Long shot....salsa in Gambia

[Claire_Brummell]

Hey

Off to Gambia in a few weeks and wondered if anyone knows of anywhere over there I can salsa? Not sure I can cope a week without my fix!!

Any help much appreciated! :D

Claire xx

[Sagitta]

Take me with you and then you'll be able to salsa all the time. :wink: :)

[Claire_Brummell]

Ah - I've got 2 salseros coming with me already - but if there's room in my suitcase you're welcome to stow away!! :D

What am I saying? With all the shoes I'm taking there'll be no room in my suitcase for anyone!! :lol:

[pygmalion]

What am I saying? With all the shoes I'm taking there'll be no room in my suitcase for anyone!! :lol:

:lol: :lol: You're all set, then. Two salseros, and an ungodly number of pairs of shoes. What more could you ask for? :lol:

[Claire_Brummell]

:lol: :lol: :lol:

[cocodrilo]

Do you have a performance, Claire? What takes you to Gambia, of all places?! DO tell! :D

[Claire_Brummell]

Nope - just a holiday - a friend is getting married so we're going out for the wedding...and making a holiday out of it too - wondered if there was a salsa scene out there, because it could make for a fab salsa holiday destination if there is... :D

[SurfSalsa]

Hi Claire, you are very lucky you have salseros with you!!! I'm doing a project in Nigeria at the moment, and as part of the mission I did a long-week-end in Senegal too, which is basically a neighbouring country to Gambia...

Here in Nigeria they have a funky 8-beat music called high life, to which you could salsa very nicely (keep in mind this whole area was the feeding ground for Cuban music...) as well as other types of music which is great for Merengue. In Senegal they have a type of music called MBalax (pronouced something like Mabalag) - very fast, very stucatto - good for race-track salsa!!! (I guess you'd run into MBalax in Gambia... haven't been there but it supposedly a similar culture.)

But alas, I still have to see a couple dance in partnership... never mind finding someone to dance with... (OK, to dance partner dancing with... :lol: :lol: :lol: )

Enjoy!!!! I find this part of the world very very interesting...
PS Read a book on the history of Cuban music before you go...

[africana]

Hi Claire, you are very lucky you have salseros with you!!! I'm doing a project in Nigeria at the moment, and as part of the mission I did a long-week-end in Senegal too, which is basically a neighbouring country to Gambia...

Here in Nigeria they have a funky 8-beat music called high life, to which you could salsa very nicely (keep in mind this whole area was the feeding ground for Cuban music...) as well as other types of music which is great for Merengue. In Senegal they have a type of music called MBalax (pronouced something like Mabalag) - very fast, very stucatto - good for race-track salsa!!! (I guess you'd run into MBalax in Gambia... haven't been there but it supposedly a similar culture.)

But alas, I still have to see a couple dance in partnership... never mind finding someone to dance with... (OK, to dance partner dancing with... :lol: :lol: :lol: )

Enjoy!!!! I find this part of the world very very interesting...
PS Read a book on the history of Cuban music before you go... :cheers: yay for the homeland
I've read and seen evidence of the music and dance historical connections. Even when I was it cuba some of it it felt like I was back home again

Another interesting place to study is the Congos of Central Africa. I'm learning some of their dances. and the drumming and dance steps are very similar to some salsa/rumba steps, as well as afro-brazillian dances like samba. That's because a lot of Bantu slaves came from that region. So many complex and tasking dances

[SurfSalsa]

Yeah Africana your homeland rocks!! You can hear and feel the basis, the foundation, the rhythm, the beat, of the Latin dances - I wish I was a teach-them-in-an-instance salsa teacher!! Some of the music is so funky, but you can only shine so much, then you want to grab these gorgeous girls (and wow they are! :lol:) and CBL them into a double spin... hey, just plain basic would do too... there is so much feel for the music, even that would be exhilirating!

But people here mostly dance what I call an africanised hip-hop, but all loose. I've seen some real close partner dancing in Senegal, on slow rumba-ish type music (unfortunately don't know the music's name), but here in Nigeria I still have to see a partner dance. Maybe it is hidden away here somewhere, but everywhere I ask runs into dead-ends - also my movements are restricted to Victoria and Ikoyi - our drivers refuse to take us to the mainland. But I mean if you expected to see funky partner dancing, you would expect to find it on the 'Manhattan islands of Lagos', if I can call it that.

Going to a live high-life band tonight, small salsa-club like little place; very nice lively atmosphere, maybe I must try salsa teaching 101 one-on-one!!

[africana]

you make me smile and almost wish to be there :lol:

I think the closest thing you'll find to partner dancing will be people simply coupled up but dancing separately (thats what they call "shines" here lol)

[SurfSalsa]

Another interesting place to study is the Congos of Central Africa. I'm learning some of their dances. and the drumming and dance steps are very similar to some salsa/rumba steps, as well as afro-brazillian dances like samba. That's because a lot of Bantu slaves came from that region. So many complex and tasking dances

Very interesting - where & how are you learning that? That must be so great to do!! I imagine you can apply some of that to salsa as well to get some very interesting effect! That's the kind of thing I would love to run into here...

BTW, highjacking the tread a bit (more), where are you from, are you Yuroba, Igbo or Hausa, or something else, and do you still speak the language at all? I'm trying to pick up some Yuroba as I'm going along. Slow process doing it informally - but very interesting how the language works, how it comes through in the peoples' names, all the way through to the Orishas and all! It's so amazing when I've just read something ni my Cuban music book, and then I find it here in the language, in someone's name, etc...

I haven't been to Cuba (yet...) but its also so interesting how people's pronounciation and expressions and general way of talking here overlap with what I've heard in the Caribbean... and even In Nawlins...

Sleep is of course another problem in this place - some of the clubs start and operate so late, very hard to concentrate at work... it gets real bad towards the end of the week (like... starting tonite... little tour of 3 clubs lined up... :lol: :P :D where you do you get the beer-clinking emoticons???)

Greetings from Lagos' Manhattan!!

[africana]

Another interesting place to study is the Congos of Central Africa. I'm learning some of their dances. and the drumming and dance steps are very similar to some salsa/rumba steps, as well as afro-brazillian dances like samba. That's because a lot of Bantu slaves came from that region. So many complex and tasking dances

Very interesting - where & how are you learning that? That must be so great to do!! I imagine you can apply some of that to salsa as well to get some very interesting effect! That's the kind of thing I would love to run into here... We've learned so much choreography I can't keep all the names straight. Basically dance a grouped into functions like war dances, rite-of-passage dances, dances done to heal the sick (by witch doctor/patient) and others. Each one has a set of drum rhythms that are used to queue up and perform the steps. The warrior dances in particular require feats of atheleticism, very very fast <whew!> There are many syncopated steps that make them quite intricate to learn, a lot of funky movement, and it's not uncommon for my body to hurt for 2 days after taking a classes due to the high level of total musle usage, a great of isolations of the torso, shoulders, hips, even the neck.
And yes I try to add some of that juice into my salsa ;)

I don't know how one can find traditional dance training as I never danced while living there.

BTW, highjacking the tread a bit (more), where are you from, are you Yuroba, Igbo or Hausa, or something else, and do you still speak the language at all? I'm trying to pick up some Yuroba as I'm going along. Slow process doing it informally - but very interesting how the language works, how it comes through in the peoples' names, all the way through to the Orishas and all! It's so amazing when I've just read something ni my Cuban music book, and then I find it here in the language, in someone's name, etc...

I haven't been to Cuba (yet...) but its also so interesting how people's pronounciation and expressions and general way of talking here overlap with what I've heard in the Caribbean... and even In Nawlins... Yes I still speak Igbo :)
It's true the orishas are from the Yoruba traditional religions. If you've encountered it, they even have rivers and states names after them (Osun, Ogun River, etc). Only difference is in spelling. In Brazil the Portuguese way of spelling seems to be using "x" instead of "s" -- so Sango is spelled Xango. In Cuba they spell it "Chango", or "Ochu" for Osun, spanish influence...you see the pattern.

Sleep is of course another problem in this place - some of the clubs start and operate so late, very hard to concentrate at work... it gets real bad towards the end of the week (like... starting tonite... little tour of 3 clubs lined up... :lol: :P :D where you do you get the beer-clinking emoticons???)

Greetings from Lagos' Manhattan!! :lol: :cheers:

[SalseraLaura]

Hi Claire, you are very lucky you have salseros with you!!! I'm doing a project in Nigeria at the moment, and as part of the mission I did a long-week-end in Senegal too, which is basically a neighbouring country to Gambia...

Here in Nigeria they have a funky 8-beat music called high life, to which you could salsa very nicely (keep in mind this whole area was the feeding ground for Cuban music...) as well as other types of music which is great for Merengue. In Senegal they have a type of music called MBalax (pronouced something like Mabalag) - very fast, very stucatto - good for race-track salsa!!! (I guess you'd run into MBalax in Gambia... haven't been there but it supposedly a similar culture.)

But alas, I still have to see a couple dance in partnership... never mind finding someone to dance with... (OK, to dance partner dancing with... :lol: :lol: :lol: )

Enjoy!!!! I find this part of the world very very interesting...
PS Read a book on the history of Cuban music before you go... :cheers: yay for the homeland
I've read and seen evidence of the music and dance historical connections. Even when I was it cuba some of it it felt like I was back home again

Another interesting place to study is the Congos of Central Africa. I'm learning some of their dances. and the drumming and dance steps are very similar to some salsa/rumba steps, as well as afro-brazillian dances like samba. That's because a lot of Bantu slaves came from that region. So many complex and tasking dances

I dance ndombolo and soukous from congo its a modern adaptation of bantu dancing done to music similar to highlife with infuences from rumba. Its really energetic check out these clips

http://www.werrason.org/index.php?menu=wtv

the 2nd clip is men dancing (press the forward button) the name of the clip is Kikwit Aout 2005

the 7th clip is of the girls dance the name is Linda a Kamfunfu

the 9th clip is the girls troupe called Linda et sa troupe

All the clips are filmed in Congo, the thing i love is how the dancer responds to the rythm perfectly especially the guys, i learn both the guys and girls steps cos theyre both fun

[africana]

wow 8) very nice
it's easy to see how they came up with rumba and the other dances. In fact I remember my congolese dance teacher telling us that some afro-cubans still speak a very old dialect of her language

[Claire_Brummell]

WOW!!

Thanks for the info guys much appreciated - I'll have to keep my salseros close then! :D

[pygmalion]

I dance ndombolo and soukous from congo its a modern adaptation of bantu dancing done to music similar to highlife with infuences from rumba. Its really energetic check out these clips



ndombolo? Do tell. (Soukous I knew about .. at least a little. 8) )