Tango

Almost certainly the success of tango stems from the uniqueness of social interactions that surround it. Tango is simply very inclusive. At our Practicas, here in Kingston, we spend almost as much time socializing as dancing. Our interactions also extend beyond just weekly events. It is very important to mention that one can attend milongas without a partner and still have a chance of dancing. During each milonga people often switch partners. It happens usually every three or four dances that are grouped together and called the “tanda”. The “tandas” are separated by short inserts of the non-tango music, so-called “cortinas” that allow time for inviting a new partner. Such practice presents to all dancers opportunity to try different styles of dancing. Each person has his/her own preferred styles of moving in response to the music, leading their partners or responding to the lead.

People may also be attracted to it, because it likely is the last social dance executed with high degree of engagement of each partner and not just individual performance of each dancer on the adjacent areas of the dance floor. One needs to be quite confident in his/her leading and reading the lead ability in order dance well. I often hear that Tango is very difficult to learn and that it takes years to master the steps. Sure, Tango is not easy to learn; after all it takes two people to dance it in harmony. How to do it? One can just practice alone at home, as I and my husband tried early on. However, the best is to start with group lessons available at many tango clubs. Our Kingston Club has classes every Tuesday, and following each lesson there is an opportunity to practice. During our “Practicas” we dance with each other and thus explore the music and set newly-learned moves into our muscle memories. After all, any skill improves with practice.