Bachata
Bachata · Foundation
- Time signature
- 4/4
Social tempos vary widely; part of the skill is matching the size and style of movement to the music.
Origin
From the Dominican Republic — a guitar music of the 1960s that started in country bars and working-class neighborhoods, was long dismissed by polite society, and outgrew everyone who dismissed it. Today’s bachata blends that traditional root with pop and R&B.
Music
4/4 time — syncopated guitar over a steady beat; three steps and a tap, side to side, with the hips marking the fourth count. Modern bachata crosses freely into pop and R&B remixes.
Character
Close, grounded, and unhurried — the movement lives in the hips and torso, and the feet give the rhythm flavor.
Figures
- 1
Basic Step (side & forward/back)
- 2
Basic Turn
- 3
Progressive Basic
- 4
Crossbody Lead
- 5
Hammerlock
- 6
Outside Turns
Want to learn the Bachata?
Every figure on this page is taught in the studio, one lesson at a time.