OK, In a nutshell

Salsa/Mambo is played on a 8 count beat.  The primary beat keepers are the Timbale and the Clave.  The Timbale, which you will hear in 90% of Salsa music, keeps the 4 and 8 count rhythms while the Clave keeps an inner rhythm and texture in a 2/3 or 3/2 pattern.  Whether it's Salsa on 1 or 2, the first step is on the 1, but in the case of Salsa on 2, the Emphasis is on the 2 & 6 and the Clave.  In both Salsa on 1 & 2, the dancer takes 6 steps 1,2,3-pause-5,6,7-pause, within the 8 count beat (2 bars of 4 counts).

 There's a lot more to be said, explained, and demonstrated on this and will follow soon.

 What makes Salsa style partner dancing so easy to implement with other Urban music forms is that much of modern music is mated to a 4 or 8 count beat.  This makes it easy to keep the same partnership footwork learned from Salsa/Mambo dancing.  For some of us, who have grown up on Urban music, this also makes it easier for us to implement our freestyle dancing skills within a song when letting go of our partners.  The partnering aspect though, adds a whole new chapter and intimacy often lacking in much of freestyle.  Imagine walking into a club or social dance and being able to dance with 50 people because of the common skillset.  Salsa, by it's very nature, borrows from all other dance forms, with the main emphasis being on the afro-cuban-carib influences.  Body isolations, Rhumba, hiphop's pop-locking, all become a part of Salsa, so long as you keep your footwork and beat with your partner, when partnering.

Beginner Mambo Lesson;

STEPPING WITH THE BEAT OF THE MUSIC

The most important thing in Salsa/Mambo dancing is the music, and knowing where you are within the music.  Mambo is danced on an 8-count beat with the footwork, or steps, are taken on the 1-2-3 count and the 5-6-7 count.  The 4^th and 8^th count of the beat is used for slight pauses (and may also be used for more advanced footwork, kicks, or syncopation).

In over 90% of salsa songs the Timbale instrument keeps the 8-count beat, or rhythm.  The Timbale plays a repetitive 4-count chord and 2 of these chords are what make up the 8-count beat.  The Timbale serves as our timekeeper when we dance, and we shall spend much time learning how to count out the 8-count beat within the Timbale rhythm. 

The next most important instrument, or rhythm within Mambo is the Clave.  The clave is another instrument that keeps a rhythm within the 8-count timbale rhythm.  It is the wooden strikes you hear in much of mambo music, and even when not heard the spirit of the clave should always be considered within the music, as it is the "Key" that holds it all together.  This consideration is played out in how our bodies move and on how we give emphases to a songs music.  The wooden clave strikes are played in a repetitive 2/3 or 3/2 pattern.  The 2/3 pattern means that 2 strikes are played within the first timbale 4 count chord, and 3 strikes are heard within the 2^nd timbale 4-count chord.  Alternatively, with the 3/2 patterns, 3 wooden strikes are heard in the first chord, and 2 in the second.  There is much to say and teach regarding dancing on the clave that we shall cover in later lessons.  For now, our main emphases are dancing within the Timbale while keeping an ear for the clave.

While we use the terms Salsa/Mambo interchangeably, my experience has been that pure Salsa is more dancing on the Timbale, while pure Mambo is more dancing on the Clave.  These differences are better realized as we grow as dancers.  Both Salsa and Mambo may be danced on the 1-2-or even 3 but in general, Salsa is largely danced on 1 and Mambo on 2.  These are by no means hard set rules but are only mentioned to give the student better understanding of the use of these labels.

The biggest difference between dancing on 1 or 2 is the direction we take in our footwork.  This lesson shall focus on dancing on 2.  When dancing on 2, the most important steps are on the 2^nd  and 6^th count of the beat.  For example, on the 2^nd count, the women steps forward with her LEFT while the man steps back with his RIGHT.  The dance actually starts on the 1 count with the women stepping in place with her RIGHT and the man in place with his LEFT.  What is important about this is we shift our weight with every step.  As a group, we teach and practice mambo on the women’s timing which means stepping in place with the right on the 1 count, then forward with the left on the 2^nd count.  In separate groups, men shall practice their footwork on the men’s timing.  Consider the following chart:

-------------Dance on the balls of your feet, not the heels-------------

Women:  (With each step we take, our body weight shifts to that foot!!!)

Count 1          Right in Place

Count 2          Left Forward

Count 3          Right in Place

          Pause

Count 5          Left beside Right

Count 6          Right back

Count 7          Left in Place

          Pause

Men:  (With each step we take, our body weight shifts to that foot!!!)

Count 1          Left in Place

Count 2          Right Back

Count 3          Left in Place

          Pause

Count 5          Right beside Left

Count 6          Left Forward

Count 7          Right in Place

          Pause

When we look at these directions side-by-side we can better see the synchronicity between couples:

                    WOMEN                        MEN

Count 1          Right in Place               Left in Place

Count 2          Left Forward                Right Back

Count 3          Right in Place               Left in Place

          Pause

Count 5          Left beside Right          Right beside Left

Count 6          Right Back                   Left Forward

Count 7          Left in Place                 Right in Place

          Pause

When we become really adept we can dance entire songs only focusing our steps on the 2^nd and 6^th beat of the music, using the rest of the count for balance, styling, spinning, and body isolations movements.

Prepared by Emile Derek Boyle of www.SalsaApache.com

SalsaApache

Urban Rhythm Salsa