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Jake, Salsa Dancer / Instructor

NEWS AND VIEWS conga1.gif
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 Last Updated 16 December 2001
2001 Holiday/Vacation/Leave Schedule:
T.B.A.
Happy Holidays from Jake and Techi
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Attention: E-Mail List Members:
Please notify us when you change email addresses.
Haven't received any email for a while?? Mail me  a note - perhaps there was a change/typo in your address!
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  • We'd like to extend our deepest sympathies to those who lost friends or family in the horrible tragedy on Tuesday, September11, 2001.
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  • Having trouble hearing the beat?!Confused about the count??!  Check out my new Salsa Rhythm Cheatsheet  recently added to the  "What we Teach" section of our home page for some help... Need basic music theory?  Check out  www.musical-theory.com
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  • Cafe Cocomo is expanding! Re-modeling in the works for extending the dance floor, stage and bar!  We know it gets very crowded at the club these days, but this is the price of success. (It is better than being in a dead club, believe me!)  The good news is that the construction is under way, and that there will be more space soon.  Thanks for your patience!  Coming soon!!!
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  • GREAT THURSDAY Salsa CLASSES AT 8pm at CAFE COCOCMO (followed by D.J. Henry and Live Music!):congas
    • This week, December 20 : Tito Garcia y su Orq. International! ($10) (Jake and Techi teach Salsa class at 8pm, class is free w/admission)
    Thursday is the "dancers" dance night!
    Join us for a WEEKDAY class in San Francisco at the most popular club in San Francisco: Cafe Cocomo.
    This is a one-hour class 8-9pm which is free w/admission, folllowed by D.J. Henry and Live bands. Admission is only $10 unless noted.
    See the  COCOMO Page  for Thursday band schedule information, and directions....
    Attention DANCERS: Cafe Cocomo gets very crowded now, so come early for best dancing, (free) parking,
    seating, and of course, our warm-up Salsa class!    Try Saturdays early too, for more dance room...
    *********************** Cafe Cocomo Information: 415-824-6910 or  See ads in S.F. Weekly or visit  www.CafeCocomo.com
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  • New Year's Eve at Cafe Cocomo
    • December 31 - Monday, NEW YEAR'S EVE PARTY AT COCOMO - (Please note: No salsa lesson this night)  Doors open at 8pm
    Two Live Salsa Performances by:  Franco Brothers y su Orq. Actualidad   and   Orquesta Kache
    $25 admission includes:
        Complimentary hor d'oeuvres from 8-10pm, Champagne toast at midnight, Party Favors,
        Door prizes will be raffled during the night,  Cocomo's Surprise Balloon Drop
  • Sizzlin' SATURDAYS  in San Francisco... at Cafe Cocomo! with LIVE MUSIC www.cafecocomo.com
    • Thanks to the huge crowd that showed up last Saturday (11/3): Class was great and we had a ball afterwards!
    Live Music!  This week, December 22: Azabache ($13) (Jake and Techi teach Salsa class at 8pm, class is free w/admission)
    CLICK HERE  for full Cafe Cocomo Schedule information.
    Please join Jake and Techi every Saturday at the hottest club in San Francisco: Cafe Cocomo for a fun club class.
    We teach Beg./Int. Salsa from 8 to 9PM, followed by D.J Henry and LIVE music. Huge dance floor!congas
    Plenty of free parking, easy access. Upstairs seating /dancing section now open!
    Attention DANCERS:Cafe Cocomo gets very crowded now, so come early for best dancing, (free) parking,
    seating, and of course, our warm-up Salsa class! See also Club Picks and  Class Schedule for more info.
    *********************** Cafe Cocomo Information: 415-824-6910 or  See ads in S.F. Weekly or visit  www.CafeCocomo.com
  • What do women want from men? Dancing! that's what. See www.dancedancedance.com/whatwomen.htm for more. . .
  • .Feel like getting away but afraid of missing out on dancing?!  Check out Salsa Cruises at salsacruise.com- That's  www.salsacruise.com... If you do sign up for a cruise, please mention Jake and Techi to get a $100/couple or $50/person discount!  Prices just reduced, see site for details.
  • Coverage started on Jake&Techi.com... buzz builds pre-IPO!
    • Well, not quite, but check out a recent on-line article describing Cafe Cocomo and our Salsa Class
    from the eyes of a newcomer to the dance scene.  Click here to read:www.legmanila.com/ent/article/732.asp
  • Sundays at thE Beat/(formerly Studio J)  News:
    • Class suspended- please check back.
    We're taking a break from this class...
    So, please check back with us at this web site before attending....
     

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    Some older News items for archival purposes....
  • Cafe Cocomo Admission price change 2/1/2001: After almost three years at the same admission price, Cafe Cocomo will be increasing the admission effective February2001. The change is only $1 on Saturday and $2 on Thursday - to help fund re-modeling to expand the dance floor, stage, and bar areas and improve the club further!  Sorry for the inconvenience.  Even with the change, Cafe Cocomo prices the same or lower than most clubs operating today. And there is always plentiful free parking and their great staff to  serve you!
  • Join us for a Salsa Class / Benefit for the City of Hope Charity drive on 3/30/00!
    • Join Jake and Techi for a south bay class that is part of an annual charity campaign to help raise money for cancer/aids research.
    Organized by corporate sponser 24-Hour Fitness, the class will  be held in the beautiful 24-Hour Fitness aerobics studio in Sunnyvale.
    When: MARCH 30, 2000 at 7pm-9pm  -> 1.5 Hour Beg/Intermediate Salsa Class, followed by 30-minute D.J. practice session.
    Where: 24-Hour Fitness Health Club located at 150 E. Fremont Ave, Sunnyvale, CA
    Donation: $12 - remember this is a charitable event! tax-deductable.
    Why:  Each year 24-Hour Fitness takes part in the nation-wide "30 Days of Hope" campaign to raise money for
    cancer and aids research. Come out to have some fun dancing for a good cause!
  • Jake and Techi chosen to sit on distinguished panel of judges for Club Casino Salsa Finals, Wed Feb 16, 2000.
    • Join us this Wednesday for the finals of the salsa competition at Club Casino. Amateur, Pro, and "Just Salsa"
    competitions will wrap up this week. Hosted by Fred Flores.    CLICK HERE  for more info on Club Casino/Mambo Lounge...
  • Jake's Salsa Dancing Writing - the envy of Salseros worldwide?! (11/24/99)
    • Check out Ruben's web site  http://www.xs4all.nl/~alken/english/index.htm for the best example of how my web site
    has influenced other dancers' sites.  Besides a similar layout, Ruben copied my section on "What We Teach" practically word-for-word!
    (Also, see "FAQ" and under "Classes" section - recommendations for Dance Shoes and the exact list of Dance Music from my site!)
    I have contacted him about this in a very cordial way, suggesting that his students would be better served by his writing
    a statement of purpose that comes direct from his heart.  While he did add acknowledgements under the "FAQ" section of his
    site to say "courtesy of Jake Jacobs" at my request, and a link to our site, he continues to use the What We Teach section and various
    other segments with no permission or information about its source, violating my copyright.   Send Ruben  your comments directly!
    --Another example of unoriginal web site design or flyer design in the game of marketing!
    JAKE says:  "If you have enough creativity to dance and/or teach, then how about using a little of that creativity to design your own stuff!"
    This site was created in 1997 by Jake, and it is one of the first dance/instruction sites to hit the net.  It is entirely written, designed,
    and maintained by Jake,  and no outside advertisers are allowed.
  •   Where's Jake?? 
    •  June/ July 1999:  Jake and Techi were on medical leave, but we're back teaching now...
  • Jake and Techi return to Kimball's (East) for special Salsa on Friday, Feb 26, 1999
    • Jake and Techi will be teaching at Kimball's East (2nd floor, above the old Kimball's Carnival location) for
    a special Weekend of February Salsa with, of course,Live Music! - thanks for coming!
    Class at 8-9pm by Jake & Techi  will be followed by the music of Pepe y su Orq.
    Kimball's East ( www.kimballs.com)   Next to the Emery Bay Public Market, Emeryville, CA
    INFO LINE: 510.658-2555  See Kimball's web site above for directions.
  • JazzCamp Weekend 1999 - February 20, 21 at Mills College, Oakland, CA (Workshops)
    • Information: Rythmic Concepts at 510.287.8880
    Advanced and intermediate level instrumental ensembles in jazz, blues, and Latin.
    Vocal classes in jazz, blues, vocal, percussion, studio vocals, and improvisation.
    Drum and percussion classes in congas, traps, Bata, Afro-Cuban.
    Dance classes in Salsa, Swing, and Jazz Hip-Hop.
  •  Jake and Techi return to Kimball's (East) for 2 special Sundays
    • November 98
    Jake and Techi will teach at Kimball's East (2nd floor above the old
    Kimball's Carnival location) for 2 special Sunday Evening Salsa events on Nov 8, Nov 15.
    November 8 : class will be followed by the hot sounds of Orq. Avance-thanks for coming!
    November 15 : class will be followed by the equally hot sounds of Julio Bravo-thanksfor coming!
  • Jake/Techi chosen to judge Finals at the Myan Temple Competition in Los Angeles
    • May 1998
    On a recent trip to L.A. to hang with the beautiful people, Jake and Techi visited the
    Mayan Temple - one of L.A.'s hottest Salsa clubs - 1038 S. Hill St. in Downtown L.A.,
    and were picked out of the huge crowd of dancers by the owners (unbeknown to us)
    to act as judges in their annual $10K Dance Competition. Always entertaining, and
    sometimes controversial, this competition has been striving for the best variety of dancers
    and fairest judging methods since its inception.
    While our being from S.F. (unbeknown to them) represented a logistical problem,
    being removed from the  L.A. politics was actually a plus. So, they're flying us down to judge
    the finals being held on May 9 (Amateur) and May 16 (Professional).  Who says that
    San Francisco style can't be noticed in L.A.?  Saturday Classes at the Mayan are taught at 8pm
    by former Bay Area teachers Alex and Myram, and the competition starts around 11PM.
    Highly Recommended. (213) 746-4674
    CONTEST WRAP-UP:We had a ball going to L.A. and we thank the Mayan for being
    great hosts!  The competition was tough to judge, but considering we're still in one
    piece, the crowd seems to have agreed with the results.  We were dissappointed however
    that the Bay Area's Ava Apple just missed placing 3rd in the finals by only 3 points (!)
    out of roughly 200.  A vey tough break and we thought she deserved those few points.
    Ava and her partner danced N.Y. style Mambo, which might have been less appreciated
    by the audience judges.  There were 5 professional judges and then an additional 4 were
    selected from the audience.... May 17, 1998.
  •  Summer'98 Chicago WORKSHOPS
    • July 1998
    AT CHICAGO DANCE, Chicago, IL  - June 29 and July 1, '98
    -completed, Thanks to all who attended...
    Jake and Techi  returned to teach a 3rd set of workshops
    in the Chicago area at Chicago Dance  and had a ball!
    S.F. People: check out Club 720  ( www.club720.com ) and Inta's when you go to Chicago next time .
    They have great atmosphere.  And tell them we sent you! . . .
    And for Ballroom classes, check out Chicago Dance at Irving Park and Ellston.
  •  December'97 (old)News :  Kimball's Carnival Forced to Close!
    • Dec/Jan 1997-8
    The San Francisco Bay Area is in shock and mourning after the news of Kimball's impending
    closure (See East Bay Express, Dec 26, 1997, p.25). A  rent dispute with the landlord - The Martin Group,
    which owns the Emery Bay Public Market - was the reported cause.  Kimball's lease expired on January 1.
    The owners of Carnival,  Kimball and Jane Allen, are very upset about the club ending in this fashion, and I
    have learned that the Martin Group was not really negotiating a new lease, but was apparently more interested
    in another tenant...    Kimball's has been the center of Latin dance in the Bay Area for 5 years, and it has brought
    together many different people to enjoy Salsa music and dance. I took my first lesson there and
    started teaching there about a year later (Sept '94). I have so many memories from the club and it
    has always felt like home.  This year, our  Saturday class size averaged 83, illustrating how important the
    club has been in promoting dance. It will be dearly missed by the Bay Area Latin music/dance scene!
    Techi and I will be checking out new locations for East Bay classes, but nothing will compare  :-(
    No word on any future plans by the owners of Carnival...    Carnival's last Salsa was held on New Years Eve.
    -jake  12-27-97, updated: 1-12-98
    After three years, Kimball's re-opened in Dec 2001 in a new East Bay location: Jack London Sq.
    However, the new location, its layout and management have done little to re-capture its legend or the Bay
    Area core Salsa crowd... After 6 months of teaching at the new location, we left in dissappointment. Goes to
    show you that fame can be fleeting, and it is the people that really make the club... -J&T 8/1/2001
    Update: 9/30/2001:  After struggling for 9 months, Kimball's is remodeling now to add pool tables and
    carpet over a large portion of the dance floor. This could create a more intimiate environment for Salsa, but
    the success of the new floorplan remains untested... -Jake.
    Update: 12/16/2001: They're down to a single Salsa night per week now - Saturdays, giving up on both
    Wednesdays and Fridays (now top-40 and R&B DJ night for $12 admission!).
    Haven't heard much on how the pool players and Salsa dancers interact, but it seems
    clear that the new management has no strong committment to the Salsa crowd. No real changes to the sound
    system accompanied the re-model, and very few people even mention the club to me, so it seems to be fading
    away. I do hear however that Saturday nights look "full", due to the much smaller dance area, which probably
    accomodates only 100-150 people...  -Jake

     

     

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    If you have comments or suggestions, email me at jake@SalsaByJake.com