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8th Annual New York Salsa Congress

Posted on August 27th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

New York Salsa Congress 2008

It’s the end of August, and we’re nearing labor day weekend in the U.S.  So you know what that means?  The 8th Annual New York Congress is on!  Officially starting on Thursday is a weekend packed with workshops, performances, live music, social dancing, and much more!  Choco (John Knight) and his staff are veterans of the congreso game, continuing the legacy started with the late David Melendez.  Choco cannot stop the hustle, it’s that simple.   From what we understand, Saturday night at the 2007 event had over 6,000 attendees alone!  (The ballroom for the performances was completely full!).  And Sunday (2007) was packed with music headliners, performances, and the 1st annual New York Salsa Dance Championships, won by Kelvin Hernandez and Licelott Maldonado.  If you want to watch last year’s competition, head over to  iMambo.tv.  The Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network, Inc, or HITN, streamed the 2008 Puerto Rico World Championships.  They are a sponsor of the 2008 NY Congress as well.  (we have not confirmed that they are streaming video this weekend).

Some of the performers scheduled for the 2009 event include Eddie Torres, Dancesport All Stars, Karisma, Yamulee, Hacha y Machete, Juan Matos and Candy Mena, Baila Society, Jayson Molina y su Rompecabezas, and Santo Rico.  Sunday’s 2nd annual New York Salsa Championships will send qualifiers to the 2008 World Salsa Championships.   Currently the New York Hilton is sold out, and possibly the partner hotels as well.

We should be at the event on Saturday and Sunday night.  So please say hi!

Choco interview (talks about his first NY Congress in 2007) with Nick Padin, George Dennis, Yesenia Peralta, and Griselle Ponce

Social dance 2007 - Betto Herrera from North Carolina’s Mambo Dinamico and Melissa Pabon from Enixe / Art in Motion.

Social dance 2007 - Marco Ferrigno from Italy and Nancy from Los Angeles.

Edie the Salsa Freak, Beto Rojas, Chayanne Rojas, Syra, and Nancy - LA Salseros talk about the 2007 NY Salsa Congress

Below is an “old” video from 2004 at the home of the NY Congress, the Hilton Hotel.   The Hilton at 1335 Avenue of America has one of the largest ballrooms in Manhattan.  So we captured the dance floor on Saturday night in 2004, with infrared night vision.  Click on the image to see the video.

2004 NY Salsa Congress DanceFloor

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Shaka Brown and the 4th annual 2008 Washington DC Salsa Congress

Posted on August 12th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Salsa aficionados on the East Coast get ready!    Shaka Brown and his staff are bringing tons of artists, DJs, and instructors to Arlington, Virginia for the 4th annual Washington DC Salsa Congress from August 15-17.  Scheduled artists include Junior and Emily, Al Espinoza and Karla Espinoza, Leon Rose and Noemi, Lee Rios and Maria Falcon, Art in Motion, and ClaveKazi.

This public service announcement was brought to you by the fine staff at the Washington DC Salsa Congress, with Shaka Brown, Yesenia Peralta, and Dany Joshua.

Interview - Shaka Brown

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A Gozar - An Introduction to Salsa Dancing & the Unlikely Salsero

Posted on August 6th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Has salsa dancing captured your imagination?  Have you been bit by the salsa bug?  Los Angeles area filmmaker Kate Thomas is addicted to the dance, and she created a short documentary about her passion.  The short is called A Gozar (To Enjoy): An Introduction to Salsa Dancing, and is about 10 minutes in length.  Kate talks about (what you know already) about salsa dance, that it is incredibly fun and exciting, and it’s unlike anything seen in nightlife.  You may know your partner on the dance floor, but it doesn’t matter.  You connect with each other through the music.  The documentary is handy for people who haven’t given much thought to dancing — show it to your friends.

We found this documentary through Don Baarn’s blog, The Unlikely Salsero (who is also an interview subject in the short).  Using his experience as a percussionist and musician, Don is able to weave together his fundamental understanding of music with technical aspects of the dance.  He has some interesting observations on the social and psychological aspects of dancing as well.   In order to expand his own horizons, he took hip-hop classes with dancer Sho-Tyme, and found himself way over his head. Here’s a brief excerpt of dancers going too far above their level, with a general human observation:

Most people dislike being called a beginner as an adult, even if that’s their current status. Many guys prefer struggling in the intermediate or advanced classes rather than be caught dead in the beginner class. For many, it’s simply uncool to be at the novice level, and they can’t wait to “move on,” even if that means skipping some fundamentals. They purchase “advanced” DVDs when they are far from mastering the lower level DVDs from the same instructor.

As someone famous for taking classes over his head, I’ve seen some great progress and been frustrated at points. I highly recommend you attend some classes above your level, even if you sit out part of the class and watch. Being around great dancers can inspire or depress you, depending on your personality and goals; but either way, it’s good to see what you’ll be like in a few years if you put in the effort.

We encourage everyone to read his blog for his deep insight in dance and music. Tell him Nuevotec sent you.

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