Level 4 September - October 2017

Practice Resources

Tango Music for practicing and dancing

(Reposting this here in case you missed it in previous terms).

Here's a link to help you better understand tango music for dancing.

Link to 250 songs

The following link will download a fabulous collection of 250 of the most popular songs (tango, vals and milonga) played in milongas around the world! Focus for now only on the tangos. Also focus on instrumental songs as opposed to vocals as these are easier to find the beat. Di Sarli is one of the better orchestras to start with:

http://www.muraterdemsel.com/250TANGO.zip

This link goes to a zip file (little less than a 1 GB file).

Spotify

I recommend the following album on Spotify: 'Serie de Oro' by Carlos di Sarli. This album has good songs for practicing. Avoid the last song 'Tu Palida Voz' as it's a vals.

Week 7: October 16

We introduced the following combination: Parallel Cross - Americana - Sandwich:

Week 6: October 9

We introduced Sacadas to Giro to the right - two variations:

Week 5: October 2

We reviewed and refined the Sacada combination from Week 4.

We introduced the side step lead (to the left for this combination) without the leader stepping. Side step circular - lead only by the torso.

Week 4: September 25

The theme was Sacadas.

We showed how you could add two Sacadas to the Giro to the Left:

Notes: The Sacada is one of the most popular figure in tango. It’s name derives from the Spanish verb ‘sacar’ which means ‘to take out, take away’. The Sacada looks as if one leg is pushing the other leg away from its place, displacement. But his is not the case, as the leader's leg moves weightlessly into place. Many times their feet do not even touch each other during the sacada. Essentially one partner initiates the movement of the of the other’s leg out of it’s original place, to make space for his/her foot. Some instructors say that it is a simple displacement, as the leader replaces the space with his foot as he has just “chased” away the the foot of the follower.

Leader's and Follower's Sacadas

We can refer to Sacadas accordingly to Leaders and Followers, as to who initiates the movement and steps into the free space.

Leader’s sacada - Leader first leads the follower away, then steps into the space the follower has left.

Follower’s sacada - The leader moves himself away from the spot and then leads the follower to step into that space.

Sacada Directions

We can step into the Sacada with a Forward, Side and Back step. It can also be defined by both the steps of the Leader and Follower at time of Sacada.

Week 3: September 18

We focused on:

Balance
Connection
Walking technique
Walking in close embrace

You may enjoy this: 7 videos of beautiful walking

Practice Resources

Standing on a pile of books

Followers' Checklist

Week 2: September 11

We focused on:

Walking in close embrace
Connecting / engaging with the floor
'Active' following - particularly with Giros.

Week 1: September 4

We focused on:

Musicality - phrasing, walking to single, double and half time
Standing start turns

Here's some related videos: