Entries from December 2005
Well, I went to Hotel Fort Des Moines and some very interesting people – specifically the manager of a new year event in Cedar Rapids. They were handing out CDs for Dave Santiago and Latin Affair – and they sound very good.
New year’s Eve with Dave Santiago & Latin Affair
December 31, 2005 9:00pmj – 2:00am
Alejandro’s Restaurant
616 2nd Ave. SE, Downtown Cedar Rapids, IA
Dave Santiago and Latin Affair is a New York City based salsa / son band whose primary focus is on performing original salsa as well as traditional afro-cuban/ Puerto Rican and Caribbean dance music. Dave and the band have shared the stage with notable artists such as, El
Gran Combo de Puerto Rico. So come join Dave Santiago New Years Eve at Alejandro’s Restaurant!
For Ticket Info: Henry @ 319-651-7371 or Sergio @ 515-213-5012
Doors Open at 5pm, Show starts at 9pm – 2am.
The provided audio samples on the event CDs they handed out, so to get you excited to going to this event, I have uploaded them so you can listen to them!
Categories: Event Announcement · Salsa Podcast
Well, I went to Hotel Fort Des Moines and some very interesting people – specifically the manager of a new year event in Cedar Rapids. They were handing out CDs for Dave Santiago and Latin Affair – and they sound very good.
New year’s Eve with Dave Santiago & Latin Affair
December 31, 2005 9:00pmj – 2:00am
Alejandro’s Restaurant
616 2nd Ave. SE, Downtown Cedar Rapids, IA
Dave Santiago and Latin Affair is a New York City based salsa / son band whose primary focus is on performing original salsa as well as traditional afro-cuban/ Puerto Rican and Caribbean dance music. Dave and the band have shared the stage with notable artists such as, El
Gran Combo de Puerto Rico. So come join Dave Santiago New Years Eve at Alejandro’s Restaurant!
For Ticket Info: Henry @ 319-651-7371 or Sergio @ 515-213-5012
Doors Open at 5pm, Show starts at 9pm – 2am.
The provided audio samples on the event CDs they handed out, so to get you excited to going to this event, I have uploaded them so you can listen to them!
Categories: blog
Well, the folks at IndySalsa.com (Marques) were cool enough to provide more salsa videoclips from the Chicago Salsa Congress 2005. This salsa combo is from “Gordon Neil & Laura Geldys’ Workshop”. Actually, its pretty interesting because I was in that exact same workshop last year (and you can see me in the video). It is funny how I just noticed myself in other people’s video clips. (If you are wondering, I’m the guy on the right, black shirt, in the ‘rectangular’ white box).
Hope you enjoy this video clip – hope this keeps hyping you up for congress!
Categories: Salsa Podcast
Since the Chicago Salsa Congress 2006 is coming up, I decided to share this video clip that I found from last years salsa congress. This clip is brought to you buy IndySalsa.com. The salsa video clip is titled “Juan Calderon’s Workshop – On1″, which was a very slick combo he taught us that day. For more on Juan Calderon, you can go to his website at: www.culturalexplosion.com. He’s an awesome performer, and teacher (explains things cleary and is patient).
Anyway, instead of taping a video, I decided to aggregate some video clips freely available on the internet so you don’t have to. Enojy the video clip. Remember any comments, concerns or suggestions, please contact us at www.addicted2salsa.com.
Categories: Salsa Podcast
December 12, 2005 · 1 Comment
This just in from a friend, (no one posted the event, but I just got the information through email): There will be a Salsa Night at Hotel Fort Des Moines this Saturday, December 17th, 2005 (yay, for those students, thats where its at to party after finals!). Here is the info:
SALSA NOCHES, 8pm, Saturday, Dec. 17, Hotel Fort Des Moines Grand Ballroom. $6 advance/$8 door. Salsa dance lesson with Ruben Zamudio III at 8pm and then dance to Sergio Correa’s Latin Rhythmz from 9pm-1:30am. (nearly 90 people attended the dance lesson at 8pm on nov. 26. WOW!) CASH BAR / ALL AGES.
If you are in Ames, and you may need a ride, you can contact us (use ‘Contact Us‘ button on the addicted2salsa.com website) and we’ll see what we can do! The event is also posted on the ‘Upcoming Events‘
Categories: Event Announcement
December 8, 2005 · 1 Comment
LAST LESSON OF THE SEMESTER
Yes, its cold outside but WE DO HAVE LESSONS TONIGHT! Our final lessons are December 2, 2005 and December 9th, 2005. So come and enjoy our last lessons for the semester! Lessons are at 7pm – 9pm, Beginner – Intermediate~! at the Memorial Union of Ames, IA. ($3 per lesson)
FREE SALSA VIDEO PODCASTS
Again, we have been very busy! We have started a VIDEO SALSA PODCAST. It is absolutely free! We will be posting our lessons and combos, hopefully on a weekly basis. You can download iTunes (http://www.apple.com/itunes) to subscribe to our videos! If you have a video iPod, you can take our videos with you wherever you go!!!
We are really excited about this new feature and hope you can email us with what you would like to see in future podcast episodes! We are planning on having other instructors give host future episodes!
WEBSITE
- Submit your own events! Any salsa event, concert, parties, dance lessons…anything and it gets posted in minutes!
- You can view salsa video clips found on the internet!
- You can read our stories and comment on every story posted! TELL OTHERS WHAT YOU THINK about a story! (I love getting people leaving comments). Just click on the ‘Add Comments’ button.
- YOU can write your own stories – send us your stories at apersaud@gmail.com, and we will review it so you can contribute to the website. We are trying to make a salsa portal for all of you to contribute!
- We plan to give you personal feedback on the songs and albums that we like – specifically which songs we like to recommend. Since you can purchase single songs (99cents) on iTunes, we can recommend specific songs instead of whole albums, so you focus on the great songs, and none of the other ones!
Categories: Event Announcement
December 7, 2005 · 1 Comment
Well, he’s come back, and I just have to post it. I was watching his live performance on TV last night on CBS and well, I have to say his new reggaeton song
is a pretty good song – especially with Daddy Yankee in it! He also has another song with Luny Tunes called
which is actually pretty good. I say, if you are a reggaeton fan (even though you might not be a Ricky Martin fan), check out the songs – they might be the hit that take reggaeton to the full mainstream!
Categories: Music and Videos
Well, the folks at IndySalsa.com (Marques) were cool enough to provide more salsa videoclips from the Chicago Salsa Congress 2005. This salsa combo is from “Gordon Neil & Laura Geldys’ Workshop”. Actually, its pretty interesting because I was in that exact same workshop last year (and you can see me in the video). It is funny how I just noticed myself in other people’s video clips. (If you are wondering, I’m the guy on the right, black shirt, in the ‘rectangular’ white box).
Hope you enjoy this video clip – hope this keeps hyping you up for congress!
Categories: salsa congress
Since the Chicago Salsa Congress 2006 is coming up, I decided to share this video clip that I found from last years salsa congress. This clip is brought to you buy IndySalsa.com. The salsa video clip is titled “Juan Calderon’s Workshop – On1″, which was a very slick combo he taught us that day. For more on Juan Calderon, you can go to his website at: www.culturalexplosion.com. He’s an awesome performer, and teacher (explains things cleary and is patient).
Anyway, instead of taping a video, I decided to aggregate some video clips freely available on the internet so you don’t have to. Enojy the video clip. Remember any comments, concerns or suggestions, please contact us at www.addicted2salsa.com.
Categories: salsa congress
Well, the Chicago Salsa Congress website http://www.chicagosalsacongress.com finally got updated! So I’m excited to announce that we are planning on going to congress! – if you are interested in coming with us, let us know. We are planning to subsidize the price of registration (but only a few spots are available)
What is Salsa Congress? Well, its this huge International event that takes about 3 days of of almost 24 hours of learning salsa, seeing really awesome performances, partying until 3am, having fun in the city…..and meeting LOTS AND LOTS of fantastic people! I would have to say it is one of those LIFE CHANGING experiences! You forget you ever have to come back to ‘the real world’!
If you would are interested in going to the 5th International Chicago Salsa Congress and changing your life 
, just drop us a line.
For one weekend only you’ll have the opportunity to choose workshops from a list of the most sought after Latin dance instructors both nationally and internationally renown. Over 45 workshops offered in one weekend! You’ll enjoy instructors teaching at all levels of Latin dance covering the latest styles and traditional methods. In addition, percussion workshops along with discussion panels on Latin and Afro-Cuban historical perspectives honor the multi-cultural origins of this music and dance. Nightly dancing to the best Latin bands and Chicagoland disc jockeys playing throughout the Congress provide wonderful opportunities to explore new styles and expand your expression of the music.
Highlights of the Congress include:
• 4 nights of dancing to world class mambo and salsa bands
• 3 days of 45 Latin dance workshops at beginner, intermediate and
• advanced levels
• See 7 Spectacular dance productions featuring world renown
• international and U.S. performers
• Rueda Festival and Workshops – new addition
• Music by the hottest Latin music DJs
• Discussion panels on salsa, mambo, cha cha cha, rumba and bomba
• history makers (in English and Spanish)
• Exciting exhibits & merchandise…and much more!
Categories: Event Announcement
I would like to provide credit where credit is due. I reverse-engineered this move on a video I saw of some really good dancers dancing at a club! (Sorry, don’t know their names, but they were good)! Anyway, this is a tight combo that can be linked together with other combinations you might know. Of course, like every episode we add some styling so you can get started!
My Odeo Channel (odeo/0b02f8a099782ba0)
Categories: podcast
Again, we are only getting to learn how to use FinalCut Pro for video editing, so please bear with us on our video quality — but here is our first published combo. It is basically putting right turns and crossbody leads with styling. You can do it over and over again so you can practice those two fundamentals!
Categories: podcast
December 2, 2005 · 1 Comment
Well, the semester is coming down to an end, and we are hoping to end it with a blast! If you have come to salsa dance lessons before, then try to bring a friend and let someone new experience salsa dancing!
We have been working on a lot of things, specifically the website and the new salsa video podcast! We are very excited to bring you this and increase the awareness of the salsa community and bring salsa entertainment to the mainstream!
Again, we have lessons on Dec 2nd and Dec 9th 2005 at 7pm in the Memorial Union of Ames, IA. Lessons are ONLY $3 (you help pay for podcasts and webpages which are free to all of you!). Please come and warm up to some salsa dancing!
Categories: Uncategorized
This episode will teach everyone the basic crossbody lead. For most of you, this will be a very essential move to pull-off some of the other complicated combinations. In addition, we add some styling techniques to make your crossbody leads better for both MEN and WOMEN!.
Categories: podcast
Practice, Practice, Practice – at home and at the club!
I am here to help you get good at salsa, so you can enjoy it as much as I do. But like they say, I can only show you the door – you must walk through it. The road to salsa heaven, is not an overnight process — neither is investing for retirement. But the sooner you start, the sooner you can start reaping the rewards.
So there is no class this Friday. That doesn’t mean you should not practice. Go to the web, find more salsa videos — find your favorite style. And again, practice, practice, practice!. If you can, go to a salsa event to practice. If not, Dorothy and Toto from Kansas suggest that “There is no place like home.”
I can’t tell you how important this is. I have been teaching salsa for over 5 years now, and I can tell you, what will makes a person good at salsa really fast and keeps you mediocre is the amount of dedication you put into salsa. If you practice (even if its just the basic step, you should still do it). I know that just doing the basic step is boring — so try some new stuff out, try changing your footwork. Try going forward with the right, and back with the left. Try doing a basic step, followed by double taps. There are an infinite things you can do with your feet, and the more you do it on beat, the much MUCH better and faster you’ll get good at it.
Trust me, I still dedicate every day to listening to at least one song and playing around with my basic step. I can be folding clothes, reading a magazine, or almost anything else. (Of course, salsa at your own risk; don’t salsa while sharpening knives). Trying to come up with new footwork patterns. This means, that if I still do it, so should you! Just as one of my favorite instructors “Juan C.” (San Diego, MajestyInMotion) told me: “If you tell yourself you’ll practice later, you’ll only get good later…”
Categories: Uncategorized
The first episode will review the basic steps of the salsa (front-back) step On1. We also teach you how to perform a simple right turn, and for the guys, how to lead a right turn when in open position. Hopefully this will get you started dancing salsa!
Categories: podcast
Practice, Practice, Practice – at home and at the club!
I am here to help you get good at salsa, so you can enjoy it as much as I do. But like they say, I can only show you the door – you must walk through it. The road to salsa heaven, is not an overnight process — neither is investing for retirement. But the sooner you start, the sooner you can start reaping the rewards.
So there is no class this Friday. That doesn’t mean you should not practice. Go to the web, find more salsa videos — find your favorite style. And again, practice, practice, practice!. If you can, go to a salsa event to practice. If not, Dorothy and Toto from Kansas suggest that “There is no place like home.”
I can’t tell you how important this is. I have been teaching salsa for over 5 years now, and I can tell you, what will makes a person good at salsa really fast and keeps you mediocre is the amount of dedication you put into salsa. If you practice (even if its just the basic step, you should still do it). I know that just doing the basic step is boring — so try some new stuff out, try changing your footwork. Try going forward with the right, and back with the left. Try doing a basic step, followed by double taps. There are an infinite things you can do with your feet, and the more you do it on beat, the much MUCH better and faster you’ll get good at it.
Trust me, I still dedicate every day to listening to at least one song and playing around with my basic step. I can be folding clothes, reading a magazine, or almost anything else. (Of course, salsa at your own risk; don’t salsa while sharpening knives). Trying to come up with new footwork patterns. This means, that if I still do it, so should you! 
Just as one of my favorite instructors “Juan C.” (San Diego, MajestyInMotion) told me: “If you tell yourself you’ll practice later, you’ll only get good later…”
Categories: blog
December 1, 2005 · 1 Comment
I would like to provide credit where credit is due. I reverse-engineered this move on a video I saw of some really good dancers dancing at a club! (Sorry, don’t know their names, but they were good)! Anyway, this is a tight combo that can be linked together with other combinations you might know. Of course, like every episode we add some styling so you can get started!
My Odeo Channel (odeo/0b02f8a099782ba0)
Categories: Salsa Podcast
Again, we are only getting to learn how to use FinalCut Pro for video editing, so please bear with us on our video quality — but here is our first published combo. It is basically putting right turns and crossbody leads with styling. You can do it over and over again so you can practice those two fundamentals!
Categories: Salsa Podcast
This episode will teach everyone the basic crossbody lead. For most of you, this will be a very essential move to pull-off some of the other complicated combinations. In addition, we add some styling techniques to make your crossbody leads better for both MEN and WOMEN!.
Categories: Salsa Podcast
