Rueda Hand Signs (Part 29) Ponle Sabor

The move Ponle Sabor can be translated as “Add flavour” or “Put some flavour into it” which may refer to the creative features that make up this move which make some of the basic elements look significantly better. Alternatively, the name may come from the freedom that this move provides for both followers and leaders due to the fact that dancers are connected with only one hand for the duration of the entire move, leaving the other hand free for styling.

Ponle Sabor consists of a Parte El Brazo Con La Mano Derecha followed by the exact same move but with a Ronde at the end which looks and feels nice for leaders and while being very basic by nature is not a feature often observed in other moves.
The move continues with an Enchufla Ronde Con La Mano Derecha leading straight into a Sacala. At the end of the Sacala the leader’s right hand comes over the follower’s head to lead another Sacala which is again a very unusual combination of basic moves but effective and aesthetic in the way these elements are combined.
At the end of the second Sacala leaders turn to the left and then turn themselves into the follower’s right arm. At this point leaders place the back of their left hand onto the follower’s right hand leading a right turn for followers which is however immediately interrupted by the leaders counteracting the motion by leading a CocaCola to finish the move.

It is especially the last part of the move that is quite unusual and can take some time to get used to. It feels like a very quick Coca Cola mainly because the initial follower motion has to be reversed. For followers it is particularly important to keep their hands at least at waist height as this makes it possible for leaders to pick up the free hand and lead the next part of the move.

The hand sign for Ponle Sabor consists of the caller making a circular motion with their free hand in front of their body signalling that they are enjoying some food which is a perfect analogy for the meaning of the move name “Add some flavour” or simply Ponle Sabor.

       

To see a video of the move Ponle Sabor as well as the hand sign, please click on: https://youtu.be/-3GuIUVgzTg

Rumba (Part 9)

As described in the previous post, what most people think of when they hear the word “Rumba” is the dance known more accurately as International Ballroom Rumba. However, especially in North American ballrooms a slightly different style of dance is usually referred to as “Rumba” adding to the confusion surrounding this term. To distinguish this North American version from the international rumba it is often called “American Ballroom Rumba”, “American Rumba”, “American Style Rumba” or sometimes “Box Step Rumba”.

In essence, the history of this dance is much the same as that of International Ballroom Rumba up until the point where Monsieur Pierre started codifying the dance based on his experience in Cuba. This did not catch on in North America to the same degree it became accepted in the rest of the world such that the dance evolved in its own way in North America until it reached its current version but without the distinct characteristics Monsieur Pierre brought back from Cuba.

The most striking difference is that American Rumba starts on beat 1 while the International version has dancers take their first step on the second beat. Other differences include the fact that in American Rumba knees are bent and then straightened whereas In the international style rumba, every step is taken with a straight leg. Moreover, the international basic step is linear with a larger side step on beat 4 whereas the basic step in the American version resembles a square hence the name “box step”. There are of course other differences between the American and the international style such as the speed of the music, the musical articulation, etc. but in essence both the American and international style of Rumba are westernised codified ballroom dances which are connected to historical Cuban dances but have lost most of their recognisable Cuban heritage in the way they are performed today.

To most Cubans who excel at Rumba, Son, Cha Cha, Mambo etc. the modern day Cuban connection to ballroom Rumba, whether it is American or International, is absurd. While there may be an ongoing continuing debate among ballroom aficionados around the smaller subtleties between American and International style Rumba as well as other variations that receive this title, to Cubans it is not the “American” vs. “International” designation that raises any concerns but the overall misclassification of any of such westernised ballroom dances under the general term “Rumba”.

Cuban Salsa History (Part 5) Tumba Francesa

The word Tumba Francesa is often heard in the salsa context and is a common source of confusion among Cuban salsa students. It can refer to a Rueda move, a type of dance, a rhythm, a collection of societies, a title of various songs and albums, a style of drumming, a type of drum etc. It is easy to see why many people get mixed up with this term and do not quite know what to make of it in relation to the dance they are learning.

One of the most influential migrations on Cuban music and culture came from Haiti especially after the Haitian slave revolution of 1791. Haitians came to Cuba from every part of Saint-Domingue, as Haiti was called at the time, as well as areas of Louisiana. They settled all around Cuba although they had their greatest impact on eastern Cuba and Santiago de Cuba in particular. While they comprised of white French, free people of colour and black slaves they were collectively referred to as “los franceses” by the Cubans they met on the island. This was due to the unique culture, skill set and know-how they brought to the island based on the influences of French colonialism that was distinctly different from the Spanish colonialism that had influenced the life of Cubans thus far.
The impact reached from areas such as fashion, music and philosophy to changes that would permanently affect the landscape and economy of Cuba such as the introduction of coffee, cotton and indigo plantations by French planters.

One of the greatest influences on Cuban music and dance that arose from this period was the formation of mutual aid-societies among former Haitian slaves who had made it to Cuba. These societies were very similar to other cabildos that already existed in Cuba since the 16th century with the key difference being that the Africans belonging to these societies had mixed their original African traditions with French-Haitian culture thus creating distinct societies in Cuba with their own set of culture, music and dance.

The word tumba is believed to come from the Bantu language where it means drum. When the newly formed societies referred to both their dances and drums by the word “tumba”, Cubans described this as “tumba” danced and played by French people or simply “tumba francesa”.

Mozambique

Pedro Izquierdo or Pello el Afrokán was born in Havana in the Jesús María neighborhood in 1933. He is the creator of the rhythm of Mozambique and its associated dance. Pello’s musical background started with his family, with his father who was a percussionist in Belisario López’ band and his cousin Mongo Santamaría who was a famous jazz musician. He worked in the docks of Havana while playing as a musician on the streets of Havana. In 1945, at the age of 12, Pello performed at the Martí Theater with his brothers Gilberto and Roberto. He started his career writing commercial “jingles” for the radio station CMQ.

Pello created his first conjunto in 1959 and played at the famous nightclub Tropicana at a time where many new international composers, performers and artists were dominating the musical scene. The influence of pop music had also spread to Cuba where the youth were keen to dance to and listen to the new trends around the world. This was at odds to the philosophy of the state under Fidel Castro who was trying to revive the traditions of Cuba and placed importance on its African roots. Interestingly, Pello is said to have composed a song “Bailando Mozambique me voy a cortar caña” based on a composition by Juanito Márquez after Fidel Castro urged him to write an inspirational song that would encourage volunteers to help with the sugar harvest in Cuba. It was under these conditions in 1963 that Pello unveiled his new rhythm, which he named Mozambique. It was said to be one of the first music genres to be created after the Cuban revolution, with the rhythm being a fusion of Afro-Cuban rhythms from Yoruba, Conga, Abakuá amongst others, having a chorus-response structure similar to rumba. The original conjunto of Pello was made up of twelve congas, two bombos, three bells, a sárten, five trumpets and five trombones.

Mozambique was first premiered on a Cuban television show called Ritmos de Juventud in July 1963 and continued to be featured for a period of four years. It became a dance craze in Havana, where it was danced by those of different social classes and backgrounds at celebrations, parties and carnivals. The dance is characterised by the bending of the knee by the dancer as they lower their body while the foot is advanced. The foot is then replaced with the body returning to its original stance.

Pello travelled to many parts of Europe and Russia performing. It was said that his rhythm caused a sensation in Paris’ Olympia Theater in 1965 where he played with el Gran Music Hall de Cuba. In 1979 he played in the Carnegie Hall in the United States and Japan. Many established musicians such as Carlos Santana and Eddie Palmieri recorded cover versions of his song “María caracoles”, Carlos Santana infusing rock with the original Afro-Cuban rhythm.

Sadly, Pello passed away in September 2000 but his contribution to Cuban music is recognised far and wide. Rafael Lam in his book “Los reyes de la salsa” alludes to how Mozambique was one of the important precursors of modern timba. Famous compositions by Pello include “Ileana quiere chocolate”, “Camina Como Cómico”, “María Caracoles”, “Nace en Cuba el Mozambique” amongst others.

Rueda Hand Signs (Part 28) Ochenta Y Ocho

This move effectively consists of a Sombrero, a Coca Cola and an Enchufla. When broken down into its elementary parts it does not seem like a very complicated move but the main feature that makes this move hard to pick up initially is the Coca Cola part which contains some rather unusual characteristics. I.e. while it is possible to lead a full Coca Cola during this move, most leaders and followers will turn slightly less on their final step to make it easier to go into Enchufla straight away.

The main factor that makes this move interesting and is the de facto signature of this move is the fact that leaders will drop only the right hand after their first Sombrero and pick up the follower’s right hand again straight away but behind the follower’s left hand. This part is quite awkward to get used to initially and takes a lot of practise to be able to execute it smoothly especially when leading a Coca Cola from this position but it is a very nice visual effect that also features in some more complicated moves. It is important that leaders raise their hands at the right time and high enough for the followers to do their Coca Cola as it is easy to bump into each other if the Coca Cola is not prepared and signalled perfectly.

The name Ochenta Y Ocho meaning “eighty-eight” comes undoubtedly from the shapes the hands make when executing this move. The key feature that is specific to this move is when the leader’s hands change from the initial Sombrero into the Coca Cola starting position described above. It is at this point that the hands form a figure of eight at the end of sombrero followed by the leader dropping the follower’s right hand and picking it up again behind the follower’s left hand which creates another figure of eight. Therefore, the key feature of the move looks like an eight followed by another eight when looking at the hands and arms of the dancers, hence the name eighty-eight.

The signal of the move consists of the cantante using the thumb, index and middle fingers of their free hand to form the number eight. While forming this signal they should show it to the rest of the dancers and shake their hand to signal “eighty”, followed by showing the exact same signal again but without shaking it to signal the word “eight”.

To see a video of the move Ochenta y Ocho as well as the hand sign, please click on: https://youtu.be/h_ltRJ9Brr0

Sabor DKY

Sabor DKY are one of the best Rueda groups in the world and an inspiration to any aspiring Rueda student. They are based in Santiago de Cuba and have been dancing and performing for over 15 years under the directorship of Yanek Revilla.

This image "Yanek Revilla — salsa star of Cubamemucho" is by Cubamemucho Odessa redistributed under the Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0

Aimi and I had the incredible fortune to see them live as well as attend some of their classes at the 10th anniversary of the Ruedafestival Stuttgart from 17th to 29th July. Their performances were mesmerising to watch and far above anything we had witnessed to date and the privilege of being taught by them directly in some of their classes was a simply unforgettable experience.
The dancers we saw that weekend included, Yisel Cuba, Luis Pineda de los Santos, Ailen Robinson, Gustavo Salas, Clara Nieto, Ronald Fisher and Yurisley Rodriguez as well Yanek Revilla himself who is nothing short of a living legend having won the world championship in both the couple and the Rueda category.

Sabor DKY (pronounced “Sabor de Calle”) aka Salseros DKY was first performing under the name Casino.com winning the first place of the 2004 Bailar Casino competition and the 2004 and 2006 competitions of Metamoroson. They continued to win many other prices throughout the course of their dance career and became increasingly well known internationally from 2009 onwards performing at some of the biggest salsa festivals in the world. For many years Karelia Despaigne, another world renowned Cuban dancer, was a huge influence on Sabor DKY working with Yanek Revilla before focusing on her group Tierra Kaliente.

Dancers of Sabor DKY are true masters of many Cuban dances including son, cha cha cha, rumba, orisha and reggaeton which all have a huge influence on their freestyle dances as well as their choreographies. They can be seen in the official music video “El Lunar” by Septeto Santiaguero as well as a plethora of their own videos that have been published online.

Sabor DKY are among the few Cuban dancers that perform internationally, so if you get the chance to see them live do not miss the chance! Their Ruedas are truly of a world class quality and anyone who is enthusiastic about Rueda de Casino or in fact Cuban dances in general will be amazed by their shows. It is a huge privilege to witness their performances or even be taught by them in one of their classes so I will certainly try my best to see them again in the future.

Cultural Partner: Selby IT & Language

Since we have started partnering up with language schools in Yorkshire we have had a few of our students sign up for Spanish classes which they seem to have thoroughly enjoyed so far. More and more of our students are going to Cuba on a dance holiday and are showing an interest for the lyrics of salsa songs so the language aspect is becoming an increasingly important factor which supplements our classes. While we have partnered up with various language schools in the region most of our students are still unaware that Aimi and I have been running our own language school for the past 2 years. Unfortunately we do not offer any foreign language group classes at the moment but we continue to run private classes in Spanish, German, Japanese, French and Italian which we run predominantly from our home at 56 The Haven, YO8 8BJ, Selby through our partnership “Selby IT & Language”.

Especially for our salsa students these classes may be of particular interest as we can focus on translation, meaning and significance of lyrics in accordance with our own research and advise on aspects relevant to dancing as well as the culture surrounding the dance.

As such, we have decided to offer a 10% discount to any of our salsa students who regularly attend classes offered by Tiempo España Dance Academy and similarly students who attend classes by Selby IT and Language will only have to pay the student price when buying an 8-week pass for salsa.

To find out more about the language classes we offer, please consult our website at itandlanguage.wixsite.com/itandlanguage and If you would like to receive the discount for the language course, please speak to Aimi or myself in class.