[Tango-L] Leading with hands

[VIEJO.MILONGUERO]

I have read from time to time the posttings on the list but I had never written till now.
  Jake is right.
   
  There are many ways to lead in tango depending on the level and style  you are dancing.   
   
  You can lead primarily with your chest as it is done in social, close embrace dancing but when you start learning more and you dance in open embrace, nuevo tango or on stage you use many other parts of your body to lead. This form of leading may be tought to the beginer or to any level of expertise tango dancer.
   
  What you describe is "poor" leading, "pressing buttons", how absurd!.
  I am talking about good tango dancers.
   
  Naturally if all you do is to dance socially in close embrace: walking, doing an ocho here and there, a little turn and a sacada, yes I have to agree all you need is to lead with your torso.  
   
  It is when you go beyond that level of dancing that you are going to use your torso, your arms, your hands, your legs and more, to lead. This does not mean "pushing buttons" on any-body's back (that is not knowing how to dance) it means to lead properly in an unperceptible way, unperceptible to the follower and to the spectators.
  Before some mentally retarded says if it is unperceptible how does she follow: I will say I meant "not obvious" but perceptible enough for her to be able to follow. 
   
  At this level the lead comes from many different parts of the body and not only from your torso.
   
  So as I said before, do me and the rest of the list a great favor : when you talk about technique, specify "the way I dance I do this or that" and that will be fine but refrain to speak for the tango world as a whole, because it is wrong. There are many ways to dance A.Tango. It would do a lot of good to you and everybody else if you became conscious about the limitations of your knowledge.
   
  I am 65 years old and have been dancing regularly since I was 14.
   
  Viejo Milonguero
  Buenos Aires
   
   

 		
---------------------------------
Do you Yahoo!?
 Get on board. You're invited to try the new Yahoo! Mail Beta.