Salsa Dancing Lesson: The Salsa Basic Step

LESSON THREE

Salsa has been developing for decades, in many different regions. This means that the basic step that folks use tends to differ as well, depending on where one is dancing. Most dancers begin on beat one, but some like to wait for beat two; some move forward and backward, and others are always stepping back. Good dancers, especially followers, must be flexible enough to adapt to regional and personal differences. That being said, you will likely want to learn and become comfortable with a solid basic step that is commonly used. My favorite basic step, which is probably the most popular world-wide (certainly in the U.S. and Europe) is what will be described here. Once you get this basic step down, you will be able to adapt your step to different partners and styles without missing a beat.

Now that you understand the Salsa beat, and the Salsa basic step 8 count, your next task is to apply the music to your feet. The way that many salsa instructors like to teach the basic step is using this count: 1, 2, 3, (pause), 5, 6, 7, (pause). You'll notice that, if you include the pause as a number, this is the 8 count Salsa basic step pattern that you know how to keep with your right hand. The reason that instructors like to use "pause" instead of numbers 4 and 8 is because your feet are actually stepping on 1-3 and 5-7, and either resting or showing-off during the pauses. I think we should substitute the word "kick" in place of "pause." This will make you look better on the dance floor, and, I think, is a much easier way to understand and maintain the count.

Slip on your dancing shoes....

Credit: Chris Register

Copyright: Chris Register