Contra Body Movement in Dance

I didn't pay enough attention to contra body movement (CBM) until I watched the following video. Although the video focuses on ballroom dancing, I believe tango dancers will also benefit from it.

CBM is an essential concept that involves turning one side of the body toward the opposite moving leg. For example, when the right leg moves forward, the left side of the body turns slightly toward it, and vice versa. This natural counterbalancing action is not unique to dance - it occurs in many everyday activities. When walking or running, for instance, the slight torso rotation toward the forward-moving leg helps maintain stability and propels the body forward efficiently. Similarly, swimmers use CBM to streamline their motion through the water, while cyclists rely on it for balance and power. These everyday examples illustrate how CBM is deeply ingrained in human movement.

In ballroom dancing, CBM often refers specifically to dancers' shoulder rotations, because as their arms are fixed in the dance frame, these coordinated shoulder rotations are a visual sign of their CBMs. Unlike in everyday activities, in dance, this shoulder movement is exaggerated to enhance artistry. The quality of the dance depends largely on the dancers' understanding of CBM and their ability to rotate their shoulders consistently. When both dancers maintain perfectly matched CBMs, their movements appear balanced, coherent, and beautiful.

A similar shoulder parallelism is required in tango when dancers execute movements involving dissociation, such as walking side by side, turning around each other, zigzagging, changing positions from one side of the partner to the other, and much more. While in ballroom dancing, shoulder alignment is achieved primarily through CBM (rotating the torso), in tango, it is achieved mainly through dissociation (rotating the hips). This is because tango dancers’ torsos are connected in a closed embrace, dancers need to rotate their hips when dancing around each other to maintain shoulder parallelism, ensuring maximum body connection and the inward focus and intimacy that tango embodies.

Moreover, by keeping their shoulders parallel, dancers are able to make their movements more coordinated and harmonious. As a result, the artistic quality of their performance improves compared to when they do not keep their shoulders parallel, as shown in the video below.

This coordination relies heavily on the dancers' suppleness and responsiveness. Stiffness and tension disrupt harmony, acting as barriers that halt energy rather than generate it. Flexibility and relaxation, on the other hand, help produce both energy and artistry, enabling dancers to respond effortlessly to each other’s movements and maintain a natural flow. The key to preserving harmony in partnered dancing is not resistance but “going with the flow.” A supple, flexible body and the ability to rotate torso and/or hips allow dancers to adapt to one another without resistance. This adaptability is crucial in maintaining seamless connection and cooperation in dance.

Dancers must balance technical precision with responsiveness to their partner. Correct movements are not just about meeting technical standards; they are about fostering a harmonious partnership where the two dancers move as one. CBM and dissociation are interconnected techniques that facilitate this coordination. By mastering these techniques and embracing suppleness, tango dancers can perform in harmony, stay perfectly connected in complex movements, and create a visually captivating and emotionally satisfying dance.