Tango Topics Seminars
Below is a list of seminars I offer for anyone that would like to hire me.
The Seminars & Workshops
A Simple Construct:
This 3 hour seminar, followed by a 1 hour guided lab, uses 1 of each of the 5 Social Figures of Argentine Tango to create a random pattern/figure that is taught, and then danced first to a metonome and then to simple strong orchestrations like Di Sarli. Where the beat is obvious and clear.
Thru a series of exercises, the student will learn to minimize and contain their choices as a Lead or as a Follow, and dance efficiently using the principles of DIASS.
A random example of this seminar would be something like:
1.) Cross System Walking.
2.) Traveling Ochos.
3.) Cross System Molinete/Giro to Lead Left or Right.
4.) A Cross System Mirror Cross (Type 2b),
and 5.) A Normal Linear Ocho Cortado in Cross System.
We then use those 5 figures to create a structure that flows together, but they’ll soon see that they can mixed and matched in any different order.
However we then begin to limit and force them to make things small and more contained, while respecting the line, and lane of dance — basically FLOORCRAFT to a METRONOME first, and then a simple Pugliese or Di Sarli song like Don Juan or Pobre Yo without enforcing any kind of musical expression at all. Let them play with it any way they want.
The Student Will Learn: 1.) SOME of the 5 Social Figures of Argentine Tango. 2.) Be exposed to a better floorcraft experience. 3.) And learning the importance of timing to a beat structure.
Minimum Students: 20. Max 40.
Proficiency Required: 1 to 2 Years of Social Dancing.
A Musical Construct:
This 3 hour seminar, followed by a 1 hour guided lab teaches what the 5 Pause Types of Tango Music are, what to listen for and how to listen to them. Then thru a series of exercises create a level of proficiency and accessibility with sample pieces of music such as Juan D’Arienzo’s “Nada Mas”, or Carlos Di Sarli’s “Pobre Yo”, and a host of 10 other pieces (only the first 30 seconds, not the whole song, in all 3 genres). The student then learns to apply the pauses to a simple pattern of parallel walking to the pauses, and then adding lazy ochos to illustrate the concept.
Next the student is invited to use the same 10 pieces of music an apply them the simple pattern to them. Then we show how adding in a Type 2 Turn (Molinete Giro Structure) and a Type 2 Argentine Cross (Normal Cross System Cross), can be added into the equation.
Now we introduce the student to the idea of Musical Paragraphs which is made up of the common structure of a Tango Sentence (the distance between two pauses). Then the student is invited to first walk an entire song to the pauses, and then the paragraphs using the 4th type of Pause. And then given some simple rules to apply that when they hear X, they do Y.
Next we add in the concepts to Symmetry (which creates the idea of patterning with music) AND Alternation (which creates the idea of difference) to create structure in the music.
The Student Will Learn: 1.) The concept of the 5 Pause Types of Tango Music. 2.) To create a more accessible way to generate musical interpretation from the 5 Pause Types.
Minimum Students: 20.
Proficiency Required: 1 Year of Social Dancing.
This 2.5 hour workshop teaches the student dancer about the 4 points of Presence, then using presence how to extend their leg ideally, and land their feet as a Lead or as a Follow in and out of heels. The student dancer is then shown how to embrace a partner without force, tension, or compression, as well as ideal arm and hand positions.
The Student Will Learn:1.) How to walk Forward and Back. 2.) How to generate side steps. 3.) How to walk with a partner in a close embrace, how to start, how to stop.
Minimum Students: 20. Max 40.
Proficiency Required: Less than a year of social dancing.
Floorcrafting.
This 2 hour seminar, followed by a 1 hour guided lab teaches the student dancer about the importance of Tango Floorcraft and how to exercise it. Thru a series of exercies, partner changes, and limiting ideas, we pair down what a dancer is doing to create an awareness of Floorcraft to get at the heart of a very important concept and practice > Dancing In A Small Space (DIASS). Which then leads to the student dancing to learning to dance economically.
This seminar provides the student with important tools to make intelligent dancing choices for both roles so that they learn to dance in close or open embrace in an economical way that does NOT disrupt the line of dance, and does not impact any other couple.
The Student Will Learn: 1.) Dance small, and economically or at the very least making them aware of their choices and to become conscious of the rest of the floor and the ronda. 2.) How to apply the practice of DIASS to their dance immediately.
Minimum Students: 20. Max 40.
Proficiency Required: Less than a year of social dancing.
The Dancing Milonguero:
This is a 6 hour seminar, followed by a 1 hour guided lab that qualfies and educates the student dancer on what ‘dancing milonguero’ is and is not. It draws a very clear distinction of the vocabulary that clearly defines dancing Milonguero. Which is in this case: Walking, Milonguero Ochos, Milonguero Turns, and Argentine crosses VS. Walking, Traveling Ochos, Molinetes, and Argentine Crosses. The student dancer will learn proper Milonguero Embrace constructs and ideas to employ – Body On Body, Buttons-To-Buttons, Proper Hand Positions and Arm Positions of the Embrace without tension, force, or compresson of the arms and or hands. The student is also shown the basic principles of DIASS, and quick overview of the 5 Pause Types to help them to create a smaller, more compact and useful dancing experience.
The Student Will Learn: 1.) Milonguero Ochos. 2.) Milonguero Turns. 3.) Milonguero Embrace.
Minimum Students: 20. Max 30.
Proficiency Required: 2 years of Social Dancing.
The Golden Nugget of Tango is construct of simple tango vocabulary that by itself is just another pattern. However, the implications of the pattern are so incredibly powerful that it’s a wonder that every teacher doesn’t teach this idea as the foundation of dancing tango.
What is the Golden Nugget of Tango > You can see it here.
In this 2.5 hour workshop, followed by a 1 hour guided lab teaches the student what the Golden Nuggest is and how to use it effectively. It shows both the open and close embrace versions of the Nugget, as well as how to break it apart and put it back together in various forms that allow for one to dance this idea all night long without repeating! It also introduces the dancer to the idea of the Interstitial Golden Nugget Extensions. Where the student learns to use their own extensions or their partner’s extensions (projections) to create even more options and opportunities.
The Student Will Learn: 1.) The foundation of the Sacada element itself. 2.) Simple Musical Interpretation thru exercising the Five Pause Types. and 3.) Basic Floorcraft when using the Golden Sacada.
Minimum Students: 20. Max 30.
Proficiency Required: 1 to 2 years of Social Dancing.
The Golden Sacada:
The Golden Sacada is a Tango Topics construct of 6 Sacadas that are chained together from simple Side and Forward Sacadas to more challening simple and complex Back Sacadas for both roles.
This is a 2 hour workshop, followed by a 1 hour guided lab teaches the student what the Golden Sacada is and goes thru the 6 possible sacadas that are present in the Golden Sacada and then how to use them to create an entire dance based on nothing but the Golden Sacada.
The Student Will Learn: 1.) The foundation of the Sacada element itself. 2.) Simple Musical Interpretation thru exercising the Five Pause Types. and 3.) Basic Floorcraft when using the Golden Sacada.
Pre-Requesites: The Student must have mastered Disassociation and Applied Disassocation Training – Tango Twister!
Minimum Students: 20. Max 30.
Proficiency Required: 1 to 2 years of Social Dancing.
Tango Twister:
Tango Twister teaches the student dancer about Disassociation and then learning how to APPLY that Disassociation in a variety of ways thru Traveling Ochos, then Molinetes and Media Lunas.
This is a 1 hour workshop.
The Student Will Learn: 1.) The foundation of Disassociation. 2.) Applied Disassociation. 3.) How and where to apply Disassociation in their dance going forward.
Minimum Students: 20.
Proficiency Required: Less than a year of social dancing.