LATIN RHYTHMS OF LOVE WITH THE CHANS
There is nothing more ideal than two hearts coming together as one to the scintillating Latin beats. That’s the case for the husband-and-wife duo of Aung and Michelle Chan. Though the couple found Latin dance on their own, the beat of their rhythms led them to each other.
THERE IS nothing more ideal than two hearts coming together as one to the scintillating Latin beats. That’s the case for the husband-and-wife duo of Aung and Michelle Chan. Though the couple found Latin dance on their own, the beat of their rhythms led them to each other. “We met at Devon House when I was 14. He played the guitar and had a long ponytail and I thought he was so cute. We maintained a friendship until high school when we realised we had a common interest in Latin nights. We found Latin separately, but it certainly brought us together,” Michelle told Flair.
Meeting Latin
Introduced to Latin dance by her favourite movies Dirty Dancing and Dance With Me, Michelle was set on exploring the dance style which sparked a flame she could not explain. On her 16th birthday, she went to her first Latin night at the then Hilton Hotel in Kingston, where she met Keith Anthony from Salsa Jamaica and fell deeply in love with the dance form. Aung Chan, on the other hand, was introduced to the genre when he and his friends stopped by a Latin night. He admits that he had no intentions of dancing, but after multiple visits, he was impressed and thought it would be good way to meet women.
But when the couple met each other, everything was about to change. Dance became the flames to their love.
“The fact that we spend physical time in each other’s arms dancing on the floor, enjoying the music, just being together in sync, enhances our relationship,” Michelle explained.
According to the couple, there is an addictive high that comes from the swaying of the hips and aligning oneself to rhythms and beats.
“There is something in the music — something spiritual, especially in salsa. I believe that the chanting and the Afro rhythms pull me ,and though I don’t speak Spanish, the experience appeals to me. Not knowing the music, but feeling the music and allowing it to go through you.”
Being teachers of salsa, the couple aims to enhance the level of salsa, hoping it will spread across the island. Salsa brings people together whether you can dance or not, so as a result, the Chans hope to inspire and be players in bringing people into the Latin community.
Interested in learning the craft and being apart of the community? Contact the Chans for private or group lessons.