SalsaDiary's Revival

I'd wondered whether this day would arrive. Would I ever feel it necessary to post in salsadiary? To articulate thoughts on dance? Or had things moved on, and there no longer be any need to do so?

The intervening two years have been eventful; all the more reason to make the time to reflect - call it a part of Continuous Professional Development (CPD). And now that there's time to draw breath, the chance to write in this way is gladly taken, even as I sit here in the marvellous Diamond amongst university students preparing for their final exams. There's plenty to say. In the intervening space where this blog has been silent, there's been:

• The birth of Parranda
  A latin dance club night with friends Esref and Steve
• A return to regular dance instruction
  Transferable skills-based workshops on Caribbean dance
• Loads of concerts and venues visited
  Supporting live music and fellow promoters (to be reviewed)
• Fulfillment of a writing commission
  An entry for the international volume of the Encyclopaedia of Popular Music of the World (EPMOW)
• Leading-edge dance research
  Following on from my presentation at the CID-UNESCO 32nd World Congress on Dance Research, answering the question "Can the gender and cultural bias inherent in salsa's social dance instruction be eliminated, and its effects counterbalanced?"
• Plenty of dance literature
  Encountered during the course of the EPMOW commission (to be reviewed)
• Tons of music
  Acquired to support my return behind the decks for Parranda (to be reviewed)

Some of these will be back-filled to the relevant date, and will have a more retrospective feel to their composition. This is to be expected. The rest will flow a natural course. Here goes...

Loo