Cultural Event

Attending the milonga at the Mercury Café was an extremely unique and eye-opening experience, and helped my understanding of tango come full-circle. The milonga environment was very cozy and inviting, and everyone seemed very happy to be there and open to dancing with a variety of people. For a while I just sat and watched couples dance and observed the movement around the room. I was amazed to see the unique style and movement present in each different couples dance. I was most interested in watching the followers (particularly since that is my role) and seeing the different ornamentations that they used that we haven’t yet learned. Many of the couples seemed so at ease on the dance floor, and some women even closed their eyes while moving around the room. Other couples seemed tentative, sticking to certain steps and moving more slowly around the room. I wasn’t planning on dancing with anyone but I ended up dancing milonga with a man. This was quite difficult because he dances with more complex attention to rhythm and we haven’t work as much on milonga steps as traditional tango. I got pretty nervous and dropped quite a few steps but it was a good first experience and my partner was very patient and encouraging. I really enjoyed the experience and would love to go to another milonga once I build up the courage and skill to do so as well as cabaceo someone.

Never done learning

Today was our final tango lesson. Around this time of year, students are accustomed to the last lesson of the quarter being a wrap up, and leaving that class feeling like they are the masters of the subject in which they took the class. This class was the first class where I left feeling like I was about 10 years away from even beginning to be able to call myself a master in the subject of Tango dancing. Although this sensation left me with an empty feeling right after class today, it is also one of my favorite parts of tango. Nobody is ever done learning, tango really is a lifetime struggle. In tango, there is no such thing as perfect, there is no such thing as done, and that is really the beauty of this tricky dance. I will miss coming to class every friday and to be honest still do not know if I will continue dancing the tango in the future, but it has been an absolute pleasure getting my start in such a warm and welcoming atmosphere where 'perfection' was never an expectation during the start of nearly everyones tango journey.

Dancing With Javier (event)

A couple of weeks ago I went to tango club while Javier was teaching.  He is a very funny Argentine man and his excitement for the tango is apparent.  Javier also has a method of teaching that really makes sense.  Most of the class we spent on technique rather than steps and I think this really helped my understanding of the basic structure of the dance.  He placed a heavy focus on the embrace, specifically how to lean into one another and dance in a close embrace without losing balance.  Also, his explanations on how to follow enhanced my understanding of the role.  He explained that followers should place some resistance on the leader so that the follower does not go until the leader asks her to.  This also makes the leader pay better attention to his signals, ensuring that he gives clear intention before making a move.  The final thing that Javier focused on was how to keep your partner from changing feet so that you can walk outside of her during the basic eight count.  His explanation of slightly lifting the woman while you change feet to go outside of her helped me to again better understand full intention.  Though I was hardly able to dance in a close embrace, this class really helped my understanding of the dance.  

I never thought Tango could be used as a networking event. I was wrong. I am very excited to meet Dr. Newman of the CU Dental School at Anschutz Medical Campus on Friday. So thank you very much to Ann and Steven! I was also very bummed that it was the last Tango Club of the year. I still had a lot of fun dancing with everyone. I think that I am getting better at piecing different steps together so that I am not doing the same thing over and over and over again. I also figured out that I hate the Vals. Its hard enough for me to listen to the Tango music and then to add that on top of it, its just cruel! It will definitely take a lot more practice and a lot of listening to the music to be decent at dancing to Vals music. It was still a fun evening though, and I had a great time!

Week 8

Tango dance is interests me because it is fascinating that so many people relate and share a strong passion for their love of Tango.  I wonder what it is like at other Tango practices and communities in various areas around the world.  I imagine that not one of them is the same.  They each probably have their own personalities, their own style or tweak in how the dance is portrayed and practiced.  I am inclined to check out Tango practices and milongas in the San Diego area when I get home for summer and am done studying the dance.

Week 9

By week 9's class, I have targeted my weakness in my learning of the Tango dance.  I am not quite sure why but I have the tendency to want to lead even when in and practicing the follower's role.  It is not easy for me to always feel my dance partner's inner intention to lead and pick up on their guidance choice of foot to move forward with.  I just came to realize this struggle of mine, and would love feedback of how I can try to fix this minor issue.

The fire

Over the last couple of weeks, I have been inwardly and outwardly expressive of my concerns that the passion that so many tango dancers have raved about on movies and in class might not be experienced by everyone. More specifically, I was worried that I would never catch the Tango bug. I have really struggled dancing this quarter and have quite honestly been pretty frusterated in parts. Yesterday, something amazing happened that made me realize that sometimes patience is truly a virtue, especially when it comes to things that are worth being patient for. I was in the shower and was letting my mind drift and, all of the sudden, I realized I was practicing the 'sandwich' dance move that I had been practicing the day before in class. This moment gave me confidence that maybe I was more right for Tango than I give myself credit for. I sure hope that I experience more moments in the future where Tango infiltrates the out of class moments of my life, and hope to see the passion burn even after I leave Tango class.