What to look for in a pair of flamenco Shoes?
Often beginner dance students underestimate the importance of getting the right pair of shoes. It’s understandable: genuine flamenco shoes are hard to find, they’re expensive. Why spend over a hundred dollars on shoes you’ll never wear again, if you decide flamenco is not for you?
Check out my Shoe Guide:
www.flamencoschool.ca/absolut...
as well as other guides for beginners and tutorials on my website:
FlamencoSchool.ca such a shawl, bata de cola and castanet guides.
WHEN SHOULD I GET MY SHOES?
By all means, delay buying the proper shoes until you are sure you are sticking with flamenco dance, but don’t wait much longer. As the footwork gets faster and more complex, you’ll find it harder and harder to cope in any other shoe, and you may become needlessly discouraged.
What to look for when ordering your first pair of shoes:
The upper part of the shoe: Flamenco shoes are made of leather or suede. Leather takes longer to “break in”, but will look good for longer. Suede shoes come in some gorgeous colours, and are a little softer on the feet-but of course, that means they will wear out sooner. DON’T BUY synthetic-they don’t breathe, nor will they mold to your foot.
The sole: It should be good, thick rubber, to protect the feet and to create the sound. Immediately reject anything with a wafer-thin leather sole - you’ll end up with a bruised foot!
Choosing the heel. It should be between 3cm and 6cm (just over 1 inch to 2.5 inches). The height is measurer on the “longer-outside” part of the heel. I have had students measure the lower/inside part of the heel and order heels that were much higher than they thought. Heel height: although the height is a personal preference choice, you should consider the following: higher heels might break more easily and can be strenuous for the lower back and the ball of your feet unless you normally wear high heels and are used to staying on high heel shoes. Heel shape: the wider the heel, the better the balance and the louder the sound. Thinner and higher shoes will look more elegant, no doubt. Below all the heels you can choose from:
Please check the nails closely! These are so important, not only for sound but also for balance: some are not evenlly spread out, which makes for a wobbly heels. What is worse, badly nailed nails, will scratch and ruin floors! This is a big problem for dance teachers, because longstanding studio rentals can be canceled because of one pair of bad shoes damaged the floors. So please make sure your nails are not scratchy. Did you know nails can be replaced? They are sold online at some flamenco portals, however if you go to Spain you can bring your favorite pair of shoes directly to a flamenco shoemaker and they will replace the nails for around 30 euros, you shoes will sound just like a new pair.
To learn about flamenco or to study with me online or in-person, please visit:
www.flamencoschool.ca/
#flamenco #flamencoclasses #flamencodancer #flamencotutorial
MORE VIDEOS
💃🏻FLAMENCO INTRO SERIES:
Introduction to flamenco dance • Introduction to flamen...
The Hands • The Hands - Flamenco f...
Shoe Guide for Beginners: • Flamenco Shoe Guide fo...
🌹FLAMENCO TUTORIALS
Sevillanas Tutorial: • Sevillanas tutorial #1...
Castanet Tutorial: • Castanet Tutorial for ...
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🩰BALLET FOR ADULTS
My Pre-ballet-class Warm Up: • My pre-Ballet class wa...
Open Level Class: • Free Ballet Barre Open...
Easy (return-to-class) Beginner Ballet: • Easy Ballet Barre for ...
🤍BALLET TUTORIAL:
Ballet basics: correct placement of the arms and hands • Video
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💃🏻 PERFORMANCE VIDEO PLAYLIST: • Maria Osende Flamenco ...
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ℹ️ CLASSES (online, on-demand and -in-person)
🌹FLAMENCO CLASSES FlamencoSchool.ca
🩰BALLET CLASSES FlamencoSchool.ca/ballet
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👏🏼UPCOMING PERFORMANCES AND EVENTS: MariaOsende.com
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Instagram: / mariaosende
Facebook: / mariaosendeflamenco
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I am a professional dancer based in Canada. My passions are ballet and flamenco. In my twenties I was a professional dancer with the National Ballet of Spain and the Berlin Ballet. In my thirties I moved on to flamenco and currently I teach both dance forms and continue performing flamenco.
I believe dance promotes overall well-being and enhances self-expression in those who practise it. I enjoy teaching and sharing my knowledge and passion for dance with adults across the world. On my channel you will find some tutorial videos, some performance videos and some full videos. I hope they help you in your dance journey.