Gong Xi Salsa and Salsa Fatt Choy!
What a salsauspicious event and here's wishing everyone a salsalicious and salsarific holiday! Get lots of fiery red ang pows and win lots of money and have a salsaful time with your family and friends!
Watch the lion bachata dance and hear the drum beats of the conga and when the clave strikes and the rhythm flows, go around and wish everyone a fantastic Lunar New Year! Wear your new dance shoes and new clothes and go house to house visiting and spread the love and joy of salsa and bachata! Make sure you get your ang pows as you go around.
As the firecrackers go off, don't forget to do the merengue to its beats (especially when the firecrackers go off right next to your feet). Make sure you Lou Sang but this time use salsa sauce and enjoy your sal(sa)mon fish with the crackers and vege and what not that people put in the Yee Sang.
Happy Chinese New Year to everyone!
Jaxen
"Salsa Daddy"
Guys....Great news, remember those T Shirts that Jackson and the rest of us wear that has the Feel the Rhythm or the Bachata T Shirt...well I got orders from Singapore and US...wakakakaka...we are really going global with this. Would like to ask for your help in coming up with more attractive "Statements" "Taglines" or wordings that we can use. Check on Rhythm Identity's FB page for the pics of designs there that you can also place orders ;)
do let me know and do spread the word that we have T Shirts for sale ;)
Finally it's over but now starts the hard work to improve myself. All of you would say I will pass for sure but then I know myself. There are still thing i need to work on, timing, precision of the execution of my steps. There are times when I do wrong I don't know cos I've been so used to doing it the wrong way and to catch myself from not repeating that mistake is hard. It's not longer about just dancing nowadays, it's about dancing it well.
Great work to all of you RIers as you all did give you best to the test even though you are unsure about some of your steps.
Keep improving Keep Dancing Keep that Salsa and BachaZouk Passion burning strong.
Life is about expression and Dancing is the ultimate expression mankind has created. To Dance is to LIVE!!
Viva La Salsa!
Viva La BachaZouk!
Viva La Ritmo Indentitio!
The Salsa Sotong :P
2009 seems to be an eventful year... for me anyways... in salsa.
Going for Salsa Fiesta de Indonesia - Bali in March, Sydney Bachata Festival in April, maybe going to drop by the World Latin Salsa Congress in May and finally there's the Malaysian Salsa Festival now confirmed in July.
And I just heard there will be a salsa compettition this year in May. Cool!
Of course that means I have to send all my sheeps to the slaughter... hahaha! Well, its not that bad. RI's salsa students may be new but I believe they will have the same amount of passion and dedication, commitment and resolution, determination and diligence as their instructor had during his compettition and salsa-schooling days.
For those who recently started salsa or has been learning for less than a year and are worried about joining the compettition, let me tell you a story of how there is this one guy I know who had similar experience such as you all.
This guy practically attended only 3 months of salsa class, never went for social dance (coz he did not know where to go), stopped salsa for nearly 2 years, then went for a 5 days beginner workshop and he ended up 1st runner-up for a salsa compettition 1 month later. Believe me, his salsa experience is even less than any student in RI right now who has gone up to Beginners 3.
Now, that's beating the odds.
Then after less than 1 year (read the words properly... less than a year) later, this guy joined another salsa compettition. Being still quite new and not confident enough yet, he went for the Amateur category which was the lowest level in salsa. Somehow or rather, he got pushed up to the Open/Professional category which was the highest level in salsa.
Being the underdog and the most inexperienced of the competing lot, he worked hard and strived to excel. He sacrificed much for the art of salsa. Finally, after a gruelling (and I mean gruelling) period, he emerged victorious over his peers and won the championship title.
Seems like a story from a movie? Its real.
So if you think you don't stand a chance in the compettition, think again. But if you don't work hard for it, then you're right. You don't stand a chance. Nothing comes easy and nothing comes free. There's a price to pay for it. But what you get in return is worth more than anything you can ever imagine.
It all seems like a fairytale or some stories from a movie. Except that this time, you're the star.
Aim for the Oscar.
Jaxen
"Salsa Daddy"
Since Jackson has started might as well get the ball rolling. I have done tings I neer though of doing or seeing myself dared to do in such a short time frame. Hope I don't disappoint anyone too much especially myself. These are mainly RI oriented goals not a wholistic view of what I want to do or what I've really done. Some of you know my heart's desire and some of you might think you know. So let's just keep it that way. :D
Resolutions
To be able to be an additional Assistant Instructor to RI
To be able to execute more complicated steps when dancing Salsa
Be a good lead in both Salsa and BachaZouk
To be able to perform BachaZouk and Salsa
To find a dance partner for performances
Get more students to come for RI Classes
Get RI Juniors to dance on the dance floor and not just in class
To be able to launch a Salsa and Bachata Dance Competition (of course this is working with Jackson)
To bring RI BachaZouk style to a whole different level of Bachata in Malaysia
Want to learn Kizomba (to Jackson's dismay haha)
Achievements
Started learning Salsa (3 years too early)
Got a Face Talent job instead of a Voice Over Talent job (hahaha)
Got recognized as being a good Bachata dancer by some ladies and men (hehe. I'm not being ego ere)
Got more students coming to RI Classes (Yeah!! :D)
Became a Manager before 30 years old (Thanks SD hahaha bet you never knew this one. :D)
Was able to do some ladies steps on the dance floor and being led by LADIES, although dun really follow well :(
Hope you guys will continue to work on your 1 2 3 5 6 7 as it's fun and it's an expression of your inner feeling relecting the music that is being played. So what if your steps are wrong or that your timing is out. Keep dancing, you will get it sooner then you think.
"Dancing - The Vertical Expression of a Horizontal Desire"
James the Salsa Sotong (to some) the Bachata Lady Killer (to others) hahaha
Happy New Year to all may this year be filled with happiness abound and success a plentyfull.
Goodbye 2008...
Hello 2009!!!
Any new year's resolution? Ever pondered what are your achievements in 2008? Or what you plan to achieve in 2009?
For Rhythm Id babies, I hope you will all continue actively in the salsa scene and make it happening! Much can be done in 2009 and much of what should be done in 2008 was not done. Time to make what was not done into done and be done with it.
What are your 2008 achievements? What are your 2009 resolutions? Let's share them here with each other. And let each of us help each other achieve our resolutions together. Being humans, we are lazy and stubborn, etc... so we need friends and families to help us achieve our resolutions. So let's share...
Jaxen's 2008 Salsa Achievements
1) Creation of BachaZouk and learning the "Inakichata"
2) Performing at the Malaysian Salsa Festival
3) Forming of Salsa X Productions performance team
4) Launching of weekly bachata classes
5) Invitation to perform at the 2009 Sydney Bachata Festival
6) Performing at the Salsa Fiesta de Indonesia - Bali
7) Choreographed and performed 4 different salsa routines
8) Choreographed and performed to Te Quedas Te Vas (my fav bachata song)
9) Started the Rhythm Id Instructor Training
10) Finding my dance partner and "Treasurer"
Jaxen's 2009 Salsa Resolution
1) Actually perform at the 2009 Sydney Bachata Festival
2) Perform new routine at the Salsa Fiesta de Indonesia - Bali 2009
3) Perform at the Malaysian Salsa Festival (if so lucky to have it in 2009)
4) Debut performance of Salsa X Productions performance team
5) Intro BachaZouk to Malaysia and Rhythm Id as top bachata specialist
6) Rhythm Id roster of instructors to start teaching
7) Come up with Bachata Project Team
8) To get Rhythm Id students on the dance floor and start dancing every week
9) Pioneer Zouk into Malaysia
10) Upgrade Rhythm Id students into performers and asst instructors
Tough year ahead but impossible is nothing. Help me make it happen and let us all help you to make yours happen.
Viva la salsa!
Viva la bachata!!
Viva la Rhythm Identity!!!
Jaxen
"Salsa Daddy"
