The Crazy Vocabulary of Tango
Everyone likes the crazy stuff to learn. And no one likes to see the train wrecks that happen when the crazy stuff goes awry. This site has a load of that crazy stuff, and can help you to make what you have better. Tango Topics can give you a few ideas that you didn’t have before with over 800 videos and articles (not including all the other stuff) on Tango Topics watch and learn from. It’s not just the videos, but the articles that contain the most of what you need to know to elevate your dance. We’re not trying to sell you videos here, but instead to inform and engage you to educate yourself wherever possible.
Four Common Ganchos
Gancho. The word in Spanish translates to the English word, roughly, as ‘Hook’. From an Argentine Tango perspective it has a very specific meaning. You’ve seen these things hundreds of times, and while the vocabulary itself has a connotation as being somewhat ‘cheesy’, and only done by beginner leads who don’t know any better, the reality is a that it is a venerable piece of Tango vocabulary that do have a valid place off the main trunk of the Tango history tree. The story goes that while the Gancho existed long before Norberto “El Pulpo” Esbrez came along, his contribution to its storied history is where creativity meets innovation, specifically with regards to ‘elasticity’ and the Enganche. He is/was credited with pioneering and exploration the ‘invasion’ of the standing leg, the response of the free leg, as well as the space in between the opening of a step, and quite factually (if not literally), the intersection of these ideas.
Eight Follower Ganchos
What are the Eight Follower Ganchos ? The Eight Follower Ganchos are Ganchos that look very similar to the 4 Common Ganchos with one major difference: These Ganchos have NO invasion to them. In the 4 Common Ganchos the Lead is creating a Gancho (hook) by invading the Follower’s free space between their steps/legs, and as they do, the Lead continues their torso rotation while articulating their receiving Gancho leg.
Circular Boleos
What is a Circular Boleo ? This is a lifting of the leg (Lead or Follow, typically though it’s the Follower’s leg) that tends to curve (hence the circular part) up and sometimes around the Lead. This is why they’re called "Circular" Boleos. In this version of the Circular Boleo, we’re exploring a Mid-Range Circular Boleo or what Tango Topics refers to as a Mid-Height Circular Boleo.
Argentine Wraps
What is an Argentine Enganche ? The Enganche can be but is not limited to where the dancers’s free leg, can wrap around their partner’s leg in a myriad of different ways through either a Gancho, a Ganchito, a Rebound, un Libre Pierna (a free leg) Columpio (swing), or a version of a Sacada, or a Wrap in the English sense of the word. However the Argentine Wrap is a bit more specific in that it is very limited, this is where the Lead, or the Follower, mostly the Follower in this instance, can and will wrap their free leg around their partner usually from a side step. However a Wrap can be achieved from either back or forward steps as well however it is slightly more challenging to do so.