Yes, you can! Unlike let’s say, Merengue or Salsa or Kizomba which are all beautiful dances Bachata is the one dance that I find you can have a lot of fun with solo and it has a lot to do with how easy it is to pick up, how fun the music is and so much more.
Here are three things to keep in mind when learning Bachata solo.
Keeper #1: You only need three steps and a tap to start.
To pick up the Bachata steps, you just need to bring your feet together. You take your left foot, and you step out on count one. You bring your right foot in and count two. You take your left footstep out again on count three. Then you tap, with your toes, with your right foot on four. That is considered half a basic, and then you rinse and repeat as you go back to home base, which means the foot you tap, with the right foot, you step back out to the right, you bring your left foot in, you step out to the right again, with your right foot. Finally, you tap with your left, and that is your first Bachata basic.
It’s a count of eight, and why do I love it? Because you can do this while you’re cooking. You can practice your basic steps on a subway platform, doing a side shuffle, one-way side shuffle, the other way. Even in an elevator while you’re waiting for it to go down to the ground floor. Super easy to pick up; I love it.
Keeper #2: Turns are fun, easy and you can do them solo.
You don’t need a partner to pick up a Bachata turn. But, turns are a must and super fun to do. The easiest way to make a Bachata turn is to stand in front of your mirror or a wall where you have about two to three feet of space to spin. Now find a focal point, that is one thing on the wall, painting a picture, a lamp doesn’t matter. Then, when you turn, you will try to end where you started, where your focal point is placed. You’re going to step to your left, and you’re going to keep twisting with your feet, apart, in three steps. And then you’re going to tap. Imagine when you were a kid. Did you ever used to just spin through your room continuously and so you’re travelling and spinning. Well, a Bachata turn feels like that.
Bachata turns are more effortless than Salsa because they tend to be stationary and take more coordination and work. In contrast, Bachata turns are out just fun. You’re flowing through a room spinning. Think “Sound of Music” dancing through a field of flowers and having a blast.
Instead of going on YouTube to learn random Bachata turns, I invite you to contact us or check our website. I regularly share videos with my students where I explain the different moves we use in Bachata. I present them in a fun way and with the proper technique to be confident when dancing socially.
Keeper #3: Bachata is the rhythm of love and passion.
Bachata is also fun because of the music. Whenever I turn on Bachata music; It’s like I am at the beach with friends. It’s playful. It’s passionate, and nobody’s in a rush, right? The sun is setting. There’s a bonfire, your friends are out, and you’re just relaxing. There’s no work tomorrow. So I encourage you to get familiar with the music; you will love it. Look up an artist like Prince Royce; for example, you put on that music, it’s so full, it’s passionate, it’s playful.
And when you’re at home, doing your steps, and doing your twists and turns, you want music that is fun, exciting and yet, at the same time, is mellow and doesn’t make you feel stressed. So of all the music, what I put on when I want to relax and flow is Bachata.
And look, ultimately, the most fun you’ll always have is when you are connecting with others in your backyard with your friends or out of the studio. We are social species. Going back to the tribal times, it has always been about people, humans coming together, flowing together, connecting and loving each other. So I hope I get a chance to dance with you, to be your instructor, just to have you join our family.
I can’t wait to welcome you to our big family, have you coming in week to week, having fun, connecting with new friends and letting lose to amazing Latin songs. Click here to check our current schedule.
If you have any questions you would like me to answer here are some ways you can contact me: message me on Instagram (torontodanceSalsa), on Twitter (#torontodanceSalsa), on Facebook (Toronto Dance Salsa) or email me at [email protected].
