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New York Salsa

New York Salsa is native.

Latin artists from many countries developed “salsa” from Cuban son in Puerto Rican New York City in the 1960s-70s.

Fania Records defined the salsa dura (hard salsa) sound in the 1970s.

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🇵🇦 | 🇨🇺 🇩🇴 🇭🇹 🇵🇷 | 🇨🇴 🇻🇪 🇵🇪

Latin dance, music, timba, tropical

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New York Salsa Features

new york salsa Archive

New York Salsa News

Ongoing

Latin Mondays at Taj, hosted by Talia Castro-Pozo, has been one of NYC’s most popular salsa dance parties for over 15 years. It’s Mondays from 7pm to 1am (5pm doors). From $15. 🇵🇦 | 🇨🇺🇩🇴🇵🇷 | 🇨🇴🇻🇪🇵🇪

January 2023

Fleur Seule plays Salsa Night at the Hard Rock Hotel, in the Sessions Lounge, in the Times Square Theater District, on Tuesdays in January 2023 from 5-8pm. 🇵🇷

Los Hacheros with Jeremy Bosch play Salsa at The Django in Tribeca, Manhattan on Tuesday, January 3, 2023 from 10:30pm – 1am. 🇵🇷

February 2023

Marc Anthony Viviendo Tour brings Puerto Rican Salsa to Madison Square Garden in Chelsea, NYC on Thursday, February 9, 2023 at 8pm (7pm doors). From $99. 🇵🇷

El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico headlines India, Jerry Rivera, and Puerto Rican Power for a night of Puerto Rican salsa at Radio City Music Hall in Rockefeller Center on Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 8pm. From $96. 🇵🇷

Gilberto Santa Rosa “de Amor y Salsa;” brings Puerto Rican salsa to Bergen PAC in Englewood, New Jersey; on Friday, February 24, 2023 at 8pm. From $49. 🇵🇷

November 2022

Grupo Niche plays Salsa Colombiana at Bergen PAC in Englewood, NJ on Saturday, November 19, 2022 at 8pm. From $39. 🇨🇴

October 2022

Spanish Harlem Orchestra leader Oscar Hernández is a special honoree at the Cielo Gala celebrating the work of the Latino Commission on AIDS, at Cipriani Wall Street on Friday, October 14, 2022. From $850. 🇵🇷

The Spanish Harlem Orchestra plays New York Salsa for dancing at the West Gate Lounge at the West Gate Inn in Nyack, Rockland County, New York on Saturday, October 15, 2022 at 8pm. [This is a small town hotel ballroom. Should be classic. Nyack is cool. It’s on the west bank of the Tappen Zee Bridge, opposite Tarrytown.] 🇵🇷

Multi-Grammy winner, Aymée Nuviola, “La Sonera del Mundo,” celebrates the birthday of Celia Cruz “The Queen of Salsa” at the David Rubenstein Atrium in Lincoln Center on Friday, October 21, 2022 at 7:30pm. Free. 🇨🇺

September 2022

The 20th New York Salsa Congress 2022 is at the NY Marriot Marquis in Times Square, Labor Day Weekend, Friday-Sunday, September 2-4, 2022 with an opening party at Cafe Iguana on Thursday, September 1, and a closing party at Latin Mondays at Taj with Talia Castro on Monday, September 5, 2022.

Son Del Monte plays New York Pachanga (Salsa Cuban Style) at the New York International Salsa Congress at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square on Sunday, September 4, 2022 from 6:30-11pm. From $20. 🇨🇺🇵🇷

Eddie Palmieri plays Salsa at Lehman Center in Jerome Park, The Bronx on Saturday, September 17, 2022 at 8pm. 🇵🇷

Maelo Ruiz sings Salsa Romántica at Sabor Latino in Elmhurst, Queens on Saturday, September 24, 2022 after midnight (10pm doors). From $64. 🇵🇷

August 2022

The CCCADI’s 4th AfriBembé Festival: Sankofa! is at Harlem Art Park and on East 120th St in “El Barrio” East Harlem on Saturday, August 13, 2022 from 11:30am – 7pm. Free. afribembe.com 🌍🇧🇷🇨🇴🇨🇺🇩🇴🇪🇨🇬🇳🇭🇹🇵🇷

Son Del Monte plays New York Pachanga (Salsa) for Carnegie Hall Citywide in the amphitheater at Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park along the Hudson River in Hamilton Heights (West Harlem) on Saturday, August 20, 2022 at 5pm. Free. carnegiehall.org 🇨🇴🇨🇺🇵🇷🇪🇸🇺🇸

Papo Lucca y La Sonora Ponceña play Puerto Rican Salsa for El Día de Callao (a suburb of Lima, Peru) at XL Nightlife in Elizabeth, New Jersey on Saturday, August 20, 2022. Doors open at 9pm. From $50.🇵🇷

Salsa Stories Sound of Light Edition South Bronx is at the Open Street on Kelly St (between Ave St John & Legget Ave) in Longwood, The Bronx, on Friday, August 26 | September 2, 9, 16 & 30 | October 7 and 14, 2022, from 6-8pm. Free. 🇧🇷🇨🇴🇨🇺🇩🇴🇵🇦🇵🇪🇵🇷🇻🇪🗽
Salsa Stories Sound of Light Edition East Harlem is at the Open Street on East 115th St (between First Ave & Pleasant Ave) in “El Barrio” East Harlem, on Saturday, August 27 | September 3, 10, 17 & 24 | October 1, 8 & 15, 2022, from 5-7pm. Free. 🇧🇷🇨🇴🇨🇺🇩🇴🇵🇦🇵🇪🇵🇷🇻🇪🗽
Salsa Stories Sound of Light Edition Lower East Side is at the Open Street in front of The Clemente on Suffolk St (between Rivington & Delancey) in “Loisaida” the Lower East Side, on Sunday, August 28 | September 4, 11, 18 & 25 | October 2, 9 & 16, 2022, from 3-6pm. Free. 🇧🇷🇨🇴🇨🇺🇩🇴🇵🇦🇵🇪🇵🇷🇻🇪🗽

June 2022

New York Salsa Festival

Tony Succar joins Cuban Timba singer Issac Delgado (NG La Banda) and an All-Star band in Delgado’s new project “Con Tumbao,” for the Blue Note Jazz Festival at Sony Hall in the Times Square Theater District on Thu, June 23, 2022 at 9pm (7pm doors). From $45. 🇵🇪🇨🇺

May 2022

BIG Salsa Festival (Memorial Day Weekend)

Salsa Sundays at Orchard Beach is a casual outdoor Salsa dance party in Parking Section 5 at Orchard Beach, The Bronx from Memorial Day Weekend to Labor Day Weekend, from 12-5pm.

Salsa Saturdays at La Marqueta is a Salsa dance at the old market in El Barrio East Harlem, on Summer Saturdays from 12 – 6 pm. FREE.

Midtown Dance 2022, hosted by Talia Castro-Pozo, offers free dance lessons and dancing outdoors in Greeley Square Park near Herald Square, most Summer Tuesdays and Thursdays from May 19 to July 28, 2022.

New York Salsa Artists

New York Salsa Festivals

New York Salsa Dances

  • Midtown Dance (summer) 🇨🇴 🇨🇺 🇩🇴 🇭🇹 🇲🇽 🇵🇹 🇵🇷 🇸🇻 🇺🇸
  • Mi Salsa Kitchen (weekends) 🇨🇺

New York Salsa Dance Studios

  • Lorenz
  • Nieves
  • Piel Canela

About New York Salsa

Salsa is 1950s Cuban son dance music that mixed with Puerto Rican bomba & plena, and Harlem swing in New York’s Puerto Rican communities in the 1960s and 70s. Salsa then jumped to Colombia and went global.

Artists from many Caribbean and Latin American countries contributed to salsa’s development. It sounds a little different everywhere it is played, but Johnny Pacheco’s Fania Records defined the salsa sound in 1970s New York City. Salsa romántica was a softer, more romantic style that followed in the 1980s-90s.

Salsa is dance music. You can dance salsa to the Cuban forms: changüi, son, and timba. Like swing, salsa is a commercial form of Latin jazz.

Caribbeans and Colombians dance Salsa on 1, meaning the music’s 1st beat gets the accent. Caribbeans dance 6 steps. Colombians dance 8 steps with different patterns.

Eddie Torres Sr. created New York Salsa on 2 with Hustle (Disco) shines. On 2 means the 2nd beat gets the accent. Puerto Ricans call it dancing on clave.

El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico famously sang “Sin salsa, no hay paraiso,” (Without Salsa, it is not paradise) For a salsero, that is true.

Thanks to Salsa Stories for the cover photo.

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