We had just finished with the final class of Beginner's course, led by Janko and Mateja, when Janko put his hand on my shoulder and said: »I have one advice to give you now. You want it?« Janko had just recently became a father. His hand was warm and friendly, as was his intention.
»Yes, of course!« I replied hastily. »OK. You see all these ladies here at the milonga,« Janko pointed at the women at the venue, »each milonga, you have to do them all. The pretty, the young and the old and the fat. Every single one of them. You have to dance a lot. This is how you will get good.« I nodded my head and hoped I didn't look too terrified. I didn't feel shy about asking these women to dance. I just felt that I had nothing to offer them. This was my math: a tanda consists of 4 songs. Each song is about 2 minutes and a half, sometimes more. That's a minimum of 10 minutes for a tanda. What do I do for 10 minutes?! Maybe if they played only introductions to songs, like they play trailers for movies, I could perform 4 times 30 seconds of interesting dance. I confessed my concerns to Mateo. He let me in on a secret: »There's a trick. You don't ask for a dance at the beginning of the first song. You go in on the second or even the third song. In this way, should the dance with a particular woman prove to be an unpleasant experience, you only have to endure some 5 minutes or so.« I though the advice was pure gold. I just had my big problem cut in half! But a half of a big problem is still a considerably large problem... ...
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Argentinian Tango course for beginners was coming to an end. Next week we would begin with advance course. Advanced, after just two months? I didn't think so. I was definitely in my infant phase, learning how to walk and all.
That Friday's evening we had a class in musicality. Something changed in me. I was no longer in my head, controlling my feet and the rest of my body. I was with music and with Barbara, my dancing partner. Taking away the ambition to master a new move has freed me. I was rejoined with an old friend, the music. Funny enough, I had never particularly liked tango music. It bothered me with it's rustic sound design. It bothered me even more that I could not distinguish between songs, nor could I remember and recognize any of them. To me it was all the same, tango music. As the common belief has it, it supposedly induces dancers with passion. And we all know what Buddha's thoughts on that were... But that Friday the music spoke to me, moving me and my partner, effortlessly. |
AuthorBlaz B, social tango dancer since February 2015. I'm sharing these posts to inspire future tango beginners, to encourage today's beginners and to possibly entertain those dancers, who have already become regulars at tango heaven.
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