tango: walk this way

[NOTE: Warning, this post contains explicit thoughts and language. Be careful. Further more and lastly this is only a partial listing of some of the complaints and concerns I've heard from people in the time I've been dancing.]

At some point along the curve of your tango insanity, you will likely come to a road sign that says, “QUIT TANGO” with an arrow pointing in another direction. More than likely one of the reasons to quit are below. All of these reasons are valid, and only 1 of them may be real at the time, but they all come down to only 1 thing: Tango isn’t doing it for you the same way anymore.

So first let’s look at some of these reasons below, then we’ll flesh those out, and finally, we’ll get to the nitty gritty.

Possible Reasons:

1.) Tango Politics.*
2.) Nobody to Dance with on a Regular Basis.
3.) BAD, need I say more ? *
4.) Idiots, Ingrates, and Assholes.
5.) Less than desirable floorcraft. (see my earlier post on the subject) *
6.) Less than desirable musical choices on a regular basis. *
7.) Not enough venues to dance at.*
8.) Its the SAME (X number) people at EVERY single event. I’ll go INSANE!
9.) I don’t like myself anymore, I don’t like these people. Golf is much simpler.
10.) Its NOT BsAs, its (fill in the blank), do the math!
11.) My husband/wife/girlfriend/boyfriend doesn’t dance and they’re jealous and want me to stop. *
12.) Someone keeps wanting to dance with me that I don’t like and its a small town and I don’t want to hurt their feelings so I should just stop.
13.) Someone hates me and doesn’t want me around. I feel like a leper and a social tango outcast. *
14.) I’m not good enough.*
15.) This is not fun anymore.
16.) I don’t hear the music.
17.) The shoes, the music, the clothes…good lord Im going to go bankrupt!
18.) I haven’t been to BsAs and I’ve got no interest in going.
19.) No time.*
20.) Its like high school out there, and I HATED high school!
21.) Kids, need I say more ?
22.) Salsa (could be: Blues, Swing, Ballroom…) Baby! *
23.) Sex. I’m not getting laid as much as I used to because of this f*cking dance!*
24.) None of the Above.
25.) All of the Above in some measure or form.

A Few Details.

Tango Politics. This means for those of you that teach, organize, or teach and organize, that you have had enough of the local infighting of teachers for students, that you have had enough of the nice-nice game that happens, and really just want to speak without having to guard your words, be criticized, be critical of, you just want to be yourself for a while…and not deal with all the silliness that comes with being at the center of a tango community. Its a lot of work. Its painstaking work actually. You’re always working to support other people, you’re a tango resource for your students, for the people that frequent your venue, you’re always at or near the center of activity…its f*cking tiring. Everything you do or say is personified a 1000 times in some way, shape, or form. And to be honest with you, you are just SICK of it all. It’d be nice to kick back and not have to worry about all that stuff anymore…wouldn’t it ?

BAD. You look around a room and you see all measure of bad on any given night. You see the same guys pushing and pulling their followers. You see the same followers who you WISH would just go take some private lessons, please for the love of christ. Just go take some lessons, please! These people have no idea what the ‘real’ tango is all about, because they’d never survive in BsAs. This is what YOU see, Im not saying this is what I see, but you see it that way, and its REALLY disturbing to you.

Floorcraft http://www.barefootango.com/thoughts/floorcraft.

Musical. Let’s face it, its the same 400 or 500 songs you hear from 10 to 12 year span of tango music. Its in a different order sometimes, played by different people, at different intervals. You have your favorites, maybe. But realistically its the same music. Why is there this obsession over the same 400 recordings of 70 year old music that sounds like it came out of a tin can ? I mean really you’ve got better things to do with your time right ? Like for instance, sorting your lint collection for one. I for one have let me lint collection go and I need to get back to it.

Venues. If you live in a small town, you’re lucky if you have ONE milonga a month, let alone a week. 2 milongas in the same month ? Wow, what a luxury! Why learn this arcane dance if there’s only ONE milonga month, and its populated by all sorts of bad (see above) ? What’s the point. Or you have to drive like an hour just to get to a milonga, and maybe just maybe dance for 9 minutes, or 1 tanda with BAD, and then drive home. What’s up with that ? What’s the point ?

Romantic Partners. Oy. Talk about a drag. They don’t dance. They’re not going to dance. And they don’t want you to dance either. You love them, they ‘love’ you, or something resembling love, and they just want you to stop dancing because its just wrong to be in someone else’s embrace for that long and not want to have sex with that person. Right ? Well that’s their argument anyway. It makes them uncomfortable, and really down right surly to think of you in the arms of another person. There’s something not right about that. Or something along those lines. Really they just don’t get the whole dancing thing. And its causing WAAAY tooo much strife in the relationship. Is tango really worth all of that ?

Social Tango Leprosy. You have experienced social tango leprosy. Its not fun to walk into a room and feel the hate on you. There’s no way in hell you’ll ever survive it. Its just best to stay home and deal and watch TV. That level of disgust with who you are as a person is just too much for any one person to bare for any great length of time, let alone months if not years in some cases. [Miles Speaking] I’ve been on the receiving end of this far too many times, never the giving end, and to be honest with you…its tiring. I’ve wanted to hang up my shoes more times than I can shake a stick at simply because of this reason. No one likes to be hated on. [/end Miles Speaking]

Not Good Enough. You think, believe, or know that YOU suck as a dancer. You can not put one foot in front of the other. And what’s worse is that the whole room knows it. Its true. You can’t dance. Period. Why bother ? You should just go home. Right now. Not kidding. Stop reading. Disconnect from your facebook tango friends. Stop. Cease and desist all this tango jabber. You can NOT dance. True dat! Well that’s what you believe….

No Time. You are a busy busy busy person. And life just keeps pulling you in other directions. You’ve a life, a job, a wife, a girlfriend, a boyfriend, a husband to support and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. You love tango but you love _______ more. I mean really, its like high school anyway. So why bother ? Right ?

Other Dances. Salsa (or ___________) is faster, easier to learn. There’s more salsa venues, more salsa dancers, and there’s just more. And you can dance all night long. I never sit at Salsa. There’s always someone to dance with. With Tango I sit a lot. I can’t ask anyone to dance, or when I do I get shot down. I feel like a social leper half the time like Im high school. Salsa is just easier. Its more fun. I have a better time there.

SEX. I haven’t been laid in _____ (days/months/years) because of this fucking dance! All of my friends are tango dancers and I don’t want to date any of them or sleep with any of them. My father always used to say to me, never shit where you eat, it will always taste like shit…eventually! Not to mention its also not that good for you. You know a person has NEEDS and I NEED to have SEX. I just can’t figure out a way to have sex, dance, and not have sex with a dancing partner that doesn’t end in a romantic dysfunctional explosion all over the dance floor and we have to divvy up the milongas!

There are a ton more reasons to leave tango than what I’ve written here. I’ve gone through every manner of these myself. In any number of variations.

However there is only 1 reason to stay though.

TANGOBLISS

Tango is supposed to be fun, yes. Its not supposed to be so serious that you can’t see straight. Sure there are moments of intense concentration, however, if you’re not smiling, laughing, and having a good time, then there’s something not right here. Really.

However, fun is only a smaller piece of the picture: TangoBliss is where its at baby! If you say FUN, people can relate to that! However, tell them ‘TangoBliss’ and they stare at you funny and then you have to explain it to them.

Hmmm, but how to create TANGOBLISS ?

First things first. Improve your skills. Really. You want a whole different quality of tango fun, a whole different level ? Private Lessons, or Classes on a regular basis from a variety of teachers. That will most certainly change your perspective and what you’re able to do, and there by change what’s possible for you!

Secondly, get out of Dodge! Really. Go some where else. Repeatedly. You need to get out of your home dancing turf, go experience what tango is like in other communities. Not just once, Not just for a festival. But a lot! Variety is the spice of tango. Has it occurred to you that all of the reasons listed above are due to boredom or lack of excitation. Remember what it was like to go to a milonga for the first time…or the first few times ? That’s what you want. That anticipation of the unexpected!

Thirdly, I can’t speak for the high school aspects of tango other than to say that some people are small, petty, and really need to check themselves at the door but rarely do, myself included! I mean its just tango, rrrright ? However, you can improve your own experience simply by smiling…A LOT! Don’t look like a stiff!

Fourthly. Really, Time is a bitch, there are no two ways about that. You never have enough time in the day to do the things you want. Other things always get in the way. My father always used to say to me, “Son, you make time for the things that are important to you.” He was right. You’ll make time for tango or you won’t.

Fifthly, really relationships happen. They come and go like the wind. People come into your life and then they leave for one reason or another. If someone that you love, and they’re not dancing with you, or won’t, trust me the reason that they don’t want you to dance, has nothing to do with you…it has everything to do with them. Telling someone not to do something because it hurts YOU is no reason to for them not to do it. Its selfish and wrong, period.

Lastly, if you want to leave tango, please go right ahead, but don’t announce it to the world, do it. However before you do, trust me when I say that there’s a reason you are here in this dance at this point in time. There is something for you to learn about yourself, about the people around you, for you to interact in the world, and something else that you haven’t even considered yet.

There is more to the ‘one reason’ you should stay, actually there are a lot of reasons to stay. One that comes to mind, is that every once in a while, along comes a tanda that changes everything. They happen less and less frequently with time for a variety of reasons, but when they do happen…wouldn’t you rather that the door way for those moments to happen be open than naught ? Close the door on Tango but think of what you’d be shutting off…think about it for a moment. Where else, in what other place in your life do you get that tanda that just blows your whole circuitry ?

As Garrison Keillor says at the end of every one his The Writer’s Almanac Podcasts, “Be Well, Do Good Work, and…Keep in touch…”

Now read the one reason to stay.

What is Floorcraft ? And why is it relevant ?

The short answer is this: Floorcraft is in its essence an observance and awareness of other couples in the room in relation to you, your dance partner, and vocabulary choices one makes whilst staying in the line, lane, and progression of dance of the rotunda at a milonga. Usually floorcraft issues arise due to the amount (or lack there of) of the available space a dancing pair can take up, *AND* at the same time the application of certain codes of etiquette of the dance. Like for instance, not stepping on anyone’s foot, or trying to keep your dance safe and contained as much as is humanly possible, etc.

Floorcraft is probably the single most talked about thing that most people complain about on either side of the gender divide. At the same time, most people, unless you point it out to them, have absolutely no idea what Floorcraft is, and/or why its an absolute necessity. The following is a paraphrased statement by Tony Rathburn out of Denver applies very nicely: Floorcraft is Dancing like the way you should Drive!. Well said. However, I disagree with the simplicity of that statement. While its very clear, very clean…it lacks a little clarity in terms of having it spelled out. As I have learned in dancing over the years…some folks really do need it spelled out for them.

With that in mind, I’ve put together my own list that takes into account several previous authors and their attempts at the subject via a recent thread on Facebook. Thanks to Robin, Vanja, Homer, Manuel, Debbi, and Tony, and many others I have forgotten.

What is below is not a complete list, but its my interpretation of the list of suggestions for floorcraft on a social dance floor. Your mileage my vary, and I reserve the right to change this list as the need arises. This list is by no means complete, nor is it as concise as it needs to be. It is a work in progress and Im not the sole author here. This is just my take on the issue of Floorcraft.

Rules of Floorcraft

1.) Leaders when entering the line of dance, make eye contact with the on coming traffic of leaders and acknowledge that you’d like to enter the line of dance and only do so when you have consented acknowledgement of the leader next in the lane of dance. Also remember that we want to have 1 couple merging into the Rotunda at a time, IE: Queue up!

2.) Keep your dance vocabulary limited to the size of the Lane and the Progression of dance of the rotunda. Avoid, stepping backwards into the line of dance, avoid leaving the lane of dance, and respect the space of the couples ahead you, behind you, and next to you, try not to tailgate or hold up the progression of the rotunda.

3.) Try to form multiple LANES of dance so that we can all share the space together. Keep the lanes moving in an orderly progression. Try to keep the ‘flashy’ moves to an absolute minimum, so that it doesn’t interfere or frighten other couples.

4.) When collisions happen: Smile, Make Eye Contact to acknowledge the collision, and then *APOLOGIZE* as soon as is humanly possible, even if you think you are right.

5.) In crowded spaces, try to keep your vocabulary limited to foundational movements in close or open, and really try to keep the follower’s feet on the floor. If you must throw a boleo, aim for the edges of the dance floor.

Some of us really don’t care what we look like when we dance. It doesn’t really bother at all. And still for others, they care, but its not a primary focus. Still for a great many, unless you point it out to them, its just not on their radar screens. I had a student a while back that came to me because he liked the way I looked when I was dancing and wanted to look like me. While that was flattering to me on some level, I actually didn’t like the way I was looking at the time.

In my travels, and watching a lot of dancers, have noticed that there is a sharpness to certain dancers, a clarity in how they move, an economical behavior to their structure in body placement, in choices, in frequency. I would offer that this is ‘cleanliness’. Its not just a matter of keeping ones feet or knees together. Nope. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. There’s the rest of it, which is as I stated above, which boils down to ‘economy of movement’.

Let’s take a slice of this economy of movement thing apart. What I see is this: 1.) Tension is your enemy, because it doesn’t allow for a converstaion to occur. You’re too focused on the tension to allow a dialogue to happen, and you miss a whole lot of the conversation and the subtle undertones of what’s being said and why. I liken that to coming into conversation that’s already happening between your friends over dinner, with an anger and attitude of a bad day at the office. You’re vision of the conversation is clouded with the anger of the day you’ve just had. Tension in tango is just like that. Usually I’ve attributed tension to being fear based. However there’s another kind of tension, that is fully intentional and rather helpful. So in this case of Cleanliness, tension refers to the fear reaction that we have when we do something wrong, or miss something in the dance. Its a natural human instinct that has to be worked on constantly. 2.) Effortlessness. The old adage applies, “If you have to ask how much it is, you probably can’t afford it!”. The same thing is true in tango. If you have to apply force, then you’re doing something wrong. 3.) Ease. Think about walking to the bank, or to the store. You don’t think about this process of walking to the store. You just do it. You don’t examine it, you don’t consider it, you don’t even rationalize why you do it, you just know that its happening and that you’re getting from point A to point B. How you get from point a to point b is seemingly a lack of mental energy, and maybe not physical motion but definitely a lack in your mental perception of it. 4.) Smallness. Tiny. With all things the devil is in the details and usually those details, especially in tango, is in the small unseen things. Unseen yes, but definitely FELT. 5.) Lastly, Simplicity. The simple things are always the hardest. They require that you ‘grok’ in the fullness of time the studied item. For example. How perfect is a circle ? Even in the many variations of it, a stone circle? a hand drawn circle ? a bitmapped macdraw/macpaint circle ? a circle computed by bits and bytes ? A laser printed circle ? Pi computed out to 6 million digits ? The same is true in tango. Walking.

I think to redefine cleanliness we have to re-think what that actually is, and for me, I believe that’s an economy of movement. That’s the beginning of being ‘clean’. That ‘clean’ perception is just the beginning of clarity. The more clean you are, the more clear you become.

I once had a dance with my first tango teacher, after I’d been away from him for about a year, and he was leading me in milonga. I have never since had a milonga so quite clearly directed or danced in my life. I knew exactly what he wanted and how he wanted it. It was probably the single most satisfying dance I had had to that point in time. I remember it so vividly as to when I’m teaching milonga that is what I have in mind. Trying to convey to my students that sense of order, cleanliness, but more over…CLARITY of what was being asked of me. He wasn’t pushy, pokey, proding me. He just directed me WITHOUT force. Think back to when you were a child and your parents were taking you by the hand, and walking with you. You always felt that when you strayed from the intended path, they continuously guided you back to where you should be. Same thing. Only without the arm pulling, screaming, and crying associated with those experiences.

Clarity of purpose he used to say to me. “Miles, see her feet in your mind. I know where your feet are at all times. And because of that, I know where your body is going to be and how to move you so that you end up in the right place, at the right time.” Wiser words were never spoken, well in tango that is.

I think from my perspective these many years later, that his economy of movement created a clarity in his lead that was ‘effortless’.

There are dancers in the world that astound with their level of creativity, astonish with their depth of musicality, and there are dancers that just blow you off the map onto another one and keep going until there are no more maps to be blown off…those dancers are rare to say the least. The come along once in a generation or two…so I’m told. We all have our favorites, couples that are amazing to watch, for one reason or another, but consistantly can you name a dancing pair that have a depth of musicality, breadth of vocabulary that goes beyond steps and patterns, and takes a stab at originality, something that hasn’t been seen before or hasn’t been seen in a long, long while ?

I can. I can name a few of my favorites, and one in particular that has spoiled me personally for watching others dance milonga. And that would be Horacio Godoy & Cecelia Garcia:.

What does it for me, is the floating aspect to his movements. He literally looks like he’s floating to me, and then he’s sharp and quick like lightening…and it’s the sharp contrast between the two that really push my envelope. While Horacio is known for his Milonga, and very few can say that, he’s actually quite an amazing dance all the way around…and even more so he shows that he’s floating, as he does here with his partner Cecelia.

In my estimation Cecelia is no slouch. To be certain, if it weren’t for her, Horacio certainly wouldn’t be as ‘fab’ as he looks. She reads him like a book, cover to cover. He’s good, but she’s better, In my estimation. She is the sizzle that sells the dance, eg: what you’re watching. And frequently it is the extremes to what he takes her to that look so impossibly graceful, and like she’s floating…not like she’s being dragged across the floor but rather being tossed high in the air and floating down to earth, slowly as if on a cloud that’s resting down for the night. It is her abilities as a fluid, lurid response, and more over companion to his requests as a lead that just makes you spin your head around a few zillion times.

Who ‘floats’ for you ?

Just a quite note about this website.

I am not the soul of all tango wisdom. That’s obvious. I am however a dancer that’s traveled further and farther than most. I teach now, mostly beginners and intermediates that are coming along the path behind me. I am by no means a ‘know it all’. What’s contained in these pages is the expression of some things that I have picked up along the way. I have been humbled more times than I can shake a stick at. I have tread a path ahead of most of you that you can’t even begin to imagine, so please take my words with a grain of salt or if you see some point of brilliance in them, share them, or not. I don’t really care. What I do care about is that this site is a work in progress and that as time goes forward I will correct the language of the know it all, and try from time to time to offer some helpful hints here and there that I have learned along the way. Maybe something will spark some resonance in someone somewhere and if that happens, I’d be very happy. If not, then there’s nothing here that you need to see further than to know that there is another dancer out here to dance with. Remember first and foremost I am a dancer, secondly I am a teacher of what I have learned. That’s it, that’s all.

These are just some random thoughts that I’ve had in observations of “Good Leaders” vs. “Challengeing Leaders”. I’ve noticed a lot of followers don’t actually check out a lead before they dance with a lead, and there really are no tell tale signs except the follower’s grapevine, eg: word of mouth about who’s good who to stay away from. Continuing on, there are some leaders who exhibit all of the signs below and still create a good experience, and there are still others who exhibit all of what’s below and create a challenging experience. From what I have observed Its about taste more often than naught, and what ‘feels’ good. I am by no means the soul of all wisdom, I’m just not. I have traveled further and farther than a lot, and far more than those just starting out. So pay attention or don’t. One thing is clear though, its better to err on the side of caution than naught at all. These are guidelines and observations and nothing more than that. Not rules.

1.) Right Arm/Left Hand. Pay close attention to the leaders right arm around the follower in close embrace, if you see wrinkles in the follower”s fabric from where the leader’s arm is, and an indentation of the follower’s clothing from his right arm…this is a good indicator that the leader is compressing the embrace, meaning pulling the follower into the leader. There is such a thing as having a ‘firm’ embrace, but that’s not what’s going on here. The difference between a firm embrace and this affect, is that the firm embrace is nearly always acting as a corral or container. Whereas in this case, its clear and simple compression, to hold the follower close to the leader, because the leader believes that that is how you tell the follower where to go. Be very careful. At the same time watch the leader’s left hand. Pay attention to the leader’s left hand hold. If that hand hold looks tight, like its a grip, it probably is! At the same time, pay very close attention to whether or not the leader uses the left arm as a metronome, as a way to keep time, because that left arm is connected to his left hand, which is connected to the follower’s right hand and right arm, and that means that the leader is literally jerking the follower around. Some people like this, I am not one of them. There is an exception here, and its a stylistic exception in my opinion. And its only in my opinion but when the leader is using the embrace or architecture of the dance to emphasize a musical point!

2.) Body Placement. Be cognisent of where the leader places the follower on the leader’s body in close embrace! If its off to the side…this could be a sign of trouble. This is my opinion here: The leader should be placing the follower just the left of the leader’s gigline (buttons on the shirt) and keeping the follower there. If the leader places the follower under the leader’s right arm, then the leader is literally asking the follower to change the geometry of the follower’s basic vocabulary, and not in a good way, but a challenging one. For example, if its ochos, then the ocho becomes flattened and linear. If its an argentine cross, then the result is an elongated forward crossing step where the cross is not clean and can’t be (feet together as they cross behind one another) because its physically impossible. There is such a thing as using what’s referred to as a “V” embrace, and that’s not what I’m on about. In the “V” embrace there is space between the bodies to allow for movement and the change in bio-geometry.

3.) Hips. Watch the leader’s hips, if they open in opposition of the follower in anything except for a back sacada or a reverse molenete…boy are you in for trouble. The leader’s hips should be parellel to his followers and in line with them…even in the cross, even in an ocho cortado. Hips to hips.

4.) Feet. Feet, feet, feet, feet. Clean feet. If the leader’s feet are pointing anywhere else except at his follower you have a problem child. What is meant by “Clean feet” is that you pay attention to ‘when’ the leader collects and ‘how’ the leader collects. The ‘when’ should be as the leader moves his center of gravity to closure or completion. The ‘how’ should be on a square, meaning the leader’s pads of the feet should be touching, the heels touch each other. There should be NO misalignment whatsoever. Period. If the leader can’t bring the leader’s feet together, then the leader will expect the follower to do a lot more work than the follower needs to, such as guess work as to where the leader wanted a weight change. To be fair, there are some leaders, even the best in the world who break this unwritten guide of ‘clean feet’ based on several factors, not the least of which is musicality, style, and last but not least, comfort. However, in all of those cases it is a choice, and not about being sloppy. And again to be fair, some leaders are just sloppy, forgetful, and unclean, including this author.

5.) Walking. The leader’s walk, if its gaping, loping, or just looks like its not anything but walking out for a stroll…its going to be rough dancing with this leader. You want a leader who literally ‘strolls’ with you. You want THIS

6.) Musicality! This should be at the top of this list. However, here it is at number 6. What is musicality ? In its simplest form, the ability for a leader (and a follower) to hear the primary beat of the music and to follow it religiously. Above and beyond that is the real meaning behind musicality, and that’s the ability to take the musical beat and interpret it to do something else. This is an excellent example of a leader who uses the primary beat, to step on, and uses several accent beats in her boleos, as well as creating several terciary beats on top of what’s in the music.

7.) Clean. Clean Shirt, Clean Pants, Clean Shoes. Just Clean. Recently Shaven. If it looks nice, chances are it smells nice. Not always the case if it’s a busy lead, but hopefully this leader brings a change of shirt or jacket!

8.) Roughness. You are looking for jerky moves, and even in milonga. In my opinion, I believe that a leader’s movement should be smooth, clean, clear, almost like the leader is skating on glass. Nothing about what the leader does should disrupt the follower’s walk. Period. No if’s, and’s, or but’s about it. If it does, you’re in for a rocky ride.

9.) Posture. It should be relaxed and comfortable looking, not slouched, and at the same time, not stiff. What you should not see is ram rod straight, like the leader’s got a shaft up …. or slouched over. If the leader is hunched over, this means that the leader is literally taking away the chest from the followers, and that means in close embrace you literally have nothing to listen to (which is bad for the follower that hasn’t studied open embrace!). At the same time if the leader is ramrod then that means he’s stiff and moves like a board and that also means you’re going to get jerked around, staccato movements, jerky, shaky movements that are based on force and not gentility and balance. Side note: The leader’s head (this one is a deal breaker for me) should be upright, not into his followers necks – head over shoulders, Shoulder’s Over Hips, Hips over Feet! There are very few leaders that can actually pull off head into followers neck because it sends the energy of the lead outward and into the floor instead where it should be center of gravity!

10.) Navigation & Floorcraft. This one is key. If the leader can’t drive, then the license to drive should be revoked! Which is to say that you’re going to get bumped and chaffed all night long. If a leader is running figures all through out the tanda dance, you’re in it deep. Period. Pay attention here. Ask yourself this: Is this leader doing the same pattern over and over and over again with NO variation ? This is not about vocabulary but rather the vocabulary that the leader choses to show off the follower, and how the leader places that in the music, with the follower!

And now for the kicker, how much space the leader takes up to do that, whether its small and leaves no trace or when the leader’s driving other leaders just make a hole! One more thing…excessive ganchos or boleos into the lane, line and progression of dance is that the leader’s not aware of what the affect is on the space around the dance. Anything where the follower’s legs leave a standing position, should be pointed away from anyone else.

Again these are ideas, thoughts, and observations…NOT rules. They are guidelines. The language may depict “Do’s” and “Don’ts”, but its not to be taken as such, but rather a very strongly worded guideline for what to pay attention to while a follower is watching a room full of leaders.

I’m sitting with a visiting Tanguero in NYC while I wait for a truck to move a friend. And we get into a quick scuff up about Valz time. I say that Argentine Tango can be broken down and taught in 4, 3, 2 time. He argues back that its 4, 6, 2. I look at him like he’s got six heads, and tell him he’s flat out mistaken. 6 ? Let’s back up a bit…to clear things up.

Tango is 4/4 time. Vals is 3/4 time. Milonga is 2/4. Hence the 4,3,2. Got it. So what was he on about ? That Vals is 6/8 time. And that he knows a few musicians that will correct me endlessly. I point out to him that Vals is 3/4 time and then go on to show him several resources to back up my assertion. He waives that off to point out that there is a subtle difference in 6/8 time that makes it radically different from 3/4 time. Again shaking my head at him, I point out that they are the same thing, then go on to point out one thing that we both agree on which is this, when you are counting time in Vals, you count “One, Two, Three” with the primary beat being on the 1, and not the 3. Although there is a Vals rhythm, several in fact, that you can put to that so that emphasis is on the 3, and not the 1. Its very similar in temperature to the idea of Sincopa in Tango where you have a strong and a weak beat.

Naturally we agreed to disagree, and went back to our respective corners to argue another day (smile).

Noted reading so that we’re all on the same page:

Dos, Cuatro, Sincopa, and in case that link is dead, you can go here.
Also please look at this YouTube Video on Sincopa and Musicality.