[Tango-L] Social Tango

[Trini y Sean (PATangoS)]

--- On Tue, 8/5/08, Joe Grohens <joe.grohens at gmail.com> wrote:
> So, let's say that my way of dancing can be classified
> according to a named type.
> 
> What will you base it on?
> 
> - Instructional pedigree?
> - Dance features that suggest a family resemblance?
> - The dance circles I associate with?
> - My step vocabulary?


I'd base it on the energy that you're suggesting from the dance.  This is something that I believe women are more sensitive about than men realize, perhaps because so much of our training is about receiving so much information.  There's a different feeling that transcends the embrace or vocabulary.  I can usually tell within a few seconds of moving what kind of dancer my partner is, not an entire dance.  It's not hard to figure out the open-dancer who is trying to dance close, or the milonguero dancer who is trying to dance open.  It's often obvious when we first embrace.

Every single man has particular combinations or movements that they do out of habit or preference.  Doing these same movements over and over trains the body a certain way.  So a style develops and a certain energy.  That same energy finds its way into other movements, even if it is more "milonguero" or more "nuevo".  For some people, it's obvious from the very beginning.  IMHO, not recognizing that you have a particular style is like not accepting a part of yourself.  Style is not something that is forced upon one, it's is more like something discovered about yourself.  

I don't think that the men's experience with women work the same way.  Generally, women develop a wider range of movement then men.  We're asked to do more things than a man may be asked to do.  There are those, whoever, who choose to specialize.

But we shouldn't confuse dance styles with normal adjustments for creating a mutually satisfying communication.  On a practical level, when my partner isn't clear on how he dances and changes things around, it's a bit annoying.  I'm trying to get into a comfort zone, and wham, there's this change.  Instead of actually dancing, I'm having to think about technique.  So consider that the next time a woman asks what style you dance, she might be trying to establish a starting point so that she's not wasting half a tanda on figuring you out.  She wants a full tanda to dance, not half a tanda.

Trini de Pittsburgh