From: Brian Dunn <brian @DANCEOFTHEHEART.COM>
Reply-To: Brian Dunn <brian @DANCEOFTHEHEART.COM>
To: TANGO-L @MITVMA.MIT.EDU
Subject: [TANGO-L] Tango: goals vs. means (was: Still not Neverending
Ochos)
Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2004 14:18:46 -0700
Carlos Lima wrote:
Whoever does the leading does not normally do so by indication. Leading is
not much at all about signaling, coded messages, or the like. It is also
not
discrete, one lead at a time, but rather a continuous, uninterrupted,
process.
Astrid replied:
I have, for a long time, tried to analyse what exactly it is that draws the
eye...there are two people moving in total in unison...Nothing like "the
man
indicates-the lady leads-the man follows". This would take much too long to
create the phenomenon described above.
<<<
This sub-discussion started with the mantra: "the man indicates - the lady
leads - the man follows"
and Carlos' observation that this doesn't match his experience or
observation of how lead/follow works, which Astrid corroborates with her
lyrical description of beautiful eye-catching connected dancing.
Nevertheless I have heard versions of the mantra over and over from
respected tango teachers - from my own experience in studying both tango
AND
teaching with them, Daniel Trenner and Luciana Valle jump immediately to
mind. (Daniel: "Make her go first, then accompany her"; Luciana: "First
she,
then we.") These teachers have intercontinental reputations in teaching
beginners to tango, and can take credit for many thousands of students and
up to three generations of tango teachers in their wake. I'm thus inclined
to think there's something of value in the mantra for many of those seeking
tango mastery.
>>>
In my opinion, this three-step-technique is for people who basically don't
really know how
to lead....
<<<
Exactly. I suggest that it's useful in these discussions to distinguish
between means and ends, and also to recognize that the "mantra" is
primarily
directed at beginning leaders (as Daniel's and Luciana's versions imply).
Demonstrations of superb connected tango dancing, such as those Astrid
describes, can offer inspiration and a "comparative benchmark" for
determining when a goal is achieved, but are woefully inefficient as a
means
of explaining to beginner leaders how to arrive at the goal.
The "mantra" in all its forms makes more sense as a VERY VERY slowed-down
version of what actually happens from the leader's perspective in superb
dancing. This learning technique is well understood by musicians.
Guitarists are quite accustomed to the idea of recording fast licks by
players they admire, then using electronics to slow down the playing speed
to manageable levels for their current skill level without distorting the
pitch while they sequentially figure out the lick. Once they get the lick
down, of course they speed it up! - "playing slow" is never the goal, just
a
learning method to get over a certain technique "hump". Soon the
individual
notes, and the discrete effort and concentration required to sequentially
play each one, merge into the seamless flowing playing that is the real
goal.
I predict that tango teachers and many beginner leaders (who, as Astrid
says, may have a predisposition to linear thinking) will appreciate the
"mantra" in its various forms, while accomplished social tango dancers,
especially followers, will find it inappropriately sequential and
unrepresentative of their seamless flowing experience...I suggest in these
discussions having patience with these beginners and the methods they need
as they pursue the goal you have perhaps already achieved...and be ready to
welcome them and enjoy them as they "speed up" their playing! ;)
All the best,
Brian Dunn
Dance of the Heart
Boulder, Colorado USA
1(303)938-0716
http://www.danceoftheheart.com