Alex Wilson's Find the Rhythm

Yes, I second the OP.

I am hugely tempted to splash the cash but at the same time I am wondering whether I will learn more than what I have already gleaned from countless SF threads on musicality etc.

Looking forward to a good review..
 
t0mt0m said:
Um, what is an anti-spam bump when it's at home? Are you bumping spam, or spamming bumps? ;)
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Good question. Anti-spam ends up being the same as spam so it kind of defeats the purpose doesn't it. Ah well. There was logic in it at the time, not so much in retrospect. :P

Can we all delete our anti-spam posts on this thread and return it to normality?
 
I don't mind - at least there is some movement on the thread. ;)

It looks like nobody has tried this book/CD yet.
 
Just read the pdf file and it sounds quite interesting.
I'd like to hear your thoughts on this considering it is sort of in the same area. Have you come across any other good resources?
 
Find the Rhythm

Hi - I'm obviously biased as I am the author, but I can say that there has been a tremendously good response to the book/CD and associated workshops at Brean and Robert Charlemagne's teacher training.

In the workshops we develop a 'virtual salsa band' concept performed by the students and you can hear the result on the music player at http://www.findtherhythm.com/workshops/

I would hope that this product stands out from various others in that it :

- relays an explanation of the music from a bandleader/arranger/composer perspective while at the same time co-written by a salsa dancer (Lee Knights) who forced me to get rid of any technical jargon!

- gives an insight as to how I went about writing/arranging songs such as "Show Me" "Ain't Nobody" "R&B Latino" & "Antonio" which are heard regularly in salsa clubs

- is a 120 page book with 75 minute CD so I packed the product full with as much useful information as I could.

- the CD has 3 full length dance tracks plus loads of instrument examples taken from my album Inglaterra & Salsa con Soul

- features audio examples from an actual salsa band recorded in a studio (as opposed to a real instruments combined with computer generated sound featured in many other products)

- follows a 'workbook' format so that the reader can tailor his or her own learning to their pace and area of interest

We've almost sold 200 copies in less than a month which for me, as having worked on it for over a year and invested a lot of money is a huge reward.

You can read some genuinely views from http://www.findtherhythm.com/testimonials/ and the facebook group http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=wall&ref=mf&gid=181289260938

OK - I didn't want to turn this into an advert but reading your thread, felt I could add a valid contribution to the discussion!

Best,

Alex
 
Hi Alex and thanks for the reply and the information. These workshops sound like fun by the way - now I regret I didn't go to Brean this time. Maybe next time.
 
Niiice! :) A proper salsa present. You must have used some subtle but effective hinting... ;)

Let us know when you have the chance to try it.
 
Hi Guys,
I have actually already commented on this book in another thread. :D

I've danced Salsa for over 12 years now and taught for nearly 9 of these. I've researched the music, been to workshops, talked to musicians, bought other dvd/cd etc so I'm not a novice when it comes to the music.

I've had the book a couple of weeks now and have been very impressed.
I learnt quite a few new things from reading the book and had reinforcement of a lot of other things. I'm recommending that ALL my students purchase it, at £17(if I remember correctly) it's a bargain :D

Whilst I'm on the topic, I think it also goes nicely with the "Salsa Beat Machine" website http://www.salsabeatmachine.org/
 
Thanks, Dave, coming from somebody with as much experience as you, this is quite a recommendation.

Hmmm...tempting... It seems I might have to start with the subtle yet effective hinting - and who knows I might get a surprise present for Christmas. ;)
 
SalsaGipsy said:
This is a seriously sweet song. It would be sooo cool to hear this at a salsa party (yeaaaah dream on... :rolleyes:)

Have you had any recommendations about this book? There isn't much information on the website.
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I haven't bought it yet ;)

Maybe in the new year - i will let you know.

Anyone else have this??
 
I've got the book this weekend. (Let it shipped to the US)

First remark: since shipping and other significantly increase the price of the product, I think it would be a good idea to keep an American stock as well. That way, I think, both shipping costs and time could be significantly reduced and would make it much more accessible to the American audience.

My short review:

This is definitely the best introduction I have ever read about salsa music explaining quite a few concepts that don't improve once dancing immediately, but provides a more structured way to explore the music and develop one's dancing.

This book gives a very good job explaining the typical structure of (NY/Puerto Rican style) salsa songs in the first part. It describes how different latin musical styles are used in salsa. Then finally it gives an overview of the most common rhythmic patterns in salsa music.

The main feature is the CD, which is even usable as a stand-alone guide since it features a short explanation of the concepts it demonstrates.

This book definitely fills a huge gap: a relatively thorough musical explanation for the layman (not necessarily dancer). And it is the only book on market doing this in an easily accessible way. It is definitely worth its price and one of the best investments in this area.

Still the book is very short and it is definitely much more superficial than a really thorough worksheet should look like. It touches on a lot of concepts, but it fails to explain several of them in more details. For example, the book does and excellent job on highlighting the role of the son clave, its types and its interaction with other rhythmic patterns, but the rumba clave is not touched upon in any depth.

Additionally, the interaction between different percussion instruments is only superficially demonstrated, but it is not explored in more depth. The exercises don't go beyond "tap rhythm A while listening to B". I would have expected a bit (or much) more.

Another point where book is somewhat lacking is the demonstration of the different latin music styles in salsa songs. Of course, the most convenient way would be by actual sound snippets on the CD, but it is probably not feasible due to copyright issues. Still, it would be definitely doable to list much more songs and point out sections of certain musical styles. For some styles, the authors do a good job. For others: the readers are left with a simple paragraph without any (or too few) examples.

Another point completely untouched by the book is the actual interpretation of the music in form of dance. The authors resort here to a few extremely general remarks. This is probably on purpose as it would be out scope of the book, but the musicality DVD of Peter Fiege and Edie TSF complements nicely the material covered here, at least for CBL style dancers.

Generally the book is worth buying and it is a very important step in the good direction. Still, it is just the first step and I think there is enough material (relevant to dancers) to easily fill two or three similar sized books about the salsa music and probably more with more thorough exercises. I hope that the authors plan to go to more depth in some follow up work and I would not hesitate a moment to order it as soon as it is available.
 
Thank you!
That's a brilliantly insightful review and reinforces my decision to buy this bad boy as soon as I can.
My knowledge of Salsa music is much less developed than yours so I think I will get loads out of this.
 
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