Identifying the rhyhtm in cha cha cha

[serg_juv]

Hi,

I'm a newbie to dancing and have a little question about how to find the rythm in cha cha cha. I've been suggested to hear the sound of maracas. Is that right? I find it difficult sometimes, and even when I hear it sometimes I cannot distinguish the three maraca's sounds corresponding to the three cha's.

Any tip or idea is really appreciated.

Thanks in advance

[SDsalsaguy]

For ballroom cha cha the important thing is that the cha cha steps take place on the 4 and the &. Basically, try and find the 1 beat... from there dance out your rock step (on the 2), your replacement step (on the 3) and then your chasse or lock step (on the 4 &) and finishing on the 1.

Hope that helps...

[Adwiz]

Some songs make it harder to find the rhythm than others. I still struggle with finding the "1" count in some Rhumba songs, though I'm now pretty adept at Cha Cha. At a recent dance event, about 40-50 couples were on the floor at the start of a Rhumba. I simply couldn't find the 1 beat and told my partner. She said, you're not alone so I looked behind me on the dance floor and saw that not a single couple was actually dancing. They were all in the same boat!

My advice is to find a couple of obvious-beat songs like Marc Anthony's "Tragedy" that make it very easy to find the "1" beat and the "4and1" chasse that SDsalsaguy talked about where you do your chasse. Listen to these easier songs over and over and hear how the beat gives you some subtle clues.

For example, you'll find that in ChaCha music, the first prominent note you hear in the song is the "1" beat. This refers to where the band really starts to play, even if there were a few words acapella first or some kind of soft intro.

However, the most emphasis in the song is usually the "2" beat (except for some modern chart hits where the "1" remains the most prominent). So if you pay attention to the first note then it gets pretty easy. It gets more complicated if you come into it halfway through or lose your focus and have to think about it, because some songs do have more prominence on the "1" which makes you have to change your thinking a little to "1, 2, 3&4" instead of "2, 3, 4&1" as you would with proper Latin rhythm. Experienced leaders will make an adjustment to stay with the strongest emphasis in the music, stepping forward on the "1" in those situations while normally they would step forward on the "2" count.

I'm probably making this even more confusing, but just get used to hearing the "1" which is obvious in most music, even if it isn't the strongest accent in the song. That will let you make the best decision about where to start.

You'll also notice that the vocals in most songs "take a breath" right after the "4" giving the "1" beat a little more vocal prominence (a new verse typically starts on the "1" count).

It can take a little time at first but you'll get it.

[Vince A]

Think I'll stay out of this one . . . we've been here!