Customer Reviews

New York Salsa - Beginner Vol.1 [VHS]

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

If you are taking Salsa/Mambo lessons, and maybe your slacking off on your own note taking in class, or you just want a good reference tape on techniques, this is a great tape for it. A word of warning though, this couple uses a lot of their own terminology, ie, they call a face loop- 'putting on your hat', 4th position breaks are called 'back breaks'- in other words, the techniques are all the same just with different names, so don't get all uptight if they do something you learned but call it a different name. The techinques are explained very well, and they are one of the few instructors that utilize a back view- so its just like you are standing behind the instructor and following them. The other instructor demonstrates the techiques form the side. Overall an excellent tape for the beginner/intermediate dancer.

The most enjoyable fun Salsa teachers on the market. A lovely young couple who love to dance & teach. Diana is the most enjoyable female Salsa teacher on the market. Great sense of humor. Very enjoyable. The teachers have fun & enjoy what they are showing you.
I & my female partners No.1 most enjoyable video to learn Salsa from.
The video is good value, 52 min long , well produced good pause but they most importantly have a SLOW MOTION ON ALL COMPLEX MOVES as well as the normal speed , plus the breakdown of the steps. They give you both forward & back views plus both sides for cross body leads. They do not over detail the footwork but I feel it does not matter as you can rewind. They add several styling combinations to a move so you can choose what you like. They teach the women how to be sexy, dramatic, & romantic. They give the men tips on what behavior women find acceptable & what is not. These tips on how to avoid being slapped!!! are a must view for all male dancers.
The teachers give you warnings on possible injuries on the turns to protect your partners.
The video is full of useable steps & combinations. I enjoyed the fact they explained how to make the common combinations out ot the steps shown. They show steps in the video that nobody else does but also give you the most common steps.
Although there are some known NY steps. I feel these videos could also be used by LA style dancers as well.

Unlike some other salsa videos I have purchased, this focusses more on instruction and less on "steamy". The dancers do a good job of explaining and repeating the moves, showing it from a number of different angles. The slo-mo for each move helps, and the collection of moves is quite entertaining.

This is a fabulous beginners salsa video. Juan and Diana are incredible dancers and explain things so that everything is simple to follow and execute. What makes this a great video for beginners is that everything is shown in slow motion so that you can see exactly what is being done. This makes the moves simple to follow and easy to duplicate. The video is really hot with entertaining dance sequences throughout New York shot in MTV style. It really makes you want to learn the moves and get out on the dance floor.

The reviewers are right-- Juan and Diana are a kick to watch. I've never met them (no, I'm not a groupie), but seeing them in action makes one wish one could be in New York checking out their dance troupe. So much energy! The steps are explained clearly with memorable (if non-standard) names, and the DVD is of good quality. For a beginning salsa dancer, I would recommend this DVD, the steps are explained extraordinarily well and there's everything one one tape to make a guy (or gal) feel amply ready for the clubs. This video's timing is "on one" rather than New York-style "on two" timing, despite the "New York Salsa" name (so it's appropriate for those in other parts of the country as well). Recommended.

I was bored to downloaded small video clips on the internet. i think it was the time to buy a real dance instruction video. good picture, good sound, sweet and helpfull teachers. I am allready a upper intermediate salsa dancer. i take the beginner,intermediate and advanced dvd's. i find allready in the beginner volume some movements that i not know. we have a turkish proverb "not knowing is not a shame, not learning is a shame"

I have gone to a couple of classes for salsa, but stopped because I wasn't able to keep up with the rest of the class... but now with this DVD... I can have them repeat the steps as many times as I want... and not feel embarassed... I go to a lot of salsa clubs, and have always wanted to dance in that manner, and although not everyone who dances salsa dances in this fashion, I am definetly glad I purchased this DVD... it has made me a better leader. The begginers DVD has a lot of information on it... I am now waiting for the Intermediate version to come in..

I and my partner, after a taking couple salsa lessons, decided to improve our practice with videos. I think this one was a very good choice for what we aimed to do. Compared to most other instuctional videos, Juan and Diana use the time very efficiently. They first teach the basic movements and terminology then proceed with partner work and end up with 15 different figures in 52 minutes.

I was a bit hesitant at first to purchase this DVD after a few of the "quality" remarks in a few reviews. By quality, I mean, the physical DVDs... I began figuring they may be "competition" (cause they read as such)or others that received a bad DVD...and didn't bother to return for a new one. I then read some of the other reviews and went for it! I am certainly glad I did! The instruction is very complete and easy to follow. I have seen actual classes that I can't follow but Juan and Diana certainly understand how to teach the steps and in a very fun way... by the way, Diana comes across a bit sassy but I like that!

What they teach in this dvd is very straight forward. They also do a good job of explaining little things. Camera angles are well done. Slow motion feature is very useful. I find myself using so many of the moves I learned from this video in my dancing at the clubs. These instructors take time to explain things so that you can actually learn it. Other videos I've experienced were so obsessed with showing fancy moves and trying to jam pack a large quantity of moves, you just never learned anything in the end. Or at least you did them poorly because the instructors did not take the time to explain the little details properly. Any accomplished dancer knows that it takes time and detail to get anything truly right. Although it's a beginning dvd, it actually goes to advance beginner and almost intermediate. They do a good job of building on previous steps. If I had to do it all over again, I'd buy this one first. Highly recommended