Dear Readers,

As promised in the March, 2000 issue of Ask the Coach, the topic for this article is to discuss the differences in Mambo, Salsa and International Rumba.

There is no difference pattern-wise in these three dances.  However there are many styling differences.  A long time ago in the land of nod (or should I say nod off), we were visited by two instructors from England that were experts in the field.  They were hired by the chain studio I was employed by to teach us Yanks how to dance, and to teach us International Rumba.  Since I have always been a student of the dance and a little on the analytical side, as I watched the instructors I realized the patterns and timing were the same as Mambo.

After three days of instruction I finally had to clarify something, because I could not contain myself any longer.  I stated, “What you are doing is Mambo.”  They looked at me and smiled and said, “You’re right.”  Although the names of steps and styling where different, the patterns were identical. 

Let’s compare some of the most common names of steps in International Rumba and Mambo :

Although the step patterns are identical, there is a great difference in footwork causing the styling to appear to be different.  The footwork in Mambo, such as a forward and back basic, left foot forward is ball flat, recover to right foot is ball flat, left foot side is ball flat.  The same step in International Rumba is left foot forward extending the ankle and leg more straight, causing the outside edge of small toe to point forward, as in ballet, accentuating the hip action.  Right foot back toe flat, left foot side, inside edge of toe to ball flat, which gives the hips a softer movement than Mambo, which is a sharper action.  Understanding these differences makes it very easy to dance either dance, as long as you know the step patterns.  It’s not really a big mystery, nor is one dance more difficult than the other, there are just styling differences.

Many purists that dance Mambo refuse to dance Salsa (although they are the same dance) because a Mambo purist breaks on the two beat while most Salsa dancers break on the one beat.  Tito Puente, who is considered to be the Godfather of Salsa, when asked on national TV, “What is the difference between Mambo and Salsa?”.  His answer, “Hype…how to sell an old dance to a new generation.” 

I figure he knows what he is talking about since he was a famous band leader when Salsa was called Mambo, and is still recognized to be an expert even though Mambo is now called Salsa.  I dance both ways.  When I dance exhibitions I prefer to break on the two beat because it creates better Cuban motion.  When I dance Salsa socially or when dancing Casino Rueda I break on the one beat because it is an easier beat for most dancers to find, and Casino Reuda is danced on the one beat all over the world.  So when in Rome do as the Roman’s…that’s my philosophy.  It’s a lot easier for me to break on the one beat than to try to get the rest of the world to break on the two beat.  A lot of Latino’s prefer to dance Salsa breaking on the two beat.  But they grew up dancing that way and they are accustomed to the music.  It is harder for Gringo’s and Gringa’s to be able to pick out the beat because they are not accustomed to the music.

The dance “Salsa” was given the name because, like the condiment Salsa, it is a mixture of rhythms and now styling from all over South America and the Caribbean.  Although the basic Salsa step is really the Mambo step forward and back, every country and sometimes even areas have their own unique styling.  Colombians and Costa Ricans add a little kick on the four beat, which is a pause beat in Cuba and Puerto Rico.  That influence comes from Cumbia, which is danced in many South American countries and Mexico.  Every Salsa dancer picks up styling and moves from wherever they are from, and sometimes adds some of their own “stuff,” making the dance look different.  That is why they call it Salsa…because it is such a mix of everything.  Wherever you learn to dance Salsa, as long as you consistently break on the same beat, it is a lot of fun to dance and easy to pick up, and the music makes it hard to sit still.  There are approximately 400 documented Salsa steps, so there is a lot of material to learn if that is what you are into. 

The most important thing to remember when dancing Salsa is, regardless what beat you are breaking on, you must be consistent.  If the man breaks on different beats, it is very difficult for the lady to spin, turn, swivel and come back on the correct beat.  The difficult part of Salsa is not the basic step.  The difficult part is to turn (either the lady or the man, or even both) if your partner is not breaking on the same beat as you are.  Many times I see Salsa dancers do lifts, drops, spins, turns, swivels, gyros - throwing their partner all over the floor and breaking on one, two and the third beat.  This is murder on your partner.  Sometimes one partner jogs when the other jigs, and off the beat by a split second, and you can easily pull an arm out of the socket or catch an elbow in the jaw or chest.  It happens all the time, especially in Speed Salsa.

In the next issue of Ask the Coach we will discuss the differences in American and International Foxtrot.