Salsa Night
It’s been awhile since I last step into a Salsa Club and it sure felt good going to Salsa Havana last Saturday. Many familiar faces and familiar songs that rocked the night away. (more…)
The Passing of Pedro “Cuban Pete” Aguilar
Was informed by a fellow Salsa dancing friend about the passing of Pedro “Cuban Pete” Aguilar, one of the leading mambo dancers of the 1950s, He was 81.
The mambo legend passed away Tuesday at the Sinai Plaza Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Miami, said Barbara Craddock, his longtime dance partner. Craddock described his cause of death as heart failure but said it could be related to his diabetes.
Aguilar was born in Puerto Rico in 1927 and grew up in the New York barrio. He picked up the nickname “Cuban Pete” in 1949 at the Palladium Ballroom in New York. The nickname referenced a Desi Arnaz song, and Arnaz himself later endorsed Aguilar’s use of it.
Aguilar first rose to fame by winning scores of dance competitions in the 1950s with his partner Millie Donay. He continued to dance professionally for nearly his entire life, whether he was teaching lessons, hosting workshops or judging competitions.
Aguilar was a choreographer and consultant for the 1992 movie, “The Mambo Kings,” starring Antonio Banderas and Armand Assante. Aguilar and Craddock served as choreographic consultants and instructors for the Miami City Ballet’s “Mambo No. 2 a.m.”
Another legend has left us but definitely will not be forgotten. Only thing I know of this legend is what I read online and from online videos. Nevertheless, he will be missed. (more…)
Dejavu
A great stress reliever aside from alcohol is dance, well, to me it is. These days, aside from dancing and futsal, I don’t do much other type of exercise or sports related activity. With work piling up and deadline getting near, I start to feel the pressure of it all, not that it’s bad, I like it actually as it only means that I’ve to be kept on my toes and be on a constant move. It’s better that way than sitting at home doing nothing, right?
Sometimes, too much of these type of pressure isn’t good too. I find that the only way I could really let go and release all these pent up stress is through dancing. Unlike all the other sports where I have to think and plan to win, in salsa, I don’t have to, just invite a girl onto the dance floor and just dance away. Unlike futsal, I don’t get tired easily in dancing too, could dance all night long if the club remain open and there are dance partners around. (more…)
Salsa for Life!
Wednesday was quite memorable as we’ve a huge group of Salsa dancers from all over the Klang Valley coming together at Hush Bangsar to dance as well as donate to a good cause. Ticket sales, cupcakes as well as food from Hush went on sale to the patrons of the place as well as to the dancers in the hope of raising some money to help Amy Lazim who is fighting ovarian cancer (stage 4).
We even have kind souls coming out with their own precious posession to auction off to the dancers there in trying to encourage everyone to do a good deed. Among the things put up for auction is a semi accoustic guitar which was emaculately kept but was auctioned off to raise money for Amy. Further separate donations are encouraged and can be conveyed to Amy via Lin at +zero one two 318 1202. (more…)
Dancing the night away
It’s been 2 months since I last got into Salsa Havana due to the things I’ve been doing outside of dancing. I’ve to admit that Saturday was the day I wanted to just laze at home and watch some EPL games but thanks to some friends who’s persuasion is very good, I got off my lazy ass, changed and drove down to KL to dance the night away.
The packed Dance Floor
Stepping into the club, it felt fantastic! The people, the music, the dance! Was greeted by familiar faces majority of whom asked whatever happened to me cause so long never see me in the club as well as some new faces as Salsajay brought out the new students into the world of Social dancing. (more…)
Don’t Panic! & Salsa @ Aliyaa
It was a weird combo but yah, I was invited to Aliyaa for Don’t Panic’s party and at the same time, the first of the social Salsa dancing nights was held at Aliyaa as well. Kind of weird to have a drinking/indie band performance party going on downstairs and salsa dancing on the upstairs. (more…)
Meeting Antonio Vargas
Sunday night, I had the privilage of meeting the Dance Maestro behind Mission Impossible 2, Strictly Ballroom as well as Tiempos Mejores. That’s none other than Mr. Antonio Vargas himself. Born in Casablanca, Antonio Vargas was attracted to Flamenco at a very early age. His inborn musicality could equally have drawn him to become a concert cellist or a percussionist. However his passion for the art of Flamenco and the full realisation of its potentials have been the driving force behind his long and brilliant career.
The list of Antonio’s works is extensive. From opera to film, from small stage performances to big festivals, from solo performances to productions with the best artists that Spain has to offer at the moment, Antonio has done it all, including a television show with the Beatles (Granada Television, 1964); he played the Fiddler in a London production of Fiddler on the Roof (Her Majesty’s Theatre, 1967); he has created his own Flamenco Dance Theatre works and adapted well know plays and novels to the Flamenco repertoire. (more…)
ANTONIO VARGAS @ WhiteRoom Bilique this SUNDAY!!
Taken from Mambochinita…
We have a VERY SPECIAL GUEST in town this weekend and he will be coming to The WhikeRoom Bilique tomorrow night!
Antonio Vargas, one of the grandmasters of SPANISH FLAMENCO will be dropping by to chill at our Sunday social while on holiday in KL. Senor Vargas has an impressive resume that spans a couple of decades. He is also a pioneer in the field of Flamenco dance theatre and has traveled and performed extensively around the world, changing the lives of those who perform with him. Being in high demand, this man has also choreographed for movies like Strictly Ballroom & Mission Impossible (just to name a few). I highly recommend catching him if you can….great people like this are hard to meet in Malaysia!
Now you may say, so HOW IS THIS RELATED TO SALSA? Salsa & Latin America are linked to Spain…..and one of the national dances in Spain is…yep Flamenco! In addition, the posture, poise, grace, expression and level of mastery will surely INSPIRE you to be a better dancer! (whether its socially or as a performer)
Besides, Senor Vargas will be indulging us in a brief intro to Flamenco and an impromptu performance. I was told it will happen around 10:30pm+ 
Really, you don’t want to MISS this opportunity! To dance is to live!
Dance is the hidden language of the soul. ~Martha Graham
Dancing is the loftiest, the most moving, the most beautiful of the arts, because it is not mere translation or abstraction from life; it is life itself. ~Havelock Ellis
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Gerardo Rosales & Our Latin Groove
The World Latin Salsa Congress is just around the corner and the excitement is building up in Penang especially Tanjung Bungah Hotel where the event will be held.
One of the most looked forward to aspect of the event other than the workshop is the LIVE BAND that’ll be entertaining all Salsa dancers at the Beach Party on Saturday night.
This year, we have none other than Gerardo Rosales & Our Latin Groove all the way from Venezuela. Check out this video of the band.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdzkKkOB_YE]
For those of you who hasn’t and have plans to attend, here’s some good news. If you are planning to attend only the Saturday afternoon workshop + Beach Party, we have a promotional package of RM800 (single room) and RM600 (twin sharing) with a 1 night stay at the hotel. So you can party like crazy and then just sleep over and head back to KL on Sunday after checking out at 12pm.
Have you registered your participation yet? If not, write to me and we’ll arrange for you now! My email’s zique76 [at] hotmail.com
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Bachata Workshop with Zain
On Saturday, Whikeroom Bilique had a guest all the way from San Francisco. He’s none other than Zain Khandwala of RicaSalsa. A professional Salsa and Bachata instructor and Performer, Zain came by Malaysia in his travels to check out the scene here and decided to have a short Bachata workshop to cater to some of the curious minds here.
The whole workshop was short yet, he was able to deliver over a few steps as well as footwork to us. Which is nice, the only way I know how to dance bachata is the very basic so with what he taught, I can say that the number of moves I know have also increased. IF only I won’t forget it by the end of the week.
If you’re interested to meet up with him, there’s one great way to do it. Come to the Salsa Congress in Penang this April 18th – 21st and watch him impart some of his knowledge to the participants of the workshops and parties. For more details regarding the Congress, you can drop me an email at michael@worldlatinsalsacongress.com. For more photos from the workshop, you can check out the facebook’s photo gallery here.
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