Saturday February 4th 11am – 1pm I am hosting a Lunchtime Practica at Plaza de Anaya Fusion Studio at 524 W. Broadway in Tempe. This is an opportunity to involve my new 8 week fundamentals class to the idea of Practicing and to other dancers. I am looking forward to integrating them into a positive experience of social Argentine Tango.

I have 40 brand new students in that class and they are enthusiastic and very focused. I look forward to introducing them to everyone who joins us. SO come on out and get some practice in!

ASU TANGO EXPERIENCE PLUG March 2, 3, 4, 2012

I want to continue to encourage people to register for the ASU Experience. And if you have never danced before TANGO 101 will be just for you. I can’t stress enough the quality of instruction, the new format that will be explored, and the good time we will have. Here is a list of highlights:

The TEACHERS

*Graciela Gonzalez will be in town for the festival and for a week. She is available for private lessons. She is the teacher most responsible for changing my dancing. I am honored to have her with us again. Don’t miss out.

*I had the pleasure of taking a Tango Teachers course with Tomas Howlin last year and respect him highly as a teacher. He has lots of great stories and incredible information to share.

*Jaimes and Christa run the 8th Style School in Seattle. They too come with a breadth of knowledge and in-depth understanding of the dance form. I am happy that they will be joining us!

The CLASSES

* There are only 6 classes during the festival. Each class slot is designed with a different concept in mind. For example: the first class on Friday is conceptually about “Walking, The Embrace and Connection”. The teachers who will be teaching at that time have been asked to design a class around that concept. AFTER each class there is a 30 minute PRACTICE slot for you to spend time refining what you learned, dancing, playing, meeting new people OR asking the instructors on hand for more assistance on that particular class.

* Take advantage of this new design. We know you’ll love it!

The MILONGAS and the DJ’s

* 5 milongas – plenty of dancing time over the weekend. These include Friday night at the historic Tempe Woman’s Club, Saturday night at the beautiful ASU Art Museum and the all-nighter on the Gammage Promenade, Sunday will be in the Memorial Union with the option of a pasta dinner. There is also an alternative milonga planned for Saturday afternoon.

* Our DJ’s have been chosen by the Tango Club as some of their favorite DJ’s. Mike from Portland milonga scene, Michelle from Albuquerque, Shorey from San Francisco, and our very own Acacia. We love these DJ’s and know how important it is for them to keep us dancing. I know they will.

The PRICE

* This is one of the most economical festivals. ASU Tango Club created the festival for a love of the dance and not for a business. A full pass is just $185.

* Registration is through google checkout. There have been some glitches with it but don’t despair. Just send a check or let me assist.

AND FINALLY- YOU!

Those people we enjoy dancing with. We have lovely dancers joining us from Portland, OR; Seattle, WA; Minneapolis, MN; MA; CA; DC; and all over AZ!

Keep dancing!

daniela

As a part of the weekend we conducted a 3 hour coaching session in Sedona for  5 couples. We were told ahead of time that what their core group needed and wanted was some very specific guidance and some 1 on 1 time for corrections.

Rommel and I created a 3 hour session for them beginning with simple bare bones exercises and some revealing connection exercises then building to each couple picking the 1 thing in their dancing that they would like to address in front of the group. “What’s your beef?” We framed this session by asking the couples to show and to keep the language as factual as possible as we all know that there is always 2 truths, 1 for each person.

We were able to dig deeply and to address each couple’s “annoyance”. These range of “annoyances” I feel are very common in tango: the molinete, the embrace, back ochos, working on the closed side of the embrace, and stopping the follower where and when the leader wants to!

Do any of these ring true for you in your dancing?

For this courageous and hard working group, we were able to hone in on the leaders right arm, the “bucket handle”, the “regulator”, the “fence”, the “gate keeper”… all the affectionate words that we have given to this particular part of the embrace. We spent some time speaking about the relationship of the elbow in connecting to the follower in the embrace. Remember that if the leader raises that right elbow there is now more space for the follower to creep into and if that elbow is positioned more to the side of the body or even more towards the back of the body, the follower will be hanging out there too. This side of the embrace usually forms based on comfort, the shape and how comfortable the follower is when she is in the embrace, also how much tension is in the leaders pecs probably also plays a part. Correcting it also seems to be very challenging and practically unique to each couple. How much tension does there need to be in this side of the embrace was also addressed. As the nicknames suggest, there needs to be enough tone in that side to assist in keeping the follower where the leader would like her to be and within range, meaning with relationship to the leaders body.

I do not want to get into a discussion about the wide varieties of leads through this leaders right arm but there does need to be clear information transmitted through that appendage!

Working with this group also put all the tiny details of creating back ochos into a spotlight! And as we know there is cause and effect at play, all those things you learn in a lesson go out the window for the follower if she is struggling with her embrace or connection to her leader in those back ochos. Understanding the relationship of the leader to the follower in the timing of the ochos definitely helps the mechanics of the movement. The relationship of the followers pivot to the leader, the relationship of the leaders step to the followers as well. It is a constant informational circuit between leader and follower. Giving and receiving and giving information throughout the dance.

I am looking forward to more tango coaching sessions in the near future. Let me know if you and your partner would like to be a part of the next coaching session.

Thanks to those dancers in Sedona – keep dancing!

And for those of you who will be in town – come join me and a new batch of dancers on February 4th from 11am – 1pm for the First Practica at Plaza de Anaya World Fusion Studio in Tempe. Rommel and I will be there to answer questions and to assist in your practice.
Plaza de Anaya is located at 524 W Broadway Rd Suite 107, Tempe AZ 85282
Practica fee $7

What an amazing week! ASU started their classes and I had 60 NEWBIES – all of them new to Argentine Tango in my Tango 1 class. They are an enthusiastic bunch and eager to learn. Even with just 2 classes they have reminded me about the importance of our “tango walking body”. How do I walk? and What am I carrying around at the moment? Can I find my axis and stack myself up for my Tango Walk?

I have around 22 students in my Tango 2 class and they immediately grasped onto some more advanced walking concepts and have totally impressed me!

My Interlingua class is really small and intimate (comparatively). The vibe is so different from my big classes. It’s refreshing to be able to answer individual questions from everyone and to feel that I am able to help each one of them on a personal level.

Tonight was my first class at Plaza de Anaya. This is pretty much the first time that I have stepped into a studio setup to teach. It is a studio with a really nice comfortable feeling and to my delight we had an amazing group of 40 students there! It was an eclectic mix of dancers asking magnificently detailed questions, musicians, people coming from work, etc. We laughed quite a bit! The energy was festive and joyous.

Already into the 2nd week of 2012 I am easily reminded why I love to teach. And in turn I remind you all that it’s a courageous thing to start something new. And always that first step, that first class is sometimes the most difficult.  So CONGRATULATIONS to all the new courageous people I have met this week in their beginning Tango Journey.

Reminders:

ASU Tango Festival is less than 7 weeks away!!!!  Register now for a fantastic weekend of Argentine Tango Instruction and Dancing and at unbelievable price.

http://tangofest.events.asu.edu/node/18

Talented instructors handpicked for this event – Jaimes and Christa will be here from Seattle, La Maestra Graciela Gonzalez will be here from Buenos Aires, and Tomas Howlin will be in from Montreal.
DJ’ing the milongas will be Mike McCarrel (Portland, OR), Michelle McRuiz (Albuquerque, NM), Shorey Myers (San Francisco, CA), and ASU’s very own, Acacia Crouch.
A weekend not to miss!

There is still time to register for Semester Long courses:

Paradise Valley Community College
NEW INTERMEDIATE Argentine Tango
Begins 01/26/2012- 05/03/2012
Thursdays 7:45pm – 9:35pm
DAN125AE #38688

Scottsdale Community College
Beginner Argentine Tango
Begins 01/24/ 2012 – 05/11/2012
Tuesdays 7:15pm – 9:15pm
DAN125AE #36054

AND

Rommel Oramas and I will be in Flagstaff and Sedona on January 21 & 22.

Keep dancing…

daniela

Dancing usually falls into this category. “I wanted to try something new” is why some begin their journey into Argentine Tango. And I get very excited in the New Year to welcome new people to Argentine Tango and its benefits.

We have all heard of the benefits of dancing or of any exercise for that matter:  increase flexibility, movement lubricates the joints, endurance, coordination, strength, burns calories, stimulates the brain, oxygenates the blood, allows for self-expression, increases self-esteem, and helps with social skills. (I really like this chart on the benefits of dancing – http://www.nrde.org/benefitsofdance.html)

For many people I have seen Argentine Tango completely transform their lives through these benefits and most specifically through the actualization of a sense of belonging, their sense of community.

I have seen many dancers transform from being very shy people to finally having an outlet for expression in their lives. Some have gone from being not very popular in their work or every day life to very popular in their tango circles.

I think the Argentine Tango community in general is a research project for a “Group Dynamics” seminar but for the sake of this post I wanted to comment on the sense of belonging that I have felt over the years.

I was born with the travel bug. I love to travel and when I couldn’t because I was so focused on my dancer career, I dreamed about it and watched the travel channels and bought travel magazines. I eventually have been able to take many tango vacations – making contacts with tango people in many other countries to connect and share in their community for a visit. I know many people who do this but my world of travel was very different before I found tango. The idea of going anywhere in the world and having people to share tango with was amazing and fantastic to me. Technology has subsequently made this idea even more accessible. We can connect through Facebook or through other “social platforms” with friends we have met and their friends and find milongas all over and people who will be at that milonga when you arrive…. FASCINATING really!  And what this has also allowed is a way to connect through others joys and sorrows as well.

In the last few months, since October, Tango has lost 3 young tango dancers who have been a part of my extended tango family. And the news was relayed through the internet through Facebook. And the impact of the loss is felt in waves as people share their stories and their sorrow for all the Facebook world to see.

We are a community – a Tango Tribe, if you will, filled with a diverse group of people. We sometimes connect and other times don’t,  we have good dances, like having a great day, and we have not so good dances, like having a bad day. Either way, whatever kind of day it is remember that the community is actually quite small. These 3 young lives remind me of the preciousness of life and of the connections we make every day – on the dance floor and off the dance floor. I am reminded to be a gracious person. And that the benefit of having such a large interconnected tango family is to be able to share what we have in a positive way.

Remember why you love to dance and why you love to share it with others. Be grateful and thankful to the community that shares in your self-expression.

In Memory of Anne Sophie, Pablo, Andrea for all that you shared and gave to our collective community.

A highlight is always the new students that I meet and watching them dance! Some students move on and some get hooked! Some even return from long distances. I was very fortunate this year to be a part of 180 new students at ASU’s tango journey and to be a part of ASU’s first tango festival. I marveled at the creativity, ingenuity, and steadfastness of those who made that festival a first!

I traveled to several new cities making new friends, sharing more tango, bonding with some furry pals, and even re-connected with old friends at my high school reunion.

To challenge myself is to grow and sometimes it can change even my strong opinion about things. 2011 did just that with my first tango competition with my partner, Rommel Oramas, placing 5th. (read about it here.) Thank you Rommel for all the fun performances and festivals we have experienced together.

Thank you 2011 for the great dances and the new shoes! Thanks to all of you who have been a part of my growth as a teacher, a dancer, organizer, consultant, and a human being.

2012 is sure to bring new surprises, new challenges and new students!

May 2012 bring you all much happiness, abundance, compassion, success, love, and peace.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Well, the Women’s Retreat was a wonderful way for me to connect with other women in tango. There were varied levels of experience in tango amongst us. There were some great conversations and insights into our shared interest of leading and following. I was delighted that a few older women commented on their excitement about the younger generation interest in tango. “Who is going to carry on when we’re gone?” I remember hearing this from some older students of mine as well.

I was inspired by sharing conversations with one lovely Hannah from the Portland area – an articulate brilliant young woman exploring and finding her way in tango. I was impressed by so many things she had to share but particularly by her interest in keeping the “cabaceo” alive and kicking. In her community – she says that people know already that she uses the cabaceo and she encourages her students to use it.

What is the “cabaceo”? There are many writings on this art of asking someone to dance but in a nutshell it is a word that comes from  Spanish or specifically castellano (Argentine Spanish) cabeza which means head. The cabaceo is the invitation to dance: a lock of the eyes, a simple subtle nod of the head, and typically from a distance. It is an invitation that no one else needs to know about. It is an invitation that can also be rejected without embarrassment, ideally. This means, for example, if someone catches my eye from across the dance floor and I choose not to dance with him then I do not lock eyes with them or nod my head in agreement. That leader may then move on looking for his next follower without “losing face”, so to speak.

Some of us use it strongly in our communities others not as much. But it seemed that there was a general consensus that the cabaceo works and is good for tango. The leader or a follower can ask for a dance through the use of the cabaceo and also be rejected from a dance by not acknowledging it. It was also remarked that the rejection needs to not necessarily be taken so personally. Someone mentioned that if you are “cabaceoing” someone all night and they have not caught your eye – then maybe they are trying to tell you something. This is sometimes hard to accept especially in smaller communities where everyone tends to know each other. I think the cabaceo works well in all circumstances actually.  We also spoke about cabaceoing another follower to dance with. This dynamic doesn’t seem to have been worked out completely yet… but I think in communities where followers know that other followers are leading the cabaceo works the same.

Upon my return from the retreat and back to the classroom for the final days of classes at ASU I was struck by 1 of my more enthusiastic beginners’ interest in discussing the cabaceo and how he had spent time researching it online. He too has decided that the cabaceo is worth keeping and using and was encouraging the rest of the class to try it out.

SO I think the cabaceo is still alive and well even in Tempe, AZ. I know many members of the community enjoy using it and you’ll be seeing more of my students trying it out!

How’s your cabaceo?

Classes at Interlingua AZ at 5107 N. 7th Street, Phoenix, AZ 85014-3107
Level I
January 10th – February 7th
Tuesdays 6:00pm – 7:15pm
5 lessons of 1 hour each and 15 minutes of practice. Price: $75 per person $150 per couple. Max 5 couples

Level II with Rommel Oramas
January 12th – February 9th
Thursdays 6:00pm – 7:15pm
5 lessons of 1 hour each and 15 minutes of practice. Price: $75 per person $150 per couple. Max 5 couples

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

NEW Classes at Plaza de Anaya at 524 W. Broadway Rd, Tempe, AZ  85282
Fundamentals 8 week course
January 12th – March 1st
Thursdays 6:15pm – 7:15pm
Contact Plaza de Anaya to register – (480) 894-8777

 ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

Spring 2012 Semester Long Courses:

Paradise Valley Community College
NEW INTERMEDIATE Argentine Tango
Begins 01/26/2012- 05/03/2012
Thursdays 7:45pm – 9:35pm
DAN125AE #38688

Scottsdale Community College
Beginner Argentine Tango
Begins 01/24/ 2012 – 05/11/2012
Tuesdays 7:15pm – 9:15pm
DAN125AE #36054

Arizona State University
Mondays and Wednesdays
Begins 01/09/12 – 04/23/12
DCE 110 (18483) – 6:45pm-8:15pm
DCE 210 (18517) – 8:30pm-10:00pm

 ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

REGISTER NOW!
Teachers are talking about this new unique tango experience!

ASU Tango Experience 2012 – A New Kind of Festival
March 2, 3, 4, 2012

http://tangofest.events.asu.edu/

 ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

I was asked to teach a “playshop” for this women- in- tango retreat. After much thought as to what to share with a group of women who know both leading and following roles I decided upon an exploration of a center of driving force in our lives, our pelvis.

The pelvis and tango? Think about it – where do those legs that take you walking originate from? and what about that torso?

The bones of the pelvis.

Can you identify this as being a part of your body?

It has been my experience, both as a modern dancer and in my studies of Mindful Movement (SM), that even an awareness of some of the boney landmarks of the pelvis can improve posture and mobility. Much of my modern dance training was around an awareness of the connection of my sits bones (ischial tuberosities) to the floor and from my coccyx (tail bone) to my head.

My playshop this weekend will be centered around an awareness of the bones of the pelvis and how that awareness can help in our leading and our following.

I presume most of you are sitting down reading this. Let’s try a little exploration. First, uncross those legs. Place both feet on the floor (or change chairs so you can). Can you feel your sits bones on your chair? If you can feel them place one hand at your pubic bone and the other hand on the lower small of your back, at your sacrum. Now, just imagine breathing into both of your hands. Take about 5 deep breaths here or more.

Then get up and go for a little walk. Notice anything?

Sometimes just from feeling the sits bones on the chair the spine straightens out. With time and awareness the legs often find their place in their sockets which allow for greater mobility. The awareness of the dimensionality of the pelvis reminds me that I am not just the front of my body in 1 dimension and that I bring all of me when I move through life – front and back!

I tie this back to tango not just for posture and for walking but also because I have often heard teachers refer to “the hips”. Hmm – where are your hips? What are the hips? I just looked it up – it appears that the “hips” cover a lot of area  – the butt, the top of the legs… to me, who loves details, I want more specificity. Some teachers refer to it meaning the leg joint – the iliofemoral joint and they ask us to walk or to turn with more flexion in this joint. What if you don’t have a lot of movement there in the first place? Could be a challenging movement to find.

I know that followers are also exploring their roles more through the use of their “hips”. This begins a whole new subject for me relating to the planes of movement of the pelvis. 1 is dropping the pelvis – which I believe throws the spine out of whack and influences the leaders connection to the legs and pelvis and has begun to change the embrace in many ways. And the other is the rotation of the legs in the pelvis – which sometimes causes more pelvic tilt anteriorly (which looks like sway back or sticking out the butt).

The body is a fascinating thing, isn’t it? These are just thoughts about the pelvis in dancing. Remember that we are all built differently and I think any dance form invites you to discover who you really are and to share that with the world.

Let me know if you have any discoveries and I’ll share mine when I return.

(Thanks to Gray’s Anatomy and Wikipedia for the image of the pelvis.)

I was along for the ride and to assist Meng in the classes. And I performed with him, not just once but several times over the weekend. I even was exposed to a little Meng choreography!

This brought up a few tango questions that I have yet to address and they pertain to performing.

It appears that there are several levels of performing in the tango world: socially at a milonga as an informal demonstration, performing at a festival could be improvised or choreographed and then tango for stage. I have always thought and this has been discussed amongst my colleagues that performances by tango couples at a festival is sometimes arbitrary or even boring! Some festivals don’t have any performances and some have MANY performances! I think it is a part of my job as a tango teacher, advocate, coach, educator to perform. My dance background was really about performing and choreographing so how is that different in tango. Well, here’s the glitch. Some dancers are better teachers than performers and visa versa. I personally think that there should be some ‘coaching’ for those teachers who are “obliged” or asked to perform often at milongas or during festivals. And who sets the bar for what makes us “like” or enjoy a performance?

We can argue a few points. From my theatre and dance background I have learned certain criteria for “better” choreography and better performing, better positions of the body relative to the audience (ie: no crotch shots or butts to an audience), also positions of a performance space in relation to the audience (ie: drama happens in the center). There is also the point about how to “bring in” the audience to a dance form that looks a little strange from the outside. I mean, there are 2 people dancing usually very close (as some of my students observe) and they don’t look at each other. They sometimes intertwine their legs sometimes they move fast or slowly. Sometimes there is dramatic tension through the movement itself and sometimes it just looks like you’re watching something intimate through a window, like a peeping tom. I think dancers don’t always know any of this. But again I ask the question – what makes 1 couple interesting to watch perform and the other look like just another improvised tango performance at a festival?

I think choreography sometimes helps some of these situations. A couple can plan certain movements in advance to certain parts of the music to bring in a sense of tension or release or playfulness. Maybe a couple who practices a lot together helps with this and if they are choreographing they must be dancing and practicing a lot together! Maybe the dancers’ relationship to the music? Maybe just technique? Maybe a combination of all of these elements. And I will let this idea sit with you.

I post here several videos of Meng and I performing at the milongas of the Retreat weekend. They are improvised. He and I practiced a little bit. He showed me a little bit of choreography. He had a plan! And my goal was to dance with him as beautifully and comfortably as possible!

Due to technical difficulties – the following post includes videos of Meng Wang and I performing at Relics Restaurant in Sedona, AZ