International Salsa Magazine

2017

Toronto Dance Salsa Canada’s Largest Salsa Dance School

North America / Canada / Toronto

A place where you are welcome with open arms, people don’t judge you but look to understand you, value you for the special person that you are. Toronto Dance Salsa, Canada’s largest salsa dance school.

“Beautifully taught with careful attention to the appropriate tempo for the class. Atmosphere was excellent with structure and solid teaching while keeping it fun. The timing just before sunday social is great too – one reason I did the class was to provide the nudge to turn up to social” Student Testimonial

Flyers - Toronto Dance Salsa Canada's
Flyers – Toronto Dance Salsa Canada’s

All of the instructors have a lot of experience, enthusiastic and passion for Salsa. Besite Toronto Dance Salsa staff, they count with a big family of 60 volunteers who are committed to assisting the students.

Their volunteers are current or former senior Toronto Dance Salsa students who have caught the salsa bug and hold a great passion for sharing their love of salsa with others. All the classes have at least 6 volunteers who take their own time to walk around the room providing advice and guidance during the lesson and are also available to join the rotation if they have an absent student which assists them in maintaining an even number of male and female dancers in each lesson.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, visit http://www.torontodancesalsa.ca where you can find all the requirements.

Their students are constantly contacting Toronto Dance Salsa instructors through [email protected] so the can share with them how Toronto Dance Salsa changed their life.

“Toronto Dance Salsa has changed my life because it helped me tackle my fear of dancing and rebuild my confidence. I had an extremely rough year and my confidence was already at “rock bottom”. Student story

Photo of Salsa Dance School - Toronto Dance Salsa Canada's
Photo of Salsa Dance School – Toronto Dance Salsa Canada’s

If you live in Toronto and want to learn how to dance Salsa, don’t hesitate to visit Toronto Dance Salsa http://www.torontodancesalsa.ca where you can find all the information about you are looking for about lessons, volunteering, events, instructors and much more.

  • Address: 5095 Yonge Street, 2nd Floor, Toronto, ON
  • Intersection: Yonge between Finch and Sheppard
  • Subway: Right on top of North York Civic Centre Subway
  • Parking: 2hrs free validated customer parking

Orange County (OC) Salsa with Esteban Conde

North America / USA / California

Salsa dance classes in Orange County by Esteban Conde, no partner or experience needed. Weekly and weekend Salsa and Bachata classes at the Costa Mesa dance studio. Salsa classes and dance instruction will give you the tools to learn how to dance salsa in no time.

Photo 1 - Salsa dance classes in Orange County
Photo 1 – Salsa dance classes in Orange County

The goal is to help you go from classes to dancing fast! And you will not only learn how to dance, but make great friends, increase your confidence and add joy to your life. Come give these salsa and bachata classes a try!

Salsa, Bachata, Salsa Parties and Events

  • Saturday Salsa Class: Every Sat 4:40pm-5:30pm Come and learn how to dance SALSA and have fun! This class teaches the basics and new moves each week. Don’t miss it Beginner level, no partner needed at 2980 Mcclintock way ste a and b, Costa Mesa, 92626. $15

 

  • Monday & Thursday Salsa: Class Every Monday and Thursday evening are the nights for Salsa classes. No partner or experience needed. Fun and Friendly atmosphere! Class starts at 8pm. No reservation needed. Each class is $15, with discounted prices for packages and monthly membership options. Come check us out!

 

  • Monday and Thursday Bachata Class: OC Salsa Studio, 2980 McClintock way, Costa Mesa. Bachata Class 7-8 every Monday and Thursday, rain or shine. Beginner level class, no partner, registration or experience needed. $15, this class covers basics and steps and specializes for those with 0 experience and new to dancing altogether.
Photo 2 - Salsa dance classes in Orange County
Photo 2 – Salsa dance classes in Orange County

“I’ve always loved latin music and wished I could dance. Deciding to give it a try, i tried a free class with Esteban and crew at OC SALSA. What a pleasant surprise to feel so comfortable and welcome with a group I didn’t know, doing something I had never done. It was fun, great exercise, and I couldn’t wait for the next session. I was hooked because the instructors and atmosphere make it so easy to learn, you get plenty of personal attention, and can learn at your own pace”.

“Nice people, high quality instruction, and very reasonable cost. If you want to try, improve, or perfect latin dance, this is the place for you!” Student Testimonial

OC Salsa at 2980 McClintock way # A & B, Costa Mesa, 92626 2980 McClintock Way, Costa Mesa, CA 92626, EE. UU. Call On: 949-813-0412 [email protected] http://estebanconde.com

John Erban

Europe/ Suiza / Ginebra

John Erban. The International sensation of the Tango Scene

At International Salsa Magazine, we believe that what makes someone special is their passion and love for what they do and bring to others. This is the case with John Erban, the Venezuelan tango dancer and instructor that we had the pleasure to meet this month.

Photo 1: John Erban - Tango
Photo 1: John Erban – Tango

John Erban is based in Geneva, Switzerland. He is preparing his next European tour in order to give Tango classes, shows, festivals and more. With an interesting beginning, this Venezuelan left an engineering career to follow a passion that was growing inside of him:

Dance. The Colombian influence in his family was very important to him to take that step into dance. His beginning was centered in a more Latin/Caribbean style, starting with salsa and Venezuelan folklore.

Photo 2: John Erban - Tango
Photo 2: John Erban – Tango

After many years of mastering these styles, giving shows and performances, John met the style that changed his life, Tango. Thanks to the Tango Caracas Company, this dancer started a career in the Tango scene and in 2006, after only three months of practicing with his partner in that moment, John went to the worldwide Tango Championship in Argentina and the couple could passed to the semi- final, something remarkable for a Venezuelan contestants couple.

Later, in 2007, they made it to the finals and in 2008 the couple took part again of the contest and won the 3rd place.

Photo 3: John Erban - Tango
Photo 3: John Erban – Tango

After that, many doors opened for John in the Tango scene around the world, making a dance tour in TokyoJapan, and different countries of Asia. This was a learning process for John in so many ways, because he had the opportunity to meet so many different cultures, languages, perspectives and, overall, dances.

He returned to Argentina in 2009, this time with the amazing dancer Clarissa Sanchez as his new dancing partner, but it was just until 2011, the year of victory, where they were tied in the first place with a Colombian couple After this, John’s career just got off the ground, working and dancing a lot in Argentina, having tours in United States and Europe.

Photo 4: John Erban - Tango
Photo 4: John Erban – Tango

Currently, John is working by himself in Switzerland, organizing a big Milonga once a month in Geneva, and being invited to jury, perform, Dj and teach in Festivals and other cultural events around the world. In November begins his next European tour, with confirmed countries as France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland and the U.K.

Some of his awards

  • Representative of Venezuela in the 8th. World Tango Summit in Bariloche, Argentina 2009.
  • Finalist of the 7th World Tango Championship held in Buenos Aires in 2009 in the category of Salon Tango.
  • 3rd place of the 1st World Tango Championship held in Medellín, Colombia in 2011 in the Tango Salon category.
  • 7th place of the 1st World Tango Championship held in Medellín, Colombia in 2011 in the category of Stage Tango.
  • 2nd place of the IX World Tango Championship held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2011 in the Tango Salon category.
  • 5th place of the IX World Tango Championship held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2011 in the Stage Tango category.
  • BEST FOREIGN COUPLE OF 2011, in the IX World Tango Championship held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2011

But having a lifestyle where you have to travel worldwide makes difficult being near to your family and the ones you love and that is a lesson that John has learned after many years of working hard. “When you travel like this, you have to internalize a state of separation, and it has been very hard for me, but I’m still working on that”.

Nevertheless, John is making all to have his son with him, and being close with his family as much as he can. Future goals for John are continue traveling, working and dancing. He is also working for next year in developing his own clothing line, videoclip production and online tango lessons through his new website.

Photo 5: John Erban - Tango
Photo 5: John Erban – Tango
Photo 5: John Erban - Tango
Photo 5: John Erban – Tango

Travel gives him a great opportunity to learn and see all types of languages and cultures. He also wants to create a dance academy and dance company, in order to make festivals, workshops and more.

John talks about Venezuela, its current situation, Europe, the people he’s helping and more, but the most remarkable and beautiful thing is how passionate he is talking about Tango and dance in general. When you talk with him, the desire of learn to dance starts growing, he’s just inspiring.

When we asked him what is the thing that he loves the most about Tango, he says that is the energy that you want to give and show to others, the energy that you want your partner feel, the sensations, the moves…

He knows that Tango is a very strict style with specific rules and it requires a lot of discipline, but he is innovating the style, giving it his signature and personality, and that is what he wants to develop, a new way of Tango style that could captivate anyone.

Finally he gives us tips for beginners in Tango and in dance in general. “Stay humble, always. Ego is an obstacle that every dancer has to defeat. Also you need to have discipline, learning Tango and every dance is like to learn a new language, you have to practice a lot and put all you effort to achieve your goal”. The best advice from a professional.

Photo 6: John Erban - Tango
Photo 6: John Erban – Tango

John Erban is such and unique person, with so much talent and vibrant personality. To know more about him and his work, check his page https://www.facebook.com/Johnerbantango/    www.johnerbantango.com Instagram y Twitter: @johnerbantango Email: [email protected]

Fidelis Studio

Latin America / Venezuela / Caracas

The Fidelis studio is located in Caracas Venezuela, Urb. El Cafetal, El Morao street, Qta. Tere, is an excellent recording studio, where national and international artists and groups created their records; An example of this, Maracaibo 15, Billo’s, Los Melodicos, Salserin, Los Adolentes, Oscar D’ León…, the Latin Dimension recorded 8 of its 20 albums.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 1
Fidelis Studio – Photo 1

Currently those in charge of the study are Javier and Francisco González, who succeed their father Antonio José González “Gonzalito” founder of the Study in 1952 with great professionalism; who, despite being a professional photographer, had the inspiration and musical taste that led him and his friend “Toro” to go to the United States where he studied audio, upon arriving in Venezuela he was recognized as the pioneer of Recording Engineering since he did not This race exists to date in Venezuela.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 2
Fidelis Studio – Photo 2

Javier and Francisco González narrate how the recording of music was at that time, where it was recorded on a “Reel” tape where the channels were previously mixed in the matrix and then passed to the “Stamper” which is a metal disc where it was kept. the information to the factory and later this information was transferred to the acetate disc through electromagnetism.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 3 of Reel Tape
Fidelis Studio – Photo 3 of Reel Tape

As the years went by, recording equipment was modernized, going from “vinyl” to analog cassettes, and now it is digitized to CD’s, and digital formats such as FLAC, mp3… to send over the internet through a computer and with this new technology the artist has higher quality and content capacity than the 33 ½ rpm LP disc to record their songs.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 4 sound program
Fidelis Studio – Photo 4 sound program

Now if the artist wishes to transfer an acetate disc or tape that he had, to a current digital format, the studio is able to make the transition without losing the quality of the music recorded on it.

The current recording equipment has 72 channels, usually 24 are used. With each channel the instrument or voice of the artist(s) is recorded, and with the program they are unified, adjusting the appropriate volume levels where the artist or group listens to it and sees if it is to their liking or not, having the ability to modify it.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 5 - instruments and sound program
Fidelis Studio – Photo 5 – instruments and sound program

The studio and especially the room where the singers or members of a band or orchestra are placed has been designed in such a way that the sound that is produced has no alterations such as echo, making the sound that is generated the most pure possible.

They also make recordings both inside and outside the studio, since they have the right equipment (portable studio, headphones, microphones, amplifiers, recorder, among others), so that there would be no difference in the recording either inside the Fidelis Studio or in the outside.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 6
Fidelis Studio – Photo 6
Fidelis Studio - Photo 7
Fidelis Studio – Photo 7

And they tell us that their experiences over the years have been very lively, fun and interesting at the time of making the recordings since each singer or band has their own personality when playing and producing their music, whatever the genre they play, that in the studio all types of music are recorded today.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 8
Fidelis Studio – Photo 8
Fidelis Studio - Photo 9
Fidelis Studio – Photo 9

The most significant artist for the studio and especially for “Gonzalito” according to his children was Alfredo Sadel whose voice ranged from opera to the popular rhythm of Venezuela, later it was Simón Díaz, Mauricio Torrealba… although they are all very important.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 10
Fidelis Studio – Photo 10
Fidelis Studio - Photo 11
Fidelis Studio – Photo 11

The Grammy Awards are a distinction given by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize an especially outstanding achievement of the music industry to a specific artist, obtaining this award is a great honor since an extensive study is carried out to the CD where sound engineers, producers and other specialists participate to determine the physical and sound quality of the CD created and to participate in this award you must register in the academy to participate.

Fidelis Studio - Photo 12
Fidelis Studio – Photo 12

The Studio currently has 2 Latin Grammy Awards:

1st Recording “Treasures of Venezuelan Music” with Ilan Chester (2010).

2nd Recording “Maria Teresa Chacin Canta Cuentos” with María Teresa Chacín (2012).

Fidelis Studio - Photo 13
Fidelis Studio – Photo 13
Fidelis Studio - Photo 14
Fidelis Studio – Photo 14

Where the team that makes up this renowned recording studio feels proud and happy for the work they are doing.

It should be noted that despite the situation in the country, they continue to provide the best service to singers and musical groups, whether national or international, being a strong competition for other recording studios in other countries, in relation to cost / quality. .

Fidelis Studio - Photo 15
Fidelis Studio – Photo 15

My person who had the opportunity to visit and interview its members, see, know and appreciate the type of study that is Fidelis I can say that the following:

“There are many recording studios in Caracas, Venezuela, but if you want your songs to be recorded with excellent audio quality in a recognized center, don’t think twice and choose them, they are the best”

Fidelis Studio - Photo 16
Fidelis Studio – Photo 16

For more information:

Fidelis Studio Flyers
Fidelis Studio Flyers

Gira Tango

Latin America / Venezuela / Caracas

For lovers of Tango, what better way to learn or practice it than at the “Gira Tango” Dance Academy that offers tango classes in Caracas, Venezuela. They also organize dinners, shows and tastings, not to mention that they work with the Embassies of Argentina and Uruguay.

The Vision and objective of the Academy is to promote national tango talent, where they seek meeting places to share knowledge, entertain the public in order to connect everyone through this style of dance.

Photo by Siulhy Santander and Leonel Colina - Gira Tango
Photo by Siulhy Santander and Leonel Colina – Gira Tango

Starting in 2015, the “National Tango Encounter” was organized, an artistic production that for a week offered the 5 municipalities of Caracas opportunities to enjoy classes, concerts, live shows and milongas in plazas, shopping centers and restaurants; and from that moment it was held annually, being for this month of November 2017 its 3rd edition in conjunction with the embassies of Uruguay and Argentina.

The workshops will be held on the 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th. If you wish to attend the classes at CELARG, look for information through 0412-9507209 or 0414-3206975 and register through the email [email protected]. Wear comfortable clothes and choose shoes that slide. In the case of women, Gira Tango recommends wearing heels without a platform that support the ankle.

Dancers and Teachers

The dancers and teachers that make up the academy are Siulhy Santander and Leonel Colina, founders of the Academy, who are dedicated to teaching tango and cultural management, not to mention that both were trained by internationally recognized teachers John Erban and Clarissa Sanchez. , Sofiani Figueroa, Daniel Martinez, Mario Morales, Daniel Naccuchio, Cristina Sosa, Fernando Galera and Vilma Vegas, among other exponents of tango with a great career.

Siulhy Santander and Leonel Colina
Siulhy Santander and Leonel Colina

Siulhy Santander

She began his Tango studies in 2008 at the Centro Uruguayo Venezolano with the Academia Tango Caracas, directed by professors Frank Zambrano and Yore Rivas, without mentioning that he worked as a member of the dance corps of the Tango Caracas group until 2014, where He participated in various stagings and shows such as “Misterio Tango” and “10 Años de Tango Caracas”, where he met Leonel Colina. I also carry out workshops in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with professors Mario Morales, Fernando Galera and Vilma Vega in 2009 and 2012.

Siulhy Santander
Siulhy Santander

Leonel Colina

He was a student of Nationalist Dances from 1994 to 2001 in the Los Cocuyos Dance Group. He learned different types of dance such as Joropo, Calypso, Gaita, Drums, Bagpipes, Drums and Venezuelan Merengue. However, he decided to start studying again in 2007 at Academia Tango Caracas with professors Frank Zambrano, Yore Rivas, Frank Obregon and Sofiani Figueroa.

Leonel Colina
Leonel Colina

Starting in 2008, she worked as a member of the dance corps of the Tango Caracas group, participating in shows such as “Misterio Tango” and “10 years of Tango Caracas”, meeting Siulhy Santander Since 2011, the pair of dancers participated in the staging of the show “Misterio Tango”, which ran for two seasons at the Celarg theater and this couple has participated in cultural festivals such as:

  • IV International Meeting and III National Tango Championship, Caracas 2009.
  • V International Meeting and IV National Tango Championship, Tango 2010.
  • VI International Meeting and V National Tango Championship, Caracas 2011.
  • XVI International Dance Festival – Maracaibo (2011).
  • XVIII International Dance Festival – Maracaibo (2013).
  • Second Edition of the Ucab Dance Festival (2013).
  • Caracas International Theater Festival (2015).
  • World Tango Championship Medellin (2015).
Photo by Siulhy Santander and Leonel Colina
Photo by Siulhy Santander and Leonel Colina

For more information: