[Tango-L] Close embrace in close quarters.

Mon Dec 17 13:45:20 EST 2007

Mario,

  I would love to elaborate on the topic of close embrace in close quarters, but, don't have the time at the moment.  

  At 3 months, horray for the patterns.  But, you might know, by now, that patterns don't do you much good on crowded dance floors.  So, here's an exercise to really throw you into the fire.  And, I'll follow up with what to do when you get into that exercise.

  At the next milonga, when you find yourself behind a leader who is dancing painfully (to you) slow, stay right there behind him!  I am not talking about the people who are moving slowly because they are teaching on the dance floor.  You'll know when you find that leader who seems comfortable crawling along.  

  It will be difficult to stay inline behind him and it may even feel embaressing as you may think that your partner is wondering what the heck you are doing. Don't pay no mind to that.  Staying inline behind him is that best way to learn.  I can remember private lessons in a little living room where my teacher would tell me that I could only go around the room once during the song.  

  Use little rocksteps to change your alignment when you need just a little room.

  Ask around about tespias.  Trespia is really a milonga term, but, you will still be getting the right kind of answers.  In general, you will want to learn about fake steps.  I love to think of tango as teasing the woman.  Lead a step.  But, don't complete it and come back to center.  Lead it 1/2 way.  Lead it 1/8 of the way.  Then, get the concept that you are teasing her.  This will turn into "playing with the music".  Your partner will appreciate the opportunity to lengthen and shorten her body as she enters into, and retreats out of, a step.  Think of it as a game.  Think of it as musicality.  

  A completely new dancer will be confused and, perhaps, embarressed because she thinks she isn't following you, or doesn't know what you want.  But, most women that have been around the floor a few times know that you are being playful with the music and doing the most with that couple of feet of floor space that you have available to you.  

  As for the techniques for doing this ... that would have to be another email.  Or, perhaps, a bunch of follow up emails from others.  :o)

  Mario, in general, the more experienced a leader, the slower he will dance.  I can remember taking an extended period of time away from tango and, when I came back, the exercise above was difficult until I started to get in touch with my body, again.  I felt embarressed.  But, it is a necessary process.  At the other end of the tranformation is a beautiful close embrace dance. 

  Doing patterns can be thought of as a substitute for using your body to enjoy the musicality.  Put yourself in those situations and start doing those fake steps and little rock steps to start becoming comfortable with making the dance be about your body and hers rather than patterns.  

  And, after 3 months of dancing, I applaud you for taking this on!  

  Okay, okay, here's an exercise:

  In open embrace (or closed, if you like), take a partner and do a side step.  Now go back, with another side step.

  Now, go just far enough into the side step to make your partner just tap on the floor.  Take her back to center.

  Now, go just far enough into the side step to make your partner's foot move, just move.  Now, back to center.

  Notice how your are stopping her.  Is it that she is visually watching you?  Is it with you hand or your chest?  Whatever the case, just notice it so that you are aware.  A private lesson with a teacher IN CLOSE EMBRACE is the best way to learn.  

  If you have accomplished this, can you do a fake step forward (backward for her)?  This is more difficult.  

  When playing with the fake side step, try, when she her foot is coming back to center, getting your foot there, first, and placing it beside hers so that she sandwiches your foot with her two feet.  Now, lead that next side step by pushing your foot out, essentally dragging her foot along with you.  Before you lead her back to center, take your foot out from between hers.  Yes, she will be smiling!

  When you get this, it IS such fun to tease! AND, you don't need much room!

Mario <sopelote at yahoo.com> wrote:
  I am a beginner (3mos) and would like to direct my own learning towards only that part of Tango that stresses the connection and the musicality. This is what interests me in the dance. I would appreciate any input on which Tango sequences (patterns) can be danced in close embrace in crowded places as I want to spend my time learning/practising only those patterns that will get me around the dance floor directly and interestingly without diverting from the line of dance.
I'm trying to put together a basic close-embrace foundation that I can learn by heart and then only listen for the music and be able to improvise by varying the sequences. Any suggestions of what to learn and the sequence of difficulty in learning them, (and/or any of the many things that I am not even aware of), would be greatly appreciated.
Sequences that I am already starting to concentrate on are: walking in parallel, walking outside right crossed footed, walk to the cross parallel, walk to the cross outside right crossed footed, back ochos from a side step to crossed footed, rock step, walking step in parallel, ocho cortado, turns right and left from ocho cortado. Please, add comments and suggestions.
Also, the best YouTube videos for studying the close embrace that I've found are those by;
Oscaracasas, pdtango, Mauitango.
Please, add any that you have found that concentrate on close embrace teaching.
The Milonga song/dance is another thing. I have read Tango-L archives on this dance with great interest. I have never had a lesson in this dance but find it rather easy and exciting. I only have to listen to the music, get the beat, and go for it. The Tango is another animal. There everything that I do 'naturally' is naturally wrong it seems...I feel like Im in a straight jacket trying to step thru hoops. The only tango that I've seen that looks like it could save me is those done by Oleh:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dr21Qic4UPY 
his tango has a freedom and musicality similar to the Milonga dance..
Well, there it is. I am obsessively watching 4 hrs of Youtube tango videos a day because I am visiting family in Mexico and have no close embrace teacher here.. I am from Philadelphia and my name is Mario... thanks for reading this far.

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