1.) This exercise can be done by seasoned dancers, and should be actually, but won’t be for a variety of reasons, as well as the absolute beginner. a.) The seasoned dancer doesn’t read this stuff, they feel it’s beneath them (mostly). b.) The seasoned dancer will take one look at the video above, or just screenshot image and completely disregard what’s here because I’m barefoot. And lastly, c.) I’m a man talking about Follower Technique, what on earth do I have to possibly state about Follower Technique let alone a Follower Exercise ????? Answer, quite a bit. Which you can review here. 

Truth be told, the sooner that you start doing this exercise, the easier things will get in more ways than can imagine.

2.) The simplicity of the exercise itself is beguiling on multiple levels, and also exceptionally frustrating IF and ONLY IF you are honest with yourself. If you’re not honest, then the exercise is exceptionally easy and a complete waste of your time.

So what are you being honest about ? Where you’re landing your foot and more importantly HOW you’re landing your foot (supination), where you’re sending your leg (the extension), how much opposition you’re actually engaging (extreme opposition), what’s going on with your arms, hands, and your head (where’s your head pointed)! This exercise, done properly, should challenge you in every way possible. The tolerances involved should push you to your extremes, it should push you beyond your comfort zone. And that’s what we want, we want you outside of your comfort zone. Why ? It is only through pushing beyond that zone, that change and awareness begins to happen.  Further the exercise is the embodiment of a simple but overriding principle of Tango Topics: Overshooting to Under do! Why is that relevant here ? Because if you can do this stuff in the extreme, then doing it in the minimal, will be a piece of cake for you, because you’ve already done that and more! That’s why. So you being honest with yourself and what your body is doing is kinda important.

3.) Seemingly you’re never going to apply any of this stuff. Not true. You’re going to apply it everywhere. Here’s just 2 benefits. a.) You’re extensions. Sometimes called ‘Projections’. Cleaning those up will visually create the lines that you’re looking for. Do yourself a favor, video your walk going backwards from your hips down, from the side. Do it in skin tights or stalkings please, not a skirt. You need to see your legs. You’ll be surprised at a few things, most notably how much you bend your knees (more on this later), and more importantly how unattractive and inconsistent your extensions are. b.) You should start to notice how unstable you are. How much you wobble when you walk, and the fact that you more than likely can not follow a straight line going backwards! And all done without holding onto someone else. If you’re wobbling that much by yourself, imagine what’s happening in the embrace with someone else!! For those of you that will argue, “that’s what the Lead is for”…No, it’s not. No one likes to be used to hold someone else up. No one. If the roles were reversed (and I have done this with Female Follower students), more than likely you wouldn’t like it either. So what on god’s green earth makes you believe that a Male Lead/er would like it ? Answer ? They don’t. So…not so much with that. This exercise will help you with your stability, with your control, with your executions of everything that you can imagine and more that you can’t.

4.) Socks or Bare feet. In the video above I’m not wearing any shoes. That immediately and completely discredits the validity of what I’m saying in the video. To those people I say this: The barefoot thing is all about feeling your foot in contact with the floor. The shoes, whether you know it or not, are compensating for you in more ways than you’re currently aware of. So we want to remove any and all compensation! We want you to feel the floor with your foot and not the shoe impacting the floor. And remember this is an exercise.

Further still on this topic, at some point later on, we do engage what we call ‘heel work’. Where we engage all of the work above, and then some to apply it in heels, only because you’ve done it with precision, control, containment, and you’ve built up the necessary strength in your tendons, it’s not so much of a bother to be in a pair of heels. The only difference now is that you have control over them. Versus wobbling all over the damned place.

Put another way, as you know a pair of heels is not an easy thing to manage. They’re wobbly bits that seemingly has you balancing on the head of a pin. Yes you look hot in them, and they’re very sexy but let’s get real ladies, those things are downright uncomfortable after about an hour in them. And if you haven’t trained yourself to be in them, properly, that hour seems like six! And 2 hours….good lord, let alone 6 hours in them!!!! Training ? What training ? Isn’t endurance enough ? No. Endurance is not training. It’s learning to manage the pain. You can learn to be in a pair of heels through a process that we call “The Ballet Rise”. Only through doing this work can we build the necessary tendon strength that we’ll need going forward to be in a pair of heels, in a controlled, contained way. 

Realistically though, a foot, any foot, shouldn’t be in a pair of heels. It’s not good for your blood flow to the foot and the toes. It’s not good for your bones in the long term, and the joints in specific, not to mention the cartilidge of those joints. And it’s certainly not good for the nerves of the foot. How’s that ? The Plantar’s Nerve which sits just behind the pad of your foot and is the one that you keep rubbing in the arch of the foot. That nerve, is the one that is attenuated when your foot seemingly goes ‘numb’. It’s numb for a few reasons. 1.) You’ve been impacting the shit out of it all frakking night long. 2.) The Lead/ers that you’ve been dancing with have been drilling them into the ground with hard, driving steps. And 3.) You’re in a pair of 3 in heels that are cutting off your effing blood supply!!! What did you think was going to happen ??? Your foot was going to sing an aria at being placed in a frakking prison ??? Seriously ????

So let’s be sensible here, and work up to being in heels. Start in bare feet or socks, it’ll make your life about 10,000 times easier, for now. Later on, we end up doing heel work. Sadly before this site goes off-line we never get to that heel work. That was originally only done in private session with my intensive level students. 🙁

Movement ? What does that mean ? It means the foundations of the dance. Tango consists of three simple steps that will rightfully take you the rest of your life to fully grok and understand. As a side note, one our first teachers used to say, “There are really only two steps in Tango! Your left and your right”. And while this was meant as a joke. It’s an allegorical joke with ooodles of truth bombs to it in ways you haven’t even begun to understand yet. However, for the novice dancer, and even the dancer that may read this and pass this along to you > Tango consists of three steps:

A Forward Step. (in the video)

A Side Step.

And a Back Step. (in the video)

For the Follower the important step to learn is the structure of the Back Step.
For the Lead the important step to learn is the structure of the Forward Step.
And for both roles, they use the Side Step in very different ways and level of executions. If all of that sounds really simple, it’s not. It will take years, and we’re not kidding, literally years to perfect these seemingly simple steps. To make them look, and feel effortless, so that they become part of you

The reason why this video, and section, is focusing on these 3 simple steps is because they’re related to a very important construct in Argentine Tango: La Caminata or The Walk. Tango is based on the walk. There’s a Zensunni phrase that goes, “If you can walk, you can dance”. It is the foundation of the dance. The walk is everything in Argentine Tango. Make that walk clean, clear, consistent, stable, controlled, and precise, and you’re onto something. Less than that, and you’ll spend years, quite honestly a decade or three, in tango purgatory because you haven’t resolved how to walk yet. And the really bad part about that is that you won’t know it. Uuuugh! Putting on a pair of tango shoes, and/or nice clothes to go with those tango shoes will not hide a less than desirable walk. An unstable walk (from either partner) will result in an embrace (see the next paragraph) that hangs, pulls, and pushes. Which will result in you either being dragged around or you dragging someone else around the floor. Not to mention back pain, and a neck pain that will more than likely require a visit to the chiropractor. And unstable walk may also, more than likely result in you not dancing. This is why it is absolutely crucial to have a Tango Teacher that focuses on the walk to start with, and continually for several weeks into your Tango training. Months really. Years at the earliest. It will take you weeks to unlearn what you think you have learned. Months to retrain your body to do something very different from what it’s doing today. And years to make it part of you. At its core, Tango is a Walking Dance. The more that you focus on that walk, the easier the dance becomes.

Contained in the walk of Tango is its Embrace. The Embrace is what gives Argentine Tango its iconic look. Most people see Tango as ‘passionate’, or ‘sexy’. The reason is because from where they’re sitting, their frame of reference is of a couple very close to each other so they must be ‘intimate’ with each other, or they’re having some kind of romantic or sexual relationship. That may or may not be true. But the only relationship that the dancing couple is currently having is with their partner, the music, the floor, and the couples around them. The perceptions that other people don’t matter. What you’ll see at a ‘Milonga’ (what is loosely understood as ‘the dance party’) is two basic embrace types: Open Embrace, and Close Embrace. Truthfully there are many types of embraces, which you can explore through our dictionary of embraces. Open Embrace, means that there is ‘space’ between the partnership. Think of it as “Space for Jesus” 🙂 . ‘Close Embrace’ is a lot closer and can be any number of ideas from body-on-body, to body-very-close-to-body, to body-not-touching-but-very-close-to-touching-body and everything in between. More than likely the more common idea that you’ll see presented and danced is “Close Embrace” dancing and its variations. The video above shows you both of these ideas or what Open and Close Embrace is. Realistically as far as the Argentines are concerned, these terms are Norte Americano ideas. Realistically as far the Argentine is concerned, there is only El Abrazo, or The Embrace. There is only one. Theirs. This Open or Close or Vee, or…any one of the distinctions are North American ideas and definitions because we, as North Americans (and really the rest of the world), need the distinction of what we’re seeing coming from the Argentine way of thinking about the dance.

A skill that is used in the video above to initiate and communicate one’s ideas, and which Tango Topics refers to repeatedly as “Intention” is Intention Based Dancing. What’s that ? In it’s simplest form, ‘intention’, is a way to ask someone to do something with you (not for you or to you. this is an important mental distinction when it comes to intention) while dancing to music. Sounds simple enough, right ? There’s just one little caveat to ‘Intention’ and ‘Intention Based Dancing’  > You can not use your head, arms, shoulders, elbows, forearms, wrists, hands, thumbs or fingers to push, pull, compress, or squeeze to communicate your ideas. Rather your entire body is used with a little lean forward, to the side, or backwards. The arms act as a dummy transmitter, they do not add or magnify the intention of what’s being led or followed in any way, shape, or form, from a Leading perspective or from a Following perspective. Doing so would be considered ‘rude’ and ‘pushing’ someone. However, you will hear in other classes from other teachers, another idea called “Resistance” or “Resistance Based Dancing”. In short, Resistance Based Dancing means that we pull, push, use pressure and force, arm and hand compression, and really strength to communicate our desires and responses. Is one more desirable than the other ? In our opinion, ‘yes’. But that’s for you to decide not for us to dictate. You’ll figure out which one is less work, and is far easier to get but difficult to master, and which one will will leave you in a sweaty mess wondering how you pinched a nerve and why your arms feel like they’ve gone 10 rounds in a prize fight!

To be clear, all of the stuff above is Foundation. It is the basis of how we move in the dance. Forward, Side, and Back with an Embrace.  More than likely though the thing you’re wondering about is what are the steps, the basic vocabulary of the dance ? There are many ‘steps’ or figures in Argentine Tango. But the Five Common Figures of Argentine Tango is what you’ll run into. Which are: Walking, Ochos, Turns, Crosses, and Cortados.

1.) Walking. Walking refers to how you walk, when you walk, and why you walk. Tango Topics details the Six Ways of Walking. This isn’t how to walk, but rather what you can do with that walk once you’ve got the hang of it.
2.) Ochos.  These are a very specific type of vocabulary that can invoke a micro turn or not. There are 8 Types of Ochos that Tango Topics details, and the two more common ones are what we call “Traveling Ochos” and “Milonguero Ochos”. Fortunately for you we have an entire video on this subject and rather than duplicate that effort here, once you’re done with this video, please go load up our Eight Types of Ochos video.
3.) Turns. At some point beyond Walking and Ochos, you’re going to have to learn how to turn, because the Line of Dance isn’t moving or has ground to a stop but the music hasn’t…and you can’t just stop dancing because the line of dance stops, so for that reason, and a whole bunch of others we have to engage some level of Turning with Tango. And fortunately for you, we have a primer on the Eight Types of Turns in Argentine Tango!
4.) Crosses. At some point you’re going to run into a really weird thing that will happen, and that’s what’s called “The Argentine Cross”. Put simply, this is where the Follower is led to cross their feet. However, this is not the only type of cross, there are many types of crosses in Tango but this is the most common of all crosses and we have a FREE video on this topic. Just follow the link above and start your free education today.
5.) Cortado. The last thing that you’ll see, of the basic vocabulary is the beginning of the door opener to other ideas in tango, and that’s the Ocho Cortado. It’s sort of a combination between an MIlonguero Ocho and an Argentine Cross culminating to a Linear Ocho Cortado! These are the Five Common Social Figures of Argentine Tango and they form the basis of what you’ll see at a Milonga when out social dancing.

End Part One. Want to see the all THREE parts ? It’s free. All you have to do is register. Registration is free. Just scroll down to the form below and fill in your name, ane email address and you’ll be good to go. There’s nothing to buy. Nothing to download. Just pure tango information. Go ahead, what do you have you to lose ?

What is DIASS: EVE ? In short, this is a series of 8 pieces of tango vocabulary that tangotopics has identified to be used as accent or “spice” in addition to Five Social Figures (and its variations) as well as volume 1 and volume 2 of Dancing In A Small Space (DIASS) in Argentine Tango. The key component in the sentence here is ‘ACCENT’ or ‘SPICE’. Most of this stuff is a little flash, with the exception of #7 and #8, but aside from those things this stuff is purely to be used as more than a variation and as a  singular usage at best. They should not be used as the repetitive movement over and over again so as to annoy one partner and one’s partner should not expect it, nor should it be required of them either!

This isn’t rocket science, it’s really simply in fact. ‘EVE’ as we’re calling it, is really just a conglomeration of vocabulary that you see everyday at Milongas that has been modified to fit within the line, and lane, of dance with one monster modification: They’re Smaller than their regular kissin’ cousins. The idea is to make this stuff fit inside the lane of dance, and fit inside the line of dance, and more importantly to take up no more space than the standing spot that you’re currently over. No stepping backwards (mostly). No breaking the line of dance. No exiting one’s lane. One must keep the ronda moving at all times. This is the Marathon/Encuentro/BsAs environment where things are packed tighter than a snail’s ass! In this environment things have to ‘fit’ precisely, otherwise blood or bones will be exposed and we don’t want that to happen…ever. To be fair, and while it was mentioned above, we’re mentioning it here in its definition as a reminder, do not attempt some of this stuff until you mastered walking cleanly, clearly, and without wobbling or needing your partner to walk. If you can’t walk backwards by yourself in a pair of 3 in heels without crossing over your natural body meridian or you can not walk (as a Lead) without crossing over the body’s natural meridian or supinating your feet to do so, then there are issues to say the least that need to be addressed.

Difficulty Rating:  (1 / 5) to (4 / 5)

Notation: When the “What is … ” section of an article is blue, that means that the article is freely available to registered, users. When the section is yellow, the article is still free, but the video is for paid users. 😉 

What are in the Eight Pieces of Vocabulary in EVE ?

1.) – Follower’s Calecita. (All users) This is basically the Follower walking in Forward or Backsteps (although the latter is uncommon and some difficult to actually lead for a variety of reasons, most notably: habit) around their Lead. Calecitas can be done in Open or Close Embrace, but in this case because we’re talking about DIASS methodology, we’re talking in Close Embrace and making things very small and gradual for both roles. All users.

2.) – The Simple Sacada. (Freemium/Subscriber) The Simple Sacada can be done in Open or Close Embrace, but this is DIASS so we’re employing it here in small spaces as methodology to engage a turn. Which by the way has an interesting possible side effect where the Follower can be led to engage in a Milonguero Turn as a result instead of the resolution that you see above. The Tango Topics Subscriber sees both of these options in the full 22-Minute video. 🙂

3.) – Argentine Enganche/Wrap. (Subscriber Only) In North America we call this a ‘Wrap’. Where the Follower’s leg wraps between and around the Lead’s. The problem with these pieces of vocabulary are that they can go wildly wrong, mostly on the part of the Follower who is unconscious of their leg and what has to happen to it. 😉 And when we’re talking about DIASS methodology, that wrap has to be insanely tight, small, and fast. The Follower has to get in and out just as quickly.

4.) – Single Axis Turn. (Subscriber Only) Seemingly this piece of Tango vocabulary was made for DIASS methodology. Thankfully it takes up very little space. The only problem with it is its entry point, and a failure to engage the Mordita (the foot sandwich). A lot of Followers, and rightfully so, mistake the opening of the Single Axis Turn for a Volcada. Why ? That’s because they start out almost exactly the same way. And due to the prevalence of the Volcada over a Single Axis turn the Follower will mistakenly think “Ahh Volcada”, and thereby release their ‘free’ foot/leg and allow it to swing free. While this isn’t such a huge thing. It does impede the required centrifugal force that is generated by the turn itself. Thereby slowing down the turn.

5.) – Social Volcada. (Subscriber Only) Yes you can add a Volcada to DIASS. Should you ? That’s a completely different story. All we’ll say is this: Use. It. Sparingly. Like as in ONCE IN A BLUE MOON! There’s a reason why this entire topic is accent vocabulary and not the meat of the dance. This piece completely exemplifies it. Yes it’s loads of fun, and yes it’s cool. But to engage it as your goto move…not so much with that! That said, the SOCIAL Volcada is not an egregious one. Meaning it’s really small and fits within the line and lane of dance. It’s nothing more than a glorified argentine cross, that’s a bit more flashy. There are several examples of this piece of vocabulary here on Tango Topics, here’s just one of them:

6.) – Floating Cross. (Subscriber Only) Arguably on this list this one will create an enormous amount of confusion, because watching the floating cross, and doing/feeling the floating cross are two very different things. There is a tiny amount of ‘lilt’, and that lilt is the floating part. It’s a glorified Follower’s Back Cross, but it’s a back cross that takes its time.

7.) – Parallel System Rock Step. (Subscriber Only) The quintessential goto move for most Leads. They use it so often and with such frequency that you’d think that it was one of the 7 primary foundational moves. That’s not true of course. But still. This piece, when used properly and not overused (hint, hint, hint … remember this is accent vocabulary here), can create an interesting surprise for the Follower. At the same time the Follower has loads of options to play with Rock Step adornments and amagues, especially with the resolution. The two problems, as with all adornments and amagues is always a.) the Lead not rushing through X. and b.) time! The other problem with the Step Step/Resolution is that it is all too easy for this thing to violate the prime directive of DIASS. It can take up too much space! Oddly enough this particular Rock Step can lead (no pun intended) to the last item on this list….

8.) – Ocho Cortado. (Subscriber Only) THE goto move of most leads in DIASS, but oddly enough it was left out of the first 2 iterations but was included in the FIVE SOCIAL MOVES

When are Different Vocabulary Used and Why ?

In certain types of Tango Events one particular type of moves are used more often and more predominantly than others. The reason is that some types of vocabulary work best depending on the venue and the type of Tango being invoked or danced. For instance:

Weekly, Local Milonga ? All 8
Marathon? All 8
Festival or Mini-Festival ? All 8
Encuentro ? All but #1 & 3.
Buenos Aires ? It depends on the venue. But, all but #1,#3,#5. There’s no space for that noise. 

What is the Milonguero Turn Trick ? First and foremost, the Trick itself isn’t a ‘trick’, it’s more of a reliance on Follower Default behaviors. Secondly, the ‘Trick’ only solves the first major hurdle of the Turn itself – The Follower’s Back Cross.

The problem with the Milonguero Turn, and it is a problem, is the opening step, the Follower’s Back Cross. By default, the Follower will not want to cross behind or back cross, unless this is their default turn or default behavior. Truthfully there are very few Milonguero Turn default based Followers. Usually the Follower has been trained in the Molinete/Giro structure as their default. So the moment that the Lead starts a turn, the Follower thinks and responds with “Molinete”. This is not desirable. While the Molinete is a very sexy turn, it’s not what we’re wanting out of the Follower at all. We ideally want the cleaner, less stressful, Milonguero Turn for a whole bunch of reasons.

Before you go any further you’re going to ask, “Well, if the Lead led it then the Follower should follow what was led!”. True to a degree but then again, you’re dealing with default behavior, and that stuff is insanely difficult to override, most of the time. That’s why this ‘Trick’ exists.

The opening back cross presents a problem: How to generate it ? And that’s where the Milonguero Turn ‘Trick’ comes in. It says, “Fine…the Follower has default behaviors, one of them is to come to collection, still another is not to a leg fly away from them, still another they have a desire to make things as small as possible, less work”. All of these default behaviors can be used to the Lead’s advantage if properly invoked. And that’s what the Milonguero Turn Trick does, it invokes all three of those defaults and overrides the Follower’s desire to Molinete. It supersedes it almost immediately so that the Follower never, ever wants to Molinete!

In its simplest form the Trick is a Simple Sacada, but a fully unrealized one. The reason this is said, is because a Simple Sacada should and would take the place of the Follower, but it doesn’t. In its more complex form, it overrides the Follower’s default behavior to Molinete and replaces it with a back cross.

Remember that the turn trick only solves ONE problem – Initiating the Follower’s Back Cross. It doesn’t solve the entire Milonguero Turn, you still have to learn to lead and follow those things.

Difficulty Rating:  (3 / 5)

Notation: When the “What is … ” section of an article is blue, that means that the article is freely available to registered, users. When the section is yellow, the article is still free, but the video is for paid users. 😉 

Why this video exists ? It exists for 3 reasons. 1.) It was part of a longer lesson for this particular student on the Milonguero Turn, and Elements of Turning itself. 2.) To give the student  a reminder tutorial for when I wasn’t there. 3.) I taught a Milonguero Turn class rather recently and then discovered this a few days after the class, and realized that this is actually a perfect reminder for anyone that wants to play with the Milonguero Turn on how to build it and what should happen.

Further this video exists with the student’s consent. So don’t get all persnickety that we’re showing you a private lesson without the student’s knowledge. They’re fully aware of the video and fully endorse it.

What are Walking Systems ? These are the many different ways that we can walk in Argentine Tango. Not the how-we-walk but the multiple methods to the ways in which we might want to walk, first canonized by Gustavo Naveira & Fabian Salas, and then expanded upon here for your edification. The ideas comprise a composite or overall vantage point that no matter what situation one is in, there is a walking solution for that situation. One example of this is the Walking Turn. Most Leads, when they hit an obstacle in their pathway, will invoke a Rock Step as a way to solve that problem. It’s their go-to move. A Walking Turn on the other hand, is another more creative way to solve the same problem while at the same time creates far more options and opportunities for both roles to engage in musically as well as from a vocabulary perspective and a navigational perspective. Tango Topics Walking Systems provide a way into any situation and any number of ways out of a situation that does not include a piece of specialty vocabulary (Volcada, Sacada, Colgada, Parada, Pasada, Boleo, Gancho, Calesita, Rock Step/Resolution, Single Axis Turn, etc) as a possible resolution, or for that matter any of the 7 of the 8 Types of Ochos, OR any of the 8 Types of Turns, or for that matter an Argentine Cross as a potential resolution! No. Walking Systems are the Resolution! They’re the solution to each and every issue that you can come up with. Not to mention they also solve an age old problem for most Leads, “What do I do next ?”. Walking Systems is one of the simplest yet most powerful answers to that question! Because not only do Walking Systems answer the question they go far beyond it!

Years ago when Gustavo and Fabian came up with a way of describing Walking Systems, as they pertain to Argentine Tango, it was a way of systemizing or standardization of the dance. Meaning that if you could look at something and describe what was happening with a simple phrase, then you could also repeat it and build on it! Those standardizations became what we now know today as the two predominant ways in which we talk about Tango Vocabulary and the dance as a whole: Either a piece of vocabulary is done in Parallel System, or Cross System.

Tango Topics Walking Systems for 2019 encompasses these two primary ideas and adds a bit more to them each, and then goes far beyond them to encompass 4 other ideas which on the surface may appear to not be one or the other, but in reality is both at the same time as you’ll see especially when you get to the section on “Alternates”!!!

Walking Systems expands on these ideas by using Orientation changes, Changes of the Embrace, and lastly a completely new idea (for some of you) that almost never gets talked about but is in fact quite revolutionary in our opinion!

These are Walking Systems for 2019 going forward as Tango Topics sees them.

Difficulty Rating:  (1 / 5) to  (3 / 5)

Important Notation: In 2015 we originally shot this video, and because our language has changed, and a few more ideas were added, it was absolutely necessary to reshoot this with the updated content. That version is still in the archive and will remain there as ancillary material for all subscribers of the service. Secondly above we stated that there are 18 ideas here. There are. However, the video’s subtitle is the Six Ways of Walking! So what’s that all about ? There are 6 primary ideas and under each idea, there are 2 or 3 variations on the primary, so 18!

Why do you need this stuff ? Think of Walking Systems as what you do AFTER you’ve learned the foundations of how one walks as a Lead or Follow. Walking Systems are what you can do with that walk. Hence the ‘ideas’ part above. Another reason why you need this topic in your understanding of Tango is Versatility. And still, another is, and a longer answer, Improvisation. The fact is that you could do worse by just studying this stuff alone. If you did nothing else except studying walking and walking systems, you’d already be ahead of the game but the reality is that most people study the mechanics of walking for about  5 minutes and then move on to the vocabulary that they see everyone else doing, Ochos, Turns, Crosses, and then the specialty vocabulary which is studying all the crazy stuff they think that Followers want so that their Follower’s don’t become bored (Volcadas, Colgadas, etc). This is commonly known as Lead Mindset. This mindset a false belief system that, erroneously, believes that the Lead must perform all sorts of vocabulary and have a dizzying array of said vocabulary that will keep the Follower entertained in the course of dancing with said Lead. This is, of course, not true but no one wants to hear that fact.

Versatility means that these 18 ideas by themselves are just that, ideas. Implying that on their own they’re not going to do much for you. However, when you place one idea behind another and continually swap them out for the next, something very interesting begins to occur: Facility. You begin to have ease, a comfort with exploring the “What If…” realm. At the same time when you put them together, they can form an entire dance all on their own without doing anything else! We know, we’ve spent entire nights doing nothing but these ideas just to prove a point to see how successful or interesting this stuff can get. Versatility means that as a Lead, or as a Follow, you become so conversant with these ideas that variations of these ideas start to emerge on their own! And there are more here that we haven’t even begun to touch on.

Now to the longer answer, is that while no one has said anything about how to put things together, meaning that a Lead must choreograph an entire song on the fly right from the moment they step on the floor. That ‘choreography’ has to come from somewhere, right ? One place it could come from is steps, patterns, and figures. There is a certain comfort in employing steps, patterns, and figures. It gives one a false sense of competency. The real test comes when you run out of figures to employ, lest you repeat one’s self (which we do not want to do), and then you’re stuck with the problem you had when you started. What do next ?!?!?!? Again, you’ve run out of figures and you don’t want to repeat yourself. And this is where Walking Systems comes into play. They replace the need to invoke figures. Completely. It should be noted that another problem with the steps/patterns/figures solution is that somewhere about 10th or 15th figure, and after you’ve danced with every Potential Partner in the room, they all have your number and what you’re capable of doing! Further still is that in order to keep yourself from being ‘stale’ you absolutely must learn new material constantly and pepper in an ever-dizzying array to one-up yourself. How do you spell work ? We spell it “steps, patterns, and figures”. Which is to say, “Not so much with that idea!”.

Improvisation refers to two things: 1.) It refers to creation on the fly of singular or individual steps not a group or pattern of steps or figures but nothing more than walking forwards or backward. But it’s how you do that, hence the walking systems themselves which creates variety. 2.) It refers to the musical interpretation of one note for one step. Which gives you greater levels of granular control over what you’re doing in a dizzying array of possibilities.

Before we get into the systems themselves, it’s important to recognize that we walk on paths or ‘tracks’. Meaning that our feet (ankles, and 1st metatarsals) pass very close to each other (slide next to). This is known as “passing through collection”. These tracks do not cross over each other except in very specific circumstances. Think of train tracks, that are very close to each other. Typically there are 2 tracks of walking paths, sometimes there are 3, and sometimes there are 4. Sometimes, as you’ll see, their “Orientation” changes, meaning that in order for some of this stuff to work, either the Lead or the Follower must change their orientation towards or away from their partner in the line of dance. And sometimes that orientation change may invoke an embrace change. That said, on to the Walking Systems:

1.) Parallel System. This walking tool comes in 3 flavors, 1 of which we use all the time. It is the staple of the dance. This system is walking with a partner using opposite feet.

Example: If Follower is led to step backward with their Right leg/foot, the Lead steps into that space that has been vacated with their Left leg/foot, and then continue on with the Lead stepping with their Right leg/foot into the space that Follower just vacated with their Left leg/foot.

This walking system can be done on 2 or 4 tracks without an orientation change and is done without crossing over the body’s natural meridian. As well as on 2, 3, or 4 tracks with an orientation change. However, in the case of 3 or 4 track, these variations can only be achieved by changing the position or orientation of the Follower by use of an “Americana” Embrace either to place the Follower to the side of the Lead or directly in front of the Lead!

The 3 flavors of Parallel Walking are:

Type 1a – 2 Track Parallel walking (with and without an orientation change).
Type 1b – 3 Track Parallel with an orientation change. And
Type 1c – 4 Track walking with and without an orientation change.

2.) Cross System. This complex walking tool comes in 3 flavors, as well as 3 different types of entry variations, and 2 different exit variations. This system is walking with a partner uses the same feet.

Example: If the Lead steps with their Left leg/foot, the Follower is led to step with their corresponding Left leg/foot, and then continues on with the Lead stepping with their Right leg/foot, and the Follower stepping with their Right leg/foot at the same time.

This walking system can be done on 3 or 4 tracks walking without an orientation change (not shown in the video above), and 2, 3, or 4 tracks with an orientation change. 2, 3, or 4 track these variations must use an “Americana” embrace format either to place the Follower to the side of the Lead, or directly in front of the Lead!

The Two Flavors of Cross System Walking are:

Type 2a – 3 Track Walking without an orientation change using 1 of the 3 entry methods below.
Type 2b – 4 Track Walking with an orientation change.

3 Types of Entry Points to Cross System:

a.) Step/Half-Step. (see video) This method can only be used while in motion walking down the line of dance.
b.) Weight-Change/Step. (see video) This method can only be used from a standing position and is ideally used or invoked from one of the 5 Musical Pause types.
c.) Cross Behind Method. (see video) This method is used as the ‘flashy’ version and can be used from a  standing position or while in motion.

2 Different Exits from Cross System:

a.) Step/Half-Step. (see video) In this method, the half-step is on the same side that you entered on with step/half-step.
b.) Inverse Half-Step Method. (see video) In this method, the half-step is on the opposite side of the foot that you entered on with step/half-step.

3.) ‘Lazy’ Ochos. This walking tool comes in 2 flavors, the common Follower’s version, and the less common Lead version. This walking tool is where the Follower (or Lead, self-lead’s themselves) is led to stepping across their natural body meridian with each step.

Example: If the Lead steps with their Right, the Follower is led to step with their Right diagonally across their body meridian at a 45-degree pathway angle, while keeping the foot in alignment with the floorboards and not allowing the hips to rotate in any way, shape, or form.

All 3 types of entry points and both exit types can be used with ‘Lazy’ Ochos. It should be noted that Lazy (sometimes referred as to Milonguero  Ochos) are both a Walking System and an Ocho in their own right.

Type 3a – “Lazy” Follower Ochos.
Type 3b – “Lazy” Lead Ochos.

Surely that’s not all the walking systems, right ? You’re right. It’s not. This is just a taste. 😉 An informed tease. Nothing has been left out of this first 22 minutes of video, including footwork. However, the thing we did leave out was the other ELEVEN walking systems! If you want to read about the other walking ideas, and see examples of them, especially the Type 6 Walking System, which in our opinion is the Bee’s Knees, then you’ll need to register as a Freemium User which costs nothing and you get to read about the other eleven Walking Systems for 2019! If you want to go one step further, no pun intended, and actually Subscribe to Tango Topics, meaning to spend a few dollars/euros/rubles/pesos…then you can see the entire 1hr and 22-minute video on Walking Systems as Tango Topics sees it! Plus you get access to over 400 videos on a wide range of topics and techniques. What have you got to lose ?

Oh and one more thing, a further incentive for you register, is the Follower’s Perspective on Walking Systems, and the Lead’s Perspective on a wide range of “Gotcha’s” and things you need to be aware of with Walking Systems! If you become a Freemium User today at no cost to you, you get access to this valuable resource immediately. 🙂

What is an Ocho ? In it’s simplest form and right up to its most complex form The Argentine Ocho is a learned, and generated motion. Meaning ? That the Ocho is not a natural construct. It is something must be learned and then mastered by both roles, not just by one.

The Ocho is powered by 1 of 3 types of “Engines of Motion”:

1.) Crossing Meridian Technique.
2.) Disassociation/Applied Disassociation Technique. Or
3.) A Body ‘Pivot’ Technique.

Each one of these techniques can generate no bodily rotation motion, some bodily rotation motion, or an enormous amount of bodily rotation motion at the point of Social Collection. Where, depending on the type of desired Ocho, that no body rotation or some body rotation will be done at very specific angles (0, 45, 90, or 180 or more degrees) where the dancers’ feet will rotate and body either with or against their dancing partner’s motion. In all but one type of Ocho the dancer (Lead or Follower) will step forwards or backward thereby setting up the next Ocho movement. However, and there’s always a however to these things, there is one type of Ocho where the dancer does not step forward or back but instead changes their weight from one foot to the other and then employs one of the 3 techniques above and does this repeatedly in time to the music.

It should be noted that the Argentine Ocho in all 8 varieties listed below all invoke Cross-System walking using either Step Half-Step or a Weight-Change Step, or a Cross Behind (not shown in the video) to get into and out of them. If you’re not familiar with this terminology please see their respective links to dive deeper into getting into Cross-System.

Put simpler: The Ocho is where the dancer (lead or follower) steps into Social Collection with their feet, and then assuming one of the 3 techniques above is used to generate bodily rotation that seemingly starts at the feet, and goes all the way up the body. Seemingly. 😉  The reason the Ocho is called an Ocho as was mentioned before, that the dancer will create a pattern on the floor with their feet, that resembles the number 8. However, over the last few decades, the floor pattern isn’t really adhered to, but instead it’s more a straight, curved line or an arc, with a point on either end of the arc. That point on either end, is where a body rotation can occur, or a point of transition occurs using one of the 3 techniques described above.

This is an Argentine Ocho

Difficulty Rating:  (1 / 5) to  (3.5 / 5)

Notation: When the “What is … ” section of an article is blue, that means that the article is freely available to registered, users. When the section is yellow, the article is still free, but the video is for paid users. 😉 

What are the Different Types of Ochos ?

Type 1 – The “Milonguero” Style or “Lazy”  (starts at: 00:03:14) Ocho. In this Ocho, the Follower (usually), is led to stepping in a diagonal 45-degree angle across their natural body meridian thereby engaging in the 1st Engine of Motion. The Follower does not rotate their hips in any way, shape, or form, nor do they need to do so either. Their legs will cross over their natural body meridian in a walking step to do perform the “Lazy” Ocho. The Lead can also self-lead themselves to do this same motion going backward down the line of dance. This Ocho is ideal for small space dancing and it is ideal for the Encuentro environment. The reason it is called a Milonguero or Lazy Ocho is because in this instance the Follower is emulating minimal body movement of the Milonguero style of dance that emulates a Walk. It’s just that this walk crosses over the body’s natural meridian. Of the 8 types of Ochos, it is by far the easiest to do and the most effortless to dance.

Type 2 – The “Linear” Ocho. (starts at: 00:10:07) In this Ocho, the dancer is led (the Follower) or self-led (the Lead) to using the 2nd Engine of Motion: Disassociation and then Applied Disassociation to self-rotate, due to torsion build up and release. As a result of this type of engine, the dancer rotates to a 90-degree angle perpendicular to their partner, which then can result in either a forward or backward walking linear step on two separate but equal walking tracks. This position is also where the Ocho gets its name from because the Dancer is literally transitioning in front of their dancing partner over a line or a linear space directly perpendicular to their partner. It should be noted that the dancer can employ the 3rd Engine of Motion: A Pivot but it is not desirable to do so. The Linear Ocho can be done from Open or Close Embrace, however it’s typically done from Open Embrace or a Fluid Embrace, as the Close Embrace version of the Linear Ocho can be stressful or uncomfortable due to the fact of some people may want to use arm tension, hand/forearm pressure, compression, and/or resistance in the embrace to generate it. None of that is required. The build-up of Bodily Rotation Torsion via Disassociation, and then the release of that Torsion as Applied Disassociation is what generates the bodily rotation. Primarily the Linear Ocho is used as a teaching tool for both roles to instruct, and then practice, dancer Disassociation and Applied Disassociation. Once learned, Linear Ochos can be employed as a ‘Filler’, or as a navigational tool, or it can be used as an intro that leads into either a series of Sacadas or the opening step to a whole host of vocabulary. “Filler” in the sense that it can be used as some vocabulary to lead into something else or when you’re stuck from a leading perspective. It should be noted that while it’s only hinted at in the video above, the Disassociation and Applied Disassociation element is insanely important. 😉 It is what ‘powers’ all the ochos in this series with the exception of Type 1 and Type 7.

Type 3 – The “Traveling” Ocho. (starts at: 00:12:55) This Ocho is called a “Traveling” Ocho because it Travels down the line of dance. It is the Ocho that everyone thinks of when they hear the word “Ocho”. Typically this Ocho is done by the Follower, however, a Lead can self-lead themselves to engage in a Traveling Ocho as well (going backward down the line of dance). These can be done in Open Embrace, or Close Embrace, however, predominantly see them done in Close Embrace. Ideally, the Traveling Ocho employs the 2nd Engine of Motion thereby resulting in a 45-degree body rotation to create the desired ‘Traveling’ Ocho. Traveling Ochos can be done with Forward steps or Back Steps, and while the Forward Traveling Ocho requires the Lead to walk backward down the line of dance to do engage in it, the Forward Traveling Ocho is a lot of fun and add a lot of variety to the dance. Not to mention it also opens up lots of other options and opportunities to do other things that you wouldn’t ordinarily see. Traveling Ochos have a few built-flaws to them from a Leading Perspective that are discussed below in the Leading Perspective section. The Traveling Ocho is typically the ‘goto’ Ocho in all environments for a wide variety of reasons, mostly because the other 7 Ochos on this list aren’t taught all that often! Sadly. It should be noted that the dancer could employ the 3rd Engine of Motion: A Pivot but it is not desirable to do so.

Type 4 – The “Circular” Ocho. (starts at: 00:17:35) The name for this Ocho is a bit of a misnomer because we’re not actually generating a circle but more of an arc around the dancing partner. So rightfully it should be titled, the “Arced Ocho”, but that’s awkward, so we’re sticking with Circular. 😉 The Circular Ocho can be done from Open and Close Embrace, and typically employs the 2nd Engine of Motion, where the dancing partner will rotate 180 degrees on either end point of the walking Arc. Typically this Ocho is done from a standing position. And more often than not it is used primarily as the opening step to the Follower’s Molinete to the Lead’s Giro. The Ocho itself is not really used as a dancing element over and over again, but rather as a singular element to do something else like engaging the Follower’s Molinete, or any one of 12 types of Ganchos, or a series of Paradas, or changes of direction. It is generally not used as a navigational element either primarily because of its awkward embrace nature (see Linear Ochos). Circular Ochos also have a built-in flaw that is discussed below in the Leading perspective section. Notation: The dancer could use the 3rd Engine of Motion but it is not desirable to do so!

So where are the other 4 Ochos and what are they ? Register, it’s free, and find out. Just scroll down below.

What is a ‘Loco’ Sacada ? This figure, and it is a figure, can be used in Open embrace, or Close Embrace (but not without some modifications) and be initiated in the line of dance if and only if there is ample space to do it. It is an over-rotation of the Follower’s Ocho, employing an Over-Rotated Back Ocho for the Follower into the Lead’s Forward Step. Rightfully most people would never think of employing this figure within the Line or Lane of Dance. And there’s a reason for that. It can take up an inordinate amount of space. Hence the reason why we stated previously that ‘there is ample space to do it’. So what’s ample space ? About 6 meters and a little ‘wiggle’ room on either side just in case things go south, and things ALWAYS go south. So plan on 7 meters to be on the safe side.

Realistically though, this figure isn’t about using it on a social dance floor. It’s more for study purposes to engage the applied disassociation for BOTH roles, not just the obvious one, the Follower’s role.

It should be noted that while this is a study-only figure and that it can be invoked on a social dance floor assuming space isn’t at a premium and it can be employed from Close Embrace, that at some point the embrace does have to become ‘Fluid’. Meaning that the embrace will change based on the choice of vocabulary that is employed so that the vocabulary can be accommodated.

Difficulty Rating:  (4.5 / 5)

Why should you use a ‘Loco’ Sacada ? You shouldn’t. Not unless you have space, and a dancing partner that has mastered their foundational elements. And even then this is accent or spice vocabulary that is best left for your tango lab work and not necessarily for a social dance floor. Think of it as that piece of vocabulary that you pull out once in a blue moon, near the end of the milonga with a partner that you’ve danced a million times with, and you invoke this ONCE and you let it go and then you move onto other things that are far more important! In other words, this is a study piece that you want to work on and with, to extend your own flexibility, and adaptability to different movements.

What are the Five Social Figures ? In its really basic form, it’s the 5 things that we do all night long with every dance partner. We do these things so often and with such ubiquity that we don’t even consider that we’re doing them or the implications they have for what we’re doing with them, musically or from a floorcraft perspective. The five are detailed below but they are in order of precedence: 1.) Walking. 2.) Ochos. 3.) Turns. 4.) Crosses. & 5.) The Cortado. You can stop reading here, but we can tell you that the vocabulary we just mentioned is kinda barebones and just scratches the surface. And there’s a sort of a gotcha that’s waiting for you near the end of all of this. So you can skip to the end now and read the gotcha, or read on through.

Why Do You Need This Stuff ? Several reasons. First and foremost, your foundation! Honestly, this should come as a no surprise to you, but if you’re studying with anyone, you’ll notice that they continually take you ‘back’ to 4 simple things: Forward Steps, Side Steps, Back Steps, and your embrace. Because these four things are the foundation of the dance. Embedded in those four things are a host of other things that you are more than likely lacking or you have forgotten about. And it’s those 4 things that are continually screwing up your ability to dance the way you want to dance. So it’s not rocket science what we’re on about here. It’s simple foundational stuff. Which, the deeper you go, you realize isn’t so simple and is in fact far more complex than you thought or you understood. The simpler things appear, the more difficult they are in certain situations, this is one of them. Secondly, this is about understanding your vocabulary and not just from a Leading perspective, but also how it’s received by the Follower, thereby the Follower’s perspective. How it’s understood and why things happen or progress as they do. The issue here is assumptions and lots of them. We want to eradicate those assumptions and make absolutely clear why things happen. And the only way to do that is to remove the assumptions completely. Still, another reason why this stuff is important has everything to do with something that we vehemently and passionately believe in: Facility. Facility, in this case, means the ability to do X, Y, or Z. The Five Social Figures affects your underlying Facility to execute whatever you want to dance, in whatever way or to whatever style or genre of music from a Leading OR Following perspective. It effects Every. Single. Part of the dance! Everything. Facility also means the ability to execute what you desire and WHEN you desire it. Tango vocabulary (Ochos, Crosses, Sacadas, Volcadas, etc) is great, but if you can’t execute that stuff in time to the music, it kinda falls flat. So…ummm yeah, FACILITY! Want one more ? Variations! Let’s roll back the article a bit. Remember we reminded you that you dance the same things over and over and over again ? Dancing Symmetrically opens up loads of options and opportunities for you that more than likely didn’t see. For example: Playing with a Mirror Cross opens up the possibility of leading the Follower to a forward step to the Open Side of the Embrace, which only happens … ummm … NEVER! Gosh, have you thought of what do after that ? Well, here’s an opportunity to do precisely that. Discover the possibilities! And that’s all based on taking that one extra step and resolving differently. There are LOADS more of these things. All of your preconceived notions of what you think the dance is about all changes. And change, whether you believe it or not, is a very good thing. So yeah, you need this stuff.