Every week, you’ll find on our blog class notes and a summary video from our Wednesday and Sunday tango group classes.

These video and notes are meant to help our students remember what they’ve done in class.

Dimension: Embrace - Theme: Flexible embrace

In this class, we spent time exploring how both partners could move independently from one another whilst keeping a comfortable and flexible embrace. We used creative versions of the cross to develop this concept.

Summary video



 

Beginners & improvers: Sandwich to the left

Top tips

  • Leaders: This version of the sandwich is slightly more unusual than the one to the right, but the lead is exactly the same, using slight tilt of the embrace to lead the corte.
  • Followers: In the corte and when you sandwich the leader, control your movements using the ankle of your back foot.

 

Intermediates & up: Cross / sandwich

Top tips

  • Leaders: In this step, you need to move yourself to make your partner cross. Then, you need to move around her without her moving and then prepare her movement by creating a quebrada. Once you are balanced, then you can move your axis to make your partner move forward.
  • Followers: In this step, keep your feet on the floor and your cores engaged. Also, only move if you feel your partner’s torso is moving. If it’s only his legs that are moving and not his torso, then this is not a lead for you to move.

 

Intermediates & up: Arrastre and cross / sandwich

Top tips

  • Leaders: To prepare the arrastre, take a step slightly bigger than the follower’s by moving independently from her. This will make it easier for you to catch her foot for the arrastre.
  • Followers: Try and be sensitive to how your partner positions his embrace. If his right elbow extends or contracts, this means he would like you to be in a different position compared to him.

 

Homework

Top tips

  • Beginners: Practice the sandwich really slowly to get a full control of all stages, especially the moves from the back leg ankle for both the leader and the follower.
  • Intermediates & up: Practice opening and closing the embrace together, whilst walking.