[Tango-L] New wawe is coming and also perhaps "the Lead pyramid"

[Myk Dowling]

Bertil Nestorius wrote:
> This is a very interessting subjekt (the lead of the cross) even though
 > I find Mila and Korey fantastic dancers I don't agree 100% with how the
> want their students to lead the cross. They speak on the video about
> leading the spine (or center of weight) on the left or the right side
> of the standing leg and in this way lead the cross or another back step.
> This method is good if you have a very good sence of your body, but is
> definatly not a beginner subject.

Depends on the beginner. For people who _do_ have a good sense of their 
body, it is much better to teach them right from the start. Don't assume 
all your beginners are as bad as each other.

> The very most important stucture in the Tango is the Molinette (front-
> side -back-side), found for the follower in every Giro.As a mather of
> fact, all stucturers Tango are for the followers.

I think it's far more important for a follower to be receptive to the 
leader's suggestion than to be thinking in terms of what "should" come next.

> You find, if you break the 8-step base appart, that it also is in this
> stucture(a Giro traversing in the room) atleast untill the cross. That
> makes the cross nothing else as as small front step. With this in mind
> it is easy to find an much easier(in sence of demand of body awarness)
> way of leading the cross. Since the the cross is an front step, the
> step before must be an side step (or better an open step) an hence
> schould be lead with the schoulder in the same line as the feet, as
> opposed the our normal forward and backward walking where the
> schoulders are opposite to our feet. That makes that when I don't want
> to lead the cross I lead the 4th step(or equivalent) with the
> schouldes opposite to the feet.

You can lead something like a cross by leading a side step followed by a 
crossing front step, but it is an entirely different motion, flow and 
look to a cross lead by guiding the centre of balance to the outside of 
the standing leg. I do both under different circumstances.

What you describe makes the cross the result of a final pivot after the 
moving foot is placed, where a cross lead by guiding the centre of 
weight has the moving foot arrive already in the cross position.

(And from a fundamental perspective, I abhor any discussion of tango 
technique that attempts to use the "8-step base" as a form of evidence. 
The 8-step base is a teaching tool, not a matter of technique.)

-- 
Myk,
in Canberra