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Welcome to my bio of
Cuban Dance. I have had the privilege of Cuban Dance for 11
years and Cuban Percussion for 3 years-ish. My concentration is Cuban Popular, Cuban Traditional, and Afro-Cuban
dance and choreography.
My first instructor
was
Ernesto Cárdenas.
Ernesto is from Centro Habana and studied at the prestigious Escuela
Nacional de Artes (ENA) in dance and music. Ernesto introduced me to a wide
variety of Cuban dance: son, casino, rueda,
cha cha chá, rumba, mambo, and suelta.
After moving to
San Francisco upon earning a degree at the University of Arizona (GO
CATS!), I found I was in the perfect situation to continue my
Cuban dance studies. My next instructor and good friend is Ramon
Ramos Alayo. Ramon is from Santiago de Cuba and also studied at
La ENA earning a master's degree in contemporary
and folkloric dance and dance education. Ramon reinforced the skills
Ernesto had given me and introduced me to Cuban Folkloric dance and
body movement. During this time, I also received instruction from Alain Amilkar Soto of the popular
Habana dance group Ban Ra Rra. Alain, also a graduate of the National Arts School and a
folkloric dance phenom, would focus more on stylistics adding a Cuban
urban flavor to class.
I have
also studied under the instruction of Habana's esteemed Ban Ra Rra
and Matanzas' legendary Los Muñequitos (oh yeah!).
Various university level courses and non-university programs complete my dance and music repertoire:
the 7th, 10th, 11th, and 12th annual Afro-Cuban Dance
& Drum Workshops at Humboldt State University, Cuba Camps at the Berkeley Hills Campgrounds and Hawaii's Camp Erdmann, and
the Cuban Rumba workshops by Silfredo
La O Vigo, another graduate of La ENA in Habana.
I am
currently a Graduate student at
the University of Hawaii in the Master of Fine Arts Dance Program with a
concentration in Cuban Dance. I teach Cuban Popular Dance to all those willing to learn
for the simple reason of stirring interest on the islands (I have received permission from Ramon to use his class format in respect of his artistic assets). I am
also working on several projects to garner Cuban Dance and Music
interest. Cuban Dance
and Music are euphorically in my heart
and soul. As a result, it is humbling to keep this art form as grass roots
as possible. I continue to train and receive personal
instruction throughout the year, as I will always be a student
(there's just so much to learn).
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Hawaii, salsa,
Cuban
Hawaii, salsa,
Cuban
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