Every week, you’ll find on our blog class notes and a summary video from our Wednesday Improver / Intermediate tango group class, our Thursday beginner tango group class and our weekend milonga group classes.

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

Theme: Rhythmical orchestras


In this class, we worked on musical adornments, the little musical themes that close most tango phrases on 7 and 8. The closing of a musical phrase is a good time to use half beats. We saw a couple of simple steps to help you start listening to the music more and adapting what you do to what you hear. For the class, we listened to D'Arienzo.

Summary video



 

Walking forward – 3 quick little steps

Leaders

  • To tell the follower you are “changing gear” and going faster, you need to gently lift her on her back during the last of your slow steps. This is to ensure she is ready to go faster when you do. Without advance warning, chances are she won’t be ready to go faster and you might end up stepping on her toes.
  • When going faster, shorten the steps.
  • Try and do 3 little steps (which will take 1 beat 1/2), then pause for 1/2 beat, before starting to walk again on 1. The contrast between the quick steps and the pausing is normally very musical and suits most musical ends.
  • When you pause, stop lifting your partner and come back to neutral position to tell her you are coming back to walking on the beat.
  • During the small steps, don’t forget to continue pushing with the back leg – avoid just sticking the free leg out and avoid going in a diagonal. Simply go forward with the basic technique of pushing the floor with the back leg.

Followers

  • A gentle lift on your back when you are in motion usually means that whatever you are doing (steps, ochos….), is about to end. In this step, when the leader lifts with his back hand on your back, it means that he will stop walking on the beat.
  • When going faster, try and not hop around. Continue using the basic technique of pushing with the front leg as much as the leader does. Don’t push without him, otherwise you’ll end up being too far from him.

 

Little corrida to the side

  • Make sure you keep your embrace strong so that your arms move with you when you go to the side. Otherwise, you might leave the follower behind.
  • To lead the changes of weight, you need to gently tilt your partner to the side.
  • Bring your feet together at each step. Take a small step, collect and repeat.

Followers

  • Bring your feet together at each step. Take a small step, collect and repeat.

 

Small repeated backward ochos

Leaders

  • Make sure you wait for your partner before leading the next pivot.

Followers

  • Keep the basic technique for ochos: pivot, then step.
  • For the second step (the one forward), keep your knees together.

See you soon on the dancefloor,

Nati y Bruno