[Tango-L] Getting tango lessons to the needy

[Alexis Cousein]

On 05/07/2011 15:08, Trini y Sean (PATangoS) wrote:

> You miss my point.  If you've studied cognitive memory, then
 > you're aware that people have short term memories of 5 plus/minus
 > 2 chunks of information.  These chunks get bigger as experience and
 > muscle memory grow.  Thus, a 12+ count sequence only becomes about 2
 > or 3 chunks,

If it's 12 counts long chances are it's not atomic (and possibly
too long to concentrate on the essence).

Once you're that advanced, you're usually also capable of piecing
together smaller chunks into a large sequence yourself, so my
experience is that the people who *can* be taught 12+ count
sequences are those that may not *want* to be taught 12+ count
sequences, but just the elements (i.e. a basic element that
is perhaps 2 to 6 counts large but includes something non-obvious,
plus an obvious entry and resolution bolted on for practical purposes
while you're learning it).

I know some teachers will use an "obvious entry" that's 5 counts long
to get into e.g. a right hand side cross system and may want to
bolt on an exit that's also quite long to get back into the LOD
(if only to prevent accidents from happening later when people
fail to adapt the exit), and that frequently does make the sequence
12 counts long or longer. I don't mind that much, because I usually
pattern match the obvious bits at the start and end quite well (so I
don't have to learn them), but I still have an aesthetic preference
on being taught just the element with minimal entry/exit first.

Certainly if the extra fluff is just inserted to make it fit into
the D8CB pattern. An advanced dancer should be able to move with
something else than the right foot back when he starts anyway.