Monthly Archives: July 2019

Group class, Milonga, Progress update

Kicking off the Just Dance phase, and a new approach to the blog

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Just Dance

I’d decided that moving fully into a Just Dancing phase – as in ceasing all lessons for a time – was just a bit too radical for now. In part because pre-milonga group classes are the best way to meet followers and decide which ones I’d like to cabeceo given the opportunity.

But my focus at present is very much on enjoying the dance, and worrying less about what I’m learning. Which also, I think, needs a new approach to the blog, but I’ll get to that …

Continue reading Kicking off the Just Dance phase, and a new approach to the blog →

Group class, Milonga, Progress update

Fewer classes, more dancing (though not in 37C temps …)

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fewer classes more dance

As someone put it today, it’s 37C in London and Boris has just been appointed PM: we have officially entered hell.

No more so than in the back room at the Shield Cafe, which is an oven at the best of times …

Continue reading Fewer classes, more dancing (though not in 37C temps …) →

Group class, Practica

Changing direction, in small and large ways

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changing direction

Tonight’s Tango Space topic was changing direction. I wasn’t sure what approach to this Fede and Julia would be taking, but in the practica beforehand M wanted to have a go at another method of doing so: the movement from the Boston intermediate class.

I’d shared the demo video of this, and M thought it looked fun. It was indeed, and I hadn’t yet succeeded in leading it as taught, so was happy to give it a go …

Continue reading Changing direction, in small and large ways →

Group class, Milonga

More basics, more presence, more musicality and one more milonga

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more

Of course, getting the final piece in my vocabulary jigsaw puzzle doesn’t mean that I can rest on my laurels for a while. Indeed, having made the decision to stick to simple, musical dance, then that puts all the focus on my technique!

The idea of today’s private with Julia and Fede, then, was just to dance and for them to figure out the priorities for refining my technique …

Continue reading More basics, more presence, more musicality and one more milonga →

Private lesson, Progress update

Getting the last piece in my ‘simple, musical dance’ jigsaw puzzle

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jigsaw puzzle

This week has been an eventful one in my tango journey!

On Monday, deciding to finally put Pablo’s actitude advice into practice, and set aside my inhibited Brit persona during dance – and immediately seeing how well this worked even in a class.

On Tuesday, verifying that I can actually do this in a milonga, albeit with some caveats. On Thursday, finally being able to drop maths from my tango syllabus. And today, a lesson with Diego which put into place the last piece in my ‘simple, musical dance’ jigsaw puzzle …

Continue reading Getting the last piece in my ‘simple, musical dance’ jigsaw puzzle →

Progress update, Theory

There’s no tango maths required after all!

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tango maths

Sometimes a tango teacher will say something that’s blindingly obvious once they’ve said it, but which hadn’t occurred to me before then.

One earlier example was the times I was unsure where my follower’s weight was. The blindingly obvious solution to that, of course, is to lead a weight-change – then you’ll know where it is because you just put it there! And yesterday Irina Zoueva kindly messaged me in response to my previous blog post …

Continue reading There’s no tango maths required after all! →

Progress update

Where next?

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where next

Now that I have a clear focus for my tango, and the necessary reassurance that it’s a good idea, it seemed a good time to look at where my learning should go from here.

At the end of the current Tango Space cycle, I’ll have completed it twice, at mixed levels …

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Group class, Milonga

The good and bad news about finding my dance

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connection

After successfully setting aside my dance inhibitions in yesterday’s practica and lesson, it was now time for the real test: how well this would work in a milonga!

The good news is that the answer is … very well indeed. The bad news is that it comes with a caveat: with the right conditions …

Continue reading The good and bad news about finding my dance →

Group class, Practica, Progress update

Finally losing the future tense in ‘You’re going to be a very nice dancer’

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breakthrough

Tonight was a real breakthrough for me.

Have you ever made a decision, carried it out and then got immediate and undeniable evidence that you made the right choice? That’s what happened to me tonight …

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Theory

A difficult question, that turned out to have a very simple answer

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playlist

I posted at length last month about the kind of dancer I want to be, the executive summary of which was:

  • A warm embrace
  • Dancing to the music
  • A clear and comfortable lead
  • A collaborative dance
  • Simple things, done well

That second bullet is key …

Continue reading A difficult question, that turned out to have a very simple answer →

Milonga

Getting an impromptu class upgrade in Boston

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Boston Tango Society

I was spending a couple of days in Boston, and was lucky enough to be upgraded on my flights – but that wasn’t the only upgrade I got. On Wednesday evening, I found myself in an intermediate class for the very first time …

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Progress update

My nine-month appraisal – a rather different beast to my six-month one

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assessment

Three months ago, I gave myself my six-month appraisal, and made what I felt at the time was a level-headed decision:

So I think that’s where I’m at with it. A year of lessons, culminating in a trip to Buenos Aires. If I call it a day at that point, I’ve experienced a whole new world, made some lovely new friends, and had a glorious adventure. But if I feel that I’ve reached a point where what I do in a milonga feels like dance, then I’ll stick with it.

Nine months in, things look very different …

Continue reading My nine-month appraisal – a rather different beast to my six-month one →

Workshop

Musicality workshop #4 of 4: The emotional and human side of musicality

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human musicality

The official title of the final musicality workshop was The freedom of expression. The emotional and the human side of musicality in tango. Olga said last week that it would be all about finding our own personality in the dance.

I’ve written at length about where I think I’m headed, but I was very curious to see what perspectives Olga would offer, and whether that might in any way change my expectations and aspirations …

Continue reading Musicality workshop #4 of 4: The emotional and human side of musicality →

Group class, Milonga

More crossed crossing, and some counter-clockwise circling

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crossing

I was feeling relaxed about tonight’s improver class, as the cross in cross system was essentially working yesterday (when I remembered to do the leader-only weight-change, doh!). So tonight would be a chance to work on my technique.

After that, my plan was an hour’s dance in the milonga, then trying to recruit a few volunteers to help me practice my giros in the practica from 9pm …

Continue reading More crossed crossing, and some counter-clockwise circling →

Group class, Practica

The cross in cross system, without getting cross

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cross system.jpg

As I started doing the improver as well as beginner classes at some random point in the cycle last time, there are things in the improver class I’ve done before, and other things I haven’t. The cross in cross system is one of the latter.

I wasn’t wildly optimistic, for a couple of reasons …

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Milonga, Outdoors

Mad dogs and Englishmen …

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spitalfields tango

There is something special about dancing outdoors. My introduction to the art had been in a Hyde Park bandstand in April, followed by Spitalfields in May. Another visit to the latter yesterday maintained my newly-established ‘one outdoor milonga per month’ tradition.

It was a very warm day, with temperatures in the 24-26C range, but at least there was a bit of a breeze with it …

Continue reading Mad dogs and Englishmen … →