[Tango-L] Finding Clarity in Tango

[Chris, UK]

Thank you for that excellent post, Steve.

 "Education is not filling a bucket, but lighting a fire."
                                       William Butler Yeats

Chris

> *Subject:* [Tango-L] Finding Clarity in Tango
> *From:* Stephen.P.Brown at dal.frb.org
> *To:* Tango-L at mit.edu
> *Date:* Wed, 1 Aug 2007 13:11:04 -0500
> 
> I am sympathetic with the idea that we should write with clarity.  
> English is a language full of nuances and we all bring so many 
> presuppositions to reading what others have written that I am not sure 
> that is completely possible for us to completely understand each other.
> 
> Often on Tango-L we end up discussing what seems to be 
> misrepresentations of each others' ideas.  Comments are taken out of 
> their original context and then pounced upon for seeming proof of 
> idiocy--as if we were no better than policiticians.  ;-)
> 
> Tango Content(?):
> 
> 1)  I believe it is completely possible to offer introductory tango 
> classes that enable newbies to successfully participate in milongas in 
> about 6-8 weeks.  They won't be the best dancers, but they are 
> sufficiently prepared to dance tango and stay out of the way of others. 
> One way that I know works in doing this is teaching tango as small 
> elements and emphasizing rhythmic movement.
> 
> 2)  How long it takes to progress from newbie to the sufficient mastery 
> necessary to be regarded as an accomplished tango dancer varies so 
> greatly across individuals and depends on so many factors that it is 
> beyond my ability to predict such progress,
> 
> 3)  Instruction can be helpful in learning tango, BUT tango pedagogy is 
> relatively new, and there is some debate about which methods work best.
> 
> 4)  Much of what is represented as tango instruction doesn't do much 
> more than convey the instructor's own style of dancing.  This criticism 
> doesn't apply to everyone who teaches tango.
> 
> 5)  Practicing can be quite useful in developing skills, BUT practice 
> can be a waste and practicing by oneself removes the context of tango.
> 
> 6)  All of us must find our own tango in our own hearts and souls.   
> Good instruction takes the student to the door, but those who become 
> tangos dancers must step through the door themselves.
> 
> 7)  Upon finding our own tango, most of us will discover that some or 
> much of what we were taught to be useless, but that doesn't mean we 
> didn't benefit from the instruction.  The seeming misdirection and 
> missteps are part of the learning process.
> 
> 8)  Tango is simple, the more you know about it, the more obvious its 
> simplicity becomes.  It is not easy, it is maybe even hard.
> 
> 9)  The insights we gain in finding our own tango, aren't likely to be 
> understood by those who haven't found their own tango.  They may even 
> be misunderstood by others who have found their own tango.
> 
> 10)  When a teacher uses extensive class time trying to explain their 
> own understanding of an inner essence, they are likely to be wasting 
> their own efforts and their students' time.  When it comes to movement, 
> knowledge cannot be poured in a student's ear.  Dancers develop best 
> through their own experience of movement.
> 
> With best regards,
> Steve (de Tejas)
> 
> 
> "It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is."  -- Bill Clinton
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