I urge you( and others ) to go to Salsa Forums and look at the Vid sections article on sabor. Theres a dance clip there from NYC..If you really want to know what this genre was ( and still is in some cases ) all about ,you wont find a better e.g. And, its why I LUV Cuban Son( this clip is not that but exemplifies your point ). I should add.. Im not against variety in dance , and how people choose to use it,IF its in musical context . As to your 1st para......... thats" de riguer" ( unfortunately )
How does a 'douche' dress, in the context of dancing salsa? I'm curious as to what you have in mind, because I can see that going several different ways, i.e. too formal vs. too informal.
Congrats on your return!!! As an instructor, it drives me nuts when people are not welcoming or exclude others. I wish everybody would could enjoy dancing on the same level. Even as an instructor, I've always been an outsider...but more so on my own terms. Unlike many seasoned dancers who only dance with the best, I make it a point to dance with everybody. This keeps me out of circles and clicks. Also, since I try not to approach the same woman twice, that means if someone really enjoys dancing with me the first time, it's up to them to make the effort to come up for the 2nd dance. What this does for me is it shows me which people I want to surround myself with. Once I find my people, those are the ones I ask for more dances. I went through a phase one time that I think most dancers go through where certain songs pulled the "snob strings" a bit where I wanted to find the best dancer and just throw down, but now I've realized that I would prefer to dance those songs with someone whom I connect more with than a really great dancer. So dance with everybody, get to know more people....maybe get to know them outside of dance. One you are around the right people, you will be back and better than ever. Note: This applies to social life in general. I could be at the crappiest event, bar, party.....but when you are in great company, none of that matters. I hope this helps Austin. And Happy Holidays.
Ahhh.... I wish I had someone like you to dance with . Thanks for the advice and yes it seems pretty accurate from my observation as well. I did try going to a few dancing lessons at my local University campus and meeting people there. I enjoyed it every week when we had it (once a week) but by the time I got to it every week, I found bits and parts were starting to fade as I haven't practised it enough.. I also saw the difference between how happy a gal was when she was learning with me and with someone more experienced. You could see a frown turn to smile But I also improved and there was less frowns later on I also went to a dance ballroom where they host they latin dances and was surprised to see how it was kind of better to find some of the older people more interested and open to dancing with others. Because I was still sooo green and knew no one, I froze . But I know what you mean by it being a meat market as some of the ladies can really dress and move. One gal was stuck in my head for months with the way she moved in her heels, so with that said, It does make a difference how you dress. You're right, some of the other guys there dressed like the usual, jeans and T- shirt, uff. Thanks and Hope to keep in touch. All the best to you in the New Year Lee N
Thanks it does help. Especially the social aspects of life. One point you made, "but now I've realized that I would prefer to dance those songs with someone whom I connect more with than a really great dancer" really struck out at me when I attended a dance ball room to widen my scope. I noticed the difference between a couple who really knew how to do bachata and ones who were just having a dance. The ones who were really into it, moved like they were meant to be connecting soul, and that stood out to me for ....even up to til now Thanks for the positive feed back and energy. Happy Holidays and a wishful hopeful new year to you as well Lee N
Hi Austin, I guess it's like a mirror sort of in that you take in what you give out. but sometimes that mirror is a bit murky and has nothing to do with you because of some bad eggs with egotism problems. when I first started salsa there were a bunch of snobs who took things so seriously and ruin it for the new people. I figure it has something to do with the type of crowd and venue and the types of characters it attacts. I began to realise that hanging out with the best teachers from the biggest schools and some of the snobs wasn't a happy environment, So i started hanging out with smaller schools and geniune people. Now I have a whole heap of geniune friends that make up for all the snobbery. You just gotta persist through and find the diamonds within the soot.
Beginner guys go through a stage I call the salsa limbo. A kind of purgatory defined by the catch-22 situation: girls like to dance with guys who are good, but in order to get good in the first place a newbie guy needs to get dances. A lot of attrition in this stage, guys drop out like flies especially without the support of their own dance classmates.
