left foot) and the follower takes a step back (with her right foot).

Explanation: Since a leader knows that on beat 1 he always steps with his left foot, he will then interpret the blue arrow facing upward meaning to take a step forward with his left foot. Since a follower knows that on beat 1 of the salsa rhythm she always steps with her right foot, she will interpret the red arrow pointing down meaning to take a step back with her right foot.

Example 2:

2 ==>

?<==

This means that on beat 2 the leader takes a step to the right (with his right foot) and the follower takes a step to the left (with her left foot).

Explanation: Since the leader knows that on beat 2 of the salsa rhythm he always steps with his right foot, the arrow pointing to the right then instructs the leader to step with his right foot to the right. Since the follower knows that on beat 2 of the salsa rhythm she always steps with her left foot, the arrow pointing to the right then instructs the follower to step with her left foot to the left.

Don’t worry, this will make more sense as you go along and before you know it you will be creating your own combinations.

Symbols

Here is a list of the most common steps used in salsa and their corresponding symbols. The majority of figures or patterns will use one or two of these steps.

Symbols

? step forward

? step in place

? tap in place no weight change

? tap forward no weight change

? step forward extra long

?1 1 full left turn

?¾ ¾ left turn

?½ ½ left turn

?¼ ¼ left turn

? full left turn

?1 1 full right turn

?¾ ¾ right turn

?½ ½ right turn

?¼ ¼ right turn

? full right turn

? ? ?

<== ? ==>

? ? ?

Basic Steps

Now let’s learn some of the basics of salsa steps. In terms of direction, the follower usually mirrors the leader. This means (assuming that the follower and leader are facing each other) if the leader takes a step forward, the follower takes a step back. If the leader steps to his left, the follower steps to her right. However, and this is very important, if the leader does not lead any movement or direction, the follower steps in place. Remember, our salsa rhythm is 123 567 which means you step only 3 times every four beats, or 6 times every 8 beats, never transferring weight on the 4th or 8th beats. For now, don't worry about holds as you will learn them shortly. Try the basic without holds.

1 Basic Salsa Step

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

Explanation:

Leader Follower

1 L-forward R-back

2 R-in place L-in place

3 L-back R-forward

4

5 R-back L-forward

6 L-in place R-in place

7 R-forward L-backward

8

2 Side Basic

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

<== ? ==> ==> ? <==

==> ? <== <== ? ==>

3 Back break

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

4 Forward break

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

5 Cumbia

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

6 Cross basic

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ==> ? ? <== ?

? <== ? ? ==> ?

Turns

There are two main types of turns. Tip: Followers, remember that as you are *dancing with your partner, you must mirror his steps. Leaders and followers, don't forget to keep stepping and shifting weight to the proper foot on beats 123 and 567.

7 Natural Turns

One turn is called "natural turn" in which your body turns first and then your feet follow. As the name indicates, you turn as you naturally would when you are walking, running, etc.

Left turn

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ?¼ ?¼ ? ?½

?¼ ? ?½ ? ? ?¼

Right rumba

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ?½ ?½ ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ?½ ?½

Right salsa turn

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

?½ ?½ ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ?½ ?½ ?

8 Unnatural turns

Unnatural turns, like their name indicates, are unnatural by nature. This turn is opposite how you would turn in your regular motion. They start from the feet and then the body follows.

Hook Right

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ?½ ?½

? ?½ ?½ ? ? ?

Spiral Left

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? <== ?½ ?½

<== ?½ ?½ ? ? ?

These next two turns, the "hook left" and "spiral right", are even more complicated than the "hook right" and "spiral left". I recommend you skip them for now and return to them later when you are comfortable with the "hook right" and "spiral left" turns.

Hook Left

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ?½ ?½ ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ?½ ?½

Spiral Right

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

==> ?½ ?½ ? ? ?

? ? ? ==> ?½ ?½

Posture

Now that you know when and where to move, let's discuss how to move and what to look for in your posture. It is important to have good posture for two main reasons: 1) You want to look good, and 2) you want to have a healthy dance life. Exercising the wrong posture can hurt you in the long run.

Every dance develops a posture based on the needs of the dance. You can even tell the type of dance someone is dancing [,or what they might have in their background] by observing their posture. In salsa, it is important that you slightly lean forward which will help you keep your spine aligned and maintain your balance. Ideally, no matter what direction I am moving, my body is always slightly leaning forward. Try to position the center of your body a little bit in front of the center of your feet.

Place most of your weight on the balls of your feet which will make it easier for you to achieve good posture. It engages your muscles in the task of supporting your body instead of using just your bones. As a result, it will make you stronger, help keep your balance, and help you develop speed. Since the speed for salsa is getting faster and faster, you definitely want to use correct posture and start making good habits which will help you accelerate your speed. If you ski, skate, or practice any sport, you know that leaning forward helps keep your body stay balanced. At the moment you lean back you can easily fall.

Feet

If you'd like a more stylized position for your feet, I recommend you "turn out" your feet from the knees down. This is achieved by putting your heels together and pointing your left foot towards the number 11 of an imaginary clock on the floor and your right foot to 1, your heels being on the center of that clock.

Be careful that this turnout comes from the heels of your feet and not from the hips like in ballet or other dances.

Knees

For this style of dance, I suggest–especially for the ladies–that you keep your knees closed and facing forward, as is done in professional ballroom dance, which helps develop an elegant line. The knees should usually be kept straight until you are ready to move. However when you want to add some *style the bending of your legs will help you achieve this style.

Natural leg movement

Step with your knees straight, bending them just before you are going to take a step with your foot. If you land with a bent leg and straighten it before you step, it will give you a bouncy motion. Sometimes the bouncy motion might feel more musical with some styles of music, like cumbia for example. However, I suggest you learn to control your movements at will so that you can easily and smoothly switch from one style to another. Another variation is to keep your knees bent throughout the entire dance. Though it might help avoid the jumping effect, it requires more muscle strength.

Try all styles of leg and knee movement in front of the mirror and see which suits you best.

Natural hip movement

One of the first misconceptions of hip movement in Salsa is the belief that you have to move your hips. Many beginning dancers overemphasize this notion and just shake everything without much control. I am an advocate for a more natural approach on movement. It is interesting to note that the "Cuban hip motion" popular in ballroom dance does not exist in Cuba. The concept was intended for ballroom competitions and unless you are planning to compete in ballroom competition, I suggest that you give more attention towards obtaining a more natural hip movement. The real Cuban motion is a natural movement of the hips that happens when you transfer weight to your foot completely and let the weight sink in your hips. This is of course easier for women to achieve than men due to the nature of the hips in relation to the body structure.

Arms and hands

Pay special attention to your hand and arm placement. As you watch someone dance, your eyes are unconsciously attracted to the hands so it is a good idea to pay attention to your hands when you dance. A good rule to keep in mind is that as long as you are aware of where your hands are, you are fine. Try to keep them above your waistline if you don’t know what to do with them. A follower can place them on her hips or waist. Remember that people are looking at your hands. Whatever you do or don’t with your hands does get noticed so don’t forget them. Be creative, but be natural. If you notice a hand or arm movement that you like on someone else, mimic it because you like it and feel comfortable with it; not because everyone else is doing it. You can tell stories with your hands the same way you can express your feelings with them.

Partnering

You "hear" the music, know the basic rhythm in various directions, and are aware of the importance of posture for your dancing. Now, let’s focus on partnering.

Dancing with a partner involves more than just following the music. It requires that you dance in synchrony with the music and your partner. Many people take dance lessons only to find that they can practice what they’ve learned only with the people who take the same lesson(s) they did. Understanding fundamentals of partnering will help you execute the steps regardless of who you are dancing with.

"Can you hear me now?" You want me to do what?.. It’s really annoying to try to talk to someone without a good connection, isn’t it? It is the same with dancing. The better the connection, the better the communication. The fact that you can dance and hear the music doesn’t guarantee that you can communicate (well) with your partner. You have to make sure that you have a good connection with your partner. A good leader is one who can communicate his intentions while a good follower is one who understands her partner’s intentions and can execute them.

Holds

One of the ways to have good direct communication by establishing a good connection with you partner is by using one of the different types of holds. The following holds are the basic types.

Closed Position (CP)

Close position is the most common in Salsa. In close position, the leader defines frame for his partner. The follower responds with a similar frame. The leader’s left arm is placed open at the level of his partner’s chin level, as his right hand rests behind and under her shoulder blade. Both pairs of arms create a semi-circle. The leader should remember that he is leaning slightly forward thereby applying a little pressure towards his partner. The follower places and rests her right hand softly on the leader’s left hand. Her left hand softly rests on her partner’s right shoulder responding with the same pressure that her partner is applying.

Also, be aware of the tone of your arms. Your arms definitely shouldn’t be too stiff or too soft–which feels like noodle arms and makes partnering communication difficult.

Open Position (OH)

In open position, the leader holds his partner’s right hand with his left hand, and his partner’s left hand with his right hand. The hands should be held at her waist level in order to ensure that she receives the messages he sends.

Pointers for holds

The following tips apply to all holds.

Leaders

* No one should grip hands. It is the leader’s responsibility to provide a holding point, and the follower’s responsibility to hold on to that "hold". It is advised that leaders give special attention to the rule "Do not squeeze". Don’t squeeze your partner’s hands but gently hold her hands and allow her to do the same. Salsa requires a lot of fast movements so you don’t want to limit motion or speed, or hurt your partner, or yourself. If you squeeze your partner’s hand it will hurt you as well.

* Try to keep your fingers together even if the thumbs might be separate.

* Your hands should have a flexible, but firm, cupped shape which provides just enough friction to keep the connection.

* Don’t use fingers to keep the connection, but your entire hand.

* Your connection must have tone. If the connection is weak, the messages will not arrive at their destination on time.

Followers

* The connection should be mutual. If only one person attempts to exercise effective communication, the communication will then be weak.

* If you feel that the connection with your partner is rough, it is not necessarily his fault. A weak connection on the follower’s part may seem like a rough lead.

* Never, never clutch onto your partner’s hands or arms. Clutching will not only limit his mobility but also obstruct his lead.

Both

* Keep your elbows bent, and slightly out and in front of your body.

* Keep your arms parallel to the floor.

* Make sure you keep a straight line from elbow to elbow. Any bends in the way will cause a loss of energy and injury to the joints. The principle is simple: the less bends there are in the connection, the more information will pass freely to the other side.

Holds Variations

The cross hold (xh) is very similar to open position. The difference is that you will be holding hands right to right, and left to left (instead of right to left and left to right).

The following holds are self explanatory. The first letter represents which hand the leader should use and the second letter represents the follower’s hand.

L-R

The leader’s left hand holds the follower’s right hand.

R-L

The leader’s right hand holds the follower’s left hand.

R-R

The leader’s right hand holds the follower’s right hand.

L-L

The leader’s left hand holds the follower’s left hand.

So far we have 7 holds. Try doing the Salsa basic using each of the different holds. Practice *doing one or two basics in each position and try to switch to the next hold by beat 7 so that you are ready with that hold on beat 1.

Hold transitions

As a leader, when you switch from one hold to a different one, try gliding your hands under the follower’s hands. Avoid jumping abruptly from one hold to another. Rather, imagine that there is oil between your hands and hers, and glide your hands/arm under hers.

Always try keeping your hands and arms in a position that is natural and comfortable. Her hands should be facing down.

Compression and leverage

There are two main ways to obtain a connection and keep it active and alive by means of compression and leverage.

When the leader shifts body weight towards his partner and the follower reacts with the same amount of pressure, compression is created. Note that it is not created by pushing your partner’s hands towards your partner, but by shifting body weight towards each other. The feeling is a "push" feeling. Be careful not to allow your elbows to bend backwards or behind your back in order to create this connection. Your elbows should never extend behind your back.

When the leader shifts body weight away from his partner and the follower reacts with the same motion, then the same amount of pressure, leverage is created. Note that it is not created by pulling your arms. In both cases, it is the body weight shifting that creates leverage. This type of connection gives you a "pull" feeling. Be careful not to let your arms extend in front of your body or loosen up.

Remember, the arms are just a means of connection and not the final destination for your messages. If you don’t maintain tone and positioning of the arms, they will absorb the messages and the messages will not reach their final destination.

Pointers for the leaders

* Every point at which you and your partner touch becomes a potential point of connection as long as the proper energy and body tone is applied. You can use any available point of connection to transmit information.

* First establish the connection, and then lead.

* It is the leader’s responsibility to communicate his intentions clearly.

* Less is more. Avoid unnecessary arm movements which might confuse your partner.

* Don’t focus on leading your partner. Try, instead, to ensure that you have a good connection and lead those points of connection.

* Don’t think that you are leading your partner, rather, ensure you have a good connection and lead the points of connection, lead yourself. If you have good connection your partner will have no other option than to follow.

* Leaders should learn the follower’s steps and you will be able to lead your partner into doing exactly what she is supposed to do. If you don’t know exactly what she is supposed to do, how do you expect her to know?

* Remember that you should not lead with words. If you are verbally telling your partner what she is supposed to do, then you are not using your main tools of communication on the dance floor.

Pointers for the followers

1. It is the follower’s responsibility to follow her partner’s intentions, to re-act to his lead. (Re- acting implies that there is an action which is followed by the re-action). If you execute an action before your partner leads one, then you are guessing what he is going to do and not following what he does do.

3. If he doesn’t lead the steps, do not execute them.

4. React with the same amount of energy your leader has, at the same time opposing his direction. If he pushes you, you should push (him) with the same amount of energy. It is the same with pulling.

5. Establish the connection and then follow, don’t be confused. If you feel he is applying pressure wait and don’t move yet. Perhaps he is not trying to lead the first step yet but rather is just trying to establish a connection. Create the connection first and then follow.

6. Align your body in front of your partner and duplicate the position of the connection, unless he purposely places you in a different position.

Line of dance

It is customary in dance clubs to dance in linear direction as opposed to a circular direction. When practicing, a couple should try dancing in linear direction. If you need to switch positions, make sure you keep the same orientation. This helps to avoid colliding with other couples on the dance floor and develops a good sense of direction.

Figures

We’ve finally arrived at the basic figures and at this point you must be an expert dancer. After having covered all the previous material, everything from this point on will be easy stuff.] The following patterns comprise 90 percent of steps performed in the dance clubs. Once you memorize them and play with the variations, you can create your own steps.

Pointers

Leaders should anticipate beats. Though I will tell you which beat the steps are performed on, the information really reads on what beat the steps are completed.

Basic: Closed Position

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

Variations: All 7 basic holds

Advanced Basic: Closed Position

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

Variations: All 7 basic holds

Side Basic: Closed Position

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

<== ? ==> ==> ? <==

==> ? <== <== ? ==>

Variations: All 7 basic holds

Cross Basic: Closed Position

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ==> ? ? <== ?

? <== ? ? ==> ?

Variations: All 7 basic holds

Cumbia Basic: Closed Position

Push on 1 and 5, pull on 3 and 7.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

Variations: All 7 basic holds

Open break (OB): Open Position

Push on 1 and 5,pull on 3 and 7.

Explain open break concept

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ? ? ?

? ? ? ? ? ?

Variations: L-R R-R R-L XH OP

Cross body Lead (XBL): Closed Position

Explain XBL concept. Closed position

On an/a XBL we switch places. This happens by opening a slot for the follower on beat 3. The follower should step forward on beat 5 on an/a XBL (always stepping forward on 5 as a general rule for the follower) and the movement should be done on a straight line.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ?¼ ? ?¼ ?

? ? ? ? ?½ ?

Variations: All 7 holds

Under arm turn: Open Position

Leaders: OB on 1 and let go of the right hand on 3. Lead a turn with your leading hand in place and around your partner’s head–ideally in front of her face. Do a side basic on beat 5

Followers: Take a longer step forward on beat 3 and turn half a turn towards the right on beat 5, half a turn to the right on beat 6, then step forward to close your feet on beat 7. Lock your arm in front of your face on beat 4 and keep your hand just above your head. Be careful not to push up your arm or grip your partner’s hand.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ==> ? <==

? ? ? ?½ ?½ ?

Variations : L-R R-R R-L XH OH

Man’s Under Arm Turn

L-R. Keep your arm close to your partner. Do not duck down when going under the arm but stretch your arm and walk under it comfortably.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ?¼ ?¼ ? ?½

? ? ? ? ? ?

Hammerlock: Open Position

Leaders: Do an underarm turn lifting your left hand on beat 3, and don’t leg go of the hands on beats 5 6 7.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ==> ? <==

? ? ? ?½ ?½ ?

Side Pass

L-R

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ?¼ ?¼ <== ?

? ?¼ ?¼ ? ? ?

Variations: L-R R-R R-L XH OH

Sweet heart left: Open Hold

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ? ?¼ ?¼ ?

? ? ? ?½ ?½ ?

Sweet heart right

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

? ? ?¼ ?¼ <== ?

? ? ?¼ ?¼ ?¼ ?¼

All the figures that you’ve just learned make up the basic components of the majority of the dance steps. In video number 2, I will cover advanced variations. Try these figures with all the different holds you’ve learned and with all the basic steps. As a result, you can end up with over 50 different figure variations! Watch them in the final dance sequence.

Conclusion

We have covered the fundamentals of dancing. The goals of this video are that you can identify the rhythmical patterns of the music, develop a good posture, learn the basic footwork, create a good connection which in turn makes it easy to lead and follow, and learn the basic fundamental figures of salsa dancing.

Congratulations! You’ve made it through the end of this video. I recommend you rewind to the beginning of the tape and start all over again until you wear out the tape. Remember, it’s not practice that makes you good, it’s practicing the good things that makes you good. So go dancing as often as you can. Try to practice only one thing at a time until you master it and then move on to the next thing. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Learning something new requires patience, so be patient with yourself and with others—they might be in the same stage you are (or lower). Also, remember that it is more enjoyable to dance with someone who dances on time than someone who might have a lot of foot patterns or shines but no rhythmical sense. Don’t forget, social dancing is to socialize, not to compete. Competition dancing is to compete. Performative dance is to perform. Pick the kind of dance that you want or try all of them. But don’t forget the fun of dancing.