Dancing After School will be holding a special benefit to raise money for their work.  Founded in 2006, Dancing After School is a non-profit organization committed to providing life-changing dance programs to youth in underserved areas throughout San Diego County. The organization uses dance as a vehicle to inspire youth and provide a culturally relevant outlet.

DAS has been able to make an extremely positive impact in communities where a tremendous need exists. Based in San Diego, sites are located from Vista to San Ysidro and provide meaningful dance fitness programs to more than 1300 students each week.

Please join Ritmo Bello and the San Diego Salsa and Latin Dancing Meetup group as we attend the “Dance Salsa & Tango Under One Roof” event this Saturday April 30, 2011.  For more information on the event please visit the event page on the San Diego Salsa and Latin Dancing Meetup Group.

Thanks for supporting DAS!

John ;-)

@RitmoBello

If you are new to San Diego or are just new to the San Diego dance scene, you should check out the San Diego Salsa and Latin Dancing Meetup Group.  Founded way back in September 6, 2005, the group is San Diego’s most established and largest growing Meetup group focusing primarily on all types of Latin dance. (If you’ve never heard of Meetup here is a short explanation of the organization.)

The group’s events are organized by some of San Diego’s hottest dance studios such as A Time To Dance, Ooh La La Dance Company, Deseo Dance, Majesty in Motion, Salsa Inferno, and Alma Latina.  Events range from dance workshops to new club openings and everything in between.

The San Diego Salsa and Latin Dancing Meetup Group is also a great way to meet other like minded dancers who share your passion for music and dance.  It gives people an opportunity to find friends in the scene and keep connected with the growing dance population.

Sign up for the group is FREE so what are you waiting for?  Join today!

John ;-)

@RitmoBello

I love history, especially when it deals with dance.   I wanted to share some video resources out there with those of you wanting to learn more about Argentine Tango.

This first video has a short overview of the history of Argentine Tango by a Florida based Tango Instructor.  I think it serves as a good intro to the subject:

This second video explains in more detail the history of the dance itself and its influences:

This next video is actually one in a series of videos that does a great job of breaking down the history of Tango according to the development of orchestras in the genre:

I’m sure there are many other good videos out there concerning the subject, so if you have one to share please do so by leaving a comment on this post.  Thanks!

It’s not surprising to see new dances grow in popularity.  Indeed, many of the Latin dances we enjoy today such as salsa have roots in other dance traditions that were once more common.  

Over the last few months I’ve noticed a lot of new Youtube videos showcasing a fairly recent dance called Kizomba.  Credited by many as coming from Angola, the music and dance also has connections with Portugal as many of the songs are sung in Portuguese.  When you see the videos here you’ll notice that some of the movements are similar to other Latin-style dances such as tango, samba, and merengue.  

So far I haven’t seen this type of music hit the San Diego dance scene, but I would not be surprised if took hold here.  For now we can watch the spread of this music and dance worlwide and await its debut in America’s Finest City.

What do you think of when someone mentions the tango dance?  For me the dance conjures up images of fashionably dressed and sophisticated people connecting to exotic melodies.  Indeed, the intertwining of fashion and tango dance is evident throughout the history of the dance.

A local event here in San Diego called Tangolicious will examine this link between fashion and tango dance.  Tangolicious will feature guest artist and headwear designer Susan Lake and performances by the TangoCentric Dance Project.  (Check out the interview I did with Susan Lake for Ritmo Bello here) The event also boasts special Tangotini cocktails and plenty of desserts to enjoy as well.

For more information check out the San Diego Salsa and Latin Dancing Meeting Group RSVP page.

See you all on the dance floor!

There is a great tango dance event coming up here next Friday January 30th for the TANGOCENTRIC Dance Project.  

The event is a preview performance where the group will preview works that are currently under consruction from their workshop and performing ensemble.  

Under the artistic direction of Susan Lake (you can see the interview I did with her in a previous post), TANGOCENTRIC’s projects are unique in that they incorporate traditional Argentine Tango along with ballet, modern and interpretive dance.  

For more information on this event please visit the page setup on the San Diego Salsa and Latin Dancing Meetup Group.  

That’s right!  Ritmo Bello launched exactly one year ago this day and it’s been quite a ride.  The picture I posted here is from the original Ritmo Bello website.  You’ll see that over this year our website has undergone many changes.   

Covering San Diego dance topics ranging from Salsa events to Tango performances, Ritmo Bello has been a fun endeavor for me personally.  Thanks to everyone that has contributed content to Ritmo Bello articles over this last year. 

Special thanks also to all those individuals and groups that have participated in an interview with me.  I’ve learned so much about the local dance scene and the people here who comprise it.  Without all of you Ritmo Bello would not be the great success it is today.

San Diego has a diverse Salsa and Latin dance scene as many of my articles demonstrate.  This next year I hope to bring you all even more great dance information.

Thanks and God Bless!!!

John ;-)

Ritmo Bello