Salsa in a Nutshell

Salsa music is a general term referring to what is essentially Cuban popular dance music, which was internationalized outside Cuba. The term "Salsa" was initially recorded, promoted and marketed in New York City during the 1970s. The various musical genres comprising Salsa include the Cuban son montuno, guaracha, chachachá, mambo, bolero and, to a lesser degree, non-Cuban genres such as the Puerto Rican bomba and plena, the Dominican merengue, and the Colombian cumbia. Latin jazz, which was also developed in New York City, has had a significant influence on salsa arrangers, piano guajeos, and instrumental soloists. Salsa occasionally incorporates elements from North American rock, R&B, and funk. All of these non-Cuban elements are inserted onto the basic Cuban son montuno template when performed within the context of salsa.

The first salsa bands were predominantly "Nuyorican" (New Yorkers of Puerto Rican descent). The music eventually spread throughout the Western Hemisphere. Ultimately, Salsa's popularity spread globally. Some of the founding Salsa artists include Johnny Pacheco (the creator of the Fania All-Stars), Ray Barretto, Willie Colón, Larry Harlow, Roberto Roena, Bobby Valentín, and Eddie Palmieri.

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What's Happening With Want2Salsa?

Hello Salsa Lover!

Welcome back and hopefully you had a fantastic time with the family and friends here at W2S. January 2013 had a slow start, mainly because we were recovering from all the eating, drinking and partying that we did with our families and friends during the holiday break. Here is what’s been going on in the different places where W2S has spread its wings.

North Carolina - We started the New Year supporting or local Salsa clubs Via 216 Nightclub and Hellas Restaurant & Sport Bar.

Via 216: It was a pleasant and surprising direction that it has taken this New Year. Thanks to the influence of the W2S group and our home base studio Baile con Sazon, Via 216 has become more of Salsa Club than what is has traditionally been; a Latin/ hip hop club.

Hellas Sports Bar: We are happy that a new location has been open on Friday nights, which is an exciting, fun, and beautiful place to go out and have a great night. This is not a pure Salsa club or anything close to it is more of a Latin/ hip hop dance club with a clear club feel to it, but it is great news that we have a new location to go to on Friday nights.

Wilmington NC: Part of the W2S group went and supported our friends in the beautiful city of Wilmington. We had a fantastic time with the dancers of the city and Wilmington dance group. These are some of the happiest, funniest, and nicest people you will ever meet! They are 100% Salsa lovers and we can't wait to go back next month to party with them. The location is at a Mexican restaurant where we started the night with the special they were offering a $1 taco. After that, we joined the free Salsa lesson given by our beautiful friend and head instructor of Wilmington Latin dance studio “Summer”, and after the class was over the real dancing started!

Bachata Sensual: This was the highlight of the month for us here at W2S. On Jan 24th Fifth Star Ent., in association with W2S, and Via 216 had two work shops with “Christian Sola” teaching his world renowned Bachata Sensual style of dancing. This event was a total success and we had dancers from all over NC and SC. The dancers and W2S had a fantastic time with Sola and his partner. There was an additional event that day, the local female dance group “Las Fieras” in association with dancers from W2S and Baile con Sazon who put together a Bachata routine for the dancers attending the work shop.

Want2Salsa took a road trip to Charlotte to attend a workshop given by Antonio Doza-Williams, a well-known ladies spinning and styling and men’s body movement and styling instructor. Antonio taught three workshops, turning and spinning On2, footwork, body movement, and cha cha. We were able to learn some nice routines incorporating a lot of body movement and styling. Want2Salsa is looking forward to learning from Antonio again in the near future.

Want2Salsa also produced and showcased their new limited edition t-shirts, "Chillax, I've got this Salsa" at the Sensual Bachata Workshop given by Christian Sola and Marina Orlova at Via 216. The new t-shirts were well received by those who attended the workshop. Want2Salsa will be coming out with new limited edition t-shirts in the future. So be on the watch.

Arizona - This month Want2Salsa Arizona had a very exciting time at the Salsa Sunday Social held at the Arizona Ballroom Company 5536 E Grant Rd, Tucson, AZ 85712 by Gerardo Armendariz (https://www.facebook.com/garmendariz), founder of Tucson Salsa (www.tucsonsalsa.com). This is the premier Salsa Social in Tucson and it is held every 2nd and 4th Sunday in an environment free of alcohol, smoke and drama. All ages are welcome! If you just want to hang out with friends or meet new ones, the Salsa Sunday Social is the perfect place to start. This event starts with a Salsa Class from 5pm until 6pm then a Social dance from 6pm to 11pm. On top of the outstanding crowd and great dancers, who religiously show up, the modest cover charge of only $7.00, which includes the Salsa Class and Social dance makes it even more attractive. https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/312352_520303304680516_1645492447_n.jpg

Easy Enchilada Casserole with Doritos

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Total time: 30 minutes

Here is a nice quick snack or meal when you don’t want anything heavy before you go out dancing. In honor of the Doritos goat.

Ingredients:

1 (15 ounce) can chili with beans

2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

1 (14 ounce) bag plain Doritos (pick your flavor)

10-15 ounces enchilada sauce

8 ounces tomato sauce

2 tablespoons diced onions

1 cup sour cream

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Crumble 2/3 of bag of Doritos into mixing bowl. Mix in the onion, chili, 1 1/2 C cheese, enchilada sauce and tomato sauce. Place into an 8 1/2 x 11-inch casserole dish. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and spread on sour cream, remaining Doritos and 1/2 C cheese. Bake for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve. Serves 6

Get That Stretch In

Many times we as dancers will get dressed, head on out to the club, get a drink, and get out on the dance floor. Some say they need that first dance to get warmed up and ready for more dancing. But if you are not warmed up before that first dance, how will you make it look flowing and graceful? Stretching before is the key. You can do it before leaving home, or in the club restroom. Here are some benefits:

It is the best warmup for dance;

It strengthens your muscles and help with balance;

It gives you increased flexibility, helping you to turn faster, and have more focus;

It will help prevent injuries.

What kind of stretching exercises are good for dancers? Any kind of stretching exercises are good. The Internet has a wide variety of websites with tons of information. So next time you come to the club, you will be ready to show off at the first dance.