A Message from Remos Reynosa, ISTD, USISTD :

I have been repeatedly asked so many questions about Cha Cha that I would like to answer some of them in this article and continue the article next month.  I am sure it will create more questions and maybe some discussions, but I welcome both the questions and discussion on the subject of Cha Cha because I love the dance and I feel there has been so much misinformation and damage done to this popular dance. 

One of the most destructive things done to this great Latin dance is the transfer of information about what beat to break on.  Cha Cha music is written to break on the 2 beat.  Now I fully understand that a lot of dance students have been taught to break on the 1 beat by either misinformed or lazy instructors.  I have discussed this with and been told by dance instructors that it is easier to allow students to break on the 1 beat because it is easier for the new student to hear, even though the instructor knows that it is not correct.  My answer has always been that there are many ways to overcome this hurdle but you are doing a disservice to new dancers by instructing them to break on an incorrect beat. 

I have many reasons for saying this.  Number one is that eventually that student will attempt to dance with a partner who has been taught correctly to break on the second beat.  I don’t think I have to explain what a problem that causes.  Number two, breaking on the wrong beat makes the music very difficult to dance to and stay on beat.  When you break forward or back on the 2 beat and recover on the 3 beat, these are quick steps.  Done properly the 2 beat should be a small step, the 3 beat should be a recover step and that foot should not move when breaking forward or back.  If you break forward or back on the 1 beat you are using a slow beat that forces the dancer to speed up the Cha Cha Cha beat in order to break on the next 1 beat.  That is what wears out a dancer when they dance Cha Cha.  Cha Cha danced properly should not leave you exhausted and you should be able to keep up with even the fastest Cha Cha when you dance on the correct beat.  Why kill yourself, dancing is supposed to be fun.  When dancing to a fast Cha Cha, smaller steps should be taken to compensate for the faster music.

An easy solution to the problem of finding the 2nd beat is for the man to do a side step to the left on the one beat then break back with his right foot on the second beat to begin the basic Cha Cha step, which is backward with his right foot and forward with his left foot.  Essentially the side step to the right allows a preparation movement so that his left foot is then free to break forward on the 2 beat, as the music is meant to be danced. 

Recently one of my more advanced students attended a free Cha Cha class being taught by another instructor at one of the Salsa venues.  The instructor actually stopped him when he was breaking on the 2 beat and said, “You can break on the 1 beat too.”  This student is a good dancer and while trying to break on the 1 beat as this instructor requested, was going nuts.  Once you get the feel of Cha Cha the way it’s supposed to be, breaking on the 1 beat instead of the 2 beat is a real pain.

Unfortunately new dancers do not know the difference until it is too late.  Once they have progressed to the point where they either figure it out on their own or are explained and shown the difference, it is pretty upsetting to them, especially if they paid for lessons and received misinformed instruction.  They feel cheated a lot of times.  The difference is really very obvious once a student has progressed past the initial stages of their Cha Cha education. 

I believe that proper instruction on the basics of any dance is the most important thing that you can teach a new student.  I understand how easy it is to let some things slide when new dancers are learning…the instructor and student both want to move on and get to the fun things, but if enough time is not spent with the basic step and understanding of timing, you retard the development of the student, and most of the time the student gets frustrated and stops dancing.  A little more time spent on basics in the beginning saves time and frustration later for the instructor and student.  Most students take dance lessons to interact socially with the opposite sex.  When a student is taught to dance improperly in a dance class they generally dance with students who are also being taught to dance improperly.  They will not realize that there is something wrong with the way they dance until they try to use their dance skills at a public dance.  Most of the time it creates an embarrassing situation for them that sours them on dancing. 

I strive to instruct ladies and gentlemen the art of social dancing from the first class (even group classes) so that their experiences on the public dance floor are comfortable and fun, so that they continue to dance.  I realize that there are many other recreational activities they can do besides dance and I further realize that if I am to keep them as a client, their introduction to dance must be pleasant and fun.  After all, dancing is supposed to be fun.  Struggling with trying to dance with another person when you are dancing to the beat of a different drummer is not enjoyable.

I have trained instructors in my capacity as Dance Director for many very large chain studios, and a little training is a small price to pay to be able to transfer knowledge needed to do something as simple as learning to break on the 2 beat instead of the 1 beat in Cha Cha.  After all if you can find the one beat, I guarantee you the following beat will be the 2 beat.

Cha Cha timing is 2-3, 4 and 1.  Not 1 – 2  CHA, CHA, CHA.

To read my next article about Cha Cha, click here.