Saturday, October 28, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
The day started out with a visit to Tango Imagen so Donna could get her shoe situation sorted. I had ordered some shoes a month or so in advance, and they still weren’t ready yet, so I wasn’t planning on buying any shoes on today’s visit. So I looked at the clothes instead, and found some skirts that I liked. I was shocked – SHOCKED – at how reasonable they were (ARS 16,000 each), so I picked up 6 so I could use a USD C note with very little change (in pesos) returned.
After that, Donna and I parted ways as she went to lunch with a friend and I went to the antique store next door, which was quite good. I found a beautiful handmade copper trinket box with a blue granite stone imbedded into the lid for 800 pesos (USD $0.80!). How crazy is that? I love it. Was not planning on picking up a Chilean souvenir in BsAs, but it was lovely, a shockingly excellent value, and no need for me to worry about it breaking from fragility.
Then I started to get hungry too, so I made my way over to La Casona Del Nonno (grandpa’s big house), on Lavalle near Florida, because no trip of mine to BsAs would be complete without having their Patagonian lamb (12,000 pesos), which I paired with still water (120 pesos) and nothing else. The bill automatically tacked on tip, bringing the total to 14,600 pesos, an insane bargain for all that deliciousness.
I then strolled around the Florida shopping area, stopping in at a few stores and buying some skirts, a couple of headbands and a security pouch that I wouldn’t have to worry about my keys or cash at milongas. Everything was crazy inexpensive.
Then I went back to the apartment to rest, as the walking in the hot weather (80 degrees today!) made me a bit tired.
Donna and I originally planned on going to dinner at Resto Bar Damiana, the place on the corner across the street from Villa Malcolm, but when we got there, we saw that it was closed for renovations. So we hoofed it over to Mercat Villa Crespo, an international food court between our airbnbs, and we were not disappointed. There was a heavy emphasis on Asian food there (karaoke bar upstairs, baos, ramen and dumplings) and some interesting bar and tea and juice places, and other types of cuisine as well. We settled on hamburgers (5,000 pesos) and for dessert we shared this interesting thing called a Kurto (chimney cake, 3,000 pesos, https://www.erdelyskurtos.com), which neither of us tried before (apparently from Transylvania). We were not disappointed! We shared the cinnamon and orange curd one, as the others had dulce de leche or jam, which seemed too sweet for our tastes.
After dinner, I hoofed it back to the apartment, got showered, and then made my way to the milonga Marco co-hosts with Gaston Torelli called La Comedia (Rodriguez Pena 1074, 1500 pesos). The door is unmarked, so I guessed I was at the right place since the numbers to the right and to the left were more than and less than 1074. I got there unfashionably early, right as the milonga started at 11pm, and they hadn’t even started playing tangos yet, which was fine by dorky me as I strongly prefer a less crowded dancefloor.
I had a wonderful time! The best time and more tandas than I had ever had at any milonga in Buenos Aires in the last 16 years! The dance level was good to great, and the leaders were friendly and not shy about cabaceoing. Plus my friend Giovanni showed up, in a fabulous costume (not really a “costume” since it was a genuine kata uniform, though he did dress it up with a neoprene face covering) since it was Halloween weekend. We saw each other right away, despite the dim lighting and his face almost entirely covered except his eyes. Giovanni is an amazing dancer, not just with me, but with being encouraging, supportive and protective of the less experienced followers. His presence is a real treat at any milonga, for sure! It was fun watching him dance with the uncertain newbies, seeing their trepidation melt into delight as he took such care with them on the dance floor, never demanding too much and being sure they had a nice experience. Looking back, it was not that different from how I felt on the dancefloor when we first met. And I felt proud that I was able to dance with him at my current level. I have come a long way in the last 16 years (as well I should have, LOL!).
And Holy Cow!! If that wasn’t already enough, the highlight of the night was I danced with Pablo Inza, who cabaceo’d ME! LOL. It was truly amazing (despite just having spent 20 hours dancing with local pros), and I am embarrassed to admit that I didn’t even know who he was at the time. It only dawned on me the following morning after some YouTube searches. I did tell him he is an amazing dancer, but held back from asking if he was someone famous, because he sure felt like it. Absolute heaven!
In our class on Monday, I asked Marco who won the costume contest, and he told me the ninja – which meant Giovanni! How awesome is that?! Marco said it wasn’t just the costume (although it really was the best, since it wasn’t even a “costume” – it was the real deal, embellished with a face covering), it was also the fact that he could easily be seen on the dance floor, dancing a lot and with different followers of all skill levels. I was so proud of him for that. Clearly other people noticed such chivalrous, community-building behavior.
Sunday, October 29, 2023
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Since I got home so late, I decided I would just spend a nice day relaxing with nothing specific scheduled. There is always the San Telmo market, which could be worth the trip since I had such an amazing find at the antiques store next to Tango Imagen. Or the afternoon lesson and milonga at El Beso. Though I don’t see how that could possibly top the experience from last night. Plus I had to work my day job.
October 30, 2023
Monday
Luciana Valle Intensivo B – Day 1
In our warm-up dances, we were to review the fundamentals of how to move: Free the free leg. Follow the chest of the Leader. Shoulders on top of hip bones. To step forward, move the axis inside the foot. Undo the flex of the standing knee to bring/straighten the free leg. Followers should ground and grow, and then go. Do not be on your toes as they need to be free. Know where the axis should be. If the axis is too far forward, your toes are screaming. The axis moves inside the foot, and toes are off the floor. Do not change the axis. Leaders: Be sure you you’re your axis in a clear direction to lead each step. 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. The Follower’s free foot is touching the floor at collection after ochos. Do not bring the leg from the knee or from the ankle. The free foot caresses the floor.
Followers: In going backward, 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. In the forward walk, the axis goes from the middle of the foot to the middle of the foot using the whole foot on the floor.
Embrace: Leader’s hand is in front of his sternum. There can be a change in his relation with the Follower, but his left hand / her right hand should be at the shoulder level of the shorter dancer. The connection with each other needs to be present but elastic. It is not tight. The Follower answers from her leg. The dancers palms and fingers go opposite to the direction they are going (palms press together as dancers go forward, and fingers pull against each other as dancers go backward).
Followers should not abandon their embrace, or be too tight in their embrace, or not take the step. Follower should have weight in her legs and GO. To be easy to lead, the Follower needs to be on axis, be on her legs and to MOVE. The Follower goes from center of foot to center of the foot. If her step is too long, she is arriving on the metatarsal. If she is too far forward, she will go too long since she is taking with her free leg, and she will go down.
If the Leader takes a smaller step, he can have less power in his legs. The Leader pushes the floor to grow. The Leader taking large steps does not mean stepping fast. Put more power in your standing leg to increase size and undoing flex for reception. The Leader’s projection is half the size of the step.
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. Follower’s feedback is a mirror of what she gets from the Leader. If she gets power, she should answer with power in her legs. Keep heels on the floor, otherwise Follower will look like she is sitting and on tippy toes.
For both Leaders and Followers, in walking, we should pass through the center with each step before taking the next step.
Then we went on to the subject of the day: DYNAMICS OF THE FREE LEG
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 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 tilts the axis like he is going to go, pushing the floor with his standing leg as he moves the axis in his foot. The Follower frees up her free leg, but just to extend it (not take an actual step). The Follower moves her leg (NOT her axis or body) back and forward in response to the Leader´s axis moving forward and back, and the Leader feels this. The axis is always on the front part of the feet. Leader should play with the space inside of his foot. Heel, center, toe. Do not be too forward or back, otherwise he will fall. The Leader moves inside his foot first, then the Follower’s leg gets free and then she steps.
Follower: When Leader moves the axis forward, you push forward as he moves your free leg. Starting to travel your axis, palms are forward and then fingers pull back to get back to center when he comes in. Stay connected in your embrace so you can send the information to your leg. You need both hand and finger connection to make the correct step. The embrace is all about intention and feedback.
We were playing with the motion before the motion. The Leader tells the Follower when he’s going to go by shifting his axis inside his foot to control the Follower’s free leg. The Leader’s motion is inside his axis, which moves the Follower’s free leg. The Follower’s leg needs to be free by growing and grounding, sending the energy down to her standing foot. Leader spreads weight on both legs, so in our exercise he has no free leg. The Follower anchors and releases the free leg. The Leader goes slightly forward, then back to center. The Leader should do a weight change to try freeing both of the Follower’s legs. We did this a few times and then led/took an actual step.
We drilled this, moving the energy, axis to the side. Since our feet are narrower than they are long, it’s easy to get this intention mixed up with a weight shift.
New exercise to increase Follower sensitivity: Leader steps forward, together, then back. We did this on both sides/legs. We did this in open embrace, with Leader’s right hand out, not embracing the Follower but still providing support, so Follower needed to connect and engage with her left hand and have appropriate pushing in palms or holding on with fingers where appropriate. The Leader needs to change his eight clearly to change the weight of the Follower with all the weight of his hips into his legs. We were to dance with elephant feet, as if we were making a hole in the floor with all weight and powerful feet to move. Follower: Do not hold your legs or make them tight. Be present and have good feedback. We practiced forward, weight change, forward, and forward weight change, back, on both the left and right feet.
Exercises at home: work on heel, metatarsal, toe movement for flexibility of the foot.
We are doing all these new, different, somewhat strange steps to break our own boundaries. Otherwise we will always dance the same.
END OF MORNING SESSION
We continued with our forward, together, forward, and back, together, back steps to free up the free leg of the Follower, being aware of connecting the Leader’s change of axis with the Follower’s leg movement.
It’s all about intention and feedback. If the Leader pushes with 5 energy, Follower should provide 5 energy in her feedback. If the Leader pushes with 10 energy, Follower should provide 10 energy in her feedback. Neutral is the center of the foot. This is all very subtle, and requires presence of both dancers.
Followers: Take the step. Move. But do not rush, do not be still and do not absorb. Receive the direction and don’t be afraid to take the step. Trust your steps. You move after the Leader, but we end up together. That’s the Follower’s responsibility.
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).
Adding dynamic to the Follower’s free leg: Leader’s axis goes forward, and he begins with another step but changes his mind. The Leader takes a long step and adds the intention for another step, but does not step.
The Leader steps and makes another intention of a step that never happens. So it’s a “Step And” or a “Step Plus”. If the Follower does this twice in the same way, she is lying. All of the Follower’s work in this exercise is in her embrace, not the Leader’s embrace, though his hand is there. She needs to engage her palms and then fingers when he stops to remain connected so she doesn’t fly away, though there is a little bit of elasticity/flexibility in the embrace. The sensation for her leg is to hang from the braline. The leg is like a pendulum. Leader: Do not pull her to you back in with a back step. It’s a pure “with” with the Follower. Leader needs to anchor his legs and not step backward.
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. Boleos are a cut motion, circular or linear. This is not a linear boleo, but it is close, as it is a “with” motion where the Leader goes with the step of the Follower. We are not doing contramotion.
For the Follower’s leg to be free, her heel needs to be on the floor, with some weight. The weight should be between the metatarsal and the heel. There is always just one working leg and one free leg, so Follower should not immediately collect her leg forcefully in the middle to make both legs working legs. Rolling the axis inside the foot is the Follower’s job. The Leader will not do it for her. If the Follower steps from her free leg (not push from her standing leg), she will either overstep or understep the Leader.
It’s the intention of the step that doesn’t happen, but she gets all the momentum in the lead, which makes her free leg go out. The Follower’s leg is like a pendulum. We were to try this with both legs. Followers need to connect using their palms and fingers. Follower: do not anticipate because it looks very much like other things we’ve done, so we shouldn’t know until it’s happening, not before.
In doing it to the front, the Leader does a back step and vacuum.
We drilled this, mixing the step, together, step, with the “step and”, so the Follower does not anticipate what is coming next in the dance. Leader takes a long step to go forward. The “step and” will get the dynamic in the Follower’s free leg. The Leader is not leading a linear boleo. The Leader goes from the middle of his foot to the front part of his foot. The Follower receives the intention of the following step.
We did this in the other direction, and outside partner otherwise the Follower will kick him. It’s tricky because of the space. We can do it in cross system (on the Follower’s front ocho) or in parallel system. The Leader needs to anchor himself. The Follower needs to maintain her braline toward leader, whether she is parallel to Leader or perpendicular to Leader.
Next, we added the forward ocho before adding the free leg dynamic. The Follower should have power in her ochos, and not step dead, flat, or powerless. She should have travel in her ochos, and do not anticipate the ocho, do not fake it. From the Follower front cross, the Leader steps and pivots the Follower, anchoring on his standing leg. The Follower needs to actively engage her embrace: it’s all her job. The Leader needs to also grow when he collects. Leader and Follower are moving together all the time and getting energy from pushing the floor. The standing and free legs are connected and connected with your partner, so the boleo is soft.
END OF DAY 1
Meals were the same as last week.
Generally, no milongas for me during the week since I need to log in to do my day job, which has worked seamlessly and flawlessly so far. Knock on wood.
However, today is Monday, so that means Luciana’s (and her partners’) El Motivo. The class and milonga were 1800 pesos. I got there a little late and the intermediate class looked quite full and was taught in Spanish. Since Lety and Gonza (our class assistants) were teaching the beginner and absolute newbie classes, I decided to return the favor and join in to help balance the numbers. They were appreciative, as were the students. The milonga was OK, with Diego (another class assistant) spinning the tunes. I had a bottle of water, which at only 600 pesos was cheaper than any other milonga I had been to thus far on this trip. I was tired, so happy to sit out a lot, though I cabaceo’d Christopher, who I was delighted to see.
October 31, 2023
Tuesday
Luciana Valle Intensivo B – Day 2
We began with warm-up dances focusing on the review of what we learned yesterday, paying attention to connection, having intention and feedback, and freeing the Follower’s free leg.
If the Leader moves the embrace, he changes the axis. Follower should slow herself down and trust the Leader. Move the free leg in answer to the Leader’s intention. Anchor and release your standing leg. Stay with the Leader. Do not be so reactive; do not move right away, but move after the Leader.
Maestra did a video review.
The axis of the Leader inside his own foot moving is what frees the Follower’s free leg, where she grounds and grows and then lets the free leg go. This is the same whether the step is forward, backward, or to the side. Followers need to have good connection in her palms and fingers.
Next, we reviewed Linear With Boleos.
Leader creates dynamics by either moving with her step (with) or moving contra her step (contra). In our with and contra free leg exercise, the Leader did not have the right side of his embrace, which forced the Follower to maintain and good connection with her connection, especially in her left hand since that is usually not very good.
Follower Do not be too early. Be on your axis and try to step, even though the Leader does not let you. Do not do the boleo (free leg movement) before you are on axis. That’s fake. It’s later than you think.
We did front contra and back contra boleos, as well as with front and with back boleos.
For the Front Contra boleo, we did it on the sides, outside partner. But this is risky since the Leader steps back. So instead, we put it after the Follower’s ocho instead.
DO NOT ABSORB THE BACK BOLEO WITH THE TOP. DO NOT DO THAT AND THE LEG WILL BE FREER.
We drilled doing forward ochos, and the Follower’s left hand sliding as she goes between the open and close side of the embrace. Follower: Be generous with your pivots so that you can make nice steps around the Leader.
PIVOT REVIEW
Whether the Leader gets a pivot or overpivot depends on how he torques either with rotation or over rotation. The Leader stops his own torsion in his spine, which controls the Follower’s hips. It is the Bon Bon Theory. The Leader moves tiny, but the Follower moves much more in her hips.
We reviewed the Leader rotating himself from the spine versus traveling his partner around him. The Leader’s rotation leads the Follower to pivot (rotating around his spine, so he basically stays facing 12 o’clock, while he torques his upper body around his spine) versus traveling his partner (leading her to step around him in a turn by turning the front of his body for example from 9am to 3pm).
Follower: Have no flex/do not bend your standing leg. Otherwise you will be heavier and slower in your pivot. The free leg is always free. Ground and grow. Keep braline to the Leader. When he pivots her, she answers with her hips/bottom.
We drilled Leader’s leading different types of Follower crosses (ochos): (1) with a small pivot so she moves a bit away from the Leader, (2) with a 180 degree pivot so Follower ochos linearly in front of Leader and there is no going forward away from him or back toward him, (3) with a 270 degree pivot so the Follower does an overturned ocho back toward or very far away from in front of Leader. Follower doing overturned back ochos toward the Leader, and overturned forward ochos away from the Leader. Leader should send the Follower slightly far in her overturned back ocho. The leader accompanies the Follower’s standing leg to go with her, to have coordination with the Follower’s step and his torsion with her hips.
In the Follower’s overturned ocho, the Leader needs more torsion and energy so the Follower pivots 270 degrees as she needs to cover the same distance in the same amount of time as the other options.
Follower: Use your connection, changing from palms to fingers depending on which side he is leading the ocho from and where you are in relation to him. The Leader steps back in the Follower’s overturned back ocho since it travels in the opposite direction.
The pivot and the step are the Follower’s work. The pivot is a powerful, pure, complete pivot, and then she steps. The Follower’s step is calm. Do not do the pivot and step together at the same time, otherwise you will fall.
Leader: Be mindful of the power of your turn and connection of the standing foot. Leader needs to have torque and power. Leaders should be powerful without being rough. He should put power in his torque by pushing with his standing leg and being decisive in his torsion inside of his embrace. He should not overstep the Follower.
Follower: When she gets more power, she needs to answer with her hips, not the top, otherwise she will pull her leader instead of push, in error.
Back to our Free Leg drilling, the Leader stops the ocho so the Follower’s free leg goes up forward. Her braline should still face the Leader and she should maintain good connection with her hands.
END OF MORNING SESSION
Maestra did a short video review of with boleos front and back, where the forward is outside partner.
Adding to our morning work, the Leader adds dynamic to the Follower’s ocho while not coming up, so the Follower’s leg fans out in a big floor sweep as her standing leg does a strong pivot. The Leader stays low, putting the dynamic at the point of the Follower’s pivot, while she is on the floor, without collecting and with extra energy to put the dynamic in the Follower’s free leg. Follower needs to have good, intense connection in her hands. Keeping her braline with the Leader is the key to not moving like a block.
One thing we did was linear energy in the line of the step. The Leader now directs the energy to the pivot, but it’s not arriving soft and then leading the pivot down. The step carries a lot of energy from the beginning. The Leader does not pivot. He just torques his top. The Leader leads a 180 degrees pivot, but he can also lead a smaller pivot but step with energy to get the same result. He should not lead the dynamic pivot in a static way. As he arrives, he changes the direction/dynamic of the pivot. Leader needs to arrive completely before changing the direction of the pivot and stay low because there is no collection. The Leader goes directly into leading the pivot, adding dynamic to the beginning of his side step. The Leader is not collecting in his side step as he pivots the Follower at the same time.
This is the same lead/dynamic as straight linear boleos perpendicular with each other. By giving the Follower extra energy, he changes the shape and draw of the Follower’s free leg by torqueing his top. The Follower having a truly free leg is key.
Follower: do not “help” the Leader. Just do beautiful ochos. Let the Leader create the extra energy and direct it. It’s all about having a lot of energy in the pivot. Do not try to shape the free leg. Try to dynamically pivot the standing leg while staying low and powerful.
Next, we experimented with the Leader adding the dynamic, sending the Follower in a line, and then pivoting the Follower when her leg is in the air. The Follower pivoting her standing leg changes the direction in her hip. We could do this high (looks like the Follower’s embellishment of an air rulo, only completely led by the Leader and the leg unshaped by the Follower) or lower. So for this dynamic, there are two options for timing:
(1) at the peak of the Follower’s leg in the air and then the pivot (looks like air rulo, but is led by the Leader)
(2) later, closer to where the leg goes back down and the Follower collects so it looks like a curved floor boleo, which looks completely different from the first option.
The Leader leads it to the Follower’s standing leg. Follower steps and pivots while her free leg is part way up. This is all about pure timing. Again, Follower should just do beautiful ochos and have great onnection, and her free leg is heavy under her hips.
The Follower’s free leg to be truly free requires that her standing leg be stable and strong. The embrace of the Follower’s right hand with the Leader’s left hand has some compression in the embrace, some flexibility. This makes her stop stepping as the Leader turns her hips clearly.
If you understand the mechanics of the move, then you have more possibilities and places where you can execute them.
To summarize, we did three different types of straight linear “with” free leg movements: (1) straight linear forward to the side (dancers are at 90 degrees though Follower maintains bra line to Leader), (2) Straight linear forward to the side in front of the Leader, then curving as she pivots, as if for an extremely rounded exaggerated ocho with her leg out and truly free, and (3) straight linear forward to the side, with much more energy, and a pivot to change the direction of her hips while her leg is at the highest point in the air (similar to doing an air rulo, only not shaped). This was to help us play with regular ochos and dynamic ochos. We did these as with boleos, with normal feet and crossed feet for the Leader, but
the Leader always goes with the Follower so far. Now we will do contra, which is a countermotion, where the Leader steps opposite the Follower. Here again, it is all about connection of the Follower’s braline to the Leader.
CONTRA
The Leader moves opposite of the intention, so he gets the contra move.
Leader: It’s a motion inside of his foot.
The Leader’s area is his half-moon and the Follower’s area is her half-moon.
Do this for walking: Leader moves opposite to the intention of the next step to lead the Follower contra boleo, like he is changing his mind in stepping.
Follower: Needs connection more than ever, with flexibility in the embrace but not tension. Don’t absorb the lead in your arms but be present.
Follower’s legs move like a whip in contra. The “With” happens on the “go”. The “Contra” happens on the “return”. If the Follower’s free leg is truly free, the Leader doesn’t even need to fully step – just the intention is enough for her leg to be ree.
We drilled walking and then changing the intention.
If the Leader does the contra correctly, he should be able to do it from zero and still produce more of a “return” than a “go”.
The Follower does forward linear boleo. From Follower’s front cross step across the Leader as he moves opposite to Follower. He does not need to step, he can just move his center. Follower: Do not anticipate. The Leader steps back as the Follower’s free leg goes forward. The motion is much smaller. Power is in the leg you push from, not the arriving leg.
Next we drilled face to face, with the Leader giving intention so he goes to his toes, then changes his mind and goes to his heels. The Follower’s leg goes free back and then returns to collect. The Leader can have some expansion inside his embrace.
END OF DAY 2
It was one of the student’s birthday, so we sang Happy Birthday and had cake, baked by Lety! It was delicious, decadent, and divine, a mocha and dulce de leche masterpiece that was yummy and rich. I was amazed that Lety is so talented, a real multihyphenate!
Meals (other than the cake) and work were much the same. Though I did break down earlier and bought a can opener for some sardines I bought here. Normally I bring my own, and they all have pop tops in the US. So when I saw the butterfly style opener at the apartment, I knew I couldn’t use it with the current state of my hands. So I bought the opener, which was a rather princely sum of 4,600 pesos, and not much better than the mini-butterfly one in the apartment. Still, I paid it because I was desperate, as going without sardines and omega 3 fish oil has taken its toll on my body over the last week (and yes, I noticed it and can feel it).
November 1, 2023
Wednesday
Luciana Valle Intensivo B – Day 3
We began with a video review of our first two days of the Intensivo
Back to our Contra work…
The idea of contramotions is moving opposite each other instead of with each other. The Leader puts energy in the previous step. Follower: when you are pivoting, the free leg is completely free. Do generous pivots, even more than the Leaer asks for, and your braline remains with the Leader.
We reviewed with freeing the Follower’s free leg after her forward ocho.
Be mindful that the quality of steps is directly related to the standing and free legs. Follower should anchor, then ground and go, and then go. Stay on your tanding leg and prepare to go. What you see is the free leg, but what is working is the standing leg and axis.
Projection is the beginning of the step. The projection is not separate from the step. If the Leader changes his mind suddenly, he gets a boleo. If he changes his mind subtlely, the leg just comes back.
In working on back intention, the Leader goes to his toes, then changes his mind and steps back to give the Follower a vacuum feeling. Follwer needs to have good connection in her hands. We drilled this back intention.
There’s a difference between moving her leg with moving her axis. The Leader’s embrace is not involved. What is involved is the Leader’s axis. Leader has some flexibility in his embrace on his side, not the Follower’s embrace. The Follower needs to stay in the embrace but not change direction when the Leader leaves.
When doing this from zero, it’s all on the Leader’s pivot. But we can also do it from the walk.
Leader: there is no extra energy for the contra.
The contra is more demanding for the Follower. She needs to have all the subtleties of good walking technique. If something is not clear enough, she will miss some of the lead. The leader moves opposite of the direction of the intention in conra.
Next, we did contras from the front ocho, where the Leader moves in the opposite to the Follower as the dancers are perpendicular to each other.
NEW SUBJECT: TURNS
First, we cleaned up the concept and structure underneath to improve our technique.
The turn is the mother of all circular situations in tango. Yesterday, we worked on the concept of the compass, with the Follower being the center needle and the Leader being the pencil going around. Today, we worked on the Leader being the center, and the Follower being the circle, or the Follower being the center and the Leader being the circle. Although there can also be the Leader and Follower both going around (both being the circle) or the Leader and Follower sharing the center (both being the center, like in shared axis turns).
We worked on the basic turn as an exercise to build a clear center for the Follower.
The Leader pivots the Follower, then he moves from his top to bottom to lead her to walk around him, starting with a back ocho. Leader should be sure to fully collect after his side step. Follower did back, open, and front steps. The Leader rotated in his spine first, and then traveled the partner around, so that he made the center clear for the Follower. He should not be forward, otherwise he will push the Follower away from him.
The Follower should walk around the Leader using curved steps around the Leader, all while remaining on axis with each step. Her pivot goes into her standing leg so that she can do a huge pivot on her back step and forward step. Her pivot is a down to up motion. She needs to walk with moving all of herself. She needs to travel as she is the engine of the turn. From the ocho, the Follower’s job is to have a good overpivot in her back cross step.
In one turn, the Follower has all positions in her left arm as she goes in and out of the Leader’s embrace from very close, to open, to farther away as she steps around the Leader.
Follower: Don’t be on your toes. Propel from your legs to walk around the Leader. Keep hips on top of feet so steps become powerful. Empower each step. The close or open embrace does not change the quality of her step. Take every step in your walk around the Leader.
The Leader moves his top first, then his bottom, on one leg. He should go to his toe, but push with the heel. He should think about his whole foot being on the floor, with axis in the middle. Do not get stuck, and do not go down while leading the Follower to walk around.
END OF MORNING SESSION
The Leader distinction between rotating and traveling the Follower is one of the most important things in tango, as you are always changing the Follower’s hips all the time. The Leader’s torsion around his own back leads the Follower to pivot. Leader: Do not mix up the lead of the pivot versus the lead of the turn, as it is easy for the Leader’s torsion to be mixed up with starting the travel. Don’t do that.
We drilled this in each direction, changing the Leader’s free and standing leg, though always starting with the Follower’s back cross step.
The Leader gets power in his side step to rotate his spine clearly. Do not go down on your side step to lead the turn. Empower the standing leg. The Leader needs the power of the leg to get strong energy in the torsion.
Follower: Be careful in your back cross step. Do not have too much extension in the leg. Step back with your whole body. If you do project/extend the leg, be sure you arrive and really get there.
We added footwork for the Leader:
Leader pivots himself (so his hips go ahead of his top) after his side step (so after her pivot), such that his left foot is in a front cross against his weighted, standing right leg. Leader’s knees are open. (I call this pivot set-up “opening the eye of the needle”.) Then his left unweighted leg goes out in a lapice, and his body moves top, bottom, bottom, top, as the Follower turns around him counterclockwise.
So their footwork is:
Leader pivots on right leg so left leg opens the eye of the needle.
Left leg fans out going forward on Follower’s back step; Leader’s leg fans out to the side on Follower’s side step, (Leader pivots himself again here,) Leader’s leg fans out back on Follower’s forward step, almost meeting her trailing right leg. Said in another way, he pivots her, then he pivots himself to set himself up in the lapice, then he leads her in a turn while his leg goes out in a lapice, ending with his leg going back on her forward step, nearly meeting her trailing right back leg on her forward step. The Leader pivots himself at the end of his lapice. We were try the Leader’s lapice on both sides.
The Follower needs to walk each step of the turn to travel around the Leader. The Leader’s top drives his bottom. The Follower needs to pivot a lot in her steps. At each step, the Follower needs to adjust the embrace as she goes around the Leader, sliding the embrace in at her front step as they end up looking as if they are in a sweetheart pose next to each other. The Leader needs to relax the embrace but not disappear. His standing leg and connection is producing the movement of the free leg. Leader: do not drive from the free leg; drive from the standing leg.
For Leader’s the most difficult part is the first pivot.
Next, we added the parada where the Leader pivots the Follower, and then extends, presenting his left leg to parada after her forward front cross step (instead of ending just facing each other). While the Leader pivots the Follower, he is positioning himself for the take (presentation/extension of his leg). He pauses as he invites the Follower to step over. She should wait for this invitation and not just step over automatically. The invitation to step over is when the Leader rotating his chest. Again, the Leader rotates to lead the Follower the pivot, but travels to lead the Follower to step over.
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: When the Leader puts you in a parade, grow and get straight. Do not get shorter. Leader is down as his leg is extended, but Follower is up. Do not sit in the parade. It’s a collecting movement with the free leg completely released.
We then linked the paradas, doing one directly into the other so the Leader’s worked on the correct timing of pivoting and then extending/presenting his leg.
END OF DAY 3
Meals and work were the same. We were really busy!
November 2, 2023
Thursday
Luciana Valle Intensivo B – Day 4
We continue our work doing circular options.
Followers: The turn has a tendency to eat you, so both the Leader and Follower need to maintain their axis with their toes free of weight. The Follower’s leg fly out in the turn because she has no weight on her heels – which is BAD. Our shoulders need to be on top of our hip bones, because if not, her legs will fly out.
Yesterday, we did the Leader doing his lapice, but added the Leader pivoting himself at the end to add the parada afterward. The Leader’s take is toward the Follower’s standing foot.
The Follower has a top to bottom motion. Everytime the Leader walks around the Follower, she moves the top, then the rest of her body. In Sacadas, Boleos and Planeos, the Leader walks around while the Follower is the center.
When the Leader torques his back, the Follower pivots. When the Leader walks around the Follower, she spirals. (rotating = pivoting; traveling = Leader’s top to bottom motion, Follower: spiraling and walking around the Leader for the Follower, with the Leader setting up a clean center for the Follower to go around).
Follower needs to move after the Leader, and keep her braline toward the Leader.
We drilled combining the Leader’s lapice on Follower’s turn to parada, Leader invites Follower to pass over but keeps her on her arriving standing foot and does not complete the step, as he walks around her so she can planeo. When the Follower is on her adjusted standing leg, her free leg is freely out. After dancers meet again after the planeo, he can add another pivot to another parada, exit, or do another, etc. In the Planeo, when it’s done on the close side, the Leader walks backward; in the open side, Leader walks forward.
Take each step as if it is the last one we will dance. Do not anticipate. Follower: have power in your step so that you give rotation to the Leader. Do a front cross step that goes around the Leader. Her standing foot adjusts all the time as the Leader walks around. She needs to maintain her braline to the Leader. Leader: do not do the take too deep in. It should always be from the middle of the Follower’s foot to her toes.
We drilled this, going back and forth between who is walking and who is the center and who is the circle by combining paradas, planeos, pivoting the Follower, ochos, and lapices. Leader can play with the direction of the Follower’s hips by changing the torque in his top. We were to not repeat any steps sequentially.
Next, we changed the last part of the Leader’s lapice so that he does a back sacada of his left foot during the left (counterclosewise) Follower turn of her trailing right foot on her left foot forward step. The Follower’s last forward step gives the leader extra pivot to do his back sacada. Her embrace needs to slide in to make room for the Leader to give him room to move.
The Leader should think about his standing leg. His top goes, then his bottom goes, even when the Leader is leading the travel, so his body is associated (not disassociated). The Leader’s top drives his bottom. We need to integrate this concept into our bodies, where the spiral travels through the whole axis from top of our bodies to bottom of our standing, weighted foot. Pay attention to this in our next dance. Think about our axis.
END OF MORNING SESSION
We continued to drill and clean up the finer points of the Leader doing his back sacada.
So Leader does the lapice, pivots, sends the Follower, adjusts his bottom, takes the space (projects first, then takes the step). In projecting, he should go with the metatarsal first, then transfer the weight.
Follower should step powerfully and circularly around the Leader, doing a good overpivot on her back cross step around the Leader.
The code of the turn is S-S-Q-Q-S in timing, with the pivots or rotation of the hips at the side steps. The pivots are big and the Follower’s work. She should push (propel) with her standing leg at each step of the turn. She is always moving on the half beat in the turn. Her back step is almost as a Leader’s step. She should just go, and not project. Slowing down or speeding up the turn requires an active Leader. Follower: Do not mix up power with spead, but do really travel. We can do this in close embrace, but in tango, we separate when we want to do something.
Moving 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 are both completely on his/her own axis, but are sharing a spot on the floor where they spin.
We began with an exercise to understand the mechanics.
Leader takes a side step, placing his foot between the Follower’s two feet. He should not go beyond the middle of her foot. (If he goes too far in toward the back of the Follower’s foot, he will compromise her axis and she will be unble to pivot.) The Leader wants to move the axis behind the Follower so the Leader needs to go around the Follower, so he needs to step around her in a curve (in a small step). 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.
Follower needs to maintain the spiral all the time to enable the Leader to step around in multiple steps, if that’s what he chooses to do.
Putting this into the structure of the turn, the Leader sends the Follower around him. The Follower steps around the Leader. At her front cross (ocho) step, the Leader steps with her, letting her pass, then steps 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. 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.
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.
Leader: Do not rush, you have more time than you think. So let the Follower pass before you step.
We tried this on the other side.
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.
Meals and work were the same, though I was starving later on in the evening, so I went over to the BIG PIZZA closest to my apartment. I got my usual 3 empanadas and also a slice of Faina (300 pesos), which was OK, not mind-blowing, but did the job.
November 3, 2023
Friday
Luciana Valle Intensivo B – Day 5
We began with a Shared Axis Turn review (see yesterday’s notes).
Leader: In the preparation step, don’t step too far in to sandwich the Follower’s foot, otherwise the Follower will feel uncomfortable and she won’t be able to pass or pivot. In the Shared Axis Turn step, the Leader’s step is behind the Follower’s axis in a curved step. He can keep stepping around the Follower forever.
Follower: Do not be on your heels or bend your back. Do not rush the spiral, and answer automatically with a pivot, otherwise she kills the possibility of what the Leader can do next, such as the second spin.
The Leader sends the Follower to step first, and then she passes, and then Leader steps behind around her. Leader has more time than he thinks.
Follower: Keep moving in your spiral. Have a dynamic step. This does not mean having a big steap. It can be small or medium, but your weight needs to be fully on top of her axis of her standing foot, not in between as the axis is traveling.
The idea of the spiral, like the Leader walking around the Follower, happens only with almost no distance. Leader can do 1 spin or add another by keep stepping around (on alternating feet). There is always the chance of a second shared axis turn with the leg of the direction oo the turn. Starting with the Leader’s left leg on left turn, or on his right leg on a right turn.
Follower: Be more aware when you are spiraling when (1) Leader is torqueing, or (2) when he is traveling around you. Do good ochs, and be fluid. You will only know when you will be in a shared axis turn when you are in it with the Leader walking behind you. Just keep opening yours spiral. As soon as the braline stays with the Leader, her standing right leg needs to adjust as the Leader steps around her, same is in Planeos. She needs to spiral from her braline with the Leader down into her standing leg as her foot adjusts and goes into the floor. Her top needs to be connected to her standing foot, like corkscrewing into the ground.
Leader: In your second step, if your embrace is too tight in tone, it can kill the Follower’s spiral.
Putting the shared axis turn in the structure of the turn, to the right with his left foot, to the left with his right foot, all in cross system. In doing a right turn, using the Leader’s right foot, he can do a second double spin with his left foot. Or to the left with his left foot, then right foot, then out.
Leader: What makes the difference between a good dancer versus a very good dancer is very subtle. Be precise in your foot placement, as it is very important, as is timing. Do it slow, check it out, and let the Follower pass in shared axis.
END OF MORNING SESSION
New Subject: RHYTHMIC VARIATIONS
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.
Q Q S is 1-3-1.
“Compas” – is the beat where you want to step.
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. 2 and 4 are also inside the beat.
Sometimes we move off the beats – the syncopa, in doing the 1 – 2 – 1 – 1 – 1 – 2 – 1. An example that we’ve already practiced is the small step, then big step.
In the 1-2-1 rhythm, often called the syncopa, the ¼ beat is closest to the 1.
In the 1-4-1 rhythm, the ¼ beat is moved closer to the second 1, so the first step is larger, and the second step is shorter. There is an acceleration before the second 1. This is the most difficult rhythm.
We began with dancing, just stepping with everything on the 1. The dance was mostly walking 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).
Next, we drilled dancing the 1-3-1 and the 1 rhythm. Many steps have the 1-3-1 rhythm such as the ocho cortado, the turn, cross system walking to the cross, the corrida, 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.
You have more time than you think in Tango. In stepping on the “one” – you do not arrive on the “o”, so it’s almost like you are going to be late, but you are really on time when you arrive on the “e”. We push on the “o” and land on the “e”.
Next, we drilled dancing to the 1-2-1 rhythm. There are two pushes: At the 1-2, and then the 1. Here, the 1-2 is the shorter step and the next step to 1 is longer. So we should attack the motion faster on the 1-2, and the energy is completely different, and then release. We drilled dancing to D’Arienzo (who has a lot of 1-2-1 rhythm). We can do 1-2-1 with any weight shift where we put our two feet together. Leader is accelerating and retaining. Then we added the Follower’s turn whereby she could do the 1-2-1 timing, in a regular turn and in the ocho cortado. The Follower can do the 1-2-1 rhythm on her own in the ocho cortado, even if the Leader is leading the 1-3-1, to make/create contrast with the music. We were also to put the 1-2-1 in the corrida with the Leader’s feet together, not stepping, the ocho cortado, or stepping together, or with Follower going to the cross. The Follower can do the 1-2-1 in the turn on her side step, making the step smaller, but the next step will then need to be bigger and very much around the Leader.
The 1-3-1 in the rock step can also be done in 1-2-1. Anyplace where you can get the feet together is where you can put the 1-2-1.
We drilled dancing to several songs to include the rhythms 1-3-1 and 1-2-1.
When the Follower is not traveling in line but is going around the Leader, she can influence the musicality of the Leader, such as when she is turning or doing the ocho cortado. In the ocho cortado and the turn, the Follower can be on the music independently from the Leader, getting back on the music if he’s off because he is in one place while the Follower is going around him. We practiced this with the Leader leading ocho cortados in the 1-3-1 rhythm, but the Follower doing 1-2-1 rhythm instead.
The Follower cannot dictate the musicality if they dancers are walking, except when the Leader is walking the Follower to the cross. There she can be musical. Followers should not rush into the cross.
END OF DAY 5
So what did I think of the 2023 Intensivo A and B two-week experience? I loved it, of course! This is my third time (done in 2009 and 2022) and while some of the content shifted day to day, most of it was very similar, though Maestra’s teaching keeps evolving (as hopefully we all have!), and class assistants are much more vocal and involved with their feedback individually and as a group. Maestra also did many short video review segments throughout all days, which appealed to those preferring to watch them instead of taking notes old school pen and paper style. The class assistants are divine, and there is something magical about being able to drill so intensely with dancers of such a high level (they are all pros). So no blaming them for my personal shortcomings and weaknesses, as it was obvious and crystal clear that those were all mine (not theirs). While still mentally and physically demanding, I found it much less exhausting than previously in general since I know more now and am in a better place physically and mentally. I will be sure to be back next year, and am counting the days to my next trip.
Sergio of Tango Imagen emailed me earlier letting me know my shoes were ready, so I went to the shop immediately after class. I’m super glad I was able to preorder my shoes, and that they were able to fulfill my request, even though they typically don’t do custom orders. Most people just go to the store and buy whatever inventory they have off the rack. Since I knew the exact model and heel height I wanted and gave them free reign on what materials to use, they were very accommodating. I picked up my 11 pairs for USD$75 each, paying in both cash and a small amount in pesos since I didn’t want a ton of pesos back in change, it being my last two days in BsAs.
While at the shop, I noticed that their inventory seemed lighter than usual, and with the higher heel height (8.5cm and 9.5cm), though they also had some newer models with much lower (5.5 cm) in cat / short stiletto heel types (not the more typical thicker/chunkier heels, though some of those were available, too). If I had shopped there the way I usually have done in the past, I suspect I would have only bought 2-3 pairs at most.
Since I don’t work on Fridays and it was my second to last day in BsAs, the plan was to go to as many milongas as possible. LOL.
Dinner was at Treinta Sillas, a closed door restaurant that I’ve wanted to go to for a while but just couldn’t fit it in my schedule. Thankfully, Donna was game for it so we could easily get a table for two without any problem when I emailed for a reservation on Wednesday (I think it would have been more difficult if I asked for table for 1 since the place is so small; I counted 20 seats, despite the name of the restaurant). The multicourse meal was a real bargain at 14,000 pesos (about USD14). The space and food are elegant, elevated, and sophisticated. Service was superb, with the waitstaff explaining what each course was comprised of, and in English. A big thumbs up, and a must-go if you are a foodie and want something different from parilla, burgers, pizza and empanadas.
After dinner, I originally planned on going to La Catedral, but instead went to the closest milonga to my apartment, Milonga Cualquiera (1,500 pesos, Corrientes 6271). There was an amazing live band that night, Cachivache, whose compositions seemed to generally run on the faster, more upbeat side, though their slower songs were wonderful, too. The room was dark, and I didn’t think I’d get many cabaceos, but the crowd was friendly and I managed to get in a few tandas, including with Lucas, one of our class assistants. The dress code is nonexistent, so some dancers were in jeans and many (including me) in dance sneakers, which are more forgiving on the stone floor. There were also female leaders and male followers, and all were welcome. The crowd was similar to the folks who go to El Motivo, though younger and less disciplined, more carefree and creative in their dancing (maybe that was because of Cachivache). One strange thing that gave me pause was, a few songs after the band finished playing, the DJ put on a Peronist anthem, with some attendees enthusiastically singing to while raising their fists. I didn’t know what it was, but Lucas explained it to me. They also did a chacarera, and that was super fun to watch. Overall, I had a really nice time, with the unexpected treat of seeing and hearing Cachivache live. I would go again on future trips, mainly for the location/convenience factor.
Saturday, November 4, 2023
Since I had already picked up my shoes (which I originally planned to do today), there was not much to do in the morning except work on my notes. I was a couple of days behind, so it took a while to get everything down but I managed to do so.
I got an email from Giovanni saying he went to La Catedral, where I had originally planned to go last night, and was disappointed that I wasn’t there. Whoops. Totally my bad. I didn’t tell him about my change in plans. So instead, I planned on surprising him by going to his workplace instead to say goodbye.
So instead I spent the last day doing my best to spend the last of my pesos. I went to La Farola for lunch. They are a chain found all over Buenos Aires, and they focus on Milanesas (my favorite), though they have the usual pizza, pasta, empanadas, salads, etc. I first tired the Dorrego location (on Corrientes) since that was the closest one to my apartment, but after waiting to be seated and being thoroughly ignored (likely because I could have / was supposed to just seat myself), I turned around and walked out, down the street to the Villa Crespo location (also on Corrientes). There I just walked in and seated myself, and was later acknowledged and given a menu. I ordered a Milanesa with 2 eggs with papas (5,600 pesos) and water (1,000 pesos). The meal was delicious, and ample (enough for 2 meals), so I took half of it to go.
Then I made my way over to what I thought was Giovanni’s workplace, but saw that it was closed, and then opening since it was after lunch, but the guy who was there was not Giovanni. So I guess Giovanni now works someplace else, but didn’t mention it. During my journey over the shop, I ran into the Gay Pride parade, which I found amusing.
When I got back to my apartment, I dropped off my half milanesa and papas, and went to the local Coto to pick up some Neugebauer chocolate, as I tried some earlier on the trip and was impressed by the quality. The company is from Brazil, so not an Argentine product at all, but it is delicious stuff and insanely cheap. Then I picked up 3 empanadas for my flight later on that night.
After that, I packed, ate, showered and surfed.
Dante arrived to pick me up a few minutes early, as usual. The Airbnb host met me exactly on our scheduled time and I checked out without any glitches.
It was an awesome trip – life changing, tangowise, and the best I have ever had. Can’t wait to go back!
