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--Carefully
select your dancepartner
Ask the people in the street what image
they have of Tangodancing, and they'll
come up with words as 'passion, erotism,
beauty, increadible legwork sharp as
knives'. Their image mostly comes from
shows they have seen in theatre or on
television.
When those people visit a milonga, they
may not exactly find those images, but if
they're grabbed by what they see there, it
is often the image of the dancers having a
misterious understanding with eachother,
lead and follow without fixed patterns,
improvisation, closeness, intimacy,
romance. If they're not grabbed, it is
because they think it looks boring and
they do not discover that special contact
between dancers, and definatly observed no
sensuality. wow, do those things happen
too?
Ask experienced tangodancers why they
themselves dance tango and they will tell
you about 'passion, interaction,
improvisation, sensuality, becoming one
body with four legs, 2 persons becoming
one with the music, the music being the
third party to dance with'. That's a
slightly different approach. And if you'd
ask them about the erotic side of tango,
they'll better you with: "no, not sex, but
sensuality". Even they may reproduce the
wellknown phrase: "Tango is a sad thought
one can dance on", no matter how much fun
they're having doing it.
Isn't this just an overload of
political correctness? Do the dancers in a
milonga really improvise so much? Isn't
that cross-step mostly done in a rush,
double tempo, and could that then be done
with sensuality? How dancers approach
eachother, is that like going to embrace
that person, or is that just the way one's
suppososed to get hold of eachothers
'manouvring handles'?
No fixed patterns? Wasn't that the
'sandwich-step', that's done the same way
worldwide? Step to the left, step to the
left with backward ocho for the lady,
backwards ocho for the lady, feet touch,
sandwich(!) 3 feet together, guy stepping
backwards, ocho forwards for the lady,
both closing and finish with step 6, 7,
8..., done! When people dance this kind of
spectacular moves they seem to have
forgotten their own claims of tango being
sensual, intimate and improvised. If
tangueros dance at the milonga rhythm, how
many of their steps are improvised and
fitting the music? Very little or none.
Often it's no more than accelerated
tangopatterns. Of course there're really
good dancers as well, who do not dance
bad, boring, out of the music or without
sensuality. Let's get them off the hook
for now and let's say, most of the above
described behaviour happens in the
beginners levels, like beginners I to very
advanced beginners, level 'ultimo XX'. If
that's the case, then who teaches those
people in that way? Why would they first
learn how to do it wrong, as if good
dancing is only reachable after years of
practising too difficult steps?
Because that's what's done a lot on the
dancefloors: people are practising.
Practising exactly those things that
aren't essential for the dancing of tango.
Steps, the whole serie of 8 basic steps in
a row and those steps over and over again.
The intermediate levels don't do so much
better. They can do 'ganchos, sandwiches,
giros' and they're becoming masters in
filling the time with all the sequences
learned. Of course the advanced dancers
make the same mistakes. Their advancement
is measured in the repertory of sequences,
jumps, fast turns, sacadas and not in
their skill of being sensual, sensitive or
being 'one with their partner and the
music'.
Do not dance with just anybody. You
must have a special feeling with this
person. Because if not, you'll only go on
the dance floor to practise your steps and
that's exactly the thing that keeps you
from dancing Tango. Don't let people you
don't feel a wish to communicate and share
intimacy with, take you on the dancefloor.
Tango is not about being nice. Tango is
about 'passion, interaction,
improvisation, sensuality, becoming one
body with four legs, 2 persons becoming
one with the music, the music being the
third party to dance with', remember?
This is why you must carefully select
your dancepartner. Observe, observe, and
after that, see if that other person also
observes you. And then see if your eyes
meet for an understanding: "I want to
tango with you...". If you're not clear
about this, you may be only socialising
and practising steps.
Rob Nuijten (the editor)
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