Bachata is a style of social dance from the Dominican Republic which is now danced all over the world. It is connected with bachata music.

In partnering, the lead can decide whether to perform in open, semi-closed or closed position. Dance moves or step variety strongly depend on the music (such as the rhythms played by the different instruments), setting, mood, and interpretation. Unlike salsa, bachata dance does not usually include many turn patterns.

The basic dance sequence is performed in a full 8-count moving within a square, consisting of three steps and then a tap or various forms of step syncopations (such as the “double step”).The tap is done on the opposite foot of the last step, while the next step is taken on the same foot as the tap. The dance direction may change after the tap or fourth step. Bachata can be danced on any beat of the musical phrase as long as the basic dance sequence (three steps and then a tap \ syncopation) is maintained (for example, one may start on the 1st beat of the musical phrase, with the tap landing on the 4th beat).

Bachata Music

The music is counted similar to Salsa, known as 4/4 time, when we dance we count up to 8 for a full musical phrase, true Dominican bachata is very fast and uses African rhythms and was know as “La Musica del Amargue”, bitter or sad music that usually sung of lost loves and sufferings. As the music and dance has spread over the world, the music has been influenced by other styles and popular music.

The Bachata Band – consists of the lead guitar (requinto), rhythmic guitar, bass guitar, bongos and the guira, as well as a lead and back-up singers.
Some more traditional sounding bands include Aventura and Grupo Extra. Now recognised mostly as being a slower beat with a strong beat that is usually easy to recognise. Over the 2000’s more Bachata artists began releasing new hits, using electronic synths and sounds and following a standard pop music structure (artists such as Romeo Santos and Toby Love). As the demand for new music is growing there are many new DJ’s emerging (check out DJ Tronky, DJ Khalid, DJ Alejandro etc) with covers of popular songs remix to Bachata.

A Quick History

Bachata came about in the 1960’s in the Dominican Republic when times were tough and with strict censorship coming from the Dominican dictator Trujillo, when he died the first Bachata songs were recorded. Dominican bachata music was originally not accepted by the countries elite, and was not broadcast on the radio because they believed it to be crude, vulgar and related to rural crime. However it’s charm eventually broke through the prejudice and it’s popularity soared, and that’s when the first “bachateros” were born, now this dance has made it’s way around the world and developed and incorporated many different styles along the way!

The Different Bachata Styles

This is the closest style to the traditional style that originated in the Dominican Republic. It is quite fast and involves fast footwork and turns, alternating between open and closed positions with each partner using freestyle movements that can be different or echo each others movements. The transition of weight between from each foot means that the attention is on the hips (especially for the ladies!)

It takes a little bit more practice to master this style but is very satisfying and becoming very trendy in the dancing scene.

This is the youngest of the three sub-styles. Sensual Bachata uses the same basic step pattern as Moderna but less complex turn patterns. The movement within this sub-style is very much dictated by a dynamic interpretation of the music; it is characterized by fluid, whole-body stylistic movements such as body waves as well as shoulder, rib-cage and hip isolations.

Bachata Sensual was born in Cádiz more than 15 years ago. Founded and developed by Jorge Escalona (Korke) interpreting the music in an unique and sensual way.
He interpreted the instruments with longer movements and isolations, in other words, a higher corporal expression. Without dismissing the origins and keeping the essence of the traditional bachata.

It was not until the arrival of Judith Cordero, a dancer with more than 10 years of experience, when Bachata Sensual rose to the next level, providing to it a more technical and visual style.

As you may have guessed by the name, this style of Bachata is a modern adaptation of the original dance. It incorporates more upper-body movements and more highly accentuated lower-body styling. Bachata Moderna adopts many of the turn patterns common in Salsa and is built around a “side-together-side” basic step, rather than the traditional square pattern.

A hybrid style known as Bachata Fusion which incorporates elements from each of the above mentioned sub-styles. This allows our students to experience a taste of everything that contemporary Bachata has to offer. The variety taught in Bachata Fusion provides a wide range of movement possibilities for social dancing situations that will suit every dancer’s individual style and preference.