Frequently Asked Questions and General Info
Do I have to sign up for a
course?
-
No, the classes are progressive, but there is no course to sign
up to. Come along on the weeks you can, but there is no penalty, and
you don't get left behind just because you can't come one week. Well,
other than you have missed a weeks tuition.
-
- Do I need to bring a partner?
-
No, the dancers are constantly rotated so that everyone gets to
dance with everyone else in their class. Come on your own or with a
friend, it really doesn't matter.
- What should I wear?
-
As you please. Some like to dress up a bit for the evening,
others just come in what they left work in. Jeans are ok and so are
full dance costumes. The majority settle for smart casual.
- Shoes, we do recommend that you wear something that will
'turn' on a dance floor. Trainers may have quite rubbery soles and
won't turn that well. The dance style does involve some turning -
leather soles work pretty well. However, there is no wrong footwear -
it's what you are comfy in.
-
- I have two left feet - is that
a problem?
-
We specialise in getting those with two left feet up to speed,
so who knows ;-)
- What time should I get there?
-
Aim for 7:45
General Information
There are a number of things about
the way that we operate, that despite our best efforts, we don’t always
remember to tell everyone (the regulars would get really bored hearing it
every week).
Salsa’s
origins are in Cuba when the big band sound of Glen Miller and Duke Ellington
etc. met with Cuban style ‘El
Son’. The merger of the two produced the early salsa sound. From there, it
travelled to other parts of the world where each area has added its own twist.
The dance is a street dance and in
the same way the music has been adapted by each region it reached, so has the
dance. LA, is different to New York is different to Cuban is different to UK.
In Horsham we tend to spend
more time dancing the Cuban style than any other.
Crew
The crew are easy to spot in their
black polo shirts with ‘Horsham Salsa’ on them. Their role is to support
the new dancers. Ask them to explain something you didn’t get in the lesson
or ask them for a dance. They won’t mind, it’s what they are there for.
Classes
These are intended to be fun. OK, you
will probably get sore legs and occasionally feel ‘cooked’ when you
can’t get something – don’t worry, we all have done and most of us still
do. It’s normal. Have a laugh and a joke. We teach in a group style, so we
request that you keep talking to a minimum so everyone can hear. If you are
unsure about something please ask your teacher. Individual help is available
after the class.
Rueda
This expression, Spanish for wheel,
is short for Rueda de Casino. In the 50s in Havana, a style of partner dance
developed where couples would dance in a circle and perform moves to a call.
It provided a very social form of dance. Imagine barn dancing or a celidah
meets Latin dancing.
The caller (one of the
dancers) calls out the name of a move and the dancers execute the move. Names
of the moves vary from area to area, but in the UK, there is a near consensus
for the moves names. The names are often playful and new moves are being made
up the whole time. The dance is also intended to be flirtatious. Ladies, look
as sexy as you can and expect to be checked out. Guys, if you can’t start to
add some embellishments and personal touches, don’t expect to impress the
ladies.
Callers also tend to have a
perverse sense of humour. Once the dancers seem to be getting going, they will
speed up the calls and the complexity to create a certain amount of
‘chaos’. Trust us, its most fun that way.
Joining in: Please try not to
encourage those who have never danced Rueda to join in. There is a time to
learn as we teach this at least once a month. It makes life difficult for the
new dancer if dragged in before they are ready and makes it harder for the
unsure dancers to be partnered with someone who doesn’t know the basics.
Music
We have a philosophy of keeping a
slow turn over of tunes so that you have a chance to get to know them.
However, if you are looking to become more familiar with the sounds of Salsa
(and Bachata and Merengue) we do a couple of short compilation CDs. They only
cost £5 (just enough to cover our costs). We don’t advocate copying CD’s
as the artists need to make a living, but they are intended to give you an
introduction to the sounds and some info on where to go to buy the full item.
Just ask whoever is on the decks.
Other music styles
Much
as we love Salsa at Horsham Salsa, we try to ensure that we also include:
Merengue
(quick two step) a classic latin dance, simple and fun as it is easy to get to
grips with.
Reggaeton
(Salsa meets Reggae) the style is a slower beat than Salsa. It tends to have a
distinct ‘bounce’ to the sound and is often danced on the spot with a bit
of ‘shaking’,
Bachata
( Four
step) very light sound and is danced VERY close with a distinct ‘wiggle’
on the fourth beat
Month
Pass or Loyalty Card
Reduce your costs! As we offer more than one class a
week, we run a scheme for those who really want to attend regularly. We have a
monthly pass that represents a significant saving over paying each week. For
details ask the crew.
The pass will also get you discounts at other Salsa
venues such as Babylon Lounge in Brighton and Afro Cuban Pati events in
London.
Workshops
For those who want to accelerate their progress, we
know of promoters who run workshops on different aspects of Salsa and the
other dance styles we cover. We are also looking into putting on some
workshops locally. If you are interested, let us know as it is early days and
we can tailor the workshops around what people want.
Holidays
We are investigating the possibility of holidays to
Cuba. We have the contacts; we are just waiting to build up the level of
interest to the point that it can happen. If interested, tell one of the crew.
