In our first lesson we worked on the most fundamental aspects of the tango dance: posture, embrace and the walk. A few reminders so you can practice without fear of introducing mistakes:
- The torso is always kept energized (with energy flowing mainly upwards and slightly forward) and straight, with the axis slightly leaning forward to keep the weight centered on the forward part of the foot. Remember reaching for the cookie jar, or imagine you are walking against a strong wind.
- The pelvis and legs are always heavy and relaxed, with energy flowing downwards into the ground. With each step, we relax the free leg's energy and let it "drop" towards the floor as we move our axis on it.
- We step on the beat, meaning our foot connects with the floor on the beat. More on this later on in the course.
- We used the practice hold, i.e. the woman is leaning on the man's chest with her hands, the elbows are kept locked so there is a direct and strong connection between her core and the man's.
- The next step embrace-wise was the open embrace, where we connect via our arms with no torso contact. This is useful for practicing because we reduce the risk of stepping on each other's feet and we also can look down now and then to check our relative positions.
- The close embrace is the real embrace used in tango. It is more important than any "steps" or "figures", so make sure you make it work comfortably.
- Before you start walking together, use weight changes to harmonize your movement together. When you are sure you connect well and you have identified the beat, start walking.
- We always walk in the ronda, meaning we dance in harmony with all other couples on the floor, making sure we don't collide. The ronda flows counterclockwise around the outside of the floor. Do not overtake couples dancing close to the outside boundary.
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