This past year, BHS and the Brooklyn Arts Council partnered on an oral history project interviewing local dancers.  BAC initiated Folk Feet, a Folk Arts program dedicated to supporting the work of traditional dancers in Brooklyn, in 2003. The goals of Folk Feet were to identify the range of traditional dance practices represented in Brooklyn by individuals, companies, and community and social dance groups; to document these artists and their practices; and to present them to a wider public by way of concerts, showcases and workshops. This is the fourth in a series of five audio slideshows from that project, stay tuned!

Carlos Vasquez founded La Salsa De Hoy Dance Studio in Sunset Park, Brooklyn in 1982.

Carlos was born in Spanish Harlem and he grew up in Brownsville, Brooklyn and the “Boogie Down” Bronx.  He is a former member of David Melendez’s Mambo Elite Dance Company, and his father used to dance at the famous Palladium Ballroom.

In this excerpt, Carlos Vasquez describes how the Salsa scene in the 1970s inspires his teaching.

Music: “Guarare” by Ray Barretto
Interview conducted by Nicole Macotsis and Sady Sullivan