Monday, June 5, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Luciana Valle Intensivo D – Day 1
We return to an earlier concept, but work deeper on it: The standing and the Free Leg.
Our whole foot should be on the floor, and we move the axis inside our feet.
Put heels on the ground to center the axis.
Intention is presence in the embrace, and is toward each other when walking. In walking with each other, each dancer’s intention is opposite each other.
The Follower’s embrace is in the palms when the Leader walks toward her, and in the fingers when the Leader walks away from her. Followers need to learn to use the Left Hand and how to use it to push with her palms and pull with her fingers in the embrace against the Leader’s right arm.
The Follower’s connection is opposite to the direction they are dancing.
· When he walks forward, she pushes toward him with her right palm against his left palm, and her left palm against his right arm, assuming open embrace.
· When leader goes back, she pulls back with the fingers of her right hand against the back of his left hand, and her left fingers pull against his right arm, assuming open embrace.
The Follower’s palms and fingers are all attached to her arms, and her arms are attached to her back, and her back is attached to her axis. So she should respond with her whole body, not just the hands/arms
We refined our work with focusing on connection (how Follower pushes/pulls with her hands on the Leader). The Follower goes in the same direction as the Leader, and moves with him as a consequence. The Follower’s job is to maintain the connection, so she should be very active and aware in how her left and right hands push and pull against the Leader when he is going toward her or away from her. Do not abandon your embrace. In dancing and taking our steps, we are growing and grounding, while using the palms when the Leader is going toward the Follower, and using the fingers when the Leader is going away from the Follower.
Using the knees: The Follower’s amount of flex in the knee is related to the size of the step she is going to take and how much she will propel. Even when she goes down, she needs to think up. The knee flex is a consequence of the size of the step.
Next, we explored the relationship of the bend of the knees and the length of the steps. We began in partnership with the Leader leading side steps that are different in size: small, medium, and large. We noticed that the knee flexes a little in taking small side steps, then has a bigger flex when taking medium side steps, and flexes a lot when taking large side steps. This is all very natural in side steps. However, even though everyone does perfect, natural knee flexes in side steps, most people have an incorrect amount of flex in doing front and back steps, usually having too much flex. So even in doing front and back steps, we should have the same relation of flex in the knee to the size of the steps as they have in side steps.
We danced one tango, just paying attention to walking, using different size steps. Have good posture to allow you to be comfortable with your partner. Knees flex a little; do not bend the knee too much, but keep the bend small. The Leader’s flex is a consequence of the size of the step: if the Leader takes a big step, there is more flex in the knee. Leaders: never lock your knee. Just push from the standing foot/leg and cover the space. If the Leader takes a smaller step, he can have less power in his legs. The Leader pushes the floor to grow. Feedback is in the Follower’s embrace. She responds with her step (answering with her legs). The Follower should have good connection in her embrace but not tension.
We drilled these ideas by dancing, taking small steps, medium steps, and large steps, all in any direction, to see and feel what the differences were. Move like you have rollers on the feet. Take the step before you lose power of the heel as you move forward. Undo the flex after stepping to ground and grow. Pay attention to how you use your knees and push off the floor in forward, back, and side steps, and small, medium and large steps. Push from the standing leg. For the Follower, move the axis inside of the foot. Do not incline the axis. Otherwise you will be on the metatarsal. Take every step.
Next, we changed the direction of the step, with Leader doing forward, together (weight change), or back, together (weight change). The Leader is doing a weight change in place.
In our walk backwards, the Leader’s and Follower’s work are different.
Follower: Do not go to the toes. Go with the heels and be sure the heel touches the floor. Move the axis toward the back of the foot. Ground and grow. Start to move in the direction you are going. Do not fall into your step. Push off the floor. The axis rolls over the middle of the foot in the transfer of weight.
Follower: Do not fall when stepping forward.
Then, in partnership we worked these concepts in dancing, forward walking and backward walking, focusing on rolling of the axis and making sure it rolls through the foot with each step. Leader should walk with power and Follower with good feedback in her legs.
Where is the difference in weight changes in parallel versus cross system? The Leader does a weight change by changing his legs, but not his axis.
Then the Leaders tried to make the Follower change weight, but the Leader does not change weight. This is the real work to managing the weight shift. We were to try three variations:
(1) Leader weight change and Follower weight change simultaneously
(2) Leader does a secret weight change changing the system parallel to cross with a rock step for the follower
(3) Leader does not do a weight change for himself but leads a weight change for the Follower
We were to try this on both sides.
AFTERNOON SESSION
We brought back information from last week to go deeper into the material, focusing on the concept of Intention and the Motion Before The Motion.
Leaders were to ground and grow, then move the axis inside the foot to free the leg, then take the step. The goal was to free the free leg of the Follower, and the key is in the standing leg, pushing on it, then releasing it. We began with an exercise on Intention and Feedback, where Leader played with and controlled the free leg of the Follower by moving his axis (body\core, not arms), forward and back without moving his legs (he has weight on both feet, so he had no free leg). The Follower answers with intention back by sending her leg out (NOT her axis or body) back and forward in response to the Leader´s axis moving forward and back. The axis is always on the front part of the feet, and we were playing with the motion before the motion, with Follower anchoring and releasing. We did this same exercise to the side, and then forward. Next, we played with intention, moving the foot, and then actually stepping. Followers were to let their legs get heavier and move down into the ground, and also react with the leg from the hip (not just below the knee).
The Leader moves with the Follower, not opposite her, and does not change the embrace. If the Leader expands the embrace, he sends the Follower’s axis back. If he brings in (compresses) the embrace, the Follower’s axis goes forward. This is NOT what we want. We want the Follower’s leg, not her axis. So Leader maintains the embrace, but moves his own axis inside his foot to move the Follower’s free leg. The Follower needs to be on axis for her free leg to be free. We know if the Leader moves the axis inside his feet, if he maintains his embrace, it will create the movement of the Follower’s free leg.
Next, we played with changing the dynamics of the Leader´s forward step, where he adds more energy, doing a normal step in size, but with lots of energy, stopping suddenly, to lead Follower´s leg to go straight back and really freeing her leg. Both Leader and Follower have to really anchor. Follower does not control and Leader does not lead the return. We were just to focus on the Leader sending the Follower´s leg out straight back.
Next, we drilled the “Step and” or “Step +” where the Leader makes one step and the intention of the next one, but changes his mind. The Follower should have good feedback as the energy goes to her free leg. When the Leader steps powerfully, the Follower should too, otherwise she will absorb the lead. It is important for the Follower to maintain good connection in her palms when the Leader moves toward her and in her fingers when he moves away from her. If the Follower does not maintain the connection and do good work with her palms and fingers, she will do it in the head or some other strange place in the body. LOL
This “step and” or “step +” exercise is a good setup for With linear boleos (not Contra). This is like a linear boleo, but it’s more like playing with the dynamics of the free leg.
The Follower’s free leg will have some flex, but at the end of the move. Do not articulate the knee too soon, otherwise you will kill the move. The knee flexion is a result of coming back, not going out. Let the leg be heavy and go out freely. Do not sink down, think UP. Ground and grow.
The Leader’s power of his previous step will give the energy for the Follower’s free leg to go out.
We drilled the “step and” or “step +” in parallel feet and cross feet.
We also did it with the Leader stepping back to free the Follower’s free leg forward. Note that the Follower ends up on the front of her foot when her free leg goes up.
The Set-up: Leader leads Follower forward ocho that travels, and allows the legs to be free. Follower should push to take the step, pivot the standing leg and undo the flex of the knee. So Leader controls where the Follower does linear and does not pivot.
We also worked on Intention and sending the Follower to do a curved step around the Leader, doing a Follower curved side step directly from 0.
END OF DAY 1
I decided to take the day off from my regular day job, thinking I would go to El Motivo. But while the spirit was willing, the flesh was weak, and I heard the calling of the Milanesa. My Saturday tour guide recommended Angelito de Villa Crespo for them, and it did not disappoint. Only ARS 2,500 (about USD 5) for a giant portion of two milanesas, a bed of French fries, and a couple of eggs to top it all off. The place was a real local place, catering to portenos more than touristas, with many soccer jerseys and photos of soccer players who have visited and eaten at the place. When I went, there were only men in the restaurant. I placed my order to go and it only took 10 minutes. I was happy.
On my way back to the apartment, I picked up some alfajores, all different brands and flavors. Prices range from ARS 100 (about USD 0.22) to ARS 500 (about USD 1.10). Of course I do not want to send myself into a diabetic coma with all this sugar, but will partake of them slowly over the next six months.
Tuesday, June 6, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Luciana Valle Intensivo D – Day 2
We began with a clarification from yesterday.
Regarding the position of the axis. The Leader rolls off his axis inside the foot, but maintains a 90 degree relationship with the floor. So he does not lean forward, and does not move/tilt the axis to the front part of his feet. The motion is from his hips, not the chest/top tilt. The motion is the Leader’s whole axis traveling forward.
We reviewed playing with the forward step with the weight change, doing the Leader’s secret weight change (just on the bottom, his legs) that the Follower does not feel, doing both options with both legs. Follower: connection is important. The Leader uses his heels to push off the floor. The Follower’s best feeling is she doesn’t know what’s going to happen next and she doesn’t care. She just needs to connect in her palms and fingers. Leader changes the Follower’s weight, but the Leader doesn’t change weight.
Next, we also revisited Intention and sending the Follower to do a curved step around the Leader, starting from 0.
The Leader’s secret weight change does not mean you dance on tip toes. It’s a powerful step, like elephant feet, making a hole where you step. The Follower, too. She should not step small or short on her tip toes. The mechanics are still the same, she is just stepping smaller.
Next, we reviewed the With Boleos.
We began with an Intention exercise to drill the Follower’s free leg in the forward, back, and side steps as the Leader leads the “step and”/”step +”. Since we didn’t want Followers to kick Leaders, the Leaders led the Follower’s forward step intention to the side of the Leader.
How to build the dynamic? Step and intention of the next step. The Follower needs to give good feedback, anchoring more on her legs and using her palms/fingers to stay connected to the Leader. The Leader accelerates and stops suddenly. If the Leader spreads the energy, he will get a Follower long step instead.
We reviewed the Intention to lead the Follower’s free back, side, and forward dynamic of her free leg.
Leader: Do not extend your arms, otherwise you will change the Follower’s axis and she will go away from you.
Follower: Anchor first, then the free leg goes out as it tries to go, but can’t. The Follower anchors because the Leader anchors himself. The Follower expands her half of the embrace as her free leg goes out back. The Follower needs to start going since there’s the energy/intention of the next step. If the Leader wants to play with the Follower’s free leg, he deliberately goes for the leg with special dynamic. The Leader does it outside partner with parallel feet or cross system feet (which is easier), and we tried this on both sides.
We drilled With Linear Back Boleos on both sides and in both systems (parallel and cross).
Review: On the side, the Leader leads the Follower forward ocho and steps side with her with dynamic so her free leg goes up. He needs to maintain the embrace so she doesn’t take a step. He should not make the embrace rigid, but he should maintain the shape when he takes his powerful step to the side. Follower should maintain her braline connection with the Leader.
Next, we added dynamic to the Follower’s return of her Back Linear Boleo. The Leader gives dynamic, developing during the pivot, so the Follower’s leg goes out (fans out) as a consequence of his extra energy given from the Leader on her pivot, so the Leader torques in the top instead of staying fixed. Follower needs to use the connection in her hands and fingers and keep the braline to the Leader. It’s all at the pivot moment.
Leader: Do not lead from the arms. There is no down intention from the Leader, but the Follower gets extra energy at the point of pivot, so she can’t unflex her knee to come up. Both Leader and Follower stay at the step level, not the connection level. In the side step, the Leader uses the same power as before, but the difference is how he develops the power in the torque of his upper body to lead her pivot dynamically.
We were to try this on the other side, too. (the close side of the embrace).
Leader: Be sure you are rotating (and not traveling) the Follower, not traveling her, as he needs to lead the Follower to Pivot, not step.
We were to drill doing the three Linear Boleo options:
(1) Straight linear boleo
(2) Leader’s torque at Follower pivot to lead dynamic so free her leg goes out and fans out staying down on the floor.
(3) Leader’s torque while Follower’s free leg is in the air linearly straight ahead, then pivoting her when her leg is in the air so her leg turns and she comes back the other way. While this looks like an “air rulo” Follower embellishment, it is not. It is a led move from the Leader as he controls and plays with the Follower’s free leg.
AFTERNOON SESSION
To clean up some finer points from our morning work, the Follower’s leg swing to the left and to the right is with her torso facing her partner. It’s a leg thing. The Follower pivots when her leg is in the air, with the hip NOT involved.
We drilled some more:
(1) Straight linear boleo with a straight stop dynamic
(2) Leader’s torque at Follower pivot to have power to lead the dynamic so her free leg goes out and fans out staying down on the floor.
(3) Follower’s linear boleo, then Leader does torsion while Follower’s free leg is in the air linearly straight ahead, to pivot her when her leg is in the air so her leg turns and she comes back the other way. Leader can also do this when the Follower’s leg is closer to the floor but still in the air to lead a different look.
The Leader should be able to manage the Follower’s free leg.
The Follower keeping her braline to the Leader is crucial for the free leg to be available.
In tango, there are a lot of things that look alike but are very different. This is the case in option (2). He is not sending her down and out in a planeo leg. He is adding dynamic to her step and pivot so she anchors and pivots with her leg out.
Review: How to lead dynamic of the free leg in the contra motion (counter motion). Previously, we needed room to do it, and also energy in the embrace. When the Leader moves the axis inside his foot, he frees the Follower’s free leg. The Leader keeps the Follower where she is, then he moves in her half moon opposite to the Follower. He is going to his heels, sending his center back. Send the intention and vacuum back in the opposite direction. It’s a “return”, not a “go” for the Follower. The Leader goes slightly out and then back to center. We were to lead this from walking, since leading it from zero is difficult.
Leader walks forward, then lets her go and he comes back. Leader goes to the back part of his foot. Leader is the one expanding the embrace and then comes back; Leader is the one moving. Follower needs to use her connection, otherwise she will step.
Next thing: Follower’s front linear boleo in between the Leader’s leg. The Leader leads the Follower to do the forward ocho, then he moves opposite to her step. Leader uses the intention of the Follower’s pivot and after that, moves opposite to the Follower’s direction.
Leader: Do it small so he can be clear and don’t make it a mix with a circular move.
Follower’s first reaction is to have torsion to free her free leg to go in opposition. The Follower needs to feel in her body first the elasticity of the braline. The standing leg grounds and grows. The free leg may go out straight or circular to warp around the standing leg, depending on if the Leader steps around the Follower or just steps linearly.
END OF DAY 2
For dinner I had leftover milanesa and fries from the day before, adding a couple of eggs on top, and some sliced cucumber for healthy veggies. Then back to the grind of my day job (which I adore, so not really a grind at all).
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Luciana Valle Intensivo D – Day 3
Maestra reiterated that we all know how to dance. But here at the Intensivo, we are focused on improving the quality of our dance.
Followers: Attention needs to shift from just following to starting to dance. Trust our dancing and connect with the Leaders. Do not be so worried about following that you forget how to dance. Connect with the Leader, give yourself time to do whatever he leads. Move!
Leader: Go slower, take your steps with power, be assertive when you lead. Wait for the Follower.
To understand this, for the next song we were to dance more, with the Follower’s attention on herself, not the Leader.
Reminder: Yesterday we did contra boleos. In Contra Boleos, the Leader moves/expands his embrace, whereas in With Boleos, the Follower moves/expands her embrace.
We were to add the Contra back or the Contra front (where the Follower is to the side of the Leader, not in between his legs, though that is an option) to our dancing. When doing Contras, it is very important for the Follower to be connected in her embrace with her palms and fingers.
During the “step and” or “step +”, the intention is the important part. The Leader does countermotion to the Follower’s step.
Next, we worked on Contra Linear Boleos. Linear and Circular Boleos start the same with the Leader’s intention to side step. The difference is how he moves after – either linearly (to get a Linear Boleo) or circularly to step around the Follower (to get a Circular Boleo). The Leader’s setup position is also different and needs to be in the correct place for him to have enough room to step around the Follower. If he steps wrong, she will do some weird thing with her boleo. When the Leader steps accompanying the Follower in her ochos, he will be in the correct place.
Maestra did a video review of the Contras, where the Leader moves opposite from walking, and from zero, and also from the front cross so Leader moves opposite and the Follower doesn’t kick anyone.
Moving on, we brought back the different lead of the Leader rotating his torso (to lead the Follower’s pivot) versus traveling (to lead the Follower’s turn).
We did individual disassociation exercises where we moved our top, and then our bottom came around as a consequence. We did this 90 degrees (so four turns to get one 360 rotation all the way around), increasing to 180 degrees (so two turns to get one 360 rotation all the way around) to more than 180 degrees (to see how far we could go). Then we increased it to get all the way around in a 360 degree turn by doing top, bottom, and then adding more bottom, top, so going from a spiral to a pivot.
In the basic turn, the Leader just does top, bottom to lead the Follower to walk around.
Next, we added the Leader’s enrosque, with two options:
(1) Leader sacada to Leader enrosque
(2) Leader enrosque to Leader pencil (lapice).
Sometimes his top goes first, while other times his hips go first. He can change either depending on what he wants to do.
The Leader should be able to manage his body, his top and his bottom. The main instrument is the steady tone of the Leader’s top for the Follower, while his feet can be doing many different things and have a different tone.
We focused on Leader Enroques and Pencils.
Leader side step to pivot Follower. Leader pivots himself, then leads Follower to travel around him doing back, side, and forward steps from one side of the Leader to the other.
To this, we added the Leader’s footwork, where he pivots, gets his feet in enrosque, then his free leg fans out (forward, open, back) while his standing leg pivots to get a mirror situation with the Follower when she does her turn (back cross, open, front cross step, to finish in front of the Follower to face each other as she closes her step after her turn around the Leader. This is fast.
Follower should do good pivots. The turn has the tendency to eat you (make you come in). She should really walk around the Leader, as her steps help the Leader do his pivot. She should have weight in the back part of her foot and not be on her toes. She should really go in her turn walk.
We did this to both sides, with the Follower walking around powerfully like a Leader in her turn.
The Leader has 2 pivots:
(1) His first one is after he leads the Follower to pivot in the setup, as his leg gets into his enrosque.
(2) The second is after his leg fans out after his open step and before his back cross step.
Do not lose the relationship of the hand to the torso. Do not leave the Follower behind and do not break the embrace. The Leader’s torso stays with the Follower so she is always in front of the Leader. The Leader’s free leg moves because his standing leg is pivoting.
AFTERNOON SESSION
Clarifications:
In the Leader’s pencil (lapice), every step of the Follower’s turn counts. She should take each step. The axis is in her center back part of the foot.
Follower pivots, then does back step, open step, forward step around the Leader.
Leader pivots after the Follower pivots to get his feet into enrosque, then it fans out forward, open, then he pivots, back to mirror the Follower’s forward step. So their steps mirror each other (Follower back/Leader’s forward, Follower open/Leader open, Follower forward/Leader back).
Leader should relax the joint to open up the close side of the embrace as the dancers go around each other. He needs to use his palms/fingers when he pivots, same as what the Follower uses when she pivots. The Follower pivots first, and then the Leader pivots, so she uses her connection, and then he uses his connection to pivot.
The Leader’s step needs to be with the Follower’s ocho so she is in the correct position relative to him. The Leader needs to slide his right arm in during the Follower’s back ocho.
Next, we added the Leader’s pivot at the end, with the Leader’s left leg parada as he pivots the Follower after her forward front cross step (instead of ending just facing each other). In doing the parada, we need to lose the down feeling. The Leader should separate the pencil from the parada. He does his back part a little faster. After the Follower’s forward step and pivot, she goes up. The Leader goes up as well, then goes down as his leg goes out in parada. If the Leader stays down, he has no power to lead her pivot, so has to use his back. This is a lot of work and less elegant. Follower: Do not pass directly over the parada. To break this habit, the Leader will change her hips and send her back the other way, to do a back cross step counterclockwise over the Leader’s parada leg to planeo. We drilled this.
There are many possibilities of what the Leader can lead after his parada, but we were to focus on doing the one change of the Follower’s hips to step back cross, then the Leader pivots, and then leads the Follower to do a planeo while he walks counterclockwise around the Follower. Notice that the Leader has to do several torso rotations to lead the Follower to pivot from one way to the other way.
A second option is for the Follower to wait for the Leader’s direction/lead. He can (1) allow her to pass normally, then do a Leader sacada directly to walk forward around the Follower, or (2) he can do one parada directly into another parada.
The Follower needs to have an active nice pivot, and an active nice walk. She should not go down in her energy. For the Follower, she should dance as if every step is her last step, so do it well, beautiful, and strong.
Dancing is not just doing patterns.
Follower: Put energy in your steps. Own your dance. Give the Leader feedback in your energy/power. Be connected in your embrace, sometimes you will use palms, other times fingers, depending on the direction the Leader is leading you to go. In every step, the free leg should be free.
Leader: Lead it nicely.
END OF DAY 3
After class, I stopped at the local variety store to pick up an umbrella (ARS 2000, about USD 4) since there is rain in tomorrow’s forecast and I didn’t want to become drenched. Silly me, I actually checked the weather before I left the US, and saw that there was rain in the forecast. But I forgot to pack my umbrella. I also picked up a pack of 8 S hooks (ARS 1000, USD 2), because they are extremely handy for hanging things.
Dinner was cucumber, eggs and one link of morcilla that I bought a few days earlier (4 links for ARS 400, about USD 1).
Then back to the grind for 7 hours… and sad to miss Diego and Daniela’s teaching/DJing/performing gig that night.
Thursday, June 8, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Luciana Valle Intensivo D – Day 4
Continuing from yesterday, whenever the Leader walks around the Follower, she answers from her top first, then the bottom comes around (top to bottom). The Follower pivots into the parada, then there is a second pivot back around to step back cross over the Leader’s parada leg.
The Follower needs to wait to see what the Leader leads. Do not anticipate.
We reviewed:
· Leader’s enrosque and pencil (with his forward, open, back fan footwork)
· Doing the Leader’s enrosque and pencil on both sides
· Ending with a parada
· After the parada, pivoting the Followers hips the other way to a Follower back cross step, to Leader’s walk around her to lead her in a planeo
· With two sequential paradas
The Leader accompanies the Follower’s front cross step with his back cross.
Doing the back sacada after his pencil (lapice): In his back cross, the Leader needs to pivot deeper on his pivot before his open step. The Leader pivots, collects, and then does his back sacada. There is a difference in timing of the move and also his footwork, even though it may look the same. The Leader needs to go ahead with his hips in his back sacada.
After a quick video review, we drilled this to two songs, practicing all the options in both directions.
Next, we added the Leader’s back tuck enrosque at the end.
The Leader’s top is either ahead or behind his hips, not on top of them, otherwise he will move like a block.
Enrosque from Leader’s forward sacada of Follower’s trailing right foot on her front cross step in the counterclockwise turn.
For the Follower, in turns, send the axis to the back part of the foot, walk well, Leader maintains axis in the middle of his foot.
The Leader’s enrosque can be done at any step in the Follower’s turn. The weight change is at the end of her open step before her back cross step; he should maintain and sustain his enrosque until her subsequent open step.
The Follower always moves after the Leader. If she moves at the same time, she is too early. If she doesn’t move at all, she feels like a truck.
Follower: This is a full turn (forward, open, back, open, forward steps). The Leader does his footwork as he is the center of the circle (enrosque, lapice), and he relies on the Follower to do a good, strong walk around him; her steps need to have power. Note in the Follower’s turn footwork, there are two pivots: forward – pivot – open – pivot – back – open – forward. There is no pivot on the back – open – forward steps because those are done in double time. But on the slow steps of the turn, there are pivots. Do not lose power in the double time steps. Keep walking around powerfully. Recall the Bon Bon Theory: the Follower should amplify in her hips the Leader’s torso rotation.
We drilled some more: The Leader’s forward sacada to enrosque, to out and also the Leader’s forward sacada, to enrosque, to pencil (lapice).
On to another subject: “SHARED AXIS TURN”
The term “shared axis turn” is a misnomer because the dancers are not actually sharing an axis; they each have his/her own axis and are sharing the spot on the floor where we spin together. Leader and Follower are both the center of the circle, but are technically NOT sharing an axis.
We began with an exercise to understand the mechanics.
Leader takes a side step to his left, placing his right foot between the Follower’s two feet, catching her right foot. He should not go beyond the middle of her right foot. The Leader wants to move the axis behind the Follower, so the Leader needs to go around the Follower, stepping around her in a curve (recall the 90 degree stepping exercise from last week, same as the lead for a circular boleo) with his left foot. He pivots as he steps. The Follower does a spiral motion in her top to open space. The Leader just makes a small step, not a big super spin, as we are just trying to understand and feel the mechanics at this point.
For the Follower’s side step, the Leader should not sandwich farther than the middle of the Follower’s foot, otherwise she can’t pivot. The Follower needs to make room for her body to spiral in a top to bottom motion, opening the space to allow the Leader to go there. She should not move in a block or do a pivot instead of a spiral. She needs to move from a her braline first. The Leader pushes from his standing leg, pivots, and steps around the Follower. For the quality of the embrace, do not be too stiff or too relaxed. The Leader’s weight is in the middle of his foot, not on his toes. The same for the Follower. They are centered on the axis.
AFTERNOON SESSION
Some fine tuning of our morning exercise: The Leader pivots, and his torso accompanies his hips. This exercise is done close, with both dancers in axis.
Putting this into the structure of the turn, recall last week’s work with Sacadas. The Leader decides the radius of the circle, depending on what he wants to lead. If he wants to lead a Sacada, the Leader leads the Follower a little bit away so he has room to do his sacada. In our new work on Shared Axis Turns, the Leader wants to get behind the Follower’s axis, so he leads her radius to come closer to him. The Leader chooses to lead the Follower to step closer in her radius, so he can step behind her after she passes. The Follower needs to have spiral and keep her braline to the Leader to give him room to step. She goes, then he goes; they do not step together. Leader’s top moves, then bottom comes around, then he steps around. The Leader goes toward the Follower’s standing leg, going behind her standing foot. Follower: Do not collect too fast and do not go in a block. She has a beautiful circular front cross step. He leads this on her series of forward ocho front cross steps.
The Leader needs to let the Follower step, then he needs to pivot himself before he steps around so he doesn’t push her inadvertently. Leader: Do not rush, he has more time than he thinks. Let the Follower pass before you step. Do not step flat; curve the steps instead. Send Follower. Then adjust his standing leg.
This is not a colgada move; it is an on-axis move.
We were to try this on the other side (the close side), which is more difficult. We are attempting to move the boundaries of our dancing.
The Follower’s first step should be curved with big disassociation in her body.
When Followers dance flat, it is easy to end up pigeon-toed.
When the Follower maintains her braline to the Leader, it keeps her hips in the correct position. The Follower’s goal should be to always step in a curve (up and around), not flat and down. Otherwise, it is difficult to get momentum/dynamics to get around.
The Leader needs to have a little bit of distance in the embrace at the beginning, but after his first step, he comes in so they can stay together in the turn. At the first step, the Follower’s right foot front cross step, her left arm is in open embrace. Then after that first step, her left arm needs to slide in to close embrace.
Follower: Do not bring the hip around too fast. The last thing is the hip coming around. Do not do it too fast, otherwise the Leader doesn’t have time to do his second step.
We were to try this on the other side. If the Leader keeps stepping around the Follower’s foot, he can do it endlessly (calesita). But the Leader needs to really understand the basic one.
The Leader sends the Follower around him. The Follower steps around the Leader. At her front cross step of the turn, the Leader steps with her, letting her pass, then stepping behind the Follower, toward her, but behind her axis. Follower should not be far away. The Follower is the Circle, the Leader is the Center.
Follower: Have a very nice circular front cross step around the Leader so he can step behind her easily.
The Follower needs to step first, before the Leader steps behind the Follower. So she passes, then he passes, and then they go out together.
Follower: Do not be in a block. Do juicy ochos, have spiral in the top (like a pepper grinder). Focus on the quality of the step, pivot, and torsion.
Leader can change his legs in stepping and he can add the “shared axis turn” after the first one, to do a double spin so he doesn’t have to rebuild the energy, to the right with the right.
END OF DAY 4
Dinner was cucumber, eggs and morcilla.
Then on to my day job…
Friday, June 9, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Luciana Valle Intensivo D – Day 5
We reviewed the technique involved in the Shared Axis Turn.
The Leader sends his axis behind the Follower, and he is really coming around the Follower. The Leader tends to do the take too far in. It needs to be from the middle to out part of her foot, so he should not take it so far in.
In the structure of the turn, the Follower’s front cross, he can take and do one spin only. The Follower should do a nice front cross step and have torsion. Leader uses his right foot to take in the counterclockwise turn and his left foot to take in the clockwise turn.
The Follower steps around the Leader, putting power on the standing leg, not the arriving sensation, as we want to avoid the down sensation. She should not flex her knee in her pivot. She should do good ochos and not expect the shared axis. In her turn, this is the order of how she moves with the leader: braline, ribs, hips, standing foot, free leg. Do not rush, do not shape the shared axis. Have good disassociation.
We did double spins, where the Leader steps outside the Follower’s right foot with his right foot, and then around her axis foot with his left foot as he goes counterclockwise around the Follower. He can continue with his right foot and left foot steps around the Follower circularly to keep the momentum of the turn going. He spirals in his body. He needs to take the next step before the momentum dies. Every time he steps, he pivots. He should not go too early in the take. Let the Follower pass, then he will go after that. The Leader has plenty of room, since her axis is not there in his way.
Maestra did a video review of the 4 options:
· Parallel feet going with his right foot, then left foot
· Parallel feet going with his left foot, then right foot
· Cross feet double spin to right with right
· Cross feet double spin going to left with left
Continuing with the turn, but doing it on the Follower’s open step (not her front cross step, which is what we did previously).
On the Follower’s open step, once she passes, the Leader steps there. On the Follower’s front cross step, the Right side is easier than the left side because of the embrace. You have to enter on the open side of the embrace. In the Follower’s open step, the Right side is more difficult than the left.
We did this in both directions in the turn, to the right and to the left. Leader can exit in front or outside partner.
Follower: Have powerful, traveling side steps, and be on axis. Do not pull back. Axis is in the middle of the foot.
The Leader needs the Follower to step closer to him so he should travel her, doing a deep torsion in his torso so she steps near, bringing the circle closer to the center.
His deep torsion changes the angle of her steps.
· If he has regular torsion, she can get around in her turn in 4 steps.
· If he adds more torsion, she can get around in her turn in 3 steps.
· If he adds a lot of torsion, she can get around in her turn in 2 steps.
Sometimes the Leader changes the trajectory/radius of the turn depending on what he wants to lead (gancho, sacada, walk, etc.). The Leader manages this from his torsion.
Next, the Leaders were to do the Shared Axis Turn on the Follower’s Open Step in the Cross System, Single and then Double (starting in the right turn with Leader’s left foot or the Left turn with Leader’s right foot).
When can the Leader do two spins? When his leg goes in the direction of the turn. Enter with his right leg on the right turn. Enter with his left leg on the left turn. If he enters with his left leg on the right turn, or with his right leg on the left turn, he can only do one spin.
Ganchos can be very similar to shared axis turns in that they both take the standing foot of the Follower, but the timing is different. The Gancho take happens earlier, when the Follower’s leg is weighted, while the Shared Axis Turn take is after the Follower passes.
AFTERNOON SESSION
Our afternoon topic was musicality, with a focus on the difference between Milonga and Vals.
The class began with Maestra discussing musicality with the structure of the beat, with 5 volunteers representing the 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 within the beat, and another 1 to represent the start of the next beat.
Our beat is always the 1. Between one beat and the next beat, there are different places where we can cut the beat. It is usually in the middle, so 1 – 3 – 1. But we can also do it at 1 – 2 – 1 or 1 – 4 – 1. 1 – 3 – 1 is Q Q S. The most typical rhythm is the 1-3-1 rhythm, where the half beat is in the middle (the 3), and in our dancing, the steps are even.
In tango and milonga, the beats are 1-2-3-4-1. In vals, the beats are 1-2-3-1.
We began with dancing one tango song, just stepping with everything on the 1, even taking a full beat to change feet. We mostly walked since it is more difficult to lead steps that automatically have half beats or quarter beats in them (getting to Follower’s cross or back cross step in the turn).
Where do we use the 1-3-1 in our dance? Many steps have the 1-3-1 rhythm such as the cross system salida, ocho cortado, the turn, walking to the cross, and the corrida.
Next, we drilled dancing the 1-3-1 rhythm interspersed with just stepping on the 1. In our drill, we could do turns, ochos, cross system, barridas, and rock steps. Every time there is a change in dynamics in the dance, it could be from the motion of the Leader or from the music.
We were reminded that in our stepping, we should push on the “O” and arrive on the “E” of the “ONE”. In order to be in the music, the Follower needs to give Leader feedback. The beat is later than you think. You have more time than you think. In doing 1-2-3 rhythm, the steps need to either (1) travel or (2) go in a circle, such as the ocho cortado or walking the Follower to the cross in the basic step.
Next, we drilled dancing to Milonga just doing walking and the 1-3-1 steps. We needed to slow down because milonga is faster, and be calm. Milonga is dry and low, according to Pibe Avellaneda.
It’s more difficult to do the double time when traveling. The Leader needs to be in control of his weight shift and the Follower’s weight shift. He can do double time moves when in place (like traspie).
We were to drill dancing to milonga, adding the ocho cortado, half turn, walk, basic step to Follower’s cross without entering into the complex of the traspie. With the ocho corado or rock step, we can stay in place. In the 1-3-1, the Leader and go forward and backward in place, such as doing the same beginning for the ocho cortado, and then going back the same way. During this step the Follower can embellish, tapping as she goes back, and her leg going up or wrapping the Leader when they go forward.
Next, we focused on Vals. We began with dancing one Vals song, just stepping with everything on the 1, even taking a full beat to change feet. We mostly walked since it is more difficult to lead steps that automatically have half beats or quarter beats in them (getting to Follower’s cross or back cross step in the turn). We were reminded that in our stepping, we should push on the “O” and arrive on the “E” of the “ONE”.
In Vals, we can only do 1-2-1 or 1-3-1. We can’t cut the beat in half because the 4 is missing. Vals music is only 1-2-3-1. 1-2-1 is easier than 1-3-1 to dance to musically. We were to walk and do corridas, accelerating and releasing. The Leader needs to think attack and release and move forward. Shorter steps get less flex than long steps, so there is some subtle change in the level of dancers while dancing Vals. The Follower in her turns, the double time is either on the 1-2-1 or 1-3-1.
END OF DAY 5
So what do I think of the past 2 weeks? They were divine! I was especially impressed by how much more interactive and engaged the Assistants were, not just dancing with the Students, but providing good insight and commentary to the entire class as Maestra was teaching/demonstrating. It really proved to be a much richer experience than in years past. The vibe was great. I don’t know if it was just me, as this was certainly the happiest trip I’ve ever had to BsAs, but everyone seemed happier, lighter and more joyful.
The Assistants were so sweet to me, giving me some regalos of their own – a very pretty necklace and a super cool ring that I will be sure to wear on left hand at the milongas, as it is ginormous!
I booked another Airbnb experience that night, “Tango Night With Local Dancers”, with a lesson followed by a milonga. The organizer offered the choice of going to El Beso or La Viruta. Of course I chose La Viruta, since Diego was DJing. She seemed happy with that. I was not interested in going to El Beso again, after my last experience on their slippery floor, though I do have different shoes that I could have tried.
The lesson was good, and focused on Milonga since that is what the other guest wanted. In chatting with the hostess and her additional dance buddy, I mentioned what a difficult time I had at El Beso the week prior. They both confirmed that something weird happened to the floor recently, where they must have overpolished or overwaxed the floor, because it truly was weird. So it was not my imagination that I was slipping and sliding all over the place!
After our lesson we had a pleasant snack break where we got to know each other better. Then we were on our way to La Viruta, getting there just a little after 11pm. We had reservations, and they showed us to our table, which was not in a good spot directly underneath a speaker. My hostess just moved us to another free table, right in front of the stage, which made for optimal viewing of the live band (“Sentimental y Canyengue”). The price that night was ARS 1800 (about USD 4), which was higher than usual because of the band, I think. Apparently, the price changes every night depending on what is happening. Though as usual with La Viruta, if you come in after midnight, it is free and you don’t need a reservation, you could just sit at any empty seat, usually around the perimeter.
The band was good. The dancing was just OK. It was more crowded than I expected, though less crowded than in years past. I left after the band’s set since I had an early day the following day.
Saturday, June 10, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
My day started (too) bright and early, as I had booked an Airbnb experience, “Buenos Aires Highlights”. Instead of the tour picking me up at my apartment at 9:30am, the start time of the tour as noted in the experience listing, they instead instructed me to meet at a hostel about a mile away at 8:30am, which was extremely inconvenient and a bit obnoxious for a Saturday morning and was the exact opposite of what is advertised in their experience write-up. But I wanted to be a good sport and so went along with these changes in plans anyway. Big mistake.
I left my apartment at 8am, even though google maps said it would only take 22 minutes to get to the meeting place. I walked at a quick pace, but ended up getting lost since the pickup spot was on an extremely obscure “street”, which was more a short tiny alley. After overshooting it by six blocks and circling back, of course I was woefully late. When I got to the pickup spot in that obnoxiously obscure alley, of course there was no vehicle or tour guide to be found. So I was out of luck. While frustrated and disappointed, I figured if this was my worst experience of my trip, then I was still coming out way ahead and just chalked it up to one of the hassles of traveling.
After getting back to my apartment, I edited my Intensivo notes, wrote a bit more, and then took a desperately needed nap. Around noon, I began to get hungry and heard the calling of Patagonian Lamb at La Casona Del Nonno. So of course I had to make my way over. As usual, the meal did not disappoint, and clocked in at ARS 10000 (about USD 20), for the lamb, arugula salad, and water.
Still having some pesos and USD left over, I made one last stop to Tango Imagen, and it did not disappoint as they had a new shipment of shoes since my prior visit. So I managed to pick up three more pairs, including one that was an identical model to one I had purchased the prior week, only with a lower heel, which I liked much better.
That brought me back down to my last 370 pesos, just enough to get a combination (dulce de leche and vanilla) soft serve cone from McDonalds (ARS 250, about USD 0.50). The cone was delicious as usual, as I tried not to think about what was in it. LOL.
After getting back to my apartment and beginning to pack, I reassessed my tango shoe situation and decided two of the ones I purchased were just too high for my six decade old feet. So back to Tango Imagen I went, and Adrian was a good sport and totally cool about letting me exchange the shoes for shorter ones.
Since I was down to my last 120 pesos (around USD 0.25), there was not much else I could do except go back to my apartment and rest/pack. It’s a good thing I loaded up my SUBE card at the beginning of my visit as I usually do, otherwise I would have had to walk. I toyed about going to a kiosco and getting one more alfajor, to get myself down to 0 pesos. LOL
The afternoon was a relaxed resting, packing, eating, and waiting for my landlord to arrive to give him the keys. He did promply at our agreed time, and Dante was waiting outside too. So it was a nice, easy drive back to Ezeiza, and a good flight home.
My tango homework:
Keep the heels on the floor.
Really be up, imagining dancing with trying to push Diego’s hand off my head.
Really arrive and elevate at each step (Mati)
Dance with straighter legs. Lose the excessive bend.
Do not sink down and rest in my steps.
Remember that the legs start at the bottom of the braline.
