Salsa is feeling. Salsa is fun. Salsa is life !
Salsa dancing is a dance style associated with the salsa style of music now popular worldwide. Salsa music has its origins sometime in the 1950s and 1970s, with the truly distinct salsa style coming out of New York in the 1970s. The music fuses a number of Cuban Styles, particularly the son, but also draws from a number of other Latin American musical styles. Salsa is usually danced in either groups of couples, with frequent exchanges of partners or solo.
Salsa dancing is done on eight-beat music, with dancers moving on three beats, pausing for one beat, dancing for 3 beats and pausing for one beat. The movement style is left-right-left-pause, then right-left- right-pause. During the pause in most salsa dancing some sort of flourish is utilized, be it a stomp of the foot, casting out the hand or kicking the lower leg. Salsa dancing is mostly a stationary dance, with little movement around the dance floor. Instead, dancers rely on the subtle movement of their legs and upper bodies to convey the energy of the dance.
Salsa dancing is incredibly popular throughout Latin America, Europe and the United States and is gaining popularity in Asia as well. Many clubs specialize in salsa music and most towns offer classes in salsa dancing. While not the easiest dance form, because of its high tempo, it is not particularly difficult and dancers of all skill levels should be able to gain proficiency within a matter of months.