My hobby - Dance Author Dominika Tomkowicz Class II TEp School ZSP 1 in Krosno

About Me  My name is Dominika. I am 17 years old. I attend the second class in TEp. I attend the second class in TEp.

My hobby  My hobby is dance. This is my passion. I attend dance classes in my school. I am a member of a dance team. We come up with different dance routines to the music base. Then we perform at many concerts and festivals. On 30th of June 2005 we danced on the Day of Sport in our school. I am keen on many types of dances from all over the world. I am keen on many types of dances from all over the world. I would like to learn salsa because it is not very complicated but fascinating. I would like to learn salsa because it is not very complicated but fascinating.

Types of Dances  Rumba  Casino  Merengue  Salsa  Cha Cha  Samba  Flamenco

Rumba  There are two sources of the dances: one Spanish and the other African. Although the main growth was in Cuba, there were similar dance developments which took place in other Caribbean islands and in Latin America generally.  The "rumba influence" came in the 16th century with the black slaves imported from Africa. The native Rumba folk dance is essentially a sex pantomime danced extremely fast with exaggerated hip movements and with a sensually aggressive attitude on the part of the man and a defensive attitude on the part of the woman. The music is played with a staccato beat in keeping with the vigorous expressive movements of the dancers. Accompanying instruments include the maracas, the claves, the marimbola, and the drums.  Rumba is the spirit and soul of Latin American music and dance. The fascinating rhythms and bodily expressions make the Rumba one of the most popular ballroom dances.

Casino  Casino Dance is internationally known as Salsa. The name Casino appeared in the early 1960s in Havana. As a pastime and entertainment for most Cubans, Casino became a predominant rhythm in Havana. It gave birth to Rueda de Casino, which originated in Patricio Lumumba beach club (former Nautico) in Miramar. This form of circular dance was the creation of dancers from Regla and the Guaracheros de Regla.

Merengue  The Merengue is the national dance of the Dominican Republic, and also to some extent, of Haiti, the neighbour sharing the island.  Partners hold each other in closed position and do walks sideways or circle each other, in small steps. They can further switch to a double handhold position and do separate turns never letting go each other's hands. During these turns they may twist and tie their handold into intricate pretzels. Other choreography is possible.Although the tempo of the music may be frantic, the upper body is kept majestic and turns are slow, typically four beats/steps per complete turn.

Salsa  Salsa is a distillation of many Latin and Afro-Caribbean dances. Salsa rhythms are based on Afro-Cuban dances such as the bolero, cha cha,mambo and son montuno.  Salsa is similar to Mambo in that both have a pattern of six steps danced over eight counts of music. The dances share many of the same moves. In Salsa, turns have become an important feature, so the overall look and feel are quite different form those of Mambo. Mambo moves generally forward and backward, whereas, Salsa has more of a side to side feel.  Salsa is danced on music with a recurring eight-beat pattern, i.e. two bars of four beats. Salsa patterns typically use three steps during each four beats, one beat being skipped. However, this skipped beat is often marked by a tap, a kick, a flick, etc. Typically the music involves complicated percussion rhythms and is fast with about 180 beats per minute

Cha Cha  Cha cha is the newcomer of the Latino American Dances. It is an offshoot of the Mambo. In the slow Mambo tempo, there was a distinct sound in the music that people began dancing to, calling the step the "Triple" Mambo.  Enrique Joren came up with the first full-fledged Cha cha in His creation came from the idea that there should be a music created specifically for dance and participation, not only for listening, or for a select elite.  The dance consists of three quick steps and two slower steps on the one beat and two beat.

Samba  The Samba originated in Brazil. It was and is danced as a festival dance during the street festivals and celebrations. First introduced in the U.S.A in a Broadway play called "Street Carnival" in the late twenties. The festive style and mood of the dance has kept it alive and popular to this day. Samba is a fun dance that fits most of today's popular music.

Flamenco  The flamenco came from Andalusia in what is now Spain, influenced heavily by the local gypsy population, the Gitanos. Large amounts of the musical stylings and dance movements of flamenco come from the Jewish tradition, as well as from Moorish culture.  Flamenco dancing may be of different styles depending on the intention of the dance - whether it is to entertain, to pursue a lover or to comfort those in need.  Flamenco dancing is an incredibly emotive dance style, with the dancer always striving to express his or her emotions through movement. While flamenco dancing, the dancer may clap their hands, kick their feet, snap castanets (small handheld percussive instruments), or jerk their body abruptly to demonstrate the desired emotion.

THE END