London Salsa: Salsa Clubs, Salsa Classes, Salsa Events in London

The Best of London Salsa Classes, Salsa Clubs, Salsa Events in London & the UK
Founder of the Official Fan Club for Latin Music & London’s Carnival de Cuba

We would like to apologise for any weird stuff you are experiencing currently as we are re-launching the site. Weird stuff off-site is your own affair.
Editor: 07979 280 283 editor@londonsalsascene.co.uk

ESPIRITU del CORAZON


	Meeting the Gods of the Dance


	For most dance lovers, re-connecting to the spiritual roots of the dance is simply impossible. Not so for Salsa dancers. We stand a fighting chance of being able to work with instructors whose creative inspiration comes directly from an intact, vital and vibrant spiritual tradition.

Born in Cuba, Salsa is a product of the melding of the traditions of African slaves, the Spanish ruling class with the indigenous Carib Indians. Strictly speaking, Salsa isn’t a dance genre at all, it’s a spicy Cuban stew, mixing up Son, Rumba, Mambo, a whole bunch of Afro-Cuban rhythms. Now popular across the globe, the dish that is Salsa takes on a different sabor or flavour wherever it is served, whether it’s LA, New York, London or Tokyo.
However many times the recipe gets re-written and however many new ingredients get added, the authentic flavour comes through. These rhythms, ever present in all Afro-Cuban music and dance genres, are the

Gods and Goddesses of the Santaria, the Cuban spiritual tradition.
Today, these traditions are as alive and important as ever to the Cubans. It is this cultural richness that attracts many of us Brits to the Latin lifestyle – and powers the current wave of interest in Cuban style Salsa. Cuban-style Salsa is about dancing, not moves; dancing with your partner, not showing off; about the music, not executing pre-packaged sequences of moves; about fun, not competition.
Whether we non-Cubans know it or not, we’re still worshipping the Cuban Gods and Goddesses when we dance.
Lee Knights, Editor
London Salsa Scene


	For more on Cuban-style Salsa in the UK or authentic dance holidays in Cuba, contact Kerry Ribchester on 077767313168 or visit www.key2cuba.com With huge thanks to Kerry and Ildoylidia Ramos for a fantastic weekend workshop.




	“Cuban-style Salsa is about dancing, not moves; dancing with a partner, not showing off; fun, not competition.”

Espiritu del Corazon


	Revolution on the Dancefloor:

is LA Style on the Way Out?

Something’s happening on the Salsa scene...there’s a lot of Salsa lovers out there who want to get back to their Cuban roots and clubs and classes teaching traditional-style Salsa are springing up everywhere. After years as top banana, maybe LA style is on the way out and we’re starting to yearn for the hot chilli pepper flava of traditional Salsa Casino and Rueda.

For those of us who’ve grown up with LA style, the resurgence of Cuban style is a challenge. Having gone through the fire of learning one style of Salsa, the prospect of starting again can be daunting. Sound a familiar crie de coeur to anybody???
But...this is a real opportunity to learn about Salsa from the roots up. Salsa is a grounded, earthy and spiritual dance. If we are ignorant about its origins, how can we really claim Salsa is our passion and bring our own unique flava to the dancefloor? Lee, Editor,
www.londonsalsascene.info


	Coming soon: Get Back to your Roots with Kerry Ribchester, one of the UK’s leading authorities on traditional Cuban-style Salsa. We want to know what you think - are you up for joining the Cuban revolution or not? Email us at: editor@londonsalsascene.info (Above: Cuban musicians, inspired by the Orishas).

AUGUST 2005 COMPETITION


	The Melody has Ended but the


	Son Lingers On…

	WIN A SIERRA: (NOT)!! The Cubans say if you don’t know Son, you don’t know Salsa. When you listen to Sierra Maestra, you start to understand what they’re talking about. This is a band with all the depth of sabor of a fine old Cuban rum; smooth, with a bitter sadness and a fiery afterburn.

	This is the time to catch up with Cuba’s leading Son group. They’ve just released a new album - Son: Soul of A Nation - and are about to kick off on a UK tour. There are gigs coming up in London - Pizza Express on Monday and Tuesday 8-9 August www.pizzaexpress.com/jazz and Komedia in Brighton on Wednesday, 10 Augustwww.komedia.co.uk Playing in the old-style son line-up:tres, guitar, trumpet, bongo, guïro, maracas and four-part harmony vocals, Sierra
			Maestra has dominated the Cuban music scene for 25 years and are largely responsible for the style’s revival. Their latest release is a history of Son, from its early days, through the additions of brass, trumpet and piano to the big band and modern Son sound. This album, recorded in Havana, is set to become a classic and reintroduce Son to a new generation. Sierra Maestra’s gig at Conga Club, Infernos on Friday 12 is cancelled www.thecongaclub.com

WIN A SIERRA!
Not a car you fool! We have four copies of Sierra Mastra’s new album to give away in our August Competition! All you have to do to win one is send a star email to editor@londonsalsascene.info and tell us your views about THIS WEBSITE and/or what you’d like to see us cover here in future. Emails we judge the best win a CD! Entries to be received by 10 August.


*Espiritu del Corazon*
	Latin Music - Not a Matter of Life and Death, Much More Important

Right now in the UK, we have access to some of the greatest Latin bands on earth, either in the flesh, or via their albums. So, we’ve got a review of Van Van’s latest release, Chapeando, a report on the recent gig in London by NY’s finest, Spanish Harlem Orchestra (SHO) and we’re tipping Sierra Maestra’s (see below) performance on 4 November with a spicy, must see 5-chilli rating (see our news pages for a review of SM’s latest album and diary under that date for details).


	This should all be big news both on the London and UK Salsa scene. But it’s not. Typically, as dancers, we don't buy enough music or know much about the music we dance to or the musicians who make it. Many of us couldn’t name more than a couple of Salsa bands or even the performers or titles of our

favourite dancefloor tracks.
What’s worst, there aren't enough of us putting our hands in our pockets and turning out in big numbers at live gigs. While SHO performed to a good crowd at the Islington Academy last week, the same audience would have been drowned on the grand scale of the Coronet. We’re supposed to be passionate about Salsa music and dance and we can’t be bothered to support a major live gig like this. Consequently, we’re at risk of the best bands around bypassing the UK because there isn't sufficient support for Latin music here and of failing to grow and support UK based Latin-inspired bands.
Maybe for some of us too the dance is about executing moves rather than interpreting or feeling the music. I’ve been at night-clubs where I thought that if the DJ and his kit got mysteriously zapped by aliens, Salseros would carry on wheeling out the same old routines. In other words, that palpable, funny, sharp, feeling connection between the dancer and the music - and incidentally, between the Salsero and his partner - is often missing on the dancefloor. This kind of clinical detachment between the dancer and the music rips the heart and soul out of the dance.

Music is the inspiration for the dance we are all passionate about; if we’re not interpreting the music, feeling the music when we dance, connecting to our partner through the music, what we are doing on the dancefloor?
Music is king; without music, there is no dance. Without insight, knowledge and understanding of Latin music, our dance becomes mechanical, boring, robotic and soulless; with these, the dance becomes inspired, we have sabor, we find complete creative self expression. That’s why we write about it, why we consider music and musicians to be newsworthy, to be worthy of posting centre-stage on influential Salsa chatrooms as items for discussion, debate and excitement - and one of the main reasons we set up this website. Bill Shankley got it right for football – he was wholehearted about the game he loved. Now, we as dancers have got to get it right for what we love - Latin music and dance. Editor

*Best of London Salsa: Elder Sanchez*

	SALSA’S BIG LIE

	*There is a big lie going on on the salsa scene. The big lie is that people believe when they move their bodies, their feet and their hands they’re dancing, writes Elder Sanchez.*


			*Elder Sanchez - Save Our Salsa, Drink Before you Dance.*

		I think it’s our mistake - I mean all of us as teachers – because we’ve taught people in Europe to dance using their feet and hands first before we’ve taught people how move their bodies. We’ve created movers not dancers who dance rhythmically to music. I’ve got nothing against New York style, but it requires a lot of big moves and takes a lot of space. People watch performers dancing on stage and they think these are the best dancers and they want to copy them. But it’s not possible to reproduce this style on the social dance floor. You can’t dance in the same way on the social dance floor. What performers do on a stage is rehearsed 100 times to get it right – you can’t do that in social dancing and you can’t use the space amount of space. The result is social dancers in Europe want big dance floors – but they aren’t listening to the music when they dance. They move to the music, make moves they know to the music – but moving to music is not the same as dancing to music. This makes social dancing too technical, too mechanical. This problem has created the problem of poor bar takings. People think they’ve got to learn everything 120 per cent and not make mistakes so they’ve got to be sober 120 per cent. These technical moves can’t be reproduced if you drink. So nobody drinks, everybody drinks tap water and you need vast spaces to perform moves. This isn’t salsa. Salsa is a social dance. It’s about having fun. It’s not about shows and competition. Salsa as a social dance for fun is not the same as salsa as performance or in a competition. These are totally different things. *Elder Sanchez, Founder and Managing Director Salsoteca Dance School - Posted Thursday 11 May 2006*

Best of London Salsa: Pontins November 06


	Three times World Salsa Champions Salomon and Sandra Rivera (US) and the UK’s own Miguel de Puerto Rico (UKA Champion) head the international line-up at Pontin’s Salsa and Jive Weekender - Latin Explosion 4 - at Brean Sands Resort, Somerset on Friday 1 to Monday 4 December. This year’s weekender draws on the array of jive & swing styles and how to


	Pontins Perfect Salsa Cure for Winter Blues

use these to spice up freestyle salsa. This includes instruction on incorporating Jive lifts, dips, tricks, aerials and seducers into salsa, jive moves with Latin styling & rumba; funky r&b and salsa hip hop. In addition, there is Cha Cha with world champions Sandra & Salomon Rivera (US), Street Dance with Nigel "Mayhem" Maye, & Bachata with the orginial Wilson Castro and Club Cubana's first Bachata competition. As accommodation is limited to four sharing, visit the FORUM page @ www.clubcubana.com to find sharers, or www.salsafever.co.uk Book with Pontins on 0870 6045606. visit: www.clubcubana.com Weekender prices: £125-145 per person h/b, £59.00 single supplement. Self catering available. Book directly with Pontins on 0870 6045606, visit: www.clubcubana.com

*Best of London Salsa: NEWS 24th January 2008*

	Brit Salsa Fest - Public Statement by Kate & Emma Moore

		Manchester High Court has ruled that Paul Young, Director of Salsa UK, cannot use Brit Salsafest assets for Salsa UK’s own benefit. In a public statement by former Brit Fest business partners Emma & Kate Moore say: “We (Kate and Emma Moore) took legal action as a last resort to protect our 50% stake in the business and ensure Salsa UK operated in the interests of the partnership into the future. We today regard that legal action as a success. It has only been since we took legal action that Salsa UK has been forced to act lawfully and accept we are due 50% of profits associated with the BritFest event and that the partnership’s assets can only be used for the benefit of all 3 partners. These assets include the name ‘Brit Salsafest’ and its derivatives, the venue (Winter Gardens) and the February dates.” *To Comment, CLICK HERE*

*Best of London Salsa: NEWS 24th January 2008*

	Brit Salsa Fest - Public Statement by Kate & Emma Moore

		Manchester High Court has ruled that Paul Young, Director of Salsa UK, cannot use Brit Salsafest assets for Salsa UK’s own benefit. In a public statement by former Brit Fest business partners Emma & Kate Moore say: “We (Kate and Emma Moore) took legal action as a last resort to protect our 50% stake in the business and ensure Salsa UK operated in the interests of the partnership into the future. We today regard that legal action as a success. It has only been since we took legal action that Salsa UK has been forced to act lawfully and accept we are due 50% of profits associated with the BritFest event and that the partnership’s assets can only be used for the benefit of all 3 partners. These assets include the name ‘Brit Salsafest’ and its derivatives, the venue (Winter Gardens) and the February dates.” *To Comment, CLICK HERE*

©London Salsa Scene is an online, independent magazine guide covering salsa and the Latin lifestyle in London and beyond. The views published are not necessarily those of the Editor. All rights reserved. London Salsa Scene retains Copyright over all the articles and photographs published on this website - it is an infringement of that right to use this material elsewhere without our written permission. Disclaimer: London Salsa Scene publishes information on behalf of promoters, organisers, dancers and others in good faith but is not responsible if these events are cancelled, altered or if performers and instructors billed not not appear; this is exclusive liability and responsibility of the event organiser.


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