Tango Diaries

[itwillhappen]

Dear Diary...

...I can measure whether I'm relaxed or not by the number of sweat-soaked shirts. I used to have to change my shirt twice in the summer and once in the winter. Since I started showing up with my SO, I sometimes change my shirt in the summer, and never in the winter.
I usually dance my best tanda of the evening effortlessly with my SO anyway. So I seldom shift into position to give my mirada more emphasis. Let the followers do that if they want to dance with me. That saves a lot of mental energy, too.

 

[opendoor]

..and - visibly piqued - didn't answer it..

So brave, congrats itwillhappen ! (I would definitely have been thrown out!)

 

[Bailango]

Leading women provide as followers often noticeable momentum in the second half of a turn , just as is done in the Viennese Waltz.

That is not active following. That is followers doing their part. Leader can only indicate the generation of momentum at best (basically the timing). But if follower doesn’t have right technique (foot work and how to time it), there is not much a leader can do. Unless someone is trying to muscle the followers through.

Again, that’s not active following.

 

[brujo]

There is no consensus on what active following is when discussing it in written like here.

A distinction should also be drawn between teaching good dancing and active following. Good dancing can be about good following or good leading, but more of good following in this case.

Maybe I wasn’t clear in my post but the teacher(s) never labels this as “active following” as a thing. It’s just something I notice in tango classes as technique given to the followers compared to other classes where the focus seems to be just more passive following around supplying the right connection and doing the move.

To me being attentive to some of this stuff has added a bit of fun to dances. There are people that don’t go to milongas that you encountered in other dance scenes. At the most basic, when someone responds with a low boleo or lapiz to me that is active invitation to try some more of the tango vocabulary and I have had a lot of fun in fusion, zouk and bachata events blending in those when they pop up.

Within tango, I have noticed for example more inventive responses. Musicality wise for example they will highlight certain beats with their decorations with little taps, or react differently when given different levels of tension. Some really fun dances have also done things like add tip toed ballet like footwork to ochos. It’s a more playful “yes and” conversation.

 

[brujo]

-duplicate-

 

[brujo]

When I was in beginner's classes, most couples were just trying to get the basics down through cooperation. And this required at least twice as much attention on the leaders as on the followers. Unless leaders (and followers) have become significantly more gifted, or are overrepresented and consumable, I consider it utter nonsense to even try to teach beginners how to "actively follow".

Again they don’t teach it as “this is active following”, it’s just how I compared it to the more passive following technique I’ve seen in other dances. If “active following” is a huge controversial technical term I’m not referring to that concept.

The beginner class here is set up as a one year progressive series. In hindsight the things like followers taking over the timing of a giro was taught more as a deep dive thing later on, not like in the first classes or first time we saw the giro. Similarly a lot of the other things come up as part of musicality classes and such, not as the focus of the class. It just sticks out to me because they come up as “these are some things I need try delegating to a follow when dancing”.

 

[Miradamiranda]

"do less, listen more" devolve into reading followers' minds?

DEVOLVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ???????????

Geeeeschhh, what a provocation.

I think many leads seriously overestimate the clarity of the moves they invite us to interpret!

Frankly, trying to read the leaders’ minds is a huge part of what we do.

@brujo, sounds like you’re in good hands.

The extreme cases of leaders are: too wishy washy (not clear), or too controlling. The first segment, we followers might as well be dancing with a chair, for the second segment, the leader might as well be dancing with an inflatable puppet.

 

[Tango Distance]

At some point, doesn't "do less, listen more" devolve into reading followers' minds?

DEVOLVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ???????????

My thought was "evolve into reading followers' minds".

BTW it still amazes me how well a good follower can read my lead, it's as if they are reading my mind.

 

[Bailango]

Maybe I wasn’t clear in my post but the teacher(s) never labels this as “active following” as a thing. It’s just something I notice in tango classes as technique given to the followers compared to other classes where the focus seems to be just more passive following around supplying the right connection and doing the move.

To me being attentive to some of this stuff has added a bit of fun to dances. There are people that don’t go to milongas that you encountered in other dance scenes. At the most basic, when someone responds with a low boleo or lapiz to me that is active invitation to try some more of the tango vocabulary and I have had a lot of fun in fusion, zouk and bachata events blending in those when they pop up.

Within tango, I have noticed for example more inventive responses. Musicality wise for example they will highlight certain beats with their decorations with little taps, or react differently when given different levels of tension. Some really fun dances have also done things like add tip toed ballet like footwork to ochos. It’s a more playful “yes and” conversation.

Still almost none of it is active following.

 

[Bailango]

BTW it still amazes me how well a good follower can read my lead, it's as if they are reading my mind.

It grows with experience the more a follower social dances. Able to read the lead is what sets followers apart amongst themselves.

If you try following frequently you too will develop that ability.

 

[opendoor]

Still almost none of it is active following.

I once was heavily criticized here on DF when I tried to limit the understanding of "active following" to the communication concept of Gustavo Naveira (aka The Progressive Boulder Tango Studio Method). Perhaps you will remember.

 

[brujo]

Still almost none of it is active following.

Please define active following. Would love to learn your idea.

I’m super curious because I just used it as a passing description but this seems to have some hidden specific meaning.

 

[itwillhappen]

Please define active following. Would love to learn your idea.

I’m super curious because I just used it as a passing description but this seems to have some hidden specific meaning.

The current societal paradigm (in Northern Europe) dictates that women influence the dancing to 50%.
The term "embellishments" is worn out and no longer acceptable ... so how about "active following"?
You can fill that in with whatever content you can imagine.

 

[opendoor]

..The term "embellishments" is worn out and no longer acceptable ...

That only applies to followers. As a lead, I'm still allowed to make adornos.

 

[Bailango]

I once was heavily criticized here on DF when I tried to limit the understanding of "active following" to the communication concept of Gustavo Naveira (aka The Progressive Boulder Tango Studio Method). Perhaps you will remember.

Yes I do remember it very well. But you were against the concept of active following. I have an opposite opinion. I think more followers should practice active following. I like followers who do that.