If the latter seems too complex and fast, this more slower, smoother dance from the Dominican Republic might be the thing.
A couple of years ago on salsa dance floors across Los Angeles, a new trend began to emerge. Amid the frenetic, conga-driven salsa tunes, DJs started to slip in a few tracks of bachata — a romantic, guitar-based music that originated in the Dominican Republic.
Those who stayed on the floor traded the showy spins of salsa for the cheek-to-cheek embrace and fluid footwork of bachata dance. But for the majority of patrons, says Earl Miller Jr., owner of salsa spot the Granada in Alhambra, the bachata interlude was “the time to go and buy a drink or go to the restroom.”
Fast forward two years, and bachata has become a phenomenon that even the most hard-core salseros can’t ignore. As bachata recording artists like Aventura and Prince Royce have topped the charts on mainstream Latin radio, bachata dance has exploded at local clubs. No longer confined to just a few songs in an evening of salsa, bachata now has a dedicated night at the Granada and at Stevens Steakhouse in Commerce, both well-established salsa venues…