The Sensual Styles of Argentine Tango
Alluring, sensual and intimate are just a few of the words you may use when talking about the Argentine tango. A dance of romance and passion, it is one of the most well-known dances all over the world and is currently enjoying a considerable revival throughout much of Europe, the United States and South America. Many people just love the appeal and closeness that arises from this dance, which is why so many couples are excited to learn this spicy dance. Wouldn’t you like to reignite those flames of desire with your partner?
Dance FX Studios in Mesa, AZ, is the perfect place to learn a variety of social ballroom dances with private dance lessons ranging from the Argentine tango to Country dancing. Learning to dance is an ideal way to learn a new skill or hobby that you will utilize throughout your life, no matter the occasion. It can be difficult to find time to spend with your significant other, so learning to dance together allows you to make the time each week doing something enjoyable and beneficial for both of you. What a welcome change that would be! Also, the Argentine tango is a great way to really connect with that special partner on a very intimate level.
Now, let’s talk about some of the styles of Argentine tango. There are various influences on the many styles of this dance, ranging from the tempo and type of music that accompanies the dance, to the space available on the dance floor in any particular venue. Nearly all the styles are danced in either the open embrace position where couples have space between their bodies or in the close embrace where they connect chest-to-chest. Let’s see which style best suits your personality!
We will start with Salon style tango which was the most popular style of tango danced up through the Golden Era of the 1950’s when milongas (tango parties) were held in large dance venues with tango orchestras performing. It regained popularity again in the early 1980’s and is still prevalent today. Salon tango is typified by slow, deliberate, and smoothly implemented moves. The emphasis is on precision, evenness, and musicality. Couples embrace closely but the embrace is flexible, opening slightly to make room for various figures and closing again for support and poise. The walk is the most important element, with dancers usually walking about half to three-quarters of the time during a song. So if you can walk, this dance should be a breeze for you to learn.
The Milonguero style of tango is characteristically danced with a slight leaning posture that usually connects at the shoulders of the dancers. In most cases it is danced in a close embrace with the woman’s head and body very close to her partner and her left hand placed far behind her partner’s neck. Sounds quite cozy, doesn’t it? The couple maintains a constant upper body contact and often does not loosen their embrace to accommodate turns.
Next is the Orillero style tango, a style of dance that developed away from the cities, in the outskirts and suburbs where there was more freedom to move since there was usually more available space on the dance floor. This style allows both dancers to take additional steps outside the embrace. It is danced in an upright position and uses various accompaniments, such as swift foot moves and kicksand can be danced in both open and close embraces. Can you see you and your partner kicking up your heels to this dance?
And last, but certainly not least is Tango Nuevo, which is a dancing and teaching style. As a teaching style it emphasizes a fundamental exploration of the dance.This variation is mostly a methodical approach that looks at the structure of the dance to find new combinations of steps and moves. It is danced in an open and loose embrace in an upright posture with much of the emphasis being placed on each dancer to maintain their own alignment. From this teaching style, developed a new and unique style of dancing we now call, you guessed it- Tango Nuevo.
As you can see there are many variations to the Argentine tango and today, we covered a few of these styles. Learning this dance can be a lot of fun and easy to learn at Dance FX Studios. Why not give it a try? You and your partner will be glad you did!
