How To Dance The Samba

So you need to learn the Samba and have little or no idea as to how? Do not worry. This article was made to prove to you that it is in fact not impossible to learn the Samba. If you're one of those who feel that they are lacking the grace needed to learn different dance moves, you'll be delighted to know that most dances are loosely connected with each other. Therefore, you should hang on to those few dance moves you have under your belt, they may actually serve more than their original purpose.

Similar to the Tango, Samba traces its origins from African roots-more specifically the African immigrants in Brazil. Brazilians would often refer to someone who dances the Samba, a "sambista". Not long after, Samba became so popular in Brazil that there came a time when people practicing Capoeira (a then-forbidden form of martial art in their country) would use the guise of Samba whenever the police came to investigate. Later on in the 1920's, Samba has become known internationally and was fashioned for ballroom dancing and competitions.

The Samba can be compared to the movements of The Cha-cha, although the difference here is that Samba carries that extra "bounce" and more feet movements, the steps are essentially the same, yet it is the footwork and music that distinguishes them apart from each other.

Okay, enough of that. Time to Samba!

1. Acquire tunes you can Samba to. As mentioned in our other dance articles, listening to the song even before learning the dance gives you a "feel" on how you could groove to this dance. The beats would suggest how fast or slow you should be. It is usually in 4/4 or 2/4 time signature and the dance is done in triple time or for every two beats, there are three steps. In rhythmic counting, it would go something like 1&2, 3&4, 5&6 -note that the "&" will be your third step between the two beats. Do not fret if this confuses you, for you will be able to understand better when the music is joined with the dance.

2. Steps. Your starting position here would be a relaxed standing position or a close-partner position if you have a partner. Whenever you take steps, roll your heel to toe to create that "bouncing" effect- this is usually the third step or the "&" in 1&2 counts

Here we have two of the most basic Samba steps:

a. FORWARD STEP. Step your left foot forward, while slightly swaying by extending your hips to that direction. Bring your foot back. You may also do this on the other side. And also a variation of this would be the BACKWARD STEP. Follow the same directions, except your foot moves backward instead of forward.

b. SIDE STEP. Step your left foot to the side, remembering to bring your hips to that side as well, bring it back and do the same thing on the other direction

These two steps are actually your key to learning Samba. Soon you'll realize that all you have to do is link the steps together, modify them at times and you've got a whole dance number! Remember, Samba is an energetic and lively dance and its main goal is: to have fun!