DJ Yuca
Son Montuno
Not in the UK. Many dancers couldn't care less about the music. If they even notice. Others have a preference, maybe even a strong preference, but it's really not a priority.
Hopefully by worldwide standards that's not the norm.
What would it take for salsa to have a revival?
- Thread starter rheemixed
- Start date
Not in the UK. Many dancers couldn't care less about the music. If they even notice. Others have a preference, maybe even a strong preference, but it's really not a priority.
Hopefully by worldwide standards that's not the norm.
Mambero75
Changui
I know plenty of amazing salsa dancers who also enjoy bachata, or zouk, or kiz. Doing that is never a good idea.
Perhaps people need to stop hating on other dance styles and get a life.
Saying "never" is (almost) never a good idea. Sometimes reduction suits better, sometimes not.
Hate is part of human life and will never stop. Btw do you hate people who are hating?
There is a big difference between disliking other dance styles and those dance styles being imposed on your dance space. Or those dance styles acting as parasites. Create your own independent scene than try to bleed some other scene. That is the point.
There is nothing wrong in disliking certain dances. Why should everything be a kumbaya. Personal preference is not hating. For example enjoying bachata is not same as having to listen and sit through a bachata song every second or third song at a social that is billed as salsa.
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Because $$$$.
Going back to what I was saying about promotors doing it for money.
And also, how many people there actually care about music, or dancing even
AMEN! I don’t care if ppl want to dance SBKZ. I do care that ‘salsa’ & ‘Latin’ socials are becoming less & less salsa & Latin. I am mad that if I go to a ‘latin’ night that says it plays ‘salsa’ I’ll hear only a couple of actual salsa tunes a night.
Also, trying to get a regular Salsa night going in the places I visit is such an uphill battle. We have to deal with lack of demand, school promoters not interested in promoting the dance, club owners shutting us down before we even get started, and yet we somehow have to “deal” with the rest of the dances taking up the time slots that Salsa would have otherwise occupied? No way. I can be as vocal as I want about not liking it.
And anyone who says “just start dancing Kizomba, Bachata or Zouk... you might like it you closed minded fool” have absolutely no clue what they’re talking about. If you love Salsa and only Salsa, then you should know that is not a viable option.
I will never support the BKZ scene and one way I can show my disapproval is by not attending them.
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DJ Yuca
Son Montuno
Dancing sensual bachata and kizz is your definition of getting a life? It's sure as hell not mine.
bailar y tocar
Son Montuno
Sums up this thread. I guess we can move on now.
Is there enough people you know that would come out if the weather is good, to a public spot (park, outdoor place with marble or smooth tiles) and put on a good playlist?
It doesn't always to be in a club it's better that it move away from the club culture, need to be creative about the space.
One of the best place I danced in was in the evening in the lobby of Brooklyn museum, it was free so maybe it is government supported or some sort of org, they had live bands even!
For Salsa? Not anymore. If only Salsa is played, interest is zero.
Actually, I can think of 2 girls. So that's 3 of us.
The problem is that if we invite more people, those people will only go if more dancers show up, but the way to attract more dancers is by playing more non Salsa. And we already have mixed outdoor events that attract large amounts of people.
We need someone to start a Salsa only school where people can gather and let the demand simmer for a bit.
It also has to be with completely new people too since the old guard of Salsa dancers swore allegiance to one school so they will not come out to Salsa events that isn't hosted by their school.
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RichNTacoma
Changui
People can dislike another dance or music style and have fantastic, rich and full lives. Your post is actually doing the hating (eg"get a life").. Not needed.
DJ Yuca
Son Montuno
Also, for some of us it has to be a school that actually plays salsa music at their events. Rather than timba, timbatón, reggaetón and an occasional Marc Anthony track, which is the music policy of many salsa schools. To be fair many schools that teach 'crossbody' also play music I find intolerable.
I think in many ways this is part of the problem. Schools teaching ‘salsa’ & promoting ‘salsa’ dance to music that mostly isn’t salsa. It’s resulted in whole scenes of ‘salsa’ dancers who have very little idea of what salsa music actually is.
I’m fine with Cuban classes and events playing timba, but less so when they call it ‘salsa’ & so people think timba is ‘salsa’ & then complain when DJs play actual salsa.
Maybe salsa could have a revival if DJ's stopped living in the past.
Sound like they are just putting themselves on a slow dead
Well this school is the only one that still has a regular monthly Salsa party and is currently the best running Salsa social in the country. So the owner basically has a monopoly on Salsa nights and controls how frequently she has this party and/or can always cancel it if the demand isn’t there (which has happened on numerous occasions). She also managed to poach all the influential Salsa dancers/Salsa DJ’s and now they all teach, DJ and promote for her exclusively.
All of my Salsa friends who went on to teach for her have told me “Don’t worry, we’ll promote and grow the Salsa scene from the inside”…. Meanwhile, they now teach Sensual Bachata and Cuban Salsa. Hahahaha…. They have just become slaves forced to do her bidding.
Giving any school that much power is not good for the scene. Our Salsa scene has shrunk in large part because of that.
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But then where do they get their new blood from? Won't people just drop out eventually if they can't dance
There is no new blood. The scene has been bled dry now for more than 4 years. We are relying on many foreigners (we have people driving over 5 hours to get to our Salsa party) and all of the experienced dancers we have left that are still active. Plus some of the Bachata/Kizomba dancers can also dance Salsa and sometimes show up to the parties. But our Salsa parties are never truly pure Salsa as we have Bachata in the next room and some of those dancers spill over to the Salsa room, further giving the illusion that we have many Salsa dancers.
bailar y tocar
Son Montuno
The thriving salsa scenes in the US where there still are events that play only salsa or play at most 1-2 bachatas per hour have a few things in common.
- There are dance schools that are focused on teaching kids salsa. Those kids end up on performance teams. Some of them (not all) become social dancers in salsa. Some of them (not all) move to other cities and dance salsa there........ OR......
- There are metros that have a constant influx of people from other regions for a variety of reasons. The weather is good. The pay is high. There are plenty of jobs available. The metro is growing. So more people want to move there. Rinse and repeat. Some of those people are salseras/salseros.
- People are moving away because the economy sucks - salsa scenes die out also. There is no way to stop that.
- The only people who go out dancing are younger 20 somethings looking to get hooked up. There are no older dancers because the events start too late. There are no young (underage) dancers because all events are tied to liquor sales.