Setenta con Alarde is sometimes just called Setenta. Some instructors prefer to use it as the very first figure they teach because it is slightly easier than the real Setenta. The Alarde can be done to Lead or to Follow. Since Setenta is three counts of eight and Setenta con Alarde only two counts of eight, the variation can come
Read moreSetenta, meaning “70” in Spanish, is most likely the first real move you learn in Cuban Salsa. For that reason it is considered beginners level, but you could just as well call it intermediate. It really is one of the signature moves of Cuban Salsa, likely to be called in any Rueda de Casino, and very many Leads even at
Read moreThe big Setenta family of turn patterns starts with the Hammerlock move, and for that reason the family could just as well have been called the Hammerlock family. The Hammerlock is part of many dance styles, and in Cuban Salsa there are two equally good but very different ways to do it: 1) the right turn way, and 2) the
Read moreVacilala steps are the signature steps of Cuban Salsa. The basic hand free Vacilala move is the favorite move of many salsa dancers. In almost every social dance, Vacilala is used at least one or two time as the most elegant way to get into free style mode. Hand held Vacilala is used as the beginning of more than 100
Read moreGiro just means turn and the term is often used with that broad meaning. But sometimes Giro is used for a subset of turns or incremental turning. So pay attention. There is no consistent use of the term Giro in Cuban Salsa but it ought to be used with a special meaning. We have turning in the form of Vacilala
Read moreThe Lead, poor fellow, never ever experiences any other dance than his own. The Follow on the other hand dances a new dance with each and every single Lead she dances with. If we want to define a social dance like Cuban Salsa, just ask the Follows. Cuban Salsa can be defined as the collective experience of the Follows, of
Read moreIf salsa dancing is going to be more than a secret pleasure for the few outside the Latino world, it really must be better grounded also in the local culture. If we love salsa dancing so much that we want it to become mainstream culture, it must be rooted in ourselves. If we want salsa dancing to become for all
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