April 26, 2025
In-Person
DEL x Max Pollak: RumbaTap and Beyond
Time: 1-5 pm
Pricing: $180 until April 6 / $200 after
Location: In-Person at the 92nd Street Y, New York (NYC)
Instructors:
Max Pollak, Barry Blumenfeld, and Special Guests Barbaro Ramos, Yuniskleyvis Ramos, and Jaime Ramos
Facilitated by Max Pollak, Barry Blumenfeld, and Special Guests Barbaro Ramos, Yuniskleyvis Ramos, and Jaime Ramos
Join Max Pollak, world-renowned percussive dancer, choreographer, musician and ethnomusicologist, for an afternoon exploring the interconnectedness of African-Diasporic dance and music through the lens of Pollak’s artistic journey from Europe to the USA to Cuba, with specific applications to dance education.
Participants will explore the history of tap dance and jazz music, as well as Cuban dance and music, and discover where they intersect. Pollak and his Cuban mentors will teach AfroCuban Folkloric Rumba — dance, music and song — and explore ways to introduce students to the form. Participants will also learn Pollak’s signature percussive fusion technique, RumbaTap, and some of the choreography of his classic piece, “RumbaTap Standard.” Collective improvisation and jamming will be explored.
Pollak will share video and audio recordings of his work and the work of the Cuban artists he creates with. He will also share his current creative endeavors, in which he brings the AfroCuban approach to European art forms of dance and music. Participants will leave equipped with embodied knowledge and accompanying asynchronous resources to bring this content back to their students in a range of learning environments.
All levels are welcome.
$180 until April 6 / $200 after
Must register by Wednesday, April 23, 2025.
Meet Your Instructors
Max Pollak
Max Pollak is pictured on the recent US Forever Postage Stamp honoring Tap Dance. Seamlessly combining body percussion, dance and singing, Max has performed on all five continents with some of the top artists in jazz, Latin, and classical music. Gregory Hines, Ray Brown, Los Muñequitos de Matanzas, Chucho Valdes,...
Barry Blumenfeld
Barry Blumenfeld has been a dance educator for 30 years in a wide range of environments. He has worked as a teaching artist in NYC public schools in residencies ranging from "Math Dance" and "Reading Dance" to teaching children in a mental institution via video. He has also taught in...
The Ramos Family
Cuba’s famous Ramos family are the bedrock of the legendary Rumba Group Los Muñequitos de Matanzas. Lead dancer and choreographer Barbaro Ramos, his son Yuniskleyvis, and nephew Jaime Ramos teach and perform the highest level of drumming, dancing, and singing from the Afro-Cuban Rumba traditions of Matanzas, Cuba. They have...