Son – The Dance
A popular Cuban couple dance and music genre that dominated Cuba between the ’20s and the 50s of the 20th century. It’s the first and foremost father of Salsa Cubana both in terms of Music and dance, and while there are many similarities it’s the differences between the two that cause many dancers to fall in love with the dance once they give it a try.
The music has some spice in it, it’s often more collected and elegant. The emphasis is on the offbeat and that gives a new feel to the music and the dance. What many don’t know is that many of the Salsa songs you dance to are actually Son and are asking for you to dance another dance on them.
The dance is more traditional than Salsa and instead of bursting energy, you will find elegance in a pure form of dance. It enriches the closed position and the connection between the partners and teaches often how simplicity is beautiful.
If you are interested in learning more about Son before you join us, have a look at this article.
I have to leave you with the famous Son song that everybody loves, Chan Chan by Social Buena Vist Club:
The Course
The course will be an introductory course to Son and will build up as we go. If you want to study the dance from the bottom up, understand the structure of the dance, and have all the essentials in your bag – that’s the course for you.
We will start by focusing on understanding the music and how to dance “Contra Tiempo” and then go through the essential and typical elements of Son. Our focus is on social dance and not on pre-made choreographies – so we put time into good technique and fluidity in the dance. Late in the course, we will also explain a few more acrobatic feats that are typical in Son such as Caidas and Tornillios.
The course should set you up with the base to dance an entire song as well as to take Son classes of any level if you want to take your Son dance further.
Who is it for?
Normally we advise at least around 6 months of experience in salsa. For Students of La Candela we recommend finishing Technique Foundation before attending the course.
Son is considered a bit more challenging to learn than salsa as it requires control and a deeper understanding of timing, music, and precise movement. We will also assume knowledge of couple dance principals, and essential moves from Salsa Cubana (such as Vacilala, Prima and the like). This allows us to advance a bit faster and focus on the flow of Son.
The Teachers
Ido Flaishon
Ido is an avid Cuban Salsa and Folklore dancer. He started learning in Israel and continued his dancing education with Cuban teachers in Europe and Cuba. Ido has been teaching for over 10 years and is known as a teacher with an eye for the details. He will provide you with a good technique while keeping it fun and casual. (more info here)