[Tango-L] Cadencia vs rock step

[Tom Stermitz]

I think this is waaaay over-analyzing. I mean, what if a foxtrot  
teacher said with intensity and passion: "You must dance with RHYTHM".  
Obviously good advice, but what the heck does that specifically mean?

And then, they present an example of "dancing with rhythm" by using  
some exaggerated body language (Whatever-TF THAT means.)

In my experiences with tango teachers from Argentina, the cadencia  
topic comes up in this manner: They stop the class, giving everybody a  
look like "foreigners have no idea what tango really is" and say: "No,  
no no. You have to dance with cadencia; with CADENCIA! Like THIS... 
[insert exaggerated body motion]." (Same thing with "You have to dance  
with FEELING!" or another typical comment: "You have to dance tango  
with the HEART!", or "Tango comes from the MUSIC".

Instruction by aphorism?

Does anybody think I'm joking!

Fine, good advice. We should all have rhythm, cadencia, body language,  
feeling and heart in our tango. Just don't expect words to communicate  
something that is intuitive and needs to be learned kinesthetically.

On May 4, 2011, at 11:44 AM, Mario wrote:

>
> I, too, like investigating this word 'cadencia'
> I teach language (Ingles) and when recently working with a  
> professional dancing/teaching couple, I advised them to keep the  
> Spanish terminology for 'cadencia' and for many of their other  
> references as well.
> For me, the meaning is definately implied in these quotes:
> - "(f)  3. In dancing, the correspondence of the motion of the body  
> with the music. Also;(..On one previous visit to Buenos Aires, when  
> I asked one of my  Argentine partners to dance with cadencia with  
> me, he put in more body motion, I experienced more rhythmical  
> awareness..")
>

Tom Stermitz
c: 303-725-5963
http://www.tango.org
Denver, CO 80207