I miss learning from these two.

They all talk about the same things,

just in different ways. A private lesson with Lorena Ermocida made me realize what good tango is regardless of styles. Tango is forever about embrace, posture and walk.

After dancing one song with Lorena, she first gave me some encouraging compliments: very smooth, dance to the music well, elegant... but... then she pointed out the things that she didn't like.
I occasionally took her off her axis, my embrace was too controlling at those moments. We tried to dance a little without my right arm embracing. Then we discussed the placement of my right arm. Then we danced a second song.

After that, she asked me what I would like to work on. I asked her what she thought that I should work on. We went through posture briefly, spent a lot of time on walking and leading with the body. I was amazed that the way she explained walking, however different style it is, was essentially the way Javier, Andrea and Silvina had taught me. They all stressed the leg behind, good transition between legs and the pull up from the front leg.

There were a lot of information to be absorbed in an hour. I was too tempted to book another lesson with her next day. Then I realized that I needed time to take everything in. But I thought that this class had taken my dance to another level. I finally realized how to set myself free in the dance.

Lorena Ermocida

I am having a private lesson with her tonight. She and Osvaldo Zotto are the few teachers who I respect. Last time I was in Buenos Aires, I watched them dancing on the crowded floor of Salon Canning. They were just floating on the floor. Some of my first youtube experiences were watching the following clips where they danced at Canning.





I don't know what to expect from the class. What I am trying to do is to just be myself and dance the best I could and have her figure out what I need to improve.

Analysis of a youtube performance.

I have posted this video clip before. Watched it a few more times today and wanted to share some of the things that I picked up in the video for didactic purpose. But I am going to let you watch it first and see if you pick up something useful as well.

There is no style.

Tango style, is another topic that I found pointless on my occasion visit to tango-l.com. Tango salon, milonguero, stage... nuevo, traditional... there is really endless discussion around it on all forums. Everyone involved in the discussion all seems to have a point...

But what is the point?

As in this clip , they said with a sense of slight derision: if you start analyzing it too much, you get lost... You start looking at it as a dance not like a feeling that can be danced.

In my book, there is no style. I do, however, categorize tango into two: good and bad. Good tango: a feeling is danced. Bad tango: there is no feeling.

It can't be that simple, can it?