How, why and when did you get into salsa?
I had been teaching, dancing and performing Brazilian Samba for years, but was about to move to Viña del Mar, Chile, and knew there wasn’t any samba there. There was a fledgling salsa scene in San Francisco, CA back then and that is where I first got involved – in the late 1980’s.
Who first taught you to dance salsa?
A Venezuelan friend of mine from San Francisco, CA taught me some basic salsa and that was it... I was hooked!
Did you have any dance training prior to salsa?
Yes, besides the Brazilian Samba, I was actually trained at the London School of Contemporary Dance in Martha Graham technique (Modern Dance) ---- that was back in the early 1970’s.
Tell me a little about SalsaPower. When, why and how was it set up?
SalsaPower grew out of a school project for my Masters degree program in Information Technology. At the time I was just leaving another salsa site where I had spent countless hours over a period of more than 4 years building their site, with little or no appreciation. For many months my friends had encouraged me to create my own site.
I approached an old friend and graphics designer (my SalsaPower partner, Julián Mejía) and asked him if he would help me with the initial design and layout – and he agreed.
From that it has grown to be the largest international salsa website on the internet with over 300 local correspondents in more than 60 countries, editorials, CD and event reviews, tour information and much more!
From where do you get your inspiration?
I get my inspiration from the hundreds of SalsaPower readers who write every year to say how they have benefited from the information on our site, and from our local correspondents around the world who give of their time and efforts tirelessly - they are 100% volunteers – nobody gets paid on SalsaPower, not even me.
This is not about making money, it is about spreading the joy of salsa around the world and watching it grow as a result. My biggest dream is to be able to find the means to do a world SalsaPower tour, and meet all of our Local Correspondents in person! Someday I hope I will be able to make that dream come true!
Who do you admire?
I admire all the young salseros just starting out – all the energy and none of the jaded points of view.
What’s your favourite track at the moment?
I listen to lots of different artists. I have over 600 CDs and try to go back and listen to the classics from Cuba and NY, Colombia and elsewhere.
What are your all time favourite tracks?
Old NG La Banda and Los Van Van
What is your favourite album?
Se Rompieron los Termómetros (Manolito y su Trabuco)
What was the last CD you bought?
I don’t buy salsa CDs! People send them to me to review! Actually, that’s not true, I do buy CDs, but it has been a while!
What music is in your car/cd player/tape player at the moment?
Ricardo Lemvo’s Isabela, El Zorro’s Volando, Victor Hugo’s Qué Pasa … all albums I’m trying to listen to enough to review for SalsaPower.
Who are your favourite artists?
Issac Delgado, Adalberto Alvarez, Manolito Simonet y su Trabuco, Tiempo Libre, Los Van Van (of course!), Maraca, Mamborama (even if it isn’t ever the same group twice… all the Mamborama albums are awesome).
If you were not a successful Promoter/Teacher/DJ, what would you be doing instead? Or if you also have a full-time job, what do you do?
Actually, after many years of only doing SalsaPower and free-lance Web design, I just took a full-time job as the Web Specialist for the local Hospital District (5 major hospitals and numerous community clinics). The pay and the health care benefits were just too good to turn down! I could never afford health insurance before, as it is so prohibitively expensive in the US. I was one of the more than 35 million Americans who couldn’t afford health insurance.
Tell me something most people wouldn’t know about you?
Oh! There are many things most folks wouldn’t know about me! I grew up on a cattle ranch and love riding horses!
I was a simultaneous interpreter specialising in legal and medical matters for many years before I got into web design.
I am a gourmet cook!
What’s your all time favourite salsa club/event that you have played/taught/danced?
My all-time favourite salsa club was a place called Starfish in Miami Beach. They played exclusively salsa on Friday nights.. no merengue, no reggaeton, nothing else but salsa!
Unfortunately, they closed a number of years ago and nothing has even come close to taking their place. My next favourite club is La Maestra Vida in Santiago, Chile…. I used to teach there and dance there and hang out with really good friends there!
What has been your most memorable moment?
When I was given the Lifetime Achievement Awards (2 of them – one in Norway and one in the UK!) …I thought you had to be OLD and washed up before you got those! I’m not done yet!!!
Have you had any embarrassing/nightmare-ish moments in salsa?
Yes, once my shoe flew off my foot in the middle of a performance… it was very awkward!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Encourage everyone who knows how to dance to teach a friend! We must continue to teach new people so that the movement grows.
We also need to purchase the music, not burn copies for friends, or else the musicians will not be able to continue being musicians… this is the most important thing.. support the music! If you don’t, we all lose!
Jacira Castro, President
Co-Founder & Web Administrator
www.SalsaPower.com
Your best source for Cuban music and
Casino-Style Salsa around the world!
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