Imagine an orchestra trying to play a Beethoven symphony but:
- the violins are playing Appalachian fiddle music
- the horns sound as if they are at Octoberfest in Bavaria
- the drums are beating steel drum rhythm from Trinidad!
This metaphor can also apply to the dance of Rueda de Casino.
Salsa, Cumbia, Swing, Rock & Roll are all very popular couple dances that most people bring to their first encounter with Rueda de Casino. Consequently, it should not be surprising that the techniques of those dances (position and timing, footwork, movement) tend to have a significant and lasting impact as people learn to dance Rueda de Casino, a group dance which is based on Casino, a Cuban couple dance.
Some groups choose the path of less resistance and elect to incorporate those non-Casino techniques into their Rueda dancing. Other cantantes, however, choose to dance Rueda de Casino.
They incorporate the Casino vocabulary and techniques into their classes of Rueda de Casino. The videos in this category demonstrate cantantes who insist on:
NO backsteps … by follower or leader
CIRCULAR couple figures (Cedazo)
walking movements (Paseo, Saloneo)