Song: Silueta Portena by Juan D'Arienzo
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 26, 2010, Ashland, Oregon
Cristina Favorite Milonga Moves with Juan D'Arienzo
Typewriter Pitter Patter and Bandoneon Pitter Patter
We began with an exercise where we lifted our heels without raising or changing our height. Our knees needed to be bent. We were to keep our thighs together, pretending there was a quarter between them that we didn't want to drop. With our heels, knees, and thighs this way, we were to work forward, and then walk back, and then in a circle. This is also known as the "butterfly" or "schmedling."
Next, we were to take our imaginary quarters, drop it, but catch it before it hits our knees. We practiced this going side to side in circle formation to D'Arienzo's Silueta Portena.
CHAPTER 1: THE TYPEWRITER PITTER PATTER
The typewriter pitter patter can be done in tango, vals or milonga. In this class, our focus was on milonga.
For the exercise, the footwork for the Leader began with forward left foot, side right foot, weight change, give Follower a extra hug and lift, and then turn at the waist to the Leader's right. She then does the typewriter pitter patter to her left.
Next, we did a hug exercise. The Leader hugs the Follower with all of his back, surrounding the Follower with his whole body. Here, the Leader was to find the sweet spot on the Follower where he can surround her just below the rib cage.
Next, he was to provide a little bit of lift, by raising his diaphragm as the Follower lifts from her body. The rib cage spreads out, the shoulder blades go down to oppose the upward momentum of the Leader's lift.
We were to practice giving "extra" hugs versus "normal" hugs.
We also practiced finding the sweet spot on other dancers, tall/short, fat/thin, standing chest to chest, trying to find the sweet spot of connection. The Leader's arms will follow that line usually, that's the sweet spot.
For the Typewriter Pitter Patter, there are two parts to the lead:
(1) the Extra Hug
(2) the lift from the Leader's whole body. The Leader needs to turn his body up to 90 degrees without moving his feet, really disassociating.
To D'Arienzo's Silueta Portena, we practiced this with the Leader forward left foot, side right foot, weight change, give Follower the compression lift (extra hug and lift), and then turn at the waist to the Leader's right as he disassociates. She then does the typewriter pitter patter to her left and then back to her right as his torso goes back to his center with no disassociation. Then the compression is released and goes back into regular embrace.
Follower should not worry if she ends up on the wrong foot after the pitter patter. The Leader will figure out where to put her.
We talked about the psychological lead. Psychological leads depend on how well we hear the short staccato notes to physically interpret it in our feet. We can also interpret with lyrics. Here, Cristina sang the lyrics to a tango song. She is great!
For the Typewriter Pitter Patter, Follower takes small steps so that it's a manageable lead for the Leader's torso.
VARIATION: OPEN EMBRACE
One variation we worked on was to do it in open embrace.
Leaders: How do you encourage the Follower's pitter patter? He can put it into his feet because the Follower wants to copy him. So they do it together. He can also walk it out with her, either in a line or a circle.
VARIATION: IN PROMENADE
Another variation we worked on was to do the Typewriter Pitter Patter in promenade with the Follower to the Leader's right in promenade. Here, the Leader gives her a sideways hug and lift, and also limits the Follower's range of motion. As long as the Follower stays with the Leader in Promenade, she can do the pitter patter. The Leader can't force the Follower to do the Pitter Patter.
VARIATION: OFFSET TYPEWRITER
Another interesting variation we worked on was the Offset Typewriter. We also changed the music to D'Arienzo's La Cicatriz. In the Offset Typewriter, the Leader goes one way in pitter patter, while the Follower goes the other way, and then there is a small jump at the end where both dancers end up back together in front of each other. Here, the Leader needs to loosen the embrace a little, but still give an extra hug and lift. He extends his right arm away so the Follower goes farther away from him, while he goes to his left in pitter patter.
BANDONEON PITTER PATTER
Maestros showed, but we did not do the Bandoneon Pitter Patter, which is when the Pitter Patter this movement goes forward and back (instead of left and right). This is called “The Bandoneon Pitter Patter” because the movement is similar to the Bandoneon bellows compressing and expanding.
FINAL CHAPTER: THE HULA HOOP (A PALETTE CLEANSER)
This move is not for everyone.
The Hula Hoop has a down energy, but still has extra hug and compression. Maestros showed us with a tango demo to D'Arienzo's La Bruja.
In exercise, we tried standing face to face with open legs and split weight, and space between dancers, with a sway left to right. As the Follower is in the middle weight, the Leader sends her out and the Leader goes out back in opposition. Next, we made the exercise more challenging by having the Follower's feet together. Here, it forced the Leader to be more sensitive regarding where her weight was. The Leader needs to be selective in where he inserts this move. For the Hula Hoop, the Leader compresses the embrace, and then does the down (hula hoop), and then goes back to regular embrace.
The class concluded with a student review and maestro demo.
Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Milonga Fundamentals with Francisco Canaro (Beginner Class)
Song: Silueta Portena by Francisco Canaro
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 26, 2010, Ashland, Oregon
CHAPTER 1: PHRASING
TANGO CHACARERA
We began with an exercise to help us on milonga phrasing through the tango chacarera. In chacarera formation with the Leaders all in one line and the Followers facing them all in one line, we took four steps forward and four steps back, signifying one phrase in the music. We made eye contact with each other, and our arms were in the air, as if we were doing the chacarera.
Building on this, we then freely danced, doing four steps forward and four steps back.
Our music for this exercise was D'Arienzo's Milonga Vieja Milonga, which is a very regular milonga. Most tango songs are well behaved (predictable), especially Milonga Vieja Milonga.
PAUSING AT THE END OF A SENTENCE
Next, in a partnered exercise, we worked on pausing at the end of a sentence. Here, we were to only do weight changes, walk, or rock steps. We were not to do any turns, ochos, double time steps, or traspie. Our goal was to show that we were able to control our pauses at the end of the sentence. Both Leader and Follower need to actively hear the music.
Our next exercise focused on the Follower educating the Leader. The Leader pretends that he doesn't know where the break is. The Follower tries to educate the Leader in a subtle way. Later on she can be a little more aggressive. The Follower is not to back lead, but subtly suggest ideas to the Leader where the pause should be.
She can do these subtle things:
hand signal (slight squeeze)
move hips
move shoulders
soft taps with hand
deliberately slow down
use breath to mark the end of the phrase
Basically, she should keep her subtle suggestions and signals in her upper body, and not use her legs and feet. Otherwise, she will be back leading.
The secret agenda for this exercise is to empower the Follower.
Without back leading, the Follower can add accents to the music.
When we really know the music, we will know it, we will own it and it will come easier.
CHAPTERS 2 & 3: GROUNDING
Our next exercise was to work on being grounded. First, we walked on the strong beat by ourselves. Next, still by ourselves, we were to walk randomly still on the strong beat, and then imagine there is water/puddles on the floor and "splash" someone silently (not stomp) at the pause.
Our next exercise to continue our work on being grounded involved walking together in partnership, with one dancer's hands on the other dancer's hips. We did this with both the Leaders and Followers. The dancer pushing down should not bend at the waist. The Posture needs to be maintained, with good uprightness, and torso up. The dancer whose hips were being held down was to use their connection with the floor to get power. We were to be into the ground.
Q: What does grounding mean?
A: The act of not falling. You can be on the ball of the foot, but you need to be over your foot as you step.
Since this was a beginner class, the instruction was given that in milonga, you should stick to the strong beat. If you step on the strong beat in milonga, you will never go wrong. Keep it simple. You can get in trouble when doing double time/traspie.
Maestros demonstrated dancing a half song to a fast milonga: Meta Fierro by D'Arienzo. They showed that just by stepping on the strong beat, you should be able to talk and not be out of breath. If you are out of breath, you are dancing too hard.
Next, we danced 30 seconds to a medium-speed milonga: Silueta Portena by Canaro. Then we changed partners and danced for 30 seconds to the same song with our new partner. We were to include "splashes" (accents/pauses), little or big.
Next, we danced 30 seconds to a faster milonga: Meta Fierro by D'Arienzo. Then we changed partners and danced for 30 seconds to the same song with our new partner. We were to work the splash and step on the strong beat.
The Leader is responsible for initiating movement. More control has to deal with how quiet the Leader can make his upper body (with no bopping up and down or weird torso rotations). Later on, he can use the upper body as styling, but not a dance technique. The Follower also needs to be calm and quiet in her upper body to hear the Leader's lead.
CHAPTER 4: FIND THE DOUBLE TIME/TRASPIE SYNCOPATION TOGETHER
We began with an exercise doing the box steps by ourselves, Leader on one side, Follower on the other.
Follower steps are back right, side left, change weight, front left, side right, weight change.
Leaders steps are front left, side right, weight change, back right, side left, weight change.
We were to put this box step over the rhythm of the song Milonga Sentimental by Canaro, where everything is on the strong beat, with our goal to hit the phrasing/end of the sentence. We were to hit the 1-2, and double double time and still hit the end of the phrase.
With the box step we can play with different grounding energy.
To get out of the box step, we walk out of it. Here, we can soften the embrace momentarily and then cut out to the outside to walk out of it.
We concluded the class with the "San Francisco exercise". Again, dancing to Canaro's Milonga Sentimental, we did the box step where when we heard the "1" in the song, that was where the "San" would be in our steps. The "2" is where the "cis" in "Francisco" would be. The rhythmically correct spot where the traspie would go would be at the "2 and".
Do not do traspie all the time. You can do it around the "1" if the melody is a little crazy. This would be called the "butterfly effect".
The class concluded with a student review and maestro demo.
Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 26, 2010, Ashland, Oregon
CHAPTER 1: PHRASING
TANGO CHACARERA
We began with an exercise to help us on milonga phrasing through the tango chacarera. In chacarera formation with the Leaders all in one line and the Followers facing them all in one line, we took four steps forward and four steps back, signifying one phrase in the music. We made eye contact with each other, and our arms were in the air, as if we were doing the chacarera.
Building on this, we then freely danced, doing four steps forward and four steps back.
Our music for this exercise was D'Arienzo's Milonga Vieja Milonga, which is a very regular milonga. Most tango songs are well behaved (predictable), especially Milonga Vieja Milonga.
PAUSING AT THE END OF A SENTENCE
Next, in a partnered exercise, we worked on pausing at the end of a sentence. Here, we were to only do weight changes, walk, or rock steps. We were not to do any turns, ochos, double time steps, or traspie. Our goal was to show that we were able to control our pauses at the end of the sentence. Both Leader and Follower need to actively hear the music.
Our next exercise focused on the Follower educating the Leader. The Leader pretends that he doesn't know where the break is. The Follower tries to educate the Leader in a subtle way. Later on she can be a little more aggressive. The Follower is not to back lead, but subtly suggest ideas to the Leader where the pause should be.
She can do these subtle things:
hand signal (slight squeeze)
move hips
move shoulders
soft taps with hand
deliberately slow down
use breath to mark the end of the phrase
Basically, she should keep her subtle suggestions and signals in her upper body, and not use her legs and feet. Otherwise, she will be back leading.
The secret agenda for this exercise is to empower the Follower.
Without back leading, the Follower can add accents to the music.
When we really know the music, we will know it, we will own it and it will come easier.
CHAPTERS 2 & 3: GROUNDING
Our next exercise was to work on being grounded. First, we walked on the strong beat by ourselves. Next, still by ourselves, we were to walk randomly still on the strong beat, and then imagine there is water/puddles on the floor and "splash" someone silently (not stomp) at the pause.
Our next exercise to continue our work on being grounded involved walking together in partnership, with one dancer's hands on the other dancer's hips. We did this with both the Leaders and Followers. The dancer pushing down should not bend at the waist. The Posture needs to be maintained, with good uprightness, and torso up. The dancer whose hips were being held down was to use their connection with the floor to get power. We were to be into the ground.
Q: What does grounding mean?
A: The act of not falling. You can be on the ball of the foot, but you need to be over your foot as you step.
Since this was a beginner class, the instruction was given that in milonga, you should stick to the strong beat. If you step on the strong beat in milonga, you will never go wrong. Keep it simple. You can get in trouble when doing double time/traspie.
Maestros demonstrated dancing a half song to a fast milonga: Meta Fierro by D'Arienzo. They showed that just by stepping on the strong beat, you should be able to talk and not be out of breath. If you are out of breath, you are dancing too hard.
Next, we danced 30 seconds to a medium-speed milonga: Silueta Portena by Canaro. Then we changed partners and danced for 30 seconds to the same song with our new partner. We were to include "splashes" (accents/pauses), little or big.
Next, we danced 30 seconds to a faster milonga: Meta Fierro by D'Arienzo. Then we changed partners and danced for 30 seconds to the same song with our new partner. We were to work the splash and step on the strong beat.
The Leader is responsible for initiating movement. More control has to deal with how quiet the Leader can make his upper body (with no bopping up and down or weird torso rotations). Later on, he can use the upper body as styling, but not a dance technique. The Follower also needs to be calm and quiet in her upper body to hear the Leader's lead.
CHAPTER 4: FIND THE DOUBLE TIME/TRASPIE SYNCOPATION TOGETHER
We began with an exercise doing the box steps by ourselves, Leader on one side, Follower on the other.
Follower steps are back right, side left, change weight, front left, side right, weight change.
Leaders steps are front left, side right, weight change, back right, side left, weight change.
We were to put this box step over the rhythm of the song Milonga Sentimental by Canaro, where everything is on the strong beat, with our goal to hit the phrasing/end of the sentence. We were to hit the 1-2, and double double time and still hit the end of the phrase.
With the box step we can play with different grounding energy.
To get out of the box step, we walk out of it. Here, we can soften the embrace momentarily and then cut out to the outside to walk out of it.
We concluded the class with the "San Francisco exercise". Again, dancing to Canaro's Milonga Sentimental, we did the box step where when we heard the "1" in the song, that was where the "San" would be in our steps. The "2" is where the "cis" in "Francisco" would be. The rhythmically correct spot where the traspie would go would be at the "2 and".
Do not do traspie all the time. You can do it around the "1" if the melody is a little crazy. This would be called the "butterfly effect".
The class concluded with a student review and maestro demo.
Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Homer & Cristina's Tango Teacher Training Class Handout
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
December 1, 2010, St. Louis, Missouri
Click here to download the teaching training seminar class handout from Homer & Cristina Ladas' presentation in St. Louis, Missouri, in December 2010.
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
December 1, 2010, St. Louis, Missouri
Click here to download the teaching training seminar class handout from Homer & Cristina Ladas' presentation in St. Louis, Missouri, in December 2010.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
How to Cure the Follower's Forward Walking Phobia
Song: Si Tu Quisieras by Miguel Calo
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 15, 2010, The Beat, Berkeley, CA
The music for our class was Miguel Calo with Podesta on vocals.
Q: Why do Followers hesitate when asked to step forward?
A:
It could be because Followers are trained to walk backward all the time, so they are not used to walking forward.
They feel insecure.
They are afraid they might step on their partner's foot.
Maybe they do not feel comfortable getting into the Leader's space.
EXERCISE 1: STEPPING FORWARD WITH WEIGHT TRANSFER EXERCISE
We began with an exercise, where we lined up so that we could see our spines in the mirror as we looked sideways.
We were to stand as straight as we could.
Then we started to shift our weight, from left to right and back again, really feeling connected to the floor.
We were to try to feel where the weight is distributed on the foot from side to side and forward to back.
Then we put our weight on our left foot, pushing our left foot into the floor more than usual (about 5-10% more), without bending our knee but keeping it soft, and keeping our spines straight.
Then we reached forward with our right foot.
We also tried this on our opposite feet (putting the weight on the right foot pressing into the floor and reaching with the left foot).
In this exercise, our legs and backs are really working.
Left foot is grounded.
Right foot reaches forward.
Transfer the weight by moving the spine forward.
The goal as we take these forward steps is to not change the articulation of the spine as we transfer weight.
That is, we should not plank back, lean forward, or fall into our step when we take our forward steps.
Our spines move through the space in a vertical position to make the weight transfer nice and smooth.
Also, we were not to go down too much as we take our forward step.
The length or strength of the forward step depends on how you connect with the floor with the standing leg.
EXERCISE 2: FOLLOWER FORWARD STEP WITH ELASTICITY IN ARMS AND WAITING FOR THE LEAD BEFORE GOING
Phase 1: In partnership with Leader and Follower facing each other, hand in hand in open embrace, the Leader steps back, the Follower lets the embrace open up but still has tone in her arms, and then she steps forward AFTER she feels the lead and AFTER the Leader begins his step back (she does NOT step simultaneously with the Leader).
Phase 2: Similar to Phase 1, only the embrace opens up less, and the Follower does not take as much time before she goes (but she still waits for the lead and does NOT step simultaneously with the leader).
In the Follower's forward step, she reaches first, pushes with her standing leg, and then goes. She should not pre-empt the Leader's lead by matching him step for step. She is supposed to lag behind, really waiting for and feeling his lead as he steps back, leading her to take a forward step.
To begin this exercise, the Leader shifts weight a few times to be really clear regarding what leg he wants the Follower to be on.
The Follower should try not to change height when she takes her steps, and not plank back or lock her arms. Her arms need to be flexible to allow the embrace to open up, and yet she must also still have some tone in them.
EXERCISE 3: FORWARD OCHOS WITH BIG FOLLOWER STEPS
Most forward steps are curved, walking steps around the Leader. Our next exercise focused on the Follower taking curving steps around the Leader with a long forward step.
With Leader in teakettle hold (both his arms behind him at the small of his back, elbows out to the side), he was to lead the Follower to do forward ochos, really taking big side steps and reaching as far as he can. This will force the Follower to take big, strong forward steps in response.
The Leader should be even in his chest rotation as he leads her forward ochos, as the Leader's tendency is to be uneven, with one side being more open than the other. We were to try to correct this by being as even in the Leader's chest rotation as possible.
The Follower's goal is to try amplify the Leader's chest rotation in her hip rotation to really pivot. Also, she should make her forward step nice and smooth.
In this exercise, the embrace was not to be too hard or stiff or too loose. It should be al dente.
EXERCISE 4: SIMULTANEOUS FORWARD OCHOS
In partnership, we did forward ochos together, with our forward step reaching for our partner's trailing foot.
Our goal was to keep our spines nice and stable, and use the pushing energy of the standing leg as we did our ochos. We were to add pressure with our whole foot as we reach and transfer weight.
EXERICSE 5: CONTINUOUS SACADAS
Leader and Follower are in open embrace, hand-to-hand hold, and we did continuous right foot forward ochos and left foot sacadas around each other.
Follower does her right foot forward ocho clockwise, stepping around the Leader, and then the Leader does his left foot sacada of her trailing left foot.
Leader does right foot forward ocho clockwise, during which Follower steps forward into the Leader in her left foot sacada. Here, the Leader steps a little away from her, not around her, so that she has room to do her sacada and so that he does not block her from walking into him.
It is important that the Follower have an elastic embrace, as one arm extends as the other arm flexes.
Both Leader and Follower should have long forward steps, and have good quality of their sacada.
The Leader needs to continually rotate his chest and open his right shoulder so that the Follower knows where to step and he doesn't get in her way. So the fundamental lead is for the Leader to turn to his right.
In this exercise we are working on two kinds of forward steps:
(1) curving and around the Leader
(2) pivoting a lot, and then doing a direct step forward. This is not a cross step. You just have to go for it, pushing into the floor and then going.
To make this exercise more challenging, we could do it with the Leader in teakettle embrace (both hands at the small of his back, elbows out to the side), which would compel the Follower to have elasticity in her embrace, really demanding that the Follower be responsible for the extension and flexion in her arms.
EXERCISE 6: CLOSE EMBRACE FORWARD OCHOS WITH FOLLOWER LONG STEPS
In close embrace, the Leader leads the Follower in forward ochos. The Follower should take big long steps and not truncate the steps and jamming the Leader. She should make the Leader rotate around to meet her.
We are to practice these exercises at home. That is our homework. As we work on our technique, these concepts can be applicable to other areas of our dance.
The Follower's default steps should be LONG as long as it goes with the music and she stays with the Leader. The Follower often takes too short of a step or truncates the step, which kills energy and/or the next movement.
After our class review, maestros did a demo to Calo's Si Tu Quisieras.
Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 15, 2010, The Beat, Berkeley, CA
The music for our class was Miguel Calo with Podesta on vocals.
Q: Why do Followers hesitate when asked to step forward?
A:
It could be because Followers are trained to walk backward all the time, so they are not used to walking forward.
They feel insecure.
They are afraid they might step on their partner's foot.
Maybe they do not feel comfortable getting into the Leader's space.
EXERCISE 1: STEPPING FORWARD WITH WEIGHT TRANSFER EXERCISE
We began with an exercise, where we lined up so that we could see our spines in the mirror as we looked sideways.
We were to stand as straight as we could.
Then we started to shift our weight, from left to right and back again, really feeling connected to the floor.
We were to try to feel where the weight is distributed on the foot from side to side and forward to back.
Then we put our weight on our left foot, pushing our left foot into the floor more than usual (about 5-10% more), without bending our knee but keeping it soft, and keeping our spines straight.
Then we reached forward with our right foot.
We also tried this on our opposite feet (putting the weight on the right foot pressing into the floor and reaching with the left foot).
In this exercise, our legs and backs are really working.
Left foot is grounded.
Right foot reaches forward.
Transfer the weight by moving the spine forward.
The goal as we take these forward steps is to not change the articulation of the spine as we transfer weight.
That is, we should not plank back, lean forward, or fall into our step when we take our forward steps.
Our spines move through the space in a vertical position to make the weight transfer nice and smooth.
Also, we were not to go down too much as we take our forward step.
The length or strength of the forward step depends on how you connect with the floor with the standing leg.
EXERCISE 2: FOLLOWER FORWARD STEP WITH ELASTICITY IN ARMS AND WAITING FOR THE LEAD BEFORE GOING
Phase 1: In partnership with Leader and Follower facing each other, hand in hand in open embrace, the Leader steps back, the Follower lets the embrace open up but still has tone in her arms, and then she steps forward AFTER she feels the lead and AFTER the Leader begins his step back (she does NOT step simultaneously with the Leader).
Phase 2: Similar to Phase 1, only the embrace opens up less, and the Follower does not take as much time before she goes (but she still waits for the lead and does NOT step simultaneously with the leader).
In the Follower's forward step, she reaches first, pushes with her standing leg, and then goes. She should not pre-empt the Leader's lead by matching him step for step. She is supposed to lag behind, really waiting for and feeling his lead as he steps back, leading her to take a forward step.
To begin this exercise, the Leader shifts weight a few times to be really clear regarding what leg he wants the Follower to be on.
The Follower should try not to change height when she takes her steps, and not plank back or lock her arms. Her arms need to be flexible to allow the embrace to open up, and yet she must also still have some tone in them.
EXERCISE 3: FORWARD OCHOS WITH BIG FOLLOWER STEPS
Most forward steps are curved, walking steps around the Leader. Our next exercise focused on the Follower taking curving steps around the Leader with a long forward step.
With Leader in teakettle hold (both his arms behind him at the small of his back, elbows out to the side), he was to lead the Follower to do forward ochos, really taking big side steps and reaching as far as he can. This will force the Follower to take big, strong forward steps in response.
The Leader should be even in his chest rotation as he leads her forward ochos, as the Leader's tendency is to be uneven, with one side being more open than the other. We were to try to correct this by being as even in the Leader's chest rotation as possible.
The Follower's goal is to try amplify the Leader's chest rotation in her hip rotation to really pivot. Also, she should make her forward step nice and smooth.
In this exercise, the embrace was not to be too hard or stiff or too loose. It should be al dente.
EXERCISE 4: SIMULTANEOUS FORWARD OCHOS
In partnership, we did forward ochos together, with our forward step reaching for our partner's trailing foot.
Our goal was to keep our spines nice and stable, and use the pushing energy of the standing leg as we did our ochos. We were to add pressure with our whole foot as we reach and transfer weight.
EXERICSE 5: CONTINUOUS SACADAS
Leader and Follower are in open embrace, hand-to-hand hold, and we did continuous right foot forward ochos and left foot sacadas around each other.
Follower does her right foot forward ocho clockwise, stepping around the Leader, and then the Leader does his left foot sacada of her trailing left foot.
Leader does right foot forward ocho clockwise, during which Follower steps forward into the Leader in her left foot sacada. Here, the Leader steps a little away from her, not around her, so that she has room to do her sacada and so that he does not block her from walking into him.
It is important that the Follower have an elastic embrace, as one arm extends as the other arm flexes.
Both Leader and Follower should have long forward steps, and have good quality of their sacada.
The Leader needs to continually rotate his chest and open his right shoulder so that the Follower knows where to step and he doesn't get in her way. So the fundamental lead is for the Leader to turn to his right.
In this exercise we are working on two kinds of forward steps:
(1) curving and around the Leader
(2) pivoting a lot, and then doing a direct step forward. This is not a cross step. You just have to go for it, pushing into the floor and then going.
To make this exercise more challenging, we could do it with the Leader in teakettle embrace (both hands at the small of his back, elbows out to the side), which would compel the Follower to have elasticity in her embrace, really demanding that the Follower be responsible for the extension and flexion in her arms.
EXERCISE 6: CLOSE EMBRACE FORWARD OCHOS WITH FOLLOWER LONG STEPS
In close embrace, the Leader leads the Follower in forward ochos. The Follower should take big long steps and not truncate the steps and jamming the Leader. She should make the Leader rotate around to meet her.
We are to practice these exercises at home. That is our homework. As we work on our technique, these concepts can be applicable to other areas of our dance.
The Follower's default steps should be LONG as long as it goes with the music and she stays with the Leader. The Follower often takes too short of a step or truncates the step, which kills energy and/or the next movement.
After our class review, maestros did a demo to Calo's Si Tu Quisieras.
Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Homer & Cristina’s Tango DJ Workshop Presentation
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 5, 2010, Perth, Australia
Click here to download a Tango DJ workshop presentation that Homer & Cristina Ladas delivered in Perth, Australia in November 2010.
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 5, 2010, Perth, Australia
Click here to download a Tango DJ workshop presentation that Homer & Cristina Ladas delivered in Perth, Australia in November 2010.
Homer & Cristina's Tango Teacher's Training Presentation
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 2, 2010, Perth, Australia
Click here to download a teacher training seminar slide show that Homer & Cristina Ladas presented in Perth, Australia in November 2010.
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
November 2, 2010, Perth, Australia
Click here to download a teacher training seminar slide show that Homer & Cristina Ladas presented in Perth, Australia in November 2010.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Sure Footed but Feather Light
La Abandone y No Sabia by Ricardo Tanturi
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
October 13, 2010, Cellspace, San Francisco
There are many ways to dance tango. In this class, we would explore very light connection, feather-light connection. To do this, it is critically dependant that the dancers have really solid connection and control with their feet on the floor. A lot of this depends on how you use the standing leg and how you transfer weight.
By learning how to dance lightly, we are really working our feet, ankles, and legs and our connection to the floor. This helps us work on technique.
Weight Transfer
We began with an exploration of how we shift our weight simply standing. When we shift our weight, do we do it with our heels first, and then the toes? Or do we do it with our toes first, and then the heel? For our feet, does the weight transfer go from the outside edge rolling in? Or does it go from the inside edge rolling out? Answer: The foot should roll from the inside to the middle of the foot, not all the way to the outside.
We practiced this, standing with both feet on the ground, and then with the weight being on our left foot, and touching the inside of the right foot to the floor, to shift the weight to be on our right foot, with the inside of our left foot touching the floor. This weight shift does not take much torso motion. Our goal was to be sensitive, be subtle, and be controlled.
Weight Shift in Context of Side Step
Next, we did side steps with our right foot. Here, when we took the side step to the right, we were to focus on just transferring weight from the inside of our right foot to the middle of the right foot, and then pull our left foot in as our upper thighs and legs zip up together. Both legs work to create the collection, and we should push off from our standing leg (not just reach with our stepping leg). We tried this with both our left foot and right foot side steps.
Weight Shift in Context of Walking
Starting with our weight on our right foot, we were to reach back with our left foot, focusing on pushing off with our standing leg, pulling up with our left leg, to collect. We did this with both our left leg as the standing leg and our right leg as the standing leg, focusing all the while on pushing off with the standing leg, transferring the weight smoothly (no kerplunking), and pulling up with the other leg. We also tried this with our forward walk, with both left and right legs.
Reaching Game
Next, we played a connection game called the Reaching Game. The Leader stands with legs together and without moving. Follower’s two hands are on the Leader’s upper pectoral muscles high near his shoulders. The Follower does not put weight on the Leader, but stays connected to him at all times while also being light in her touch at all times. He is to be subtle in his weight shift so that she as a Follower also shifts her weight in response. After a few tries with this, and to make sure they are connected, he then tries to get her to start taking a step back. He does this by flexing his ankles, but remaining upright in his torso (he should not lean in on top of her or tip forward). The initial goal of this game is to become more sensitive toward each other, and to be more subtle and clear in the lead and more responsive in the follow. Once the Leader has mastered getting the Follower to reach with her foot (and the Follower has mastered responding to the Leader’s lead), he can allow the weight to fully transfer so she takes a complete back step. We tried this reaching game in both open and close (chest-to-chest) embrace.
The Leader needs to remain upright and lifted in his chest and not plank forward/lean in on top of her/tip forward, and the Follower needs to keep her connection to the Leader consistent with no hiccups and no vacuuming/pulling him into her. Her step should be as smooth as possible with no kerplunking.
We tried this reaching game while dancing to the music (doing walking only), single time and double time.
Again, the Follower’s step should be as smooth as possible with no kerplunking and no jolting – which is when her body tenses up suddenly as she gets ready to take a step. In the Follower’s step, she should push into the floor more to compel her body to stay there and not get away (jolt away). She should have strong legs to be connected to the floor.
Simple Figure
We were to incorporate all these aspects of weight transfer and connection doing all that we learned in a simple figure: Leader’s side step left / Follower side step right, to two Follower back steps with simultaneous Leader forward step outside, and then Leader forward step inside, to Leader side step right / Follower step left. We were to practice this simple figure only with no other additions (no ochos, no rock steps, etc.), although pausing and weight changes in place were OK. We could also curve the steps if we needed to to get around in the line of dance.
We were to also to practice this in open and close embrace. In close embrace, the connection should be sternum to sternum, not belly to belly. As dancers, we should hold our bellies under our ribs so that it seems like our legs come from our rib cage.
For this class, we focused a lot on quality of movement of our feet, ankles and legs. If we do good practice in our tango development, it lays a good foundation.
Maestros concluded with a demo to Tanturi’s La Abandone y no Sabia
Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://www.freshlaundrytango.info
October 13, 2010, Cellspace, San Francisco
There are many ways to dance tango. In this class, we would explore very light connection, feather-light connection. To do this, it is critically dependant that the dancers have really solid connection and control with their feet on the floor. A lot of this depends on how you use the standing leg and how you transfer weight.
By learning how to dance lightly, we are really working our feet, ankles, and legs and our connection to the floor. This helps us work on technique.
Weight Transfer
We began with an exploration of how we shift our weight simply standing. When we shift our weight, do we do it with our heels first, and then the toes? Or do we do it with our toes first, and then the heel? For our feet, does the weight transfer go from the outside edge rolling in? Or does it go from the inside edge rolling out? Answer: The foot should roll from the inside to the middle of the foot, not all the way to the outside.
We practiced this, standing with both feet on the ground, and then with the weight being on our left foot, and touching the inside of the right foot to the floor, to shift the weight to be on our right foot, with the inside of our left foot touching the floor. This weight shift does not take much torso motion. Our goal was to be sensitive, be subtle, and be controlled.
Weight Shift in Context of Side Step
Next, we did side steps with our right foot. Here, when we took the side step to the right, we were to focus on just transferring weight from the inside of our right foot to the middle of the right foot, and then pull our left foot in as our upper thighs and legs zip up together. Both legs work to create the collection, and we should push off from our standing leg (not just reach with our stepping leg). We tried this with both our left foot and right foot side steps.
Weight Shift in Context of Walking
Starting with our weight on our right foot, we were to reach back with our left foot, focusing on pushing off with our standing leg, pulling up with our left leg, to collect. We did this with both our left leg as the standing leg and our right leg as the standing leg, focusing all the while on pushing off with the standing leg, transferring the weight smoothly (no kerplunking), and pulling up with the other leg. We also tried this with our forward walk, with both left and right legs.
Reaching Game
Next, we played a connection game called the Reaching Game. The Leader stands with legs together and without moving. Follower’s two hands are on the Leader’s upper pectoral muscles high near his shoulders. The Follower does not put weight on the Leader, but stays connected to him at all times while also being light in her touch at all times. He is to be subtle in his weight shift so that she as a Follower also shifts her weight in response. After a few tries with this, and to make sure they are connected, he then tries to get her to start taking a step back. He does this by flexing his ankles, but remaining upright in his torso (he should not lean in on top of her or tip forward). The initial goal of this game is to become more sensitive toward each other, and to be more subtle and clear in the lead and more responsive in the follow. Once the Leader has mastered getting the Follower to reach with her foot (and the Follower has mastered responding to the Leader’s lead), he can allow the weight to fully transfer so she takes a complete back step. We tried this reaching game in both open and close (chest-to-chest) embrace.
The Leader needs to remain upright and lifted in his chest and not plank forward/lean in on top of her/tip forward, and the Follower needs to keep her connection to the Leader consistent with no hiccups and no vacuuming/pulling him into her. Her step should be as smooth as possible with no kerplunking.
We tried this reaching game while dancing to the music (doing walking only), single time and double time.
Again, the Follower’s step should be as smooth as possible with no kerplunking and no jolting – which is when her body tenses up suddenly as she gets ready to take a step. In the Follower’s step, she should push into the floor more to compel her body to stay there and not get away (jolt away). She should have strong legs to be connected to the floor.
Simple Figure
We were to incorporate all these aspects of weight transfer and connection doing all that we learned in a simple figure: Leader’s side step left / Follower side step right, to two Follower back steps with simultaneous Leader forward step outside, and then Leader forward step inside, to Leader side step right / Follower step left. We were to practice this simple figure only with no other additions (no ochos, no rock steps, etc.), although pausing and weight changes in place were OK. We could also curve the steps if we needed to to get around in the line of dance.
We were to also to practice this in open and close embrace. In close embrace, the connection should be sternum to sternum, not belly to belly. As dancers, we should hold our bellies under our ribs so that it seems like our legs come from our rib cage.
For this class, we focused a lot on quality of movement of our feet, ankles and legs. If we do good practice in our tango development, it lays a good foundation.
Maestros concluded with a demo to Tanturi’s La Abandone y no Sabia
Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com
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