Tai Chi and Tango

I was introduced to tai chi, a slow-motion Chinese martial art, and was immediately captivated by its attributes relevant to tango—flexibility, balance, precision, control, rhythm, and beauty. Here is an example of tai chi in action.

Tai chi is practiced in a half-squatting posture, which requires significant strength and flexibility in the legs to allow movements as light and agile as a cat's. Body weight is placed on one leg and slowly transferred to the other, back and forth, while the torso remains upright. Every part of the body—including arms, hands, torso, waist, hips, thighs, knees, ankles, and feet—is engaged in the movements, demanding excellent coordination, balance, and control. Each movement must adhere to strict aesthetic standards and be executed with precision. The demands on leg strength and flexibility are exceptionally high due to the slow-motion, half-squatting posture, which effectively enhances leg strength, flexibility, and control.

These qualities are directly relevant to tango because, like tai chi, tango is primarily a leg-focused activity. Although every part of the body—including arms, hands, torso, waist, hips, thighs, knees, ankles, and feet—must work in harmony to create the dance, strong and flexible legs are essential for lightness, balance, control, coordination, precision, and elegance. Many tango dancers fail to realize that their struggles in these areas often stem from insufficient leg strength and flexibility. For those looking to overcome these challenges, tai chi offers tremendous benefits.

While tai chi does not require music, it possesses its own rhythm, as demonstrated in the opening video. Tai chi is intentionally practiced in slow motion to maximize its physical benefits, a practice that can help tango dancers cultivate the ability to move gracefully in slow motion. However, tai chi can also be practiced in fast motion to develop agility and speed, as shown below.

All these attributes make tai chi an excellent exercise for tango dancers. It strengthens the legs, improves the coordination and aesthetic quality of movements, and enhances the ability to dance in slow motion.

The following videos teach you some basic tai chi moves if you are interested.

Lessons from Tango

Tango is a delicate balance between assertion and surrender—a space where every choice determines harmony or discord, elegance or struggle.

It requires dancers to have a holistic view of the dance rather than focusing on individual performance.

What matters is the overall beauty of the team, not the display of personal prowess.

Dancers must work together seamlessly, yielding to each other rather than asserting themselves and vying for control.

Acting for the common good builds trust and strengthens the team, while self-glorification invites discord.

Yielding cultivates intimacy and cooperation, while ego creates distance.

Sharing the spotlight elevates the dance, while chasing it disrupts harmony.

Like a brushstroke on a canvas, moderation brings grace and subtlety, while aggression overshadows elegance and disrupts the composition.

Respect and trust transform partners into one fluid entity, while battles for control turn the conversation into an argument.

Flexibility and adaptability enhance coordination, while rigidity and stubbornness shatter the partnership.

Some choices elevate tango to an art; others reduce it to a struggle.

The former create a world of beauty, while the latter lead to dissonance.