Salsa Music, Emotions and Movement

Nicola Lambert, my partner, has been running TNT since my resignation in 2015. Once a month, Nicola invites new students to our apartment to listen to, think about and discuss Salsa music; we believe that all new students should be exposed to Salsa music and have Salsa music demystified as soon as possible. We do… Read more »

The Declining Middle Class of Salsa

I spend time analysing the local and global Salsa scene to identify new trends and opportunities. One observation is the increasing gap between inexperienced and experienced Salsa dancers. Watching the US presidential race Bernie Sanders repeatedly talked about the declining middle class, which I think is a great way of framing what I see in… Read more »

PSS: Building up to the Perfect Social

I have been involved in Salsa events and organisations for the past 8 years. I do not work in Salsa for money but for the excitement and the joy of bringing people together. I do not find much enjoyment in doing the same thing over and over again for too long and I am always… Read more »

A Dark Day for London Salsa

My blog was created to share my opinions about Salsa and to give knowledge to those newer in their Salsa journey. On Monday 24th October 2016, two promoters in London launched one of the most shocking and negative campaigns I have ever witnessed during my 12 years of dancing Salsa. This campaign was littered with… Read more »

The Falling Pound and Salsa

I have been dancing Salsa in London for 12 years now and over the past 8 years, I have been a teacher, promoter, event organiser and general Salsa educator. On Thursday 23rd June 46.5 million citizens cast their vote in the UK Referendum on whether the UK leaves or stays in the EU – this… Read more »

Opportunistic Leading

Many dancers have asked me where I find the time to think about the patterns that I lead; especially given the speed that I can lead. The answer is that I do not think about what moves I will lead next but use Opportunistic Leading. This blog describes the concept of Opportunistic Leading, why I… Read more »

What, Why and When of Salsa

The world of Salsa has changed remarkably over the last decade; from the number of people that dance, to the number of teachers and more importantly the awareness of Salsa as a dance activity.  Ask your colleagues or family members about Salsa dancing and you will get an opinion. However, as Salsa has grown the… Read more »

My Performance Courses

In my blogs, I am quite vocal against the proliferation of Salsa Performance Courses and the impact they have on up-and-coming dancers and the future of the scene. Some of my previous blogs about Performance Courses can be read here: Performance Courses – gives my perspective on the pros and cons associated with taking one of… Read more »

Building a Salsa School (Part 2) Customers

Running a Salsa School is just like running any other business. In the previous article, we talked about the need to understand your own purpose which will give you conviction during the inevitable hard times. In this article, I want to talk about the Customers of the Salsa Scene, how to reach them and the… Read more »

Connection in Salsa

The second part of my leading series is about connection and will cover how I create a physical and emotional connection with my partner. In the physical connection section, I will talk about my ideas behind preparation, initiation, development and finally the lead. In the emotional connection section I will talk about mood, energy, empathy and how this… Read more »

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Latest

  • Tip #1 for Instant Improvement

    I have been teaching for close to 5 years and was recently searching for personal characteristics of those that excel and those that stagnate. My search went deep and took me from personality traits to physical attributes. There is so much information floating through my head and one day I will collect my thoughts in… Read more »

  • Non Verbal Cues in Salsa

    Those that read my blog regularly will know that I love finding ways to improve myself; communication skills being one of my focus areas for many years now. Anthony Robbins (who I am reading at the moment) states that “the quality of your life is influenced by the quality of your communication” and to some… Read more »

  • Rejection in Salsa

    Rejection in Salsa is a topic that I have been meaning to write about for some time. But before I start this article let me give some context to non-Salsa dancers, please give me some rope here. The global Salsa scene is broadly made up of parties and classes. The majority of teachers will insist… Read more »

  • Choosing a Partner

    There was a time when I would go out to a Salsa night with the aim of dancing to every song and grabbing the next available dancer (or victim). At certain venues in London, this is still the case but in larger venues (or congresses) I am a bit more selective. You cannot dance with… Read more »

  • Performance Courses

    Recently, I have been spending more time analysing Salsa than I have spent dancing. My interests range from music, politics and to the psychological aspects behind Salsa dancing. I would like to say that I have become more mentally involved and would like to share some of my findings with you. This article shares with… Read more »

  • Listen to the Women

    “Billy, I have four words for you: Listen to the Woman.” Sidney Dean (Wesley Snipes) says this to Billy Hoyle (Woody Harrelson) at the end of the 1992 movie White Men Can’t Jump. I love this movie and this scene makes me smile every time. One of my major challenges over the last eight years… Read more »