Bachata dancing is evolving, how about u?

With the growing popularity of Bachata, I have seen, and also been involved in a lot of discussions within the dancing community regarding the different styles of Bachata currently being danced and taught around the world, and which style is considered to be the “correct” style to dance.

The evolution of Bachata begun with a change in the music itself, let’s look the past few decades… In the early 90’s, Luis Vargas and Antony Santos, both from the Dominican Republic, started to popularize Bachata to the Caribbean market. These guys decided to include the use of electric guitars, something that was not done before. In 1992, Dominican born singer Juan Luis Guerra won a Grammy for his album “Bachata Rosa”, his Bachatas blended the traditional romantic Bachata sounds with Bolero. The popularity of his music helped raise the profile of Bachata music throughout the world. Read more

Bachata styles and evolution

This article is written to find out more about something that we all love in an effort to standardize the different styles in Bachata. This article is open for discussion as we would like to hear from you.
I will certainly gain more knowledge from this – and hopefully you too! – Peter

For some time I’ve (together with my wife Christine) been organizing events, teaching and watching the evolution of the Bachata dance which we learned to love for so many different reasons.

Personally I love the variety on HOW to dance ANY dance, but I’m starting to be worried when students are asking about styles which for me never would count as a STYLE of (in this case) Bachata. Why? Well… Most of the “styles” encountered today, are just one of the main styles (if you could call them that) that is somewhat expressed differently than another teacher somewhere else in the world teaching the same style – leading to inconsistence; which in turn will lead to the teacher calling the style something of his own – so that you cannot claim the style to be false in any way.

Well… That is ONE way to solve the issue. Read more

Bachata DVD 3 – NORTH AMERICA Release!

NORTH AMERICA (USA and CANADA) Promotion

The new Bachata Moderna DVD 3 is about to be released!! As Juan will be traveling around USA and Canada during this 2009 Christmas period, the DVDs will be only available for the North American region.

You can purchase them online (see below) or directly at the Reno Bachata Festival, as Juan and Josie will be there as instructors.

Volume 3: Advanced Bachata Moderna Combinations brings you more of this ground breaking style. Once you have mastered the Bachata Moderna fundamentals, now it’s is time to take your Bachata to the next level!

Juan Ruiz and Samantha Cilia, the main Bachateros dancers, together with Josie Cote, the 2009 Australian Salsa Champion, will show you how easy it is to lead and follow these advanced Bachata combinations.

This DVD includes 3 Moderna Fundamentals, 8 Advanced Bachata Moderna Combinations plus a BONUS Move – The Vine with flares Read more

A 2009 Bachata Year in Review

With the end of 2009 fast approaching, I have taken the time to look back and reflect on the Bachateros’ achievements and experiences throughout 2009. The smile that takes over my face when thinking about all these achievements is not big enough to thank everybody for supporting our projects and sharing their love for Bachata with us.

It is amazing to see how much Bachata love is in the world. Back in January, ’09, I had the pleasure to attend the first Bachata Festival in the USA, the Reno Bachata Convention. on the throughout 2009, I found myself traveling all over Australia, teaching at Salsa Congresses and  Festivals (Sydney, Melbourne, Darwin, Adelaide, Brisbane), then back to the USA performing in Chicago and participating at the San Francisco Bachata Festival. One month was spent teaching Bachata in Asia (Malaysia Salsa Festival, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore), and then to finish off the year I was back in Australia to complete the Bachateros Do Australia and New Zealand Tour ’09 (Adelaide, Sydney, Canberra, Christchurch, Byron Bay and Melbourne). Read more

The Malaysian Bachata Revolution (PART II)

(This is the second part of a 2 part article. Part I)

The Malaysia’s Bachata Revolution starts…

Juan Ruiz, director of Bachateros in Australia and also one of the organizers of the Sydney International Bachata Festival was in Malaysia for the Bachata Revolution organized by Rhythm Identity; it was an event which started on 7^th August 2009 and ended on 9^th August 2009

7^th August, Friday saw a full house at Paradisso the Lodge (at Jalan Raja Chulan) where many had arrived from all over to attend Juan’s first bachata workshop. The night started with some cheeky bachata moves, masterfully taught by Juan. Throughout the night, salsa and bachata music dominated the dance floor as everyone started trying out the new moves they had learnt. Read more

The Malaysian Bachata Revolution (PART 1)

(This is the first part of a 2 part article)

Mention the word bachata and you’ll probably get stares from the general public as to what foreign language you’re speaking. Foreign it is, but not so foreign to the large community of latin social dancers here in Malaysia.

Bachata is a dance, originating from the Dominican Republic, a dance well known for its sensuality as well as cheekiness and fun. It has set its roots here in Malaysia for well over 10 years and is currently growing stronger every year. Even globally, bachata is growing at a rate not seen in years since it was first danced in the latin clubs. International bachata festivals and congresses are popping out everywhere since the first of such an event was launched in Sydney in the year 2008.

If you’ve lost your love, you listen to bachata in a bar until the tears flow. If you’re with your love, you dance bachata until your hips ache. It is called musica del amargue, which means ‘music of bitterness’ – the Dominican blues – touchingly used by those who can’t read or write to communicate their feelings or ‘sentimientos’. Read more

Sexiest man on earth

According to Juan’s girlfriend, Josie, this is what he is: “the sexiest man on Earth“. This was no longer a secret as we all found this out in a full house at Brisbane City Hall on the Saturday night performances at the Salsa and Brazilian Dance Congress in June 2009. The tell-tale was Luda Kroitor from Dancing with the Stars 2008 (Australia version).

The funny thing was that one of our male friends told me: “If I was a girl I’d do him” that is the kind of power he exudes. Read more

What Bachata means to you?

The following is a collection of quotes from various students, instructors and other Bachateros. Bachata is not just the music or the dance; it is a culture in itself.

We asked our subscribers “What do you love about Bachata?” Here are some of the answers. Enjoy!

Diana S.
Bachata is a very sensual and sexy dance. What I love about Bachata is you can just let your body move freely and allow your body and soul drowns with the music and rhythm. With this dance you can show your passion and emotion and be transported to a whole new world…
For me this is what Bachata is all about… Read more

Sydney Bachata Festival – Thank you

From the Sydney International Bachata Festival organizers

Monday, 4th of May, 2009 – It has been a week since the end of the 2009 Sydney International Bachata Festival. Hard to believe that all the energy and the great vibe we felt happened already a week ago!

We, the organizers, are thrilled with the success of this year’s festival. For this second edition, the new venue was fully packed with eager Bachateros , Zoukeros and Salseros. This year we had representatives from Sydney, Newcastle, Canberra, Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Melbourne, Adeliade and Perth, as well as international representatives from New Zealand, USA, Malaysia and Singapore. Only a few more people and we would have needed a bigger venue!

Read more

4Ever EXCLUSIVE Interview

Now that everybody is talking about 4Ever and their visit to Australia for the Sydney Bachata Festival, we had the opportunity to talk to 4Ever and get to known them better.

Here’s the exclusive interview. ENJOY!

Bachateros: Can you introduce yourself and your relationship with the band?
My name is Delvis, I’m the youngest in the group, and people think I’m shy, but I’m not and on stage I’m super explosive. I ‘m the one that choreograph most of the songs. I try to mix Bachata and Urban style dancing. I love my fans, and my relationship with the rest of the group is very strong. I have a great relationship with these guys, and we have good communication, and I consider them part of my family. Read more

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