Never Forget Why We Started

As our second anniversary approaches, we can take pride in the progress we’ve made over the past two years. Our numbers have been steadily growing, our dance skills have significantly improved, and we now host our own milonga on a regular basis. When we go out to dance as a group, we leave a positive impression. We are beginning to make an impact on the tango community in this city.

However, there is no room for complacency. We are still far from achieving our goals. Our numbers remain small, our dance skills are still developing, and we are still a marginal presence in the local tango scene. The entire community remains influenced by Nuevo tango, and much work lies ahead for us—both in terms of personal growth and community building.

Some members, feeling confident in their abilities, may prefer not to maintain a low profile. They seek to showcase their skills and connect with new people. This has led to missed classes due to conflicting events. Some feel they have reached a level of independence where they no longer need the group, and a few have already left.

While exploration is commendable, we must not lose sight of why we started. This group has a mission. We are not individualists seeking personal gain and leaving when our goals are achieved. We are united by a larger purpose: to promote the milonguero style of tango, build a robust tango community, transform the tango culture in this city, and bring more people into our cause (see Champaign Milongueros Group Charter).

This vision requires teamwork, commitment, discipline, responsibility, grit, and personal sacrifice. If we prioritize self-interest and neglect our mission, we risk repeating the mistakes of those before us—those who wandered through tango for years without finding a place to truly belong. Individuals seeking independence will eventually realize that they need a home group to study, dance, grow, and fully enjoy tango.

Gathering a group of like-minded dancers is important because we cannot enjoy tango with just anyone. We can only enjoy tango with dancers who share the same philosophy, dance the same style, use the same embrace, mastered the same steps, and reached the same level of proficiency. Tango is the collective work of a group of like-minded and educated dancers, without whom one alone cannot enjoy tango no matter how good his/her dance skill is. That is why we must not just think about ourselves but work together, help each other to grow, and join hands to build a strong team.

Of course, this is easier said than done. People differ in their learning speeds and abilities. Some are quicker learners and better dancers than others. It takes time for everyone in the group to reach the same level of proficiency. In the meantime, those with greater skill may lose patience and feel it is in their best interest to dance independently with more advanced partners. However, when we prioritize self-interest over the common cause, we lose perspective, the group suffers, and everyone pays the price.

If we remain united and work together to encourage and support one another, the group will grow stronger and improve more rapidly, benefiting us all in the long run. It takes dedicated individuals to create a strong group, and a strong group to make a lasting impact. Until we achieve this, we cannot persuade others to join us or bring about meaningful change. Therefore, our priority must not be to flaunt our achievements but to focus on continuous self-improvement. History is made by those who remain steadfast, work together, and never give up (see Tango in Small Cities).

Learning Tango: Two Perspectives

The following behaviors are common among beginners: (1) They are eager to learn steps but overlook basic skills. (2) They imitate movements but ignore technical details. (3) They focus on themselves but neglect their partner. (4) They lean back to avoid intimate physical contact. (5) They lead and follow using their arms and hands. (6) They grasp their partner to assist with movements. (7) They fail to listen to and follow the music carefully (see Imitating Steps vs. Developing Skills).

All of these stem from one fundamental issue: they regard tango solely as steps. To them, learning tango means learning steps, and they believe that if they can perform the steps, they can dance tango. This step-centered mindset leads them to neglect many other essential aspects of the dance.

It is important to understand that what we dance in tango is not the steps but the music and the feelings that music inspiresis. Tango is a feeling that is danced and that feeling comes from music. Steps are but the tools used to express the music and feelings. Of all the elements that made tango, music and the feelings stirred by the music are the most important two, without which there is no tango, only gymnastics (see Tango Is a Feeling).

You need to know steps to dance tango, of course. But just knowing steps doesn’t mean you can perform them musically and coherently with a partner. Tango is teamwork, where the man uses his body to guide the movement of the woman. The woman, in turn, must follow the lead rather than concentrating solely on executing the steps. Focusing on getting her own moves right distracts her from following the lead. This is why dancing with a beginner often feels awkward and uncomfortable. The man’s lead is guided by the music. When the music is sharp, his lead is sharp. When the music shifts to tenderness, his lead becomes gentler. Therefore, the same step should be danced differently, depending on the music. Instead of focusing on executing her steps, the woman should concentrate on following the lead and expressing the music.

Different leads convey different messages. For example, when the man’s right chest pushes while his left chest pulls, it indicates that he wants you to swivel your hips to his right. Similarly, when his left chest pushes and his right chest pulls, it signals that he wants you to swivel your hips to his left. Often, the lead emanating from his chest is so subtle that it cannot be seen but only felt. Tango is a sophisticated form of body language. Learning tango is not primarily about mastering steps but learning that body language, learning to conceive, respond to, communicate with, and be one with your partner's body with your body (see Tango Is a Language (I)).

This perspective requires the dancer to shift their focus from steps to the body, embrace, connection, communication, music, and the emotions evoked by the music, to use your body to feel, to share with the partner what you feel, to exchange feelings through direct physical interaction, to move your body in harmony with the movement of the partner's body, and to please the partner with your body. Tango is not any ordinary dance. It is intimate interplays between two dancers. Instead of concentrating on imitating steps, let making dancing with you a pleasure for your partner become the purpose and focus of your learning and practice in tango.

The transformation from a step-oriented, self-centered, single-focused beginner to a feeling-oriented, partner-centered, multitasking team player is a lengthy process. Beginners cannot fully grasp the essence of tango until they have acquired sufficient knowledge, skills, and experience. However, adopting the right perspective from the very beginning can set you on the correct path and significantly shorten the journey to becoming a proficient tango dancer (see The Four Stages of the Tango Journey).

How to Dance Milonga

Milonga music is written in 2/4 time. There are two quarter notes in each measure, with each quarter note receiving one beat. The rhythm is counted as 1+, 2+ (where 1 is the downbeat, 2 is the upbeat, and + represents the subdivision). This rhythm is twice as fast as tango (see Tango Music and Its Danceability). How well one dances milonga depends on their ability to handle its fast pace.

There are three primary techniques for dancing milonga:

Milonga Lisa
The first technique is called milonga Lisa, where the dancer steps only on the downbeat of each measure, ignoring the upbeat and subdivisions:

• Right foot on 1 of the first measure.
• Left foot on 1 of the second measure.
• Right foot on 1 of the third measure.
• Left foot on 1 of the fourth measure...

The steps are executed evenly and at a consistent speed.

Milonga Lisa is the simplest way to dance milonga. While it may feel slow and monotonous, it works well with very fast music.

Dynamic Timing
The second technique is using dynamic timing, where the dancer steps randomly on any or all beats and subdivisions at varying speeds. For example:

• Step on 1 of the first measure, then on both 1 and 2 of the second measure (slow,            quick-quick).
• Step on both 1 and 2 of the first measure, then on 1 of the second measure (quick-          quick, slow).
• Step on all the downbeats and upbeats (quick-quick, quick-quick).

You can also incorporate subdivisions alongside beats:

• Left foot on 1, right foot on +, left foot on 2 (quick-quick, slow).
• Left foot on 1, right foot on 2, left foot on + (slow, quick-quick).
• Left foot on 1, right foot on +, left foot on 2, right foot on + (quick-quick, quick-quick).

Pauses and slow motions may also be employed for variety.

Dancing milonga with dynamic timing is more interesting, but due to frequent weight changes, it feels busy and could be tedious if the whole tanda is danced in this way. It fits nicely when music is slower.

Milonga Traspie
The third and more sophisticated technique is milonga traspie. Meaning stumble, traspie refers to pseudo-steps designed to reduce weight changes, thus make the fast-paced milonga more manageable.

When the leg encounters an obstacle, it may either cross over or rebound. Correspondingly, there are two types of traspie:

Double-Step Traspie In this type, the dancer steps twice with the same leg on two consecutive downbeats in slow-slow timing.

• The first step mimics the leg encountering an obstacle. It is not an actual step but            only a tap, carrying 50% of the body weight.
• The second step mimics the leg crossing over. It is a real step, carrying 100% of the          body weight to free the standing leg.

Executing double-step traspie, the left leg steps in line with the partner's leg, the right leg steps outside of the partner's leg, often in a pattern of two traspies forward and two traspies backward.

With its slow-slow timing, double-step traspie helps reduce movement speed when the music is very fast.

Rock Traspie This type mirrors a rebound motion. The dancer transfers weight back and forth three times in quick-quick-slow timing:

• Extend one leg forward, backward, or to the side, transferring 50% of body weight to       it on 1 (quick).
• Push with that leg to transfer weight back to the standing leg on + (quick).
• Push with the standing leg, transferring all weight back to the extended leg on 2 to          free the standing leg (slow).

Rock traspie is favored by milongueros for its plainness, compactness, and understated elegance.

By using these feigned steps, whether taps or rocks, traspie enables dancers to align their body movements with the music's rhythm without full weight changes on every beat, making the dance more manageable.

Due to the subtlety of its lead, traspie is best executed in close embrace with good physical connection between partners. Since it involves pseudo-steps rather than true steps, beginners accustomed to full weight changes may need to break old habits to master it.

Experienced dancers combine these techniques to make their milonga more varied and enjoyable. Here are a few additional examples.

Imitating Steps vs. Developing Skills

Beginners often think that if they can master the steps, they can dance tango. This mindset leads many to focus solely on imitating steps. As soon as they memorize one step, they move on to copying another. They believe that by doing so, they can learn faster and start dancing tango sooner.

What they don’t realize is that becoming a qualified tango dancer isn’t about how many steps you know, but rather the foundational skills that underpin those steps. These essential skills include musicality, embrace, posture, connection, the ability to use the torso to lead/follow, switch between parallel system and cross system, the ability to return to the home position in a timely manner, flexibility, lightness, balance, stability, walk, salida, resolution, cross, pivot, dissociation, ocho, molinete, gear effect, cadencia, rock, traspie, synchronization, and slow motion. These are the building blocks of all tango movements. Dancers who have a solid grounding in these basics can perform beautifully with just a few simple steps. In contrast, those who lack these fundamental skills often appear incoherent and awkward in the dance, even if they know many fancy steps.

The purpose of teaching steps in tango is not merely to teach the steps themselves, but more importantly, to develop fundamental skills. For instance, when a teacher instructs students to use dissociation in an ocho, it’s because dissociation is a vital skill—not only for performing ochos but also for mastering many other tango movements. However, students may not grasp this point. They often imitate the motion of an ocho by simply crossing one leg in front of the other, neglecting the crucial work of swiveling their hips. Instead of putting in the effort to develop the underlying skill, they take shortcuts to achieve quick results. As a consequence, while they may have tried many steps, their fundamental skills remain underdeveloped.

Another purpose of teaching steps is to help students overcome bad habits, such as bending over, leaning back, bowing their heads, keeping their knees bent, breaking the embrace, using their arms and hands to lead or follow, or grasping their partner to perform steps. Until students break these bad habits and develop good habits that align with the requirements of tango, they cannot dance it well. However, students often fail to realize this. They focus on imitating steps and pay little attention to correcting their bad habits. As a result, even though they may have attempted many steps, their old habits persist, and their dancing still falls short of the standards of tango.

The eagerness to succeed can often become a major obstacle to learning. Students must recognize that the quality of their dance is not determined by the number of steps they know but by the fundamental skills and good habits they develop. Instead of focusing on merely copying steps, they should concentrate on building a solid foundation, ensuring that each step they learn serves as a building block for the next. By advancing in an orderly and gradual manner, diligently practicing basic skills, carefully following instructions, paying attention to technical details, committing to drills, and establishing a strong foundation, students can achieve twice the results with half the effort. This is the only path to becoming a skilled and competent tango dancer.

Rock Steps and Variations of Ocho Cortado

Rock refers to shifting your weight to one leg and then to the other when the legs are apart. It is typically done in quick-quick-slow timing: (1) stretching one leg forward or backward and transferring 50 percent of the body weight to it (quick), (2) pushing with that leg to transfer weight back to the standing leg (quick), and (3) collecting the acting leg and shifting weight to it to free the standing leg (slow). Rock can be executed in various patterns: forward and backward, right and left, forward and side, with or without a pivot, etc. Since the position of the standing leg can be adjusted in step (2), and the position of the acting leg can be altered in step (3), the rock step can be used to change the direction of travel. The following video demonstrates this technique:

This video includes three parts.

The first part demonstrates the basic forward-back-collecting rock pattern. For clarity, I will primarily describe this from the leader's perspective: (1) He steps forward with his left leg (quick). (2) He pushes with his left leg to transfer weight back to his right leg (quick). (3) He collects his left leg and shifts weight to it, freeing the right leg (slow).

The pattern then repeats starting with the other leg. This sequence can also be performed diagonally to the left or right. The woman mirrors the man’s movements. Note that she does not collect her acting leg when her weight is transferred back to her standing leg. Instead, she keeps her legs spread apart, with the heel of her acting leg remaining on the floor, tilting the foot upward for a more stylish appearance.

In the second part, the man demonstrates the forward-back-side rock pattern: (1) He steps forward with his left leg (quick). (2) He pushes with his left leg to transfer weight back to his right leg (quick). (3) He steps to the side with his left leg and shifts weight to it, freeing the right leg (slow).

This pattern is repeated with the other leg. Note that he makes a 90-degree turn when rocking to either side. The woman mirrors his movements, swiveling her back leg to the right and left while keeping her front leg in place.

In the third part, the man demonstrates how to change the direction of travel at the cruzada using two sets of rock patterns. After leading the woman to the cross, he first employs the forward-back-side rock pattern, starting with his left leg: (1) He steps forward with his left leg to make her step back with her right leg. (2) He pushes with his left leg to transfer weight back to his right leg, prompting her to shift weight forward to her left leg. (3) He steps to the side with his left leg, causing her to pivot 90 degrees and step on his left with her right leg.

Next, he uses the forward-back-turn rock pattern with his right leg: (1) He steps forward with his right leg to make her step back with her left leg. (2) He transfers weight back to his left leg after adjusting its position, prompting her to shift forward to her right leg. (3) He pivots to the left, prompting her to step forward with her left leg and pivot 180 degrees to face him, while he shifts weight to his right leg. These two patterns combine to form a variation of the ocho cortado, executed on his left side instead of his right, as is customary.

This version of ocho cortado can also be executed in the cross system, as demonstrated in the video at 0:33–0:44:

After leading her into the cross system, the man first uses a forward-back-turn rock pattern executed counterclockwise, starting with his right leg: (1) He steps forward with his right leg, prompting her to step back with her right leg. (2) He twists 90 degrees to the left with his right leg and steps back with his left leg, causing her to shift her weight forward to her left leg. (3) He continues the left turn with his left leg, prompting her right leg to swivel counterclockwise and land on his left, as he simultaneously shifts his weight to his right leg.

He then transitions to a forward-turn-side rock pattern with his left leg: (1) He steps to her right side with his left leg, prompting her to step back with her left leg. (2) He shifts his weight to his right leg after turning it 90 degrees to the left, prompting her to transfer her weight forward to her right leg. (3) He steps to the side with his left leg, causing her left leg to swivel 90 degrees counterclockwise and land on her back.

Next, he steps forward with his right leg, twisting it to make her left leg swivel counterclockwise into a back-cross, while he collects his left leg. (This is performed in slow-slow timing.) He then steps back with his right leg, prompting her to complete a standard ocho cortado.

Other rock patterns could also be applied at the cruzada, as shown in the following clip:

After leading the woman to the cross, the man first performs a forward-turn-turn rock pattern: (1) He steps forward with his left leg, prompting her to step back with her right leg. (2) He pivots 90 degrees to the right with both legs and shifts weight to his right leg, prompting her to transfer weight forward to her left leg. (3) He pivots another 90 degrees to the right with his right leg, prompting her to step forward with her right leg, while he shifts weight to his left leg.

On her part, the woman executes a back-forward-forward rock pattern: (1) She steps back with her right leg without collecting her left leg. (2) She pushes with her right leg to transfer weight forward to her left leg. (3) She steps forward with her right leg, freeing her left leg. Note that as she shifts weight back to her right leg in step (1), she tilts her left foot upward for a more stylish appearance.

The man then transitions to a right-left-turn rock pattern using the other leg: (1) He steps to the right with his right leg, prompting her to pivot 180 degrees with her right leg to face him, while her left leg steps on his right. (2) He pushes with his right leg to transfer weight back to his left leg, prompting her to transfer weight to her right leg. (3) He pivots 180 degrees to the left with his left leg, prompting her to step forward with her left leg and pivot 180 degrees to face him, while he shifts weight to his right leg.

On her part, the woman executes a turn-right-forward rock pattern: (1) She pivots 180 degrees with her right leg to face him and steps on his right with her left leg. (2) She pushes with her left leg to transfer weight to her right leg. (3) She steps forward with her left leg and pivots 180 degrees counterclockwise to face him. Note the dissociation at her hips when she steps to and fro on his side. This entire sequence represents another creative variation of the ocho cortado.

The couple continue to exploit rock patterns in another video:

This time, the man begins with a forward-back-back rock pattern executed clockwise. After leading the woman to the cross: (1) He steps forward with his left leg in a clockwise arc, prompting her to step back with her right leg in a clockwise arc. (2) He twists 90 degrees to the right with his left leg and steps back with his right leg, prompting her to transfer weight forward to her left leg. (3) He steps back with his left leg, prompting her to step forward with her right leg toward his right.

Next, he transitions to a back-side-turn rock pattern with the other leg: (1) He steps back with his right leg, prompting her to step to his right with her left leg. (2) He steps to the side with his left leg, prompting her to step to his left with her right leg. (3) He turns 90 degrees to the left, prompting her to step to his left with her left leg and pivot 180 degrees to face him, while he collects and shifts weight to his right leg. The result is a clockwise semicircular variation of the ocho cortado.

You might consider revising this version by using the same sequence but continuously turning to the left instead of turning to the right, creating a counterclockwise circular variation of the ocho cortado.

The rock step is the most iconic step of the milonguero style of tango, which embodies simplicity, compactness, rhythm, and elegance. The patterns described above represent only a fraction of the variety of rock patterns available. Familiarizing yourself with these patterns will enrich your dance vocabulary and enhance your tango.