Rumba history

Today I want to give you some information about Rumba, The dance with is very beautiful and romantic , and which gives each rumba dancer elegance and sexuality.

The word Rumba is a generic term, covering a variety of names (i.e., Son, Danzon, Guagira, Guaracha, Naningo), for a type of West Indian music or dancing. The exact meaning varies from island to island. The word “rumba” comes from the verb “rumbear” which means going to parties, dancing, and having a good time.

There are two sources of the dances: one Spanish and the other African. Although the main growth was in Cuba, there were similar dance developments which took place in other Caribbean islands and in Latin America generally.

The “rumba influence” came in the 16th century with the black slaves imported from Africa.

The American Rumba is a modified version of the “Son”. The first serious attempt to introduce the rumba to the United States was by Lew Quinn and Joan Sawyer in 1913. Ten years later band leader Emil Coleman imported some rumba musicians and a pair of rumba dancers to New York. In 1925 Benito Collada opened the Club El Chico in Greenwich Village and found that New Yorkers did not know what Rumba was all about.

Real interest in Latin music began about 1929. In the late 1920′s, Xavier Cugat formed an orchestra that specialized in Latin American music. He opened at the Coconut Grove in Los Angeles and appeared in early sound movies such as “In Gay Madrid”. Later in the 1930′s, Cugat played at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York. By the end of the decade he was recognized as having the outstanding Latin orchestra of the day.

In Europe, the introduction of Latin American dancing (Rumba in particular) owed much to the enthusiasm and interpretive ability of Monsieur Pierre ( or simply Pierre, was the professional name of Pierre Jean Phillipe Zurcher-Margolle, (born Toulon, France – London, 1963).^[1] Pierre was a professional dancer and dance teacher: he was primarily responsible for introducing the Latin American dances to England, and for codifying them, and laying the groundwork for their use in competitions and in social dance. The system he and his colleagues developed became the basis for all Latin and American competitions held under the World Dance Council (WDC).For more info see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsieur_Pierre ). In the 1930′s with his partner, Doris Lavelle, he demonstrated and popularized Latin American dancing in London.

Pierre and Lavelle introduced the true “Cuban Rumba” which was finally established after much argument, as the official recognized version in 1955.

Rumba is the spirit and soul of Latin American music and dance. The fascinating rhythms and bodily expressions make the Rumba one of the most popular ballroom dances.

More about Rumba and it’s styles you can find following next links:

http://www.ehow.com/about_5316416_rumba-history.html

 Rumba History of Dance http://www.centralhome.com/ballroomcountry/rumba.htm#ixzz1JnD0FSH8
Dance Fitness Sports www.Centralhome.com