The Rumba originated in Cuba from a group of dances referred to as the son in the 1930's. It was discovered by Europeans and Americans and brought back to England and American respectively. There was a Rumba rage in American in the 1930's. The dance genre spread across the U.S. and also to various European countries. There is also a slower variation of rumba, which is referred to as rumba bolero or just bolero. This form is done to slower tempo music than the traditional ballroom rumba, which at times is danced to somewhat fast tempo Cuban music. There are at least two styles of rumba, International style and American style. International is usually danced to slower music and does not use a box step but instead uses a side motions followed by a breaking action rock on both sides of it. The International style is more staccato than the American style and is often preferred for Dancesport or competition dancing.
The Rumba is characterized by a more relaxed frame than say Waltz or Foxtrot and a Cuban hip motion for American style rumba. The International hip action is often referred to as Latin motion. The American ballroom rumba is sometimes called the box rumba after one of the primary basic figures that is taught universally as a basic pattern for the rumba. The rumba is a slow tempo dance with a smooth sound and is distinguished by its sensual, flowing Latin music unlike the cha cha or salsa, which are faster tempo and more energetic or the cha cha which uses a staccato movement.
The Pattie Wells' Dancetime Center, San Diego, includes the American style rumba in our Ballroom dance department as one of the classic ballroom dance genres. The classic five ballroom dances usually includes the foxtrot, waltz, tango, rumba and cha cha, although we also offer most of the other Latin dances including samba, bolero, merengue, salsa, bachata and cha cha. The Latin dances are wildly popular in Southern California and particularly San Diego due to its large hispanic population and the Latin influence in the culture. The Dancetime Center houses a highly qualified Latin dance instruction staff which includes very experienced long time teachers like MaryBeth Hughes and Pattie Wells plus a very talented next generation Latin dance staff including Jose Bello, Stephanie Swain, David Nguyen and Brandon Detty. One of most popular dance genres for weddings next to the waltz or nightclub two step is the rumba. Many couples choose it for its sensual, romantic music plus it is a very easy dance to learn.
Zumba Fitness