San Francisco-specific tango advice?

A

alphabet

New Member
Intermittent lurker and first-time poster here. I was just hoping for some advice from the SF Bay Area dancers here.

I started learning tango 2 years ago and took classes and regularly attended practicas for about a year. I then didn't dance at all for a year for health reasons (though not a week went by that I didn't miss tango). I'm new to the Bay Area and wondering about how best to get back into the tango groove. I do enjoy the alternative milonga at CellSpace, but I'm sure I'm learning all sorts of bad habits. I enjoy dancing in this loose, crazy-nuevo way, but I'm feeling more and more that I'd like to learn the rules before I break them.

What are the best classes and instructors in SF for learning fundamentals in a serious way? I'm an intermediate level dancer. There are few things I love more than dancing, but I'd like to add some technique to the joy. I know the answer to this is to practice and practice, but I think I need to intersperse the practice with some measured input from knowledgeable teachers. I do ask for feedback from leaders and get unsolicited feedback from others (which is of course not always reliable), but there's only so much technical feedback you can get when the focus is on dancing rather than learning.

I can't afford private lessons at the moment, but I will certainly go that route as soon as it becomes possible (and wouldn't mind those recs as well for filing away). In the meantime, what classes in SF do you recommend? I would prefer series that build upon knowledge from class to class and teachers who are serious about producing good dancers. No car, so SF is preferred (though classes reachable via BART or Caltrain could work if they're worth it).

I've read through the forums and found lots of great advice. I know the Bay Area is rife with tango activities, but they're almost overwhelming. I have no idea how to pick through TangoMango. Thanks in advance to anyone who has any thoughts!
 
For fundamentals, I would recommend either Diego and Negracha, or Glenn Corteza. There are others who are also very good, but these might be your best bet given the requirements you've set forth. That said, you really want to be taking private lessons: you will improve much faster, and they will save you a lot of money and pain in the long run.
 
For learning fundamentals in a serious way, I recommend Marcelo Solis' classes. In San Francisco, he has a regular class at Vima dance studio on Wednesdays, and now also a workshop at Studio 204 on Saturdays.
 
Thank you both so much for your inupt. Nathan...I had a feeling I was going to hear that (re: private classes). If you don't mind sharing, do you have any recs for private instructors in the area? Or if this isn't the right forum, how would I go about finding the more highly regarded private instructors among the dozens?
 
You can start by taking a group class and see if you "click" with the instructor. I believe you need to like the way he or she dances, and it is also helpful if you like how his/her students dance.
 
Lilly is completely correct on all points, and about Marcelo being another solid choice. Maybe it goes without saying, but I'd also like to add that it helps immensely if the instructor has a positive attitude and you get along well with them. Not only is it a more pleasant experience overall, but the lessons tend to stick better too!
 
Nothing specific to SF, but I'll second what the others have said about private lessons. I understand not being able to really afford them (believe me, I really do!), but if you can afford regular group lessons you'd be better off saving that money and taking a private lesson every 4-6 weeks. Same outlay, better results.

But, yes, take some group classes first to make sure you like, respect and click with a particular teacher. Then settle down...at least for a while.
 
Excellent advises from those who are more experience than I am. I'd to share what I have learnt:

- Find a good teacher (after observing and taking a few classes) and take regular group classes for a while. The key is regular, 5 years of taking the occasional drop-in classes are a lot less beneficial than 1 year of weekly classes.

- Then switch to private lessons (some very good dancers we have met do both). I fully agree with the argument that you take the same money for regular group lessons and pay for private lessons. The benefits are tremendous.

- Go with the best teacher you can find and afford. It's more beneficial to learn from the very best, may be less frequent lessons, according to your budget. Quality over quantity.
 
Lily, where do you see that information about a Saturday workshop by Marcelo? I can't seem to find anything on Tango Mango about that, and on Marcelo's site he only has classes in San Jose listed for Saturdays. Thanks!
 
alphabet said:
Lily, where do you see that information about a Saturday workshop by Marcelo? I can't seem to find anything on Tango Mango about that, and on Marcelo's site he only has classes in San Jose listed for Saturdays. Thanks!
Click to expand...

It looks like there won't be any Saturdays in December in SF. Please come to Vima on Wednesday.
 
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