Formation

Riccardo was born in Rome on 02-06-1979. Grown up learning music (piano, flute, guitar, singing) and successfully practicing many sports at high agonistic levels (first of all football), he met the dancing world at the age of 23 starting to attend a basic course of Caribbean dances at the Energy Dance school, in Perugia. He was moving to such city, at the age of 19, to study at the faculty of Veterinary Medicine. After a year he started to learn hip hop with Miguel Valentin (from the team "Chiquito y su Dominican Power"), from Republica Dominicana. In 2004 he saw for the first time a professional show of salsa, the Johnny Vazquez y su Imperio Azteca's show, that deeply impressed and charmed him. Two weeks later he met Tropical Gem and he decided to begin to learn the Los Angeles style of salsa attending several classes especially with Fernando Sosa, Johnny Vazquez and Ramon Morales, but then also with Francisco and Luis Vazquez. Although continuing learning the puertorican and the cuban style with some of the best dancers in the world (Felipe Polanco, Tito & Tamara, Maikel Fonts, Alberto Valdes, Seo Fernandez, Roly Maden exc.), for a year he was mainly devoting himself to the Los Angeles style until, in 2005, he met Jazzy who brought him near the salsa from New York, by his special style that particularly involved him because of the mix with different dance styles. From that moment he begun to be much more interested to such style and, participating to manyl international salsa congresses in Europe, he got more experience every time. He improved getting inspiration and taking classes with most of the best dancers and teachers of the world, about the New York style, like Eddie Torres, Juan Matos, Jhesus Aponte, Jaison Molina, Hacha y Machete and many others. In 2007 he started to learn also modern jazz with Alex Imburgia (from the dance academy I.A.L.S. in Rome).

Teaching

His first real experience in teaching Caribbean dances was in November 2004 when he moved to Poland for 3 months. He opened there 2 dance courses and he taught, for the first time in that country, Puertorican salsa and bachata. The second one was the most innovative surprise and the main reason of several offers of workshop in some dance schools in different cities. When he came back to Italy he began to teach in the Energy Dance school, where he gave classes for two years. Several times he has been invited to give some workshop, not only in Italy and Poland, but also in Germany, Russia, Romania, where he gave classes of Puertorican salsa, Los Angeles style, New York style, bachata, rumba, footwork and body movement. Everywhere appreciated for his charisma, energy, sense of humor, but also for his high technical preparation, he stared to teach also in international salsa festivals from 2007, in Italy (Roma Salsa Festival, Salsa Global Circuit, Dance Park, Baila Conmigo, Perugia y Salsa), in Poland (Crystal Salsa Party, Wroclaw Salsa Festival), in Bulgaria (Blackseasalsafestival), in Germany (Ulm Salsa Festival) and in Lithuania (Vilnius Salsa Festival).

Competitions

In 2005 he took part in two dance competitions with Olesya (from Ukraine), for the first time, getting the first place at the regional championship, in the FIDS, in the category of New York style/Puertorican salsa, and the second place at the interregional championship (Umbria-Lazio-Toscana), in the Nueva Federcaribe federation. In that year he also won the competition organized at the international salsa congress in Poland, in Wroclaw, with Anita (from Poland), presenting, at the final, the show "Thank you", that after a year he reanalysed, modified and renamed as "The one". In 2006 he won again the regional championship in both federations (FIDS and Nueva Federcaribe), with Misa (from Czech Republic), getting the first place also in the Open competition in the category of Puertorican salsa, second place in bachata and third place in cuban salsa. In May he took part with Janine (from Germany) at the international competition of salsa Los Angeles style in Sofia, valid as qualification for the world championship in Las Vegas, getting the final and presenting his new choreography "Who's bad". As he had never found a fix dance partner he couldn't take part in any other competition till February 2008, when he prepared the new show "Eloisa" and partecipated, with his best student Ariola (from Albania), at the "National concurs of choreography" organized in all Italy by the "Bologna Salsa Festival" and getting the final that was in Bologna in March. Continuing the problem of the dance partner he had to wait till april 2009 to take part again in a competition, and this time with Monika Stoyanova (from Bulgaria) he partecipated and won the italian championship in the categories of salsa Los Angeles style and New York style.

Shows

The "show" side of the salsa world, after having seen Johnny Vazquez for the first time, became maybe the main incentive of the big passion that Riccardo has got for such dance. After he got his first experiences with the Energy Dance group by some performances during the summertime, he prepared in Poland his first choreographies, performing, in couple, in bachata, Puertorican and Cuban salsa, but especially in L.A. style. But his first official choreography, prepared for a salsa congress, was "Thank you", the show that let him win the competition at the Carnaval de Salsa 2005, in Wroclaw (Poland). Either in the competitions or in the shows Riccardo has always danced with different girls as he has never got to find a permanent dance partner. So, as he had got a really short time to prepare such show, he decided to modified it and to rename it as "The one" (because it was his first official choreography), in occasion of the Hot Salsa Weekend 2006, the international salsa congress, in Stockholm, where he was invited to perform. His début in an italian salsa congress was in December 2005, with the Energy Dance group, at the first edition of Salsitaly, in Fiuggi, near Rome. Some month later he was invited at the third edition of the Salsa and Salsa Festival, in Florence, where he performed the show "Who's bad", that he had presented for the first time in Germany, in Leipzig and then in Bulgaria, in Sofia. In December 2006 he presented for the first time in Italy the show "The one" at the third edition of the congress "Salsitaly", in Porto San Giorgio (Marche), show presented, then, in Umbria and in Rome too. In 2007 he has been invited to the first salsa congress in Perugia, Salsa Global Circuit, corresponding to the ex Salsa and Salsa Festival. For that occasion he prepared, for the first time, a solo show: "Homenaje a Ray Barretto". The result was so successfull that he was invited to perform it other 3 times in Umbria (the region where Perugia is located), in the same month, in Genova at the Levante Salsa Festival, organized by Sabor Colombianos, and in Riga (Latvia) at the Riga Salsa Festival. After that again 3 times in Umbria (Gherlinda Latin show, Perugia y Salsa, Baila Conmigo), in Wroclaw at "La noche latina" in 2008, then at the salsa festival in Prague and finally at the Vilnius Salsa Festival. In occasion of the national concurs of choreography, in Italy, he decided to change totally style and to prepare a mix of afro/cha cha cha and salsa New York style. The new show got the name of the salsa song that Riccardo has chosen after a long research: Eloisa. Such song was never used before for a show and was fitting very well with the opening cha cha cha taken from a famous piece of "La India". After the final at Bologna Salsa Festival (where Riccardo was dancing with Ariola) the show Eloisa started to "fly" on the salsa events and on the clubs in Umbria and in Rome where it was presented also in the biggest dance club of Europe: Palacavicchi. Then it was performed at the salsa festivals in Perugia (Salsa Global Circuit) and Florence (Dancepark). In the summer 2008 Riccardo moved to Wroclaw and started to prepare his best student there, Monika, to perform such show. Their début supposed to be at Riga Salsa Festival but an accident blocked Riccardo for one month so they had to wait till October when, for the first time in a salsa festival in Poland, Universo Salsero performed at the Crystal Salsa Party (in Wieliczka). One month later at the big stage of the Roma Salsa Festival (in Rome), then in March 2009 at the Wroclaw Salsa Festival (Poland), in April at the Ulm Salsa Festival (Germany) and in June at the Riga Salsa Festival (Latvia). In occasion of his 30th birthday (that he celebrated with a party in the club where he used to be dj and with some shows in the main square of Wroclaw) Riccardo prepared the new choreography of 2009, for the first time with his team (that till that moment was just performing as "Universo Salsero Students"). The show, "Gente de la Havana", is a mix of hip hop, afro/rumba cubana and salsa cubana on 2 (the time of Son). One week later the show was presented at the Riga Salsa Festival (Latvia).

Dance School

In the summer 2006 Riccardo opened his own dance school in Rome the Universo Salsero, born as the school of all styles of salsa. On January 2007 he started to teach also in Perugia where the school got his definitive location in the summer, after he closed the courses in Rome. In October 2007 he started to tecah in Poland too, in Wroclaw. He was the firstone to teach all styles of salsa and the Universo Salsero was created with the idea of teaching salsa to people from every country and every culture, considering salsa as a unique conception of dance, but at the same time giving value to all its styles. Moving to Poland permanently and closing the school in Italy, on January 2009, the Universo Salsero is considered now as the salsa team of Riccardo, a dance group always looking for new talents wishing to perform together his choereogarphys in every style of salsa and every other dance connected.

In october 2008 Riccardo founded his own school in Wroclaw, no more just a salsa school, but a real dance school with the name of Fly Dance Academy.   

DJ

Since he was small, living in Rome, Riccardo organized many big parties that, growning up, became real dance parties. In Perugia, even before he was learning any dance, he became very popular for the big students party he used to organized and where he was also playing the music as dj. With the opening of the salsa school in Perugia he started to work as dj in some club of the city (Tana dell'Orso, Merlin, Domus) and he has been invited to play latin music even in some event, mostly organized by the University of Perugia. In Wroclaw he played from October 2007 in some clubs where he was organizing his special latino-american party "La noche latina" (Daytona, Senso, WZ, Queen, No Name, Bayer, Happy Hour) and now in Szuflada, where every sunday is "Domingo en Salsa" and Casa de la Musica, where every wednesday, thursday, friday and saturday is "La noche latina".

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