Tango Posture Imagery

I've found fantastic imagery applicable to Tango.

Notice the differences between the five posture types represented here, White, Blue, Red, Green Yellow.

For the purposes of tango my preference is the posture represented on this link by the red figures...if I had a tail it would point back, but not up (do not cause yourself pain or injury).  My hat would resemble a baseball cap. My eyes would look straight forward.

The white isn't bad it's just that the red is ideal for leading of following tango (notice that the white figure represents the standing leg being straight rather than slightly bent...bent is good for balance and grounding in tango).

The link is Here

Tango is Not Ballet!

I sometimes enjoy watching Ballet and am amazed by the control and grace that those who dance well exhibit,  this post is not meant to take anything away from the art.

For those of you who took ballet when you were young there are a number of things that you must let go of to execute Tango at  a more advanced level...I've come to these conclusions after many years of dancing tango and many, many different lessons taught by both famous and successful dancers as well as other ... well, not so famous or successful.  I've also watched many of the most successful dancers in innumerable videos which are widely available on the Internet and in person (you, of course, can do the same to prove or disprove these theories for/to yourself).

The energy in Ballet is decidedly feminine (in my opinion this is why men who dance ballet are often put into the "questionable sexual orientation" category, very unfortunate, but true), in tango the emphasis is on accentuating both feminine as well as masculine energies, and the fact that in is an interaction between the two that makes the sensual connection work.

 Turnout is not desirable in tango.

In Ballet the first thing that young (3 year old) dancers are taught is first position turnout, and every effort is made to increase turnout as the young ballet dancer progresses.  It is desirable in tango to increase the distance between partners feet and hips (keep your "sex" at a distance) (hips should be back when dancing tango) when dancing in close embrace (and open embrace, because you many not wish to use entirely different technique when switching between open and closed embrace), the rotation of the thighs required to produce turnout moves the hips forward and decreases both of these distances.  In tango the feeling of the gluteal area should be"open" and relaxed (happy) in ballet "closed".

Standing leg

In tango the weighted leg should remain bent slightly in order to increase balance and maintain ones own axis, and weight should, more often than not, be on one leg only except during weight transfer from one leg to the other (which should occur gradually in a rolling motion with the movement of axis from one leg to the other).  Ones fully extended leg (unweighted) should remain straight (not bent).  In Ballet pivots are often done en point (on the toes, with legs straight or even locked back) in tango pivots are done on the balls of the feet never on the toes (toes should feel as though one could spread them apart during pivots or before the axis is passed by the moving foot).

Spine
In tango the spine should maintain its natural relaxed curve, no attempt should be made to straighten the spine out in the lumbar or cervical regions.  The chest should be forward and the hips back, keeping the sternum vertical (not leaning back away from your partner nor forward into your partner unless an off-axis move is led (even then, the posture remains the same, no planking nor bending).  Your neck should retain its natural curve as well, no attempt should be made to straighten it, it should be held back slightly to compensate for keeping the chest forward and up (the head should not be tilted forward).

Lead

In Ballet the man is used as a barre, in tango both partners maintain their axis (except during off axis maneuvers lead by the leader).  This is a partner dance and both persons dancing need axis and balance because without it you are reduced to being used by the other.

Choreography
Only used during show style performances in tango, used always when dancing ballet.

Performance
Tango is danced for your partner alone, and a very good embrace and connection are very difficult for others to see.  When dancing ballet one is dancing for the enjoyment of the observers.  There are those dance tango that look fantastic but are nightmares to dance with.

Willingness Vs. Eagerness

What kind of partner do you want to be...What kind of partner do you want to share this experience with?

What is the difference between someone who is willing to go on a date with you and someone who is eager to go on a date with you?

Who would you hire a person willing to do a job or someone eager to join your team?

Who is going to learn to play the guitar faster, the eager student or the one willing to give it a try?

Enthusiasm makes all the difference!

Practice

Practice Makes Permanent
Find out what you should be practicing (take a private lesson and ask specifically what you should practice, alone or with someone)
Make sure you are doing it correctly (get checked out and make sure you are executing the exercise correctly)
Do Not just do something over and over, right or wrong, you will have to unlearn it later (this is far more difficult)
Be willing to give up your preconceptions (if you were driving somewhere and found out that you were going in the wrong direction it might be wise to turn around or change course but sometimes it is better to push reset and start again.)

When Cabeceo Goes Wrong

There are those people out there who are aware of the practice of Cabeceo yet do not know the rules or purpose of the tradition.

Awhile back I was at a milonga and a woman there (that I had danced with previously) kept staring at me even though I had made it perfectly clear that I was not going to dance with her that evening by not returning her gaze. I was with a woman and really just wanted to dance a few tandas with her and a few of the better dancers in the room without actively seeking out partners (especially partners that are horrible to dance with). Her stare was unceasing and at the point of becoming stalking, eventually she changed seats and sat at a table directly in front of me about ten feet away and turned her head to directly stare at me (I could not avoid seeing her obnoxious eyes burning a hole in my brain).

After a time I just looked over at her and said "No!".

Still she continued...

The results of her actions are as follows...Her evening was ruined...my evening was ruined...my dates evening was ruined...the people at nearby tables thinks that I am some kind of snob...my relationship with the woman I was with was strained...I left the milonga early...this woman is bad mouthing me throughout the community...If she shows up at an event, I want to leave..I will never dance with this woman, ever.

I do dance with new dancers, and even with dancers that have been dancing for years and just don't get it, but I am not obligated to dance with rude women, nor will I.

The great thing about Cabeceo is that even if someone turns someone down it's not counted as a rejection nor is it personal because no one was forced to tell someone that they do not want to dance with the other, and further it remains between the two people involved and is not a permanent rejection...only temporary.

It makes no sense to want to share a sensual intimate dance with someone who is uninterested in doing the same with you.

Body Spiral, Three Tracks, Turns, and Pivots.

There are normally three positions for walking:  outside partner left, directly in front of partner, outside partner right.

Use body spiral for effective lead prepositioning and pivot tension in your own body.  This is true for both parallel and crossed systems.

The following video is provided for to illustrate spinal movement discussed in this post (turn the sound down or ignore it).


Lumbar Spine Inter-vertebral Movement Rotation... by MedilawTV

Anytime you are doing a front or back ocho correctly (separately or during a giro) or while using contra body position during the walk while in either outside position your body is in spiral tension (torso down tension) and is set to lead a turn effectively or to pivot on axis.

You may also place your body in spiral tension as a leader by prepositioning your feet and hips to create spiral energy for pivots or lead energy for turns. (floor up tension).

Some possibilities you may consider:

preposition yourself outside left for turns to the right

preposition yourself outside right for turns to the left
pretension the spiral energy in your body to lead a turn by taking a crossing back step close to your own axis on the side of the direction of the turn that you intend to lead.

Remember that the followers back step is common to both linear and circular movement and is a good place to transition between the two (in to and out of the turn), this has the effect of letting the follower know what the next two steps of the turn will be following the normal  (back, side,  front,  side...) way of turning while going in to a turn.

Example;  while walking forward, from the leaders prospective, if the leader positions himself outside of the followers right side when the follower takes a back step with her left he may step forward with his right (contra body position right) and lead a side step and then a front step circularly around him in a counterclockwise direction using his torso only (the follower feels the need to take a front step because she has just taken a back step followed by a side step so naturally she will want to take a front step) .  At this point the leaders body is in spiral tension so that he may pivot to continue the turn or possibly lead a front ocho to change the direction of the turn to a clockwise direction (leaders body is already in the proper spiral tension to do so).

One Degree of Flexibility

The human knee joint has one degree of flexibility, that is to say that it only bends in one direction (straight back from the way that the foot is pointed).  It does not rotate without injury (ask my "ski knee").

This is the reason that I advocate keeping your feet parallel with each other and with the direction of travel (in a line or curve) during the tango walk as if you were walking with skis strapped to your feet) it is also important that the steps be straight back or forward, as if you were stepping on the tracks made by two such skis...or on two small railroad tracks running beside each other (this idea works better than the ski track analogy when you think of the tracks during a turn)(pivot completely to achieve this) (in other words one should never cross their own center when walking even in a turn) , as opposed to stepping back or forward onto one such track as if stepping on  a balance beam.  Consider this... if your foot is turned out and you place weight on the ball of your foot (as followers should do initially while transferring weight to the extended leg during a back step) the axis of your body is now at the outside of the leg rather than the inside because of the turnout.

There is a lot of talk about use of  "Natural Foot Turnout". This technique sends a conflicting signal to the brain because the foot is pointed in a different direction than the line of travel (this applies to followers as well as leaders).  It also sends  improper feedback to the leader as to the direction that your knee will bend and the direction that your body wants to go naturally (without using extra muscles to achieve the walk).  Ones foot should always be pointed in the expected, or the led direction of travel (don't worry followers navigation is the responsibility of the leader and he will correct it with a pivot if needed but that's one more thing for him to think about
...if you catch my drift) (read as... I have enough to think about without having to steer a shopping cart with a wobbly wheel) .

Try this exercise:
Take a back step using "Foot Turnout" (if the feet were side by side they would form a "\/") transfer your weight to the extended foot completely (do not hold a twist in your core or hip) and then bring the feet side by side and completely relax your body...chances are (if you followed the directions for the exercise) you will end up facing in a new direction (the same direction that the weighted foot is pointed).
Now try the same back step keeping the feet parallel and pointed with the direction of travel (||) (you will remain with the direction of travel when the feet are together).

Another exercise:
Stand with the feet completely parallel to each other... place weight completely on one leg and bend the unweighted leg at the knee...It will point straight behind you.
Now stand with feet together heels touching and let the feet form a "\/" (foot turnout),  When you bend the unweighted leg at the knee it will not point straight back, but rather...it will point across your center line (a little extra weight  to counteract against in you struggle to maintain your axis) Can you feel the bend in you spine that this creates?

One more:
Stand with heels together and exaggerate turnout (make the angle maybe 120 degrees or more), now put all of your weight on the ball of one foot (keeping the heels together), transfer all of your weight to the ball of the free leg and notice how far that your center must move to accomplish the transfer.  Now try the same thing with no turnout,  this will require far less movement of your center to achieve the same weight transfer (believe me, this is a good thing).

 Leaders may (and should) use this principle to navigate, by positioning their feet in the intended direction of their next move or perpendicular to the intended direction of the follower (in the case of a side step...they should also preposition their feet if necessary to present the back of the knee in a certain orientation (think ganchos, liner boleos, back boleos, leg wraps, etc...).   I personally use prepositioning to the maximum extent possible and only pivot on my own axis when necessary, or for effect.(planeos, needles, enrrosques,changes of directions...etc...).   As a side note I will use a lead for pivot to the follower, she must continue to pivot as long as the lead to pivot is still being given by the leader (thus making over rotation possible), and complete the pivot before the moving leg passes the weighted leg (because when the moving leg passes the weighted leg the pivot stops...) Try it.

Feel free to express your own point of view with a comment.

Guaranteed Way to Get More Dances at a Milonga (The Paparazzi Method)

It's very simple really...Smile. Smile when you are dancing, smile when aren't, laugh at yourself, laugh at life.

Do this experiment for yourself...look up photos of people dancing online, facebook, whatever...look for people you don't know.... that you would like to dance with, most of the time they will be smiling...look for photos of people that are not dancing, often they will not be smiling. Smiling often just makes people more approachable!

We have all seen photographs of ourselves and if we aren't smiling, many times we will cringe at our own image and wonder why the photographer took such an unflattering image of us, guess what, it's our own fault for not putting our best forward as often as possible. Pretend that someone is just waiting to take secret photos of you while you are at the milonga (Tango Paparazzi), sell yourself to the public.  The paparazzi method I've described will also help you with other very important concepts in Tango as well, things like posture, step technique, etc...

Smiling can actually change your mood. So put a smile on, even if you don't feel like it, and pretty soon you'll be smiling for real.  (Fake It 'Til you Make It!)

When looking for a partner to cabeceo, this is very high on my list.  I'm sure I'm not the only one.  I want my partner to smile, it reflects well on my dancing ability.  And I've seen photos of people dancing and making almost painful facial expressions, no one wants to dance with a sourpuss.

I know, Tango is serious business, and some of the lyrics are well...depressing, but believe me it works.

You don't have to grin like the Cheshire cat, but you can!

If You Really Want to Know Tango...

If you want to know Tango...you must go to the Tango.

Give your partner everything (Don't hold back or dance half heartedly...Emotions are a good thing in Tango.)

Listen to Tango Music.  (The better you know it, the better your dancing will become.)

Learn about the Lyrics.  (This will change the way you dance.)

Understand the Culture.  (It is different from yours...more often than not.)

Follow the Codicos.  (They were developed over a long period of time and are there for good reason.)

Dance to Tango Music.  (Something is lost when Tango is danced to non-tango music.  It is fun from time to time to dance to alternative music but not if it is done too often.)

Step Outside of your Comfort Zone.

'Respect the roots... so they don't die'

Random Thoughts from Tango Festivals

Square corners on dance floors really help the dancers maintain their lanes, Oval, round, or odd shaped floors make it difficult to establish and maintain inner lanes.

Why do women dance with that old hack dancer that doesn't know what he is doing after all these years? Are they that desperate?

People need time to get from one venue to another.

A person should be able to sign up for a whole tract or for all of the lessons with one particular teacher/teachers and not be limited to a small number of classes with that instructor (first come first served).

The rubber band (Lance Armstrong style) wrist bands are comfortable, can be removed over the weekend and give participants a sovounier to keep. The plastic wristbands are the next best thing, tags and badges are the worst. Although it is nice to be able to see someones name that you are unfamiliar with as often happens at festivals.

Gorrilla style events require adaquete transportation arranged in advance, it's not cool to find out that you can not attend something because the bus is full.

Outside events need backups in case of weather or sheltered dancing very nearby, transportation is a must.

It is cool to give participants a package with maps, directions, convenient restaruants and things to do near your events, as well as attractions in the area.

Keep on top of small things at venues heating/air conditioning, water, adequate seating, use hallways for snacks etc... rather than create problems with the dance floor.

Seating should be arranged so that everyone isn't getting on the floor in the same area, this creates huge traffic problems and can really distroy floor craft, (Denver could use some help with this concept)

Women leaders (not all, but most, generaly speaking) need to pay more attension to floor craft, watch out for these (even the really good ones don't seem to get the lane idea)

I personally feel that it is ok for women to ask men to dance at festivals, it's also ok to say no for any, or no reason.

When you are sitting next to someone, just ask them to dance, no need for silly games

The dance floor should be ready to dance on before the milonga starts no slick spots or sticky areas.

Floor Wax and Tango do not mix (same goes for talc on the floor) you can't dance on "ice".

Non Tango people that you stay with may not understand your Vampire like Tango ways, so be prepared to explain in advance late hours and the need for sleep. Make sure they are cool with it before hand.

Most dance floors can support more than just an outside lane and every one should try to use inside lanes as well as the outside lane to alleviate congestion (I've been to to many milongas where everyone is dancing on the outside lane and it's to crowded to move) contrary to popular belief the best dancers don't only dance in the outside lane.

Using the center of the floor for "spot type" dancing only works if the floor is relatively square, if the room is long and narrow the center of the floor should be avoided (to much risk of collision with dancers that are moving.)

Stay Off the Paint, Fool!

While dancing at the recent Denver festival there was one leader at almost every Milonga I attended that really got my attention. This guy was a menace and I don't know who he is, or where he is from but he, single handedly, disturbed the entire dance floor every time he danced.

Obviously he was fairly new and I hold nothing against beginners (after all everyone is one for a time) but this guy didn't have a clue about floor craft. It's pretty clear that he was never told that if you are in a lane you will (for the most part) be (more or less) behind another couple on the dance floor. He was between lanes every single time that I saw him, and It took about five minutes to figure out that he was a hazard to shipping.

This leader was looking for a clear path and to him I think that meant look for empty space in front of you, WRONG.

The clear path indicates that you are between lanes. Someone on a motorcycle can move through street traffic pretty quick if they drive on the paint, but sooner or later they will be maimed or killed for their arrogance (if only the penalties were the same in Tango).

Poison Pens

I recently read someones post somewhere in which the person writing was highly critical of one of the best dancers in the world, in this case it was Gereldine Rojas (her embrace didn't meet this persons standards)...are you kidding me?



It is not an isolated incident, you will read all over the internet people hating on people that deserve nothing but respect for their skill and accomplishments names like Frumboli, Naviera, Rodriguez, Arce, etc... people that have forgotten more about Tango than most people will ever know.

I try to remain positive on this blog, and in life (sometimes difficult and often I fail).

I can not for the life of me figure out why people are so hateful and negative...the only reason I can think of is jealousy.

The funny thing is that almost always if you take the time to find the author of one of these haters on video they almost always suck.

I could post a few but that would be wrong (or would it be karma, justice or whatever you want to call it)

Give Her a Chance to Shine

How is this done, you ask, Welll...

Slow Down... when the music calls for it, and sometimes when it doesn't.

What do I mean....

Instead of stepping on every beat or every other beat, take a full bar, maybe two, to make a step (a whole step would be from the time a foot has zero weight on it yet is still fully extended...as it approaches the other foot...as it brushes the weight bearing foot in passing...as it reaches the fully extended position with the ankle relaxed so that the the sole of the the foot is nearly parallel with the floor...as the heel touches the floor...as the weight slowly begins to transfer to the new foot...as the weight begins to roll forward to the new foot and roll off of the old foot...as the weight finally is completely over the new foot and the old foot is still fully extended yet bears no weight).

This will give her a chance to express herself musically, with adornments, foot taps, lapiizes, traspies, or give her the opportunity to make the same type of slow motion step that you are making if that's what she wants...

The point is give her a voice in the dance (more often than not she is a much better dancer than you are)

I consider it a compliment when a follower that hasn't been dancing much starts getting lots of tandas after we dance.

What's missing in Many Peoples Tango

This may be one of the things that make Tango so rewarding to me personaly, and I've noticed that many people treat tango as something like work.



Play!

Another Blog to Check Out

When I read this guys blog I couldn't help notice that a lot of what he says aligns perfectly with my feelings about Tango, and I thought, wow this guy must be an incredible dancer I can't wait to see him dance.

Then I saw the video ... Hmm, Not so much.

Oh well, no one is perfect.

I still like many of his ideas about Tango.

Floyd de Buffalo

Andrew Royal Dugas Training Vs Dancing Video

Great video! Thanks Andrew

Visit his blog Here

Grounding Exercise

A few years ago I had a private lesson with Luiza Paes, and she wanted my partner at the time and I to be more grounded here is what she told us to do...

Get four pieces of paper towel about 4X4 inches put them on the floor under the toes of your feet, now dance a without loosing the pieces of paper...this is harder than it seems but really smoothes the dance out (plus the game was a lot of fun and I've won more than a few friendly wagers with it to boot)

I've had other maestros use different methods to try and teach the same ideas, never loosing contact with the ground.

I read somewhere that a good milonguero never shows the soles of his feet, I've found this to be less than 100% true but I have noticed that the really great dancers (especially of the Villa Urquiza style) always seem to keep contact with the ground most of the time. In that style they will lift thier heels but normally they will maintain contact with the toe as they walk.

Makes for a very smooth and elegant looking and feeling dance!

A very good example of a well grounded couple.

A Different Approach to Learning

A few years ago a friend of mine (Just someone I used to dance with, not an instructor) commented that by learning open embrace I could fix a problem I was working on at the time with my posture and balance, guess what, it worked.
Everything I know about dancing close embrace I learned from dancing open embrace.
Everything I know about dancing open embrace I learned from dancing close embrace.
Everything I know about improvising I learned through patterns and emulating others.
Everything I know about dancing fast I learn by dancing slowly (very slowly).

On a different note,I watched a video produced by a very famous pair of brothers (the Maers) many years ago about learning to downhill ski, they had an interesting teaching technique. Basically because sking (and Tango) is an engramic activity (your brain learns to do it eventually without much conscience thought) it is very difficult to explain how it should feel, they thought it was a good idea to purposely do something "the wrong way" so that your body could learn by comparison what doing it the right way feels like (very easy vs. very hard, natural vs. unnatural, smooth vs. jerky, balanced vs.wobbly)

I have found this to be a very effective learning/teaching method.

Movement in Vals and Tango.

I like progressive movement along the line of dance in tango, and I really like it to move when dancing Vals. It gives the sensation of flying to paraphrase Tete Rusconi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCqBW9wv3RE

What I don't like is when the line of dance stops during a Vals and all you can do as a leader is do gyros left and right, it kills the feeling.

Please try to keep the rhonda moving, especially during Vals "The Flying Dance".

If you don't I, for one will make use of "available space" like it or not. I can navigate around other leaders without banging into them. I would rather get behind a couple and follow them, but if the leader in front of me is in his own world (that is to say not dancing with the music or the crowd) he is only making himself and his partner a road hazard for those people who are at the Milonga to dance.

Dancing tango is a lot like driving on the freeway. Think of the really old driver who drives extremely slow and never gets in an accident but can't understand why there are accidents happening all around them all of the time. (Hint: they are the cause, not the solution.)

Standing in one spot IS NOT DANCING.

Now having said that, if everyone in the room hardly moves along the line of dance and I am the only one who wants to move now I am the one who is the pain in the a$$!

Why can't we compromise and keep the line moving, if someone wants to keep it simple they can enjoy the freedom and connection of just walking, But if the line of dance doesn't move there is no opportunity to walk at all (and walking is after all, the "Main Attraction" of the dance).

Following (note to self)

(These are notes to myself and will require some experimentation through trail and error)

I danced with several awesome followers this weekend and I am trying to analyze what it was that made those dancers so Delicious while the memory of them is still in my mind!

When following transfer weight smoothly rolling from toe to heel (when walking backwards)inside of foot to center of foot (when doing side steps) heel to toe (when walking forward)try to keep the foot almost horizontal right before landing when taking front or backward steps.

Try and feel the length of stride that your leader is intending, if he is going to do a traspie or syncopa step it will be shorter due to the amount of time it takes to make the step. Better to be a little bit longer than he intended than too short, this will murder the leaders back after one song because he cannot keep his own axis and must also keep you from tripping over yourself.

Always remain grounded, never fall into the step.

Don't take too long of a step or you will not feel grounded at all to your leader and you my hurt someone that you are unaware of, that the leader is aware of.

Don't block your leader on the open side by keeping your arm too stiff, this is gentle embrace, Not an inflexible frame.

Stiff tight legs are hard and nasty and don't feel good to dance with, and will block a lot of possibilities. Relaxed legs are soft and feel wonderful to dance with and they will react to the lead in the way that the leader intends.

Better to be a little behind the beat than ahead of the beat.

Keep a good spiral in the body by remaining relaxed everywhere, feel your core muscles stretching rather than tightening.

Keep your own axis unless the leader takes you off of it by stretching or compressing the embrace, at that point use these counter acting forces to maintain an equilibrium these forces when applied must balance each other out or the whole thing will go off axis, it would be very embarrassing to fall over (trust your leader and make sure that he can trust you not to apply more force than is given) your leader is not there to help you keep your balance unless he takes you off of it nor are you there to help him keep his.

When taking a step be confident that you are doing what you felt (you probably are) and make a good quality step, getting your weight at least over your hip joint, if it feels as if the leader is trying to dance the Phrase, go with it smoothly, a jerky stuttering step is usually not what we are going for.

(If anyone sees something that is completely wrong with the things I have written please let me know so that I don't get too far in the wrong direction)