Have you ever walked an entire song at a milonga??

[Peaches]

Heh. Now all I can think about is how I'd emphasize the gunshots in the chorus.

Yeah, that's one of my favorite things to think about. Songs like that just make me want to walk, with a ton of attitude of course. The gunshots...I like the idea of either side steps, weight changes in place, or a repeating side "half-step"/point/partial weight change. Or the development of a...pose, for lack of a better term...over the course of them, sort of a sharp, stop action camera sort of look to it.

Edit to add: Gotta warn you, Sub, I can hear AT in just about anything. (If you haven't picked up on that already.) I'm a tango ho that way. Stick around me, and I could corrupt you. Next thing you know, you could be inviting me to dance AT to something as crazy as...say...Michael Jackson, or Nine Inch Nails. (If you have the urge to dance AT to "Closer" I better be involved. I've been wanting to turn that into a tango for quite a while now.)

 

[bordertangoman]

first you have to listen to Walking Spanish by Tom Waits

 

[vade mecum]

I love walking a follower. Trying to step a little longer and later than the beat is nice. Varying the length of stride is nice. So is walking in the cross-footed system with no ochos. Beginning followers can do all of these, as well as my favorite regular partners. The problem is that sometimes it’s my lunch hour at work when I really get to practice walking to an imaginary compass. Because in my city where I dance on most nights the floor is piled up. It only takes one or two people practicing what they learned in class to effect a slowdown for the rest of us. I end up doing more giros than I would like, in- place ochos, and pauses. Pauses are fine with experienced dancers, but I've danced with enough beginners to know that when you are stretching out the moment for exigent or dramatic purposes, even while well grounded and solid, a beginner is going to feel uncomfortable and will start shifting her weight or -worse- unled pivots.

I expect to get some flak about my next points, but I like the idea and the diagrams on Rick McGarrey’s Tango and Chaos site that shows how the leaders can dip into the middle when they are blocked, if not only for the purpose of buying a little time before the couple in front decide to move again (a solution to the “dawdler’s gap” as he calls it.) He calls the curlicue curved motion figures of motion ‘firulettes’. I like that image. Some of you may “call foul” on a suggestion for dipping into the middle. But on a small floor, short of actually confronting more than a few leaders who don’t allow the group to jellyfish forward in the ronda it’s all that I can think of knat a solution. Rick also feels that when the outside lanes are stacked up and you’re trying to enter the floor it’s ok to make a salida onto the floor past the outside lane into the middle and then look for an opening in the ronda from there. However, here at the home front whenever I try to curlicue into the middle in my curved linear I’m usually met by one of the ballroom type couples who are using it as a staging area.

So, for what it’s worth I love just walking a follower. If not straight walks and corridas then curved linears. As one of the previous posters said it’s nice when your hips feel all loose from walking . As I mentioned it’s nice to play with the beat, stepping a little bit late yourself and placing the follower exactly on the beat. Sometimes though I have to just imagine what it would be like to walk with a follower as I practice my walk through town and country rather than on pistas that are made unpleasant.

 

[mkjohnson]

"I'm a tango ho that way."
lmao - I love that. One of my favorite things (according to my husband) is finding things to dance tango to in public places - the music in the elevator, grocery store, shopping mall... whatever. he said he starts looking for my head to tilt - then he knows I'm listening for something to dance to. (And he wanders off to try to look like he doesn't know me lol)

 

[bordertangoman]

Yeah, that's one of my favorite things to think about. Songs like that just make me want to walk, with a ton of attitude of course. The gunshots...I like the idea of either side steps, weight changes in place, or a repeating side "half-step"/point/partial weight change. Or the development of a...pose, for lack of a better term...over the course of them, sort of a sharp, stop action camera sort of look to it.

Edit to add: Gotta warn you, Sub, I can hear AT in just about anything. (If you haven't picked up on that already.) I'm a tango ho that way. Stick around me, and I could corrupt you. Next thing you know, you could be inviting me to dance AT to something as crazy as...say...Michael Jackson, or Nine Inch Nails. (If you have the urge to dance AT to "Closer" I better be involved. I've been wanting to turn that into a tango for quite a while now.)

what about Lose Yourself: Eminem?

 

[Peaches]

If you're asking, sure!

 

[Subliminal]

Yeah, that's one of my favorite things to think about. Songs like that just make me want to walk, with a ton of attitude of course. The gunshots...I like the idea of either side steps, weight changes in place, or a repeating side "half-step"/point/partial weight change. Or the development of a...pose, for lack of a better term...over the course of them, sort of a sharp, stop action camera sort of look to it.

Oh, or like a series of hesitation steps that end in a pose. Maybe borrow from smooth tango (scandal!) and end slumped together in a corte. Heh, this is a fun game.

Edit to add: Gotta warn you, Sub, I can hear AT in just about anything. (If you haven't picked up on that already.) I'm a tango ho that way. Stick around me, and I could corrupt you. Next thing you know, you could be inviting me to dance AT to something as crazy as...say...Michael Jackson, or Nine Inch Nails. (If you have the urge to dance AT to "Closer" I better be involved. I've been wanting to turn that into a tango for quite a while now.)

Lol. I kinda picked up on it, yes. If you're trying to corrupt me, you might not have far to go. I'm already mentally walking through Closer. As well as Johnny Cash's cover of Hurt, which I was just listening to.

 

[bordertangoman]

or a blast from the past: Also Sparach Zarathrusta by Deodata

 

[Mr Walker]

My idea of a great walk ...I'm sure you all have your versions but i like this end of a class demonstration showing how wonderful it can be..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OM8-fg9jWQ

 

[opendoor]

As walking, standing belongs to Tango, as well

Hi Walker, I am a bit confused about your comment: I see elegant dancing, and graceful walking. This dancing is exemplary, in this you are right. But they do not walk throughout. They make stops without end, and they turn. And remember, the cross is kind of a stop, too. I think it is very difficult, only to walk. Firstly, TA is a social dance, so other couples affect your dancing. Secondly, it is difficult to vary your dancing when just walking (you can change the sides, the tracks, the system, the tempo, and the direction). And finally, I believe that standing still is tango, too. So I would not subscribe, that to walk an entire song is a good interpretation of the music. And that is, what dancing should achieve.

Cheers
OD

 

[bordertangoman]

i like this example of "only walking' to a milonga
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsR76Hi79Cw&feature=related

 

[opendoor]

Yep! And its an example for what I meant with "standing belongs to dancing", as well: look 1:39 before the corida with the small side steps.

 

[Mr Walker]

Hi Opendoor

For the link i posted i clearly state he has a great walk...not that he is walking the entire song...And for the purpose of what some of the answers posted it could well qualify for walking the entire song..

if i walk between 80%-90% of a song not including the the musical pauses i consider it walking an entire song...i do not find it difficult to walk a song and vary it no matter how crowded the floor..i would say that walking is social dancing all i have to do is respect the space of the couple infront of me and behind me..and stay in my lane..In earlier post i agreed with ampster and others about what we thought and entire song meant..

An entire song? Yes. But, it is interspersed with lots of syncopation, pauses, tempo changes, adornos, all in-tune with, and depending on the music.

Walking an entire milonga, Not quite.

At a festival I attend regularly one of the most popular if not the most popular leader just walks the entire time, in the manner Ampster has described above. This festival lasts anything from 1 week to 10 days. When we talk about AT afterwards, he says the connection he feels when dancing is what it is all about for him. When he started learning, moves and incorporating them in his dance were important but he dropped that idea some years ago.

Personally I have found as I have began to understand AT more and my connection in close embrace has become more comfortable, I am walking more than I ever imagined. I think I have now walked an entire song in the manner descibed by Amp out of choice and when I first started AT I didn't think this would be possible for me.

 

[bastet]

Hi Opendoor

For the link i posted i clearly state he has a great walk...not that he is walking the entire song...And for the purpose of what some of the answers posted it could well qualify for walking the entire song..

if i walk between 80%-90% of a song not including the the musical pauses i consider it walking an entire song...i do not find it difficult to walk a song and vary it no matter how crowded the floor..i would say that walking is social dancing all i have to do is respect the space of the couple infront of me and behind me..and stay in my lane..In earlier post i agreed with ampster and others about what we thought and entire song meant..

Hi Mr Walker- I get the feeling we may not all be in agreement of what is meant by "walking".

I'm in agreement with you and Ampster, Peaches and others. "Walking" (for me at least) encompasses both the one foot in front of the other variety and also includes pauses, weight changes, side steps, rock/check steps, double times, slo mo and half time of any of these items.

I don't personally include cross system things like ochos, or even crusadas in either system...haven't quite decided why, though I am perfectly aware that walking in either side or back and forth in cross system is also walking. But to me that generally implies more knowledge on the lead and follows part to make it work well than you need for what I call "walking", which I think even a creative beginner could do (or someone more experienced could do with a beginner who didn't know much else) and manage to be musical and interesting.

 

[opendoor]

Hi everybody,

...get the feeling we may not all be in agreement of what is meant by "walking"...

.. you can change the sides, the tracks, the system, the tempo, and the direction...

OK, after all now, I would add some pivoting, and thus walked back-8s, but not the (funny double) front-8s shown here

... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsR76Hi79Cw&feature=related

Then walking could be synonymic with fluently in the line of dance, without stops and (full) turns.