Apprennez plus sur les Origines de la salsa

It was in Cuba that the dance called Són originated at the end of the nineteenth century, which incorporated the rhythms of the clave with Spanish music and African drum beats. Its evolution continued when the French dance of Danzón was brought over from Haiti, which mixed with the African Rumbas.

>Between 1930 and 1960, musicians travelled from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Mexico and South America to New York to perform. They brought their own native rhythms and musical forms with them, but as they listened to each other and played music together, the musical influences mixed, fused and evolved.

At the same time, the music was being taken back to Cuba, Puerto Rico and South America and continuing to grow there. It evolved a little differently in each place, so that today we have distinctive forms, such as Cuban salsa, Puerto Rican salsa and Colombian salsa, as well as LA and New York styles.

Read about the origins of salsa music

The modernisation of the Mambo in the 1950s was further influential in shaping modern Salsa. 

Salsa is similar to Mambo in that both have a pattern of six steps danced over eight counts of music and the dances share many of the same moves. In Salsa however, turns have become an important feature, so the overall look and feel is now quite different from the original Mambo.

Popular Salsa as it is danced today is often thought of as a North American interpretation of the traditional forms. In New York in the 1950s, Latin dance found limited success outside of the Latino community. In the 1970s, adoption of the term "Salsa" reduced the linguistic and cultural barriers to mainstream adoption of Latin music and dance. The term became popular as a reference to a variety of different music, from several countries of Hispanic influence.

In the 1950s Salsa Rueda (Rueda de Casino) was developed in Havana, Cuba. Pairs of dancers form a circle (Rueda, the Spanish word for wheel), with dance moves called out by one person. Many of the moves involve rapidly swapping partners. There two main types of Rueda de Casino:

• Cuban-style - "Rueda de Cuba" (Original type of Rueda)
• Miami-style - "Rueda de Miami" (Formal style, based on a mix of Rueda de Cuba and salsa Los Angeles style)

An essential element is the "Cuba step" (also known as Guapea), in which the leader and follower mirror one another. Another characteristic of this style is that the leader and follower dance around one another in a circle, rather than a straight line, such as in New York and LA styles.

The cross body lead, as it is known in LA and New York-style salsa, is an essential step in Cuban salsa too and is referred to as Dile que no in Rueda de Casino dancing. This move is essential in the many rueda moves.

Incorporating styling techniques into salsa has become very common. For both men and women shines, leg work, arm work, body movement, spins, body isolations, shoulder shimmies and rolls, and even hand styling have become a huge trend in the salsa scene.

New York style focuses on styling, elegance, and body isolations. This style is danced strictly in a straight line, avoiding travelling and there is a greater emphasis on performing “shines”, where dancers separate and dance solo. 

In New York City, this style is danced strictly on the 2, although dancers around the world often integrate elements and repertoire from New York into their dancing on 1. On 2 timing encourages the dancer to listen to percussive elements of the music. Advocates of New York Style consider this to more accurately reflect the Afro-Caribbean ancestry of the music. Many also refer to this style as "Mambo".

Los Angeles or "L.A. style" is danced on 1, in a line. Highly influenced by both the Mambo and Swing style of dancing, the two essential elements of this dance are the forward/backward basic and the cross-body lead.

This is a fusion of Cumbia and Salsa and is the preferred style of the majority of Latin America, especially, Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, Central America, and other South American countries.

In the Colombian style basic-step, partners dance side-to-side and mirror each other's movements. Footwork is often fast and comlicated and a break step on the three is followed by a tap or kick.

Colombian Style can be danced not only to Salsa music, but also to Cumbia music which is frequently played in Latin nightclubs.