Caroline says: > It was only >> when I stopped classes and practicas and went to milongas only that I >> finally learned to ditch all the bad habits picked up from classes and >> rather overly opined beginner leaders in practicas that I discovered >> what Real Tango is.
No question, as others have pointed out, that the real learning happens in the Milonga, but you cannot do all your learning at Milongas without being a nuisance to your partner and fellow dancers (especially for the man), or without missing or taking an unnecessarily long time to incorporate fundamental techniques that will improve your dancing (for both men and women). The way I like to think about it: One learns elements, figures and techniques at classes, but one learns _how to dance_ at the Milongas. This actually brought up in my mind the flip side: the unfortunate custom of teaching or practicing at Milongas (as opposed to practicas or classes). A lot has been said of this practice, especially of the "know it all" man who subjects a victim to an uninvited drawn-out lesson on the dance floor, but often enough one sees mutually consenting couples practicing some figure or the other at a Milonga as well (I don't mean trying to incorporate it into their dancing, but rather reviewing their class or favourite step or whatever). I mainly wanted to repeat a quote on this subject from Danel and Maria, which I remember well from my early and formative Tango years back in the Stanford Tango weeks: "You go to a Milonga to dance, not to practice. If you are practicing at a Milonga, ask yourself this question: WHAT EVENT IS IT THAT YOU ARE PRACTICING FOR?" Shahrukh _______________________________________________ Tango-L mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
