Try a different approach to make your dreams come true. Learn to dance and make your dream come true.

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Country Swing dancing

Make 2015 Great With Dance Lessons

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Country Swing dancing in AZIt’s a new year and that means it’s time to “get to work” on those New Year’s Resolutions! Well how fun is that? We daresay, not very. Even though we have yet to hit February, statistics from previous years reveal that many people will have already tried and given up on their resolutions. It’s sad but true.

So how do we keep from quitting our goals so soon in the year? We recommend trying a different approach to making your dreams come true. Are you ready for this? We suggest giving social dance lessons a go in 2015. Believe it or not, social dancing (by that we mean those cool dances and moves that you see in the Country bars and Latin clubs) ticks off many of your goals for the year ahead- you just don’t know it yet.

This year, you can reach your fitness, social, and even emotional goals-all through discovering how to Country Two Step, Tango or Swing dance! Yes, it’s completely true! Partner dancing is wonderful and exciting for couples and singles, so much more fun than working out in a gym or bellying up to your favorite bar stool. With benefits galore, come learn to social ballroom dance this year and swing your way into next year with style.

So how exactly will knowing how to social dance change your life in the next 12 months? Let us explain…

Social Ballroom Dancing Builds Confidence: If you can use a bit more confidence when it comes to knowing a hobby that (almost) every woman loves, give private Country, Swing, Latin or Tango dance lessons a try. With private dance instruction, you will get the tools needed to dance with ease. Knowing a skill such as social dancing helps to build self-esteem, not to mention develop grace and poise.

Dancing also helps to widen your social circle, which is great for new friendships and possibly even more. With more friends comes an opportunity to have others to talk with, and dance with, of course. Friendships help to have support when times are tough, which is important for everyone. Are you beginning to see the impact that dancing can have on your life already??

Dancing Adds Romance: If you’re married, or a part of a long-term relationship, dancing is a must! What you can learn from a Salsa dance lesson (as an example) with your partner includes, but is definitely not limited to, teamwork, the importance of embracing each other often and a fun outlet as a couple.

For singles, dancing allows for a sense of freedom and self-expression that can be very attractive to the opposite sex. Latin dancing in particular is also very sensual, lending itself to captivating onlookers. If you’re on the shy side, dancing can bring out your inner diva and reveal a more courageous side. Who can’t use a bit more of that?

Dancing Can Replace The Gym! Would you love to shed unwanted weight and tone muscles without going to the gym? Then start exploring Argentine Tango or Country Swing dancing. Both of these social dances, plus many other fun styles, are great alternatives to the traditional total body workout. In fact, you will discover muscles that you never knew you had once you really get dancing. Skip the daily grind on the treadmill and Two Step your way back into a healthier you!

Read our upcoming blog on the many other benefits of making learning to dance your number one resolution for 2015. For those of you who reside in Arizona, visit us at Dance FX Studios in Mesa, AZ to get the ball rolling. Our New Student Offer will give you a window into how, through social dancing, confidence, romance and health really can be yours this year.

 

 

 

Salsa Dancing…Get Addicted!

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istock_000004681092smallSalsa dancing can make you come alive! It is an energetic and fun dance that will have you wanting more. With private or group Salsa classes, you’ll be shaking your hips in no time!

THE SALSA BASIC: There are many different types of Salsa dancing but this month we will cover the basic steps for one of the most common styles. In Salsa dancing, there are four beats but only three of them are going to involve taking a step. You can also count out all eight beats, but similarly only six will have steps to them.

To start off, face your partner in closed position or hold hands. If you choose to hold hands, the leader (usually male) will hold his hands as if he were holding two cups and the follower (usually female) should put her hands within the top of his. For the first step, the leader should take a step forward with his left foot and the follower takes a step backwards with her right foot. The second step involves the leader taking a step in place with his right foot and the follower taking a step in place with her left foot. The third step is going to bring your foot back into starting position, so the leader should be moving their left foot back and the follower should move their right foot forward. The fourth beat is a pause so you do not have to move at all. That completes the first four counts.

The next four beats are similar to the first four, but they are just slightly different. The leader is going to step back onto their right foot for the fifth beat and the follower is going to step forward with their left foot. As you may have guessed, the sixth beat has the leader stepping in place with their left foot and the follower stepping in place with their right foot. The last actual basic step includes the leader stepping forward with their right foot and the follower stepping back with the left foot, so they are both back in starting position. Finally the last beat of the sequence, the eighth beat, is just a pause with no movement. That completes the last four counts of the Salsa basic.

Pretty easy huh? Well if you liked that little taste of Salsa dancing you should come on down to Dance FX Studios in Mesa, Arizona. Dance FX Studios offers Private Latin Dance Lessons and Group Salsa Dance Classes. For more information about our private Salsa dance lessons, go to https://dancefxstudios.com/dance-lessons-mesa-arizona/ .  If you would like to take Group Salsa Dance Classes, you can find more information at https://dancefxstudios.com/dance-classes-mesa-arizona/ .

History of Salsa Dancing

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about salsa dancingSalsa dancing is one of the most popular social Latin dance styles world-wide!  People from all walks of life enjoy the energy, passion and party-like feel of the dance.  But where did this dance and its music come from? Let’s explore….

“Salsa” is a partner dance form that corresponds to Salsa music.  Musicologists and historians have very diverse opinions on how Salsa dancing came to life.  Most seem to believe it was born through many decades of dancers gradually accepting the name as many styles of music and dance steps became melded together. Others learned that “salsa” music began centuries ago in the islands of the Spanish Caribbean, in a context of slavery and colonialism.  Yet, no one will deny that Salsa dancing is connected to 20th century New York City and the growing, thriving Latino community there. As the Spanish American war of 1898 ended Spanish colonial rule, displaced Puerto Rican agricultural workers migrated from countryside to town, and from island to island.  The transplanted workers from Havana, San Juan, Santo Domingo and other areas brought all of their traditional sounds to New York City.

Because of this “mixture,” the word “Salsa” was eventually adopted.  Salsa is the same as the Spanish word for sauce – or in the case of dance music – flavor or style.  The very first time the word was heard on the radio was in a composition by Ignacio Piñeiro, dedicated to an old African man who sold butifarras (a sausage-like product) in Central Road in Matanzas.  The song is titled Échale salsita.  The major chorus goes “Salsaaaaa! échale salsita, échale salsita.”  During the early 1950’s, DJ “Bigote” Escalona announced tunes that were danceable with the introduction:  “The following rhythm contains Salsa.”

Styles of music travelling from Cuba and Puerto Rico fused their African, Cuban and other Latin-American rhythms together as they migrated into New York between the 1940s and the 1970s.  There is a debate as to which country originated Salsa – Cuba or Puerto Rico.  Since Salsa is one of the main dances in Puerto Rico and is known world-wide, many people give Puerto Rico the credit.  However, the dance steps currently being used to Salsa music come from Cuba.  Those steps, though, were influenced by many other Cuban dances such as Mambo, Cha’, Guaracha, Rumba, Yambu’ and others.  Thus, the debate continues.

With the combined elements of Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican, African and other music styles, Salsa music can typically be recognized by the complicated percussion rhythms and the faster tempos.  The sounds are vibrant and inviting and attract dancers of all levels straight to the dance floor.

Salsa dance is exciting, full of variety and appealing to almost any social dancer looking for fun and exhilaration.

YOU can learn how to Salsa at Dance FX Studios in Mesa, Arizona.  We offer both private classes and group lessons, teaching dancers the spicy flavor of this hot Latin dance.  Phoenix offers many Salsa venues so you’ll be able to take the skills we teach you into any real-world situation with confidence!