Related Beginner Salsa Steps:
Side Basic Step
Salsa Timing Explanation

Other Beginner Salsa Moves You May Want To Check Out:
Basic Step (Fwd & Back)
Side Basic Step

Overall, I’d suggest that you put your ad on both of these website for maximum exposure.

Dance News/Competition Results
Dancesportinfo.net – Besides partner search, this site provides very current Dancesport news from all around the world including press releases from dance organizations, results, partnership splits, marriages and more. Personally, I think there is a little too much emphasis on partner splitting news but there is a ton of other great information to make up for it. They also have probably the quickest updates of Dancesport competition results, photos and videos from all around the world.

Dancing Forum
Danceforums.com – This is my favorite website for dance talk/discussion and both social and competitive dancers will find valuable information there. Some of the categories you can read, answer and post in are Dance articles, Ballroom dance, Salsa, Swing discussion boards, Tango Argentino, Country Western and more. There are also many dance professional members who contribute consistently and give their professional insight, including yours truly.

Use these resources at your own discretion and have fun.
Written by Leon Turestky

Plans for the new year:
1. I will be uploading tons of new Latin, Ballroom and Salsa dance instruction videos very soon!
2. There will be an email subscription option for anyone interested to receive the latest posts and announcements via email!
3. There will also be a facebook fan page that you can join.

Sorry, no twitter…. enough is enough…lol

Leon

www.Passion4Dancing.com was founded by Leon Turetsky, a professional dance instructor in the Boston Area. Leon wanted to create an online resource full of Latin and Ballroom dancing lessons to help those seeking extra instruction/guidance outside their regular dance lessons.

On Passion4Dancing.com website Leon uploads dance instruction videos, social and competitive dance videos, news, articles, tips and discussions all about dancing! He hopes to inspire, educate and provide you with a wealth of information about dancing.

Please feel free to post your comments and feedback. Remember to bookmark your favorite posts and share them with your friends.

For an extensive bio about Leon visit Leon Turetsky Bio page.
If you’d like to contact Leon directly:

Phone:
(617) 372 5890

Email:
Passion4dancingweb@gmail.com

City:
Boston MA
USA

Happy dancing!

Slavik and Karina's Dancing DVDs

The Review:

Overall Rating: The best dance DVDs on the market for learning the International Latin syllabus.

What You Get: There are a total of 5 Discs covering 5 different dances. Each dance comes in its own DVD so you can get only the dances you want or all 5 to learn the whole International Latin style syllabus.

Dances You Will Learn: Cha Cha, Samba, Rumba, Paso Doble and Jive.

Dancing Level: Pre-Bronze Level – Gold Level. Each DVD covers the full Pre-Bronze, Bronze, Silver and Gold level syllabus steps. In my opinion, every level dancer (including dance pros) should own these DVDs for reference. It is much easier to look up a dance step on a TV screen than to read a manual book.

Price: $99.00/Each DVD. In my opinion the price is justified since each DVD covers the FULL SYLLABUS OF ALL THE LEVELS! This means you will never need to purchase another syllabus DVD.

Refund: On their website policy it states that there is a refund for damaged items or erroneous deliveries. Otherwise, no refunds or exchanges.

Instruction Quality: Methodical, Clear and Thorough.
The instruction is done by Corky Ballas (Mark Ballas’ father), while the demonstrating is done by Slavik and Karina. The format includes an introduction and history for each dance followed by a demonstration of the dance figure to music. After that, for each dance step, there is a clear break down of the man and lady’s steps with the correct timing. Lastly, there is an explanation of the “lead” in great detail. In addition to covering the syllabus steps, Slavik and Karina demonstrate a little routine at the end of each level (Bronze, Silver, Gold) to show how you may put steps together. And if that was not enough, there are also a few warm up dance exercises (with a slow break down) included to give students an idea of how to warm up and prepare their bodies for dancing.

Extra Notes:
If you are looking to learn the International Latin style syllabus, these are the DVDs for you! Slavik and Karina are one of the best professional couples of our generation and were the perfect duo to demonstrate the Latin syllabus. This dancing DVD series is presented by Corky Ballas, a U.S Ballroom dancing legend, who does all the talking/presenting behind the scenes. All 3 worked in unison together to create these awesome DVDs.

The Best Reasons To Get These DVDs Are:
1. All the Pre – Bronze to Gold Level steps are covered on a single disc for each dance.
2. Thorough break down of the steps, timing and lead for each figure.
3. Learn from one of the best professional dance couples in the world – Slavik kryklyvyy and Karina Smirnoff.

You can get more information about these DVDs, as well as order them from Dance Vision website (Click on the banner below):

Slavik & Karina’s Dancing Basics With Passion DVDs!

Russell Ferguson won Season 6 of “So You Think You Can Dance” last night. Here  is a guy who truly deserved to win this season. In my opinion, out of all the contestants on the show, Russell had grown leaps and bounds as a dancer. Even though he is a Krumper specialist, his ability to execute other styles such as Contemporary, Ballroom and Bollywood with perfection was just brilliant! Second place went to Jacob who was what Nigel called an already “polished dancer” in comparison to Russell who was not and had achieved most of his growth through out the show.
Russell Ferguson was born in Boston MA where he currently resides. He started dancing when he was just 3 years old and professionally at age 6. Russell’s dance training mainly come from 5 years of formal training at Boston Art Academy High School. Until recently he has worked with Boston City Lights, a performance dance company. His interests include acting, singing, drawing, rapping and making music. Russell’s main inspiration has been Michael Jackson.

Russell Ferguson Audition Video:

Russell, Kevin and Legacy dance a hip hop routine:

Shani & Milton – Salsa Dance Video



Cristian & Emily – Salsa dance video



For comparison purposes here is a couple from last year’s Salsa congress. Watch how the guy talks on his cell phone while dancing!
Enrique & Liz

Ballroom dancing lessons

In this article I clarify 3 myths about learning how to dance and give suggestions about what you can do to get the most out of your ballroom dancing lessons.

Let’s get started!

1. You either have it or you don’t
Misconception number one is that you have to be born with some extraordinary natural ability to dance, that if you cannot immediately pick it up, you are forever doomed. In reality, the only things that matter are hard work and dedication. Learning how to dance is really not as ambiguous as people think. During your Ballroom dancing lessons, your instructor will break down the various dance principles such as foot placements, timing of music and other techniques. You will find that the instruction is actually quite black and white, a step by step process that requires no innate ability. In fact, the naturally talented ones may have it worse. They may be so used to learning dance quickly and easily, that when confronted with a challenge, they become frustrated and discouraged. Their improvement slows down because they are not used to putting in the work. They are, of course, experiencing the normal learning process. The only sure way to consistently progress is through hard work and dedication. So forget about how talented you are or are not and instead practice, practice, practice.

2. Group classes are enough
Myth number two is that you can be really good from just taking group classes. As a professional dance instructor, I am here to tell you that group classes alone will not get you far. The reason is that you do not get enough personal attention and critique. Individual attention is crucial in the Ballroom dance learning process for developing the right habits and eliminating the wrong ones. Your group classes could be level specific, the instruction could be very informative and thorough, and still your progress is minimal. Having you and an x number of other students in the same class diminishes the time your teacher can allocate to correct any mistakes that you may have. Most of the class time is spent on general information for the entire group with a few minutes for individual corrections. If you really want to dance well, you should strongly consider doing private dance lessons to supplement your groups for consistent improvement.

3. All I need is 1 month
I am sorry to let you know that you cannot really learn how to Ballroom dance properly in 1 month. Can you learn how to play an instrument in 1 month? Or learn how to speak a new language? Of course not! Dancing works just the same. Besides dance steps and patterns, there are many technique elements to learn such as: posture, footwork, lead and follow techniques, music/timing, character and more. With all the information, it takes time for the body to develop muscle memory. One month will introduce you to a few basic dance steps and concepts but it is not enough to make you an adequate dancer. People who have a set time frame for learning how to dance are naive and do not fully understand the learning process. The best thing you can do when you decide to learn how to dance is to take Ballroom dancing lessons consistently. To start, I recommend 1-2 private lessons a week for at least 3 months. During those first 3 months have an open mind and just learn, absorb, practice, feel and experiment the dancing world. Hopefully after that you will see that learning how to dance is a process that cannot be measured with time.

All of the ideas in this article are derived from my personal teaching experience.

By Leon Turetsky