Dancers: Which Salsa/Mambo Dancers Should I Interview?
- Thread starter El Caobo
- Start date
Jag75
Son Montuno
Ones I can think of are - Magna Gopal, Super Mario, Oliver Pineda, Luda Kroitor, Sharon Pakir (Melb Aus), Ismael Otero, Johnny Vazquez, Shaka Brown, Anna & Joel Masacote, Leon Rose, Susana Montero, Edie, Alex Da Silva, Al Liquid Silver, Yvonne Goldsmith (Aus), and Czaba & Vali (Aus)
All those named werent even born in the days of " Mambo "..... heres a guy who has been teaching in Philly ( as did I ) since the 50s.. great dancer and teacher.. has his own school ,still, I believe... Don Celia.. there are others around if you want the REAL thing ( as in Mambo ) .
Big10
Son
Most of those dancers (especially the ones based in the United States), seem to be interviewed ALL the time.
It might be interesting to talk to some dancers who are well-respected and prominent in their local scenes but perhaps not as well known nationally or internationally. If you want to go the "lesser known" route, you could send me a PM and I'll give you some names from Texas.
If you want to stick with retreads, I mean "big names"
, then some extra names for the list could be Eddie Torres, Frankie Martinez, Lori Perez, the Giraldo brothers (Salsa y Control), the Cobo brothers, Griselle Ponce, Mario B, Troy Anthony, Henry Herrera, Liz Lira, Rogelio Moreno, Edwin Rivera, Juan Matos, Nancy Ortiz, Josie Neglia, Juan Calderon, Gordon Neil, Orville Small, etc.Most of those dancers (especially the ones based in the United States), seem to be interviewed ALL the time.
It might be interesting to talk to some dancers who are well-respected and prominent in their local scenes but perhaps not as well known nationally or internationally.
.
I,m so with you on this one.. majority ( if not ALL ) of the names proffered have little idea what original Mambo specifically , was like, from an every day usage ( how could they? ).. there are still some amazing old timers around..2 more come to mind.. in L.A. . Natalia ( T.P. included her name in a song ) and Jan Bryson.. both are teachers AND dancers since the 50s and I believe are still in L.A... Jan taught at Virginias, the top latin club in LA for many yrs.... and whilst he is doing this, it should include Pachanga..
I hope this is not turning into a " Fave " dancer thing.. hope it revolves about knowledge of the past..
...
shaka
Changui
Perhaps you could talk to Barbara Craddock, Cuban Pete's (QEPD) dance partner for longer than I've been alive. She's still active, giving workshops and talks around the scene.
One of the less exciting things about common interviews is that they ask the exact same questions (I actually end up copy and pasting a lot of my responses from the website in interviews that I do), they tend to be a bit boring after a while.
What might create more interest is to have an interview that gets more into the meat of a dancer's mind, opinions about more controversial issues, topics that are more exciting than how long they have been dancing and where they learned.
Welcome to SF Shaka. Good to have you on board. 
Please interview Susana Montero, El Caobo. It would be great to hear about how she does what she does, what fuels her passion and all of that. Another person who would make a very interesting interviewee, imho, would be a guy called Special Tee. Either one of those two.
Please interview Susana Montero, El Caobo. It would be great to hear about how she does what she does, what fuels her passion and all of that. Another person who would make a very interesting interviewee, imho, would be a guy called Special Tee. Either one of those two.
Joy in Motion
Changui
Amen! I am with Big10, Terence, and Shaka. Sadly I think that the usual suspects are always in demand and are likely to have a big audience, but I think suggestions from these three are right on if you want to provide a truly unique perspective that we don't get to hear very often. And I believe it will be more enriching and meaningful to dancers who want the real thing and not just some marketing.
shaka
Changui
Welcome to SF Shaka. Good to have you on board.
Please interview Susana Montero, El Caobo. It would be great to hear about how she does what she does, what fuels her passion and all of that. Another person who would make a very interesting interviewee, imho, would be a guy called Special Tee. Either one of those two.
Appreciated Flujo. Susana has been instrumental in the Salsa scene, in the UK and beyond. She's a great personality, teaches brilliantly, is a star on stage,a fun lady to dance with socially, and has that Spanish-British wit combination that makes her fun to be around. Would be great to hear what makes her tick.
Big10
Son
Out of curiosity (and perhaps for El Caobo's benefit whenever he does the actual interviews), what particular questions would you like to be asked or what subjects would you want to discuss that rarely get brought up?
Also, on what "controversial issues" would you like to hear input from prominent dancers? (Other than On1 vs. On2, of course....
)If you want to give your own input on controversial issues, I'm certain we'd be happy to see that here on SalsaForums, too.
El Caobo
Son Montuno
Wow! I see that I have a lot to choose from! Excellent! I'll start working on setting up the interviews.
Thanks!
By the way, I already interviewed Magna Gopal!
PielCanela
Changui
the REAL thing ahh fighting words terence!!! prepare for battle!! I am indigo montoya you kil......
I believe this "real dancers" as you put, are as real as typewriters are to computers. The new dancers and their craft are just as real and by definition more relevant that ones who once where. I am not belittling their contribution, but I got into dancing because I watched, Frankie, Jearue , Shaka, Manga, etc dance, not because of Patricio, Paquito or Papito fast feet.
I will push this even further, I am unable to understand the fascination of the palladium days, the 50s. The idea that some how those dancers where better, is in my opinion a fallacy. I seen the clips, and i don't feel at any given moment that I would like to dance like they did.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wzkELAaXPI (0:38 - 1:18 )
The above clip would have never got me on a dance floor. I take my real dancers any time of the day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BaKaXskVGM
Caobo, look, now you have a topic to discuss in your program, the old and the new in salsa
. okay to go with the post theme:
Interview people from abroad too, Korea/Japan/Canada/Mexico/India. And as Shaka said, for the well known dancers, some more substance questions, the how long, how did you got into dance, questions have been beaten to dead
As much as I'd love to hear it, I don't hold my breath for the celebrities giving contraversial answers to contraversial questions on air But you can try - you might get a PC answer that is still interesting (or not).
But you can try - you might get a PC answer that is still interesting (or not).
Joy in Motion
Changui
the REAL thing ahh fighting words terence!!! prepare for battle!! I am indigo montoya you kil......
I believe this "real dancers" as you put, are as real as typewriters are to computers. The new dancers and their craft are just as real and by definition more relevant that ones who once where. I am not belittling their contribution, but I got into dancing because I watched, Frankie, Jearue , Shaka, Manga, etc dance, not because of Patricio, Paquito or Papito fast feet.
I will push this even further, I am unable to understand the fascination of the palladium days, the 50s. The idea that some how those dancers where better, is in my opinion a fallacy. I seen the clips, and i don't feel at any given moment that I would like to dance like they did.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wzkELAaXPI (0:38 - 1:18)
The above clip would have never got me on a dance floor. I take my real dancers any time of the day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BaKaXskVGM
Caobo, look, now you have a topic to discuss in your program, the old and the new in salsa
okay to go with the post theme:
Interview people from abroad too, Korea/Japan/Canada/Mexico/India. And as Shaka said, for the well known dancers, some more substance questions, the how long, how did you got into dance, questions have been beaten to dead
I can't speak for Terence, but as for me I don't think it's a question of who is a better dancer. I do think though that some of the dancers/instructors who have been around since the 50s have seen the dance develop over a long period of time and have a broader perspective of the dance and the music, how it has changed and how it has stayed the same. They may also have more maturity when it comes to certain questions and can provide a perspective that we may not find with younger dancers and instructors who have not been around very long. I agree with what Terence said in an interview that was posted to Salsa Forums recently, that often we focus on a very small group of people and think they have all the interesting thoughts when it comes to the dance. But I tend to find the people at the top are there for a reason: they know how to market themselves. Not that they don't give genuine thoughts on a topic, but I think there are others who are not superstars who have a deep love and appreciation of the dance as well and perhaps can teach us more than someone who constantly needs to package things a certain way so they will stay in demand. Again, this is nothing against "the usual suspects" (as I like to call them); I am just saying that there is so much out there, and I think one of the biggest problems with the dance world is that it has become about emulating a few "stars" instead of developing your own style through a true understanding and appreciation of the music, body awareness, partner connection, etc. Perhaps the nature of the beast; I don't think it's the fault of the "stars" but maybe it's just that we need to be looking for more depth and more variety instead of constantly looking at the same few over and over for some magic secret.
Jag75
Son Montuno
I believe the younger generation of dancers have just as much appreciation and understanding of the dance and music that the older generations have. The dance at it's core has not changed - good dancers still have an appreciation and understanding of the clave, don't forget a huge proportion have learned from Eddie Torres himself, and there are thousands if not tens of thousands around the World who have either directly or indirectly adopted his teaching and methods, and have inherited his love of the dance and music. I am one of them, and regularly practice his shines, am trying to master them, and have a profound feel for the clave that I incorporate in my footwork. I do believe I feel the music just as passionately as anyone from any era, and I believe that there are a huge number of modern "stars" who feel the same way and have the same passion.
So in summary - neither the older generation or the newer generation are more "real" or better imho.
So in summary - neither the older generation or the newer generation are more "real" or better imho.
I would be interested in what both generations have to say - be it about the history, the music, the development of a personal style, the implications of being a "celebrity", the business aspects, whatever is interesting for them to talk about would probably be interesting to listen to. It is probably the most difficult thing as an interviewer to find the topic the interviewee is passionate about and dig there.
Joy in Motion
Changui
AguaDulce just posted a link to a preview of a salsa documentary called Politics of Rhythm. There are some sound bytes in there that made me think of what we've been discussing. Worth checking out. Also worthwhile is Leonardo Padura Fuentes' Faces of Salsa: A Spoken History of the Music which talks quite a bit about the balance between a "salsa with a conscience" and commercialized salsa (more in the context of the music but also has implications for the dance as well).
Welcome to SF Shaka. Good to have you on board.
Please interview Susana Montero, El Caobo. It would be great to hear about how she does what she does, what fuels her passion and all of that. Another person who would make a very interesting interviewee, imho, would be a guy called Special Tee. Either one of those two.
I think she has been interviewed on many occasions