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.
Tango dimension: Size - Theme: Half beat giro
Varying the size of steps is an important part of your dancing as it gives you the flexibility to better interpret the music. In this class, we worked on half beat giros and on different size and speed of pivots and steps in the giro.
Summary video
Beginners & improvers: Giro and contra giro
Top tips
- Leaders: To lead the giro to your right, you need to dissociate, which means to pull your shoulder backwards so that it is behind your hips.
- Followers: Try and draw a square on the floor with your feet but keep your torso with your partner in a circle.
Intermediates: Half beat giro
Top tips
- Leaders: To lead a backward ocho rather than a forward ocho, you need to “invade” your partner’s space with your right shoulder going slightly forward.
- Followers: Once you understand what the first step of the giro is, you need to continue with the sequence on your own. If the giro is quick, your steps should be shorter and you will probably only do 180 degrees in 3 or 4 steps rather than 360 degrees with a giro on the beat.
Homework
Top tips
- Leaders: Practice leading giros from a forward or a backward ocho; this is done by using different “hinges” in your dissociation.
- Followers: Practice your quick giros on your own. The sequence is side step to the beat, then back / side / forward on half beat. You should be doing half a turn only.
See you soon on the dancefloor,
Nati y Bruno
