How long for newbies
Got into a conversation recently lamenting the fact there it’s very difficult to bring in new people – and guys in particular – to our Tango community. One of the main point, it seems, is that Tango, when compared with, say, salsa, is a difficult dance and so people drop out because of the lack of “instant gratification”. That is, people tend to drop out because it takes too long for them to reach a level where they can enjoy Tango!? A gross generalisation, perhaps, but there is probably some element of truth in there? Perhaps it is happening right in your community?
To a certain extent I’d have to agree with the assessment above. However, since people join Tango for various reasons, with pursuit of excellence being but one of many, I believe it is also fair to say that most people during their initial brush with Tango just want to have fun, and preferably with like-minded people. In fact, in my opinion, it is rather the exception to find people who are very serious and dedicated from the word go, except perhaps for people from competitive dance background, e.g. ballroom/dancesport.
Teach what you know well
A quick search on the internet can reveal many dance schools (not just Tango by the way) offering all kinds of classes and seminars with exotic-sounding topics. For the unsuspecting student – mostly the relatively new people initiated into the dance – such options are mind-boggling.
Personally, I follow a simple rule-of-thumb:
If a teacher can’t dance something on a regular basis, most likely he/she will not be able to do a good job of teaching it, no matter how good the teaching credentials.
The analogy is very much like having someone “cramming” by reviewing videos or secret manuals and then rolling up to the class half an hour later to regurgitate some rote-learned skills AND expect to get paid!?!? I mean, I’d rather look at those videos myself and save some trouble… 🙂
Musicality
Recently some followers questioned the value of taking classes on musicality. To me this was rather strange, which I can only put down to having experienced bad teaching in the past. In my opinion, musicality goes way beyond recognising the stereotypical generalisations for each of the major orchestras, e.g. Pugliese is only represented by his La Yumba beat, D’Arienzo means only the ric-tic-tic marching rhythm and Fresedo means always a certain romantic silkiness. Musicality in a technical sense is more to do with how we can recognise the phrasing in the music, the syncopations, the change from rhythmic to melodic, just to name a few. Ultimately, it allows us – leaders and followers – to transform a series of steps into a moving dance.
So, is there any point for a follower to learn and understand musicality?
Teaching of Tango
Almost any Tango teacher worth his salt – be they of the “resident” variety or the travelling maestros – would have (or should have) struggled with these questions at some point in his teaching career: What do I teach to the students? And in what order should I present what I know?
It goes without saying that considerations for a resident teacher who may (or may not) choose to take on the responsibility of helping a community to grow, i.e starting from raw beginners, will be different from the “hit-and-run” strategies of visiting masters, who may be in town for a weekend or two for a festival or intensive workshops.