Argentine Tango

Argentine Tango and West Coast Swing have, over the last couple of years become my two favorite dances. On the surface they appear very different.

The dance styles are very unique.  Tango has its origins in the brothels and bars of Argentina and is an intimate dance, sometimes slow and sultry, sometimes fast and dramatic.

WCS is a lively,fun, even sexy dance that can be danced to a number of different styles of music.

West Coast Swing

If you were to watch the two side by side, you might say they couldn’t be more different. The truth is, they have more in common with each other than they do with most ballroom, latin or swing dances.

I will explain with a few things they have in common

Connection

Yes, connection is a must in any partner dance but for these two it is much more than just frame, arms and shoulders.  They both require a connection to your partner and the lead and follow queues are subtle and not predefined by a specific pattern.

Connection to the music is just a critical.  Both styles are very interpretive and rely on the music to define the steps.

Interpretation & Musicality

Many may disagree, but for me a waltz is a waltz is a waltz. Don’t get me wrong, I love the waltz, it’s just a fact that it will be predominantly the same waltz to Journey’s Open Arms as it is to Foolish by Johnny Mathis.

Now, a good Argentine Tango can be a completely different dance depending on the dancer’s ability to interpret the music and make the dance fit the feeling of the song. Each step is determined by the leader’s, and to some degree, the follower’s interpretation of the music.

West Coast Swing is also about interpretation of the music.   Both leader and follower have many opportunities to embellish and emphasize aspects of the music.    This could be creating breaks and pauses in the dance during breaks in the music or possibly extending steps to coincide with the singer drawing out  a word.   Musicality is only limited by the imagination.

Improvisation and patterns

Most of the time, I won’t say all the time, other dances are simply a group of steps and patterns put together in a series for the dancer to implement on the dance floor.  Usually, the pattern is not a reflection of the music, but just a long amalgamation of steps.

Yes,  West Coast Swing and Argentine Tango are often taught as patterns or choreographed routine segments.  Go to any group class for either (or any dance style) and you will probably learn a group of three or four patterns during an hour class all put together nicely for you to use the next time you get on the dance floor.   There is absolutely nothing wrong with this.  It facilitates the class and it’s an easy way to learn to dance several new patterns.

The real magic in Argentine Tango and WCS happens when you get to the point where you forget the amalgamated patterns and begin dancing in smaller units of steps, interpreting the music and reacting organizationally to what you hear.

When you forget the patterns and break each step down into its smallest units, they can be recombined in new and exciting ways.

In Argentine Tango, you have elements, Ochos, Sacada, Giro, etc.  These small elements can be combined in many different ways so that each time you perform an ocho, and add a different element, it becomes something new and different.   Not a pattern, but simply a new combination of complimenting elements.

I like to break it down into 2 beat units for West Coast Swing   I won’t go into too much detail on this but will save it for a future article as it will be fairly extensive. I will give an example of a standard whip.   The whip can be broken down into three parts,  1-2, 3&4, 5&6.   If we apply a 2 beat unit to the basic whip,  we can replace 5&6 with and inside turn or an outside turn (5&6 changes to 5-6 and adding 7&8).   These whips are often taught as pattern but they are really nothing more than a combination of two elements (whip and inside turn for example).   Once you see how this works, you will begin to see how elements can be added or recombined to create something new and exciting.

Following

The next obvious question is this.  As a follower, how do I follow if I don’t know the pattern?

Following is an art form that does take time to learn.  It involves good connection and listening (with your body not your ears).

In Argentine Tango, from the beginning you are taught to embrace properly, listen, connect and follow.  Learn to hear the subtle queues from the leader indicating direction, posture and timing.  Do this without anticipating or moving without a lead.

In West Coast Swing, you could say pretty much the same thing.  WCS connection is critical to your ability to follow as the majority of the time, you only connected by one hand.   Paying special attention to the breaks and direction changes indicated by the leader is key to West Coast Swing.

Both require extra attention from the follower to understand the leader’s intentions without anticipating.   Of course all dances require following skills, but the free and unstructured nature of these two dances requires even more.

No Strict Time

Now I step onto shaky ground, but here goes.   You don’t have to step on every beat.   There, I said it.

Argentine Tango allows you dance your interpretation of the music so you can pause and skip one or several beats allowing your partner or yourself time for adornments or just for dramatic or subtle effect.    You may wish to slow down to every other beat for a segment or speed up and syncopate beats.    This is not waltz where timing is almost always the same.  Sorry, I seem to be picking on waltz in this article.  You have freedom to play with the timing as long as it fits the music.

West Coast Swing is very similar in that you can modify your timing, by skipping beats, syncopating steps or moving one syncopated step to a different timing (instead of 1 2 3&4 you might dance 1 2 &3 4).   Critical to these timing changes is being able to locate the 1 or down beat when resuming a more standard timing.

Unique and Similar

Even though both dances are very different in style, you just might agree with me that they are much more closely related than they appear to be.

What about you?  Do you see any other similarities between these two dance styles?  Maybe you disagree?  What do you think?

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Argentine Tango has had a significant impact on my life and I have written about it a number of times here.    Months back I wrote an article called In Tango As In Life where I detailed a number of lessons I have learned.

Today, I found this article about Tango and it’s impact on the authors business life and it is something definitely worth reading.

Argentine Tango – Improve your decision making ability
If you think of Argentine Tango as a dance where latino guys with greased hair drag sexy woman in tight dresses over the dance floor, performing all kinds of weird rigid steps (things you never would consider to do in your life) you´re probably asking yourself “How can this improve my ability to make decisions?”

Has Tango Impacted your life?  I would love to hear your story.

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Need a Travel Guide for Argentina?

If you are planning a trip to Argentina to experience the wonders of Argentine Tango then this site might be just what you are looking for.

Argentina’s Travel Guide
Welcome to Argentina’s coolest online guidebook and community! Find great travel advice, plan your trip, grab a free pocket guide, and get in touch with other travelers like you.

Below are a few of the links from the Travel Guide…..

Tango
With over 134 Milongas a week, a plethora of schools, and an ever-growing number of teachers, the Tango scene in Buenos Aires can be overwhelming, even to the most seasoned aficionado.

Where to Dance
Though the Milongas listed below are predominantly popular for their particular category, the beauty in them is that they are always mixed, especially between the Milongureo and Salon styles.

Terms to Know
Milonga is a public tango dance. Milonga is also a style of tango music and a dance indicated by an uptempo 4/4 rhythm. Other tango rhythms include Tango (lyrical and melodic 2/4) and Vals (3/4 time.)

Where to Shop
Comme Il Faut Arenales 1239 – Puerta 3M. 4815-5690
This store was the first to create “haute couture” tango shoes. They are the most beautiful Tango shoes in the world. Not for the indecisive, they come in an enormous range of styles and colors……

Publications
El Tangauta This is the bible for tango dancers and aficionados. It is published monthly and has all the information on everything Tango, including who is performing where. You can find it for free at most schools and some Milongas. It is also available online.

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Argentine Tango is a lifestyle and can impact your life in so many ways.   This article is a great example…. 

Improve your social competence ….

Tango dancers had to develop the mindset to move on with the flow of the music, in harmony with everybody else, instead of fighting each other for every little patch of the dance floor.  Given the fact that dancing Tango was not simply a pastime but a complete lifestyle this meant in consequence that they developed strong social competence. One aspect we certainly can learn from.

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Argentine Tango Shoes

 Proper shoes for a dancer are just as important as the right footwear for any athlete.  But they can look great too!!!

Dreaming of Tango Shoes

Tango fashion is just as much fun as tango dancing, and tango shoes are a key element in a milonguera’s wardrobe. Would that my middle-aged feet could still wear some of these sexy stilettos which are often found in 3 1/2 to 4 inch heel heights.

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Here is a great article about Argentine Tango and the people who dance it.

 Living Through Tango

Tango is about national identity and every note of its music, every gesture of the dance, contains within it their history“

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Passion and the intimate connection in Tango is often missunderstood.  Read this and think again.

Close and Open Embrace

I like many things about Argentine tango: its music, passion, beauty, its sportive, social and recreational functions, and its culture (milonguero legends, milonga code, cabeceo, and even machismo, etc.). All of these, however, would not mean so much if tango were not danced between a man and a woman.

For me, Argentine Tango is like therapy for the soul.  It relieves stress from life. Iimagine it as therapy for the body as well…..

Argentine Tango Therapy

On the fourth floor of Buenos Aires’ largest psychiatric hospital, patients dance the tango with doctors and nurses.

A few months ago some were too shy to talk and others could barely keep their balance when they walked. Today, they embrace their partners cheek-to-cheek, gliding and pausing across the floor to the mournful chords of a traditional accordion.

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 Tango is a musical genre and its associated dance forms that originated in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Montevideo, Uruguay, and spread to the rest of the world soon after that.
Early tango was known as tango criollo, or simply tango.

Read More Tango History

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 What makes Argentine Tango unique among all styles of dance?  Is it the unique movements or could it be something else?

http://singletango.com/347/argentine-tango-musicality/

 Tango dancers often think that the great divide in tango dancing is in the styles, but it may be in the musicality. Good musicality connects the dancers and even connects dancers to the onlookers. No matter your tango taste, whether open embrace, closed embrace, tango nuevo or other styles, good musicality is important.  Regardless of the style, dancers become connected by interpreting and enjoying the tango music in that moment.

How does musicality impact your Tango?

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