So you’ve discovered Salsa dancing and are starting to fall in love with the exciting and spontaneous music, but where can you go to find all these amazing songs that you hear in the latin dance clubs?
Well, as a dance instructor one of the questions I get asked most often is about where to find good salsa dancing music. While I’m talking to my beginner students I think of three things
- Do they want the music so they can practice?
- What are the popular songs being played in the clubs today?
- What are the songs that are classics and will be around for a long time?
Now the last one is more me thinking like a teacher since an introduction to Salsa musicians will help you get a deeper connection with the music. If you know the story behind the music you can lose yourself in the story and really have the satisfaction of understanding what you’re listening to. When I dance I lose myself in the story and I don’t speak spanish so my connection is with the musicality, the musician, and the person I am dancing with. At the end of the day dancing salsa really is about the synergy between you, your partner and the music.
Now after a few years of listening to salsa music I have found the following 5 songs to be the best for beginners to use when practicing. Some of them are really old, some are a little fast, but all of them are songs you will hear when going out social dancing. Since salsa is about having fun, meeting new people, and being social it only makes sense that I share with you the songs that will make you shine on the dance floor. Here goes… (I have included a video of each song below its description)
5 GOOD SALSA SONGS FOR BEGINNERS
- “El Cantante” by Hector Lavoe – This song is a moderately paced song, but it’s a heart wrencher. It was written by Ruben Blades from the Fania Allstars, but after some reflection it was dec
ided that it would be a better hit if Hector Lavoe sang the song. The song is about how Hector is a singer, and his job is to sing.”I am the singer because my thing is to sing and the public pays to be able to listen to me. I am the singer very popular everywhere but once the show is over I’m like any other human being.” The song then continues on how he, like everyone else has joy and sorrow in his life. - El tun tun de tu corazon by Orquesta la palabra – This is a nice and slow song that has all the elements you would want when learning to find the number 1 in Salsa music. You can clearly hear the clave and the “pa,pa” sound in the music.
- “Lloraras” by Oscar D’Leon – This is a nice and slow paced song with a lot of musicality so it’s great to be familiar with this song since it will allow you to cut loose on the dance floor when the DJ plays it.
- Vivir Lo Nuestro by Marc Anthony and La india – Just a good old song… When practicing, remember to listen to the musicality and try to catch the hits. Here is the video…
- El Gran Varon – Willie Colon – This song has a long intro, and that’s the perfect time for you to start feeling the music. Nothing fancy, just having a good time and getting ready for the salsa to start. It has a lot of musicality so have lots of fun. You’ll notice that this is the fastest of all the songs and the reason is that I want you to dance to all salsa music and I prefer you learn to move faster sooner than later since the DJ in a salsa club won’t only play slow music. It’s important to stay on time with the music, and if the music is fast, then you need to be fast.