Maria - guajira
(Asheville, NC, United States)
Maria "la guajira" Voisin has been dancing Salsa since 1996. She comes from a family of musicians, and her summers were spent as a youth in the Dominican Republic. She started formal studies with her first trip to Cuba in 1999 to study at the The National School of the Arts (ENA) in Havana. There she focused on the history of Salsa, studying the dances which contributed to the development of modern Salsa and the Rueda de Casino. She returns to Cuba frequently to continue her studies in Afro-Cuban folkloric dance and culture. In 1999, Maria started teaching Salsa in Asheville clubs and studios and formed Asheville's first Salsa Dance troupe, "Estilo Cubano". After 2.5 years of travel, she returned to Asheville in autumn of 2002 and founded Salseros 828 Dance School and Company in the winter of the same year. She continues her studies with world-reknowned instructors every summer. Some of her teachers/mentors/influences include Frankie Martinez, Baba Richard Gonzales, Noibis Licea, Ana and Joel Massicote, Franklin Diaz, Eddie and Maria Torres, and countless other flamenco, modern, and afro-carribean Instructors.
Maria was voted Asheville's #1 Dance Teacher in the Mountain Xpress 2007 "Best of" Reader's Poll. She has worked with non-profit organizations such as LEAF in Schools and Streets, Arts to People, and Asheville Parks and Recreation teaching the youth Salsa in Asheville. She will be teaching as an adjunct faculty member of UNCA's Dance department as a Latin Dance Instructor in Spring 2009. She has helped to bring Asheville's growing Salsa community into the national spotlight, with write-ups in the New York Times, Southern Living, and Verve magazine. Maria has taught and performed with dance partner Hector Gutierrez at the Greenville, SC Congress and recently at the Memphis Salsa Convention with her all women's group," Dulcinea". She offers a unique approach to Afro-Cuban and ladies styling and spinning technique, and is known for her creative approaches to choreography and musicality. She is great at breaking down the material and creating community through dance. She will be offering her lessons online very soon on Idance.net, and she will be working on her first Instructional DVD. Maria was chosen as one of five choreographers for Asheville's 48 hour dance festival coming January 2009.
Maria teaches L.A.(on 1) style Salsa, Cuban Son (contra-tiempo), and New York (on 2) Mambo, and her first love, Caribbean style Latin Dance, with an emphasis on Modern Cuban Rueda de Casino. She leads workshops in Merengue, Bachata, Cha Cha Cha, Cuban Mambo, Son Cubano, Afro-Cuban Movement, Danzon, Comparsa, and Brazilian Samba as well. Authenticity, creativity, respect for tradition, and creating community are Maria's guiding principles. Maria's aim is to impart the social function and significance of Salsa along with the steps. Realizing there is always more to learn keeps her humble and inspired. She hopes to spread the joy of Salsa throughout Western Carolina and beyond, and to make this dance accessible and enduring for all who enjoy it.
