Tango enjoys a somewhat scandalous origin. A long, long time ago in Argentina, cowboys (or gauchos as they were called) would walk around a campfire to the music of an accordion. As they walked around the campfire, they would make movements with their whips.
Later on, women replaced the whips. Soon after, Tango was considered too sensual and was outlawed. Since Tango could no longer be danced publicly, it was mostly danced in bordellos in Argentina for a while or two men would dance together. From there it was imported to France, and from there it was imported to America as the dance we know and enjoy currently.
Tango music is quite distinct from all other types of music as it usually has a drum roll at the beginning of the measure on the one beat and is often accompanied by an accordion, violins as well as other instruments.
How To Dance The Tango
As a smooth dance, Tango is danced in body contact and utilizes the heel or the ball of the foot and long reaching strides. But, there are also characteristics that are unique to Tango, such as Contra Body Movement and it is also danced bellow normal height. The center is held over the right foot for the man and the left foot for the lady respectively throughout the dance.
Tango is often referred to as the dancer’s dance as it requires a tremendous amount of body control and precision. You learn to phrase your dancing, and punctuate it with abrupt changes in direction, twists, turns, pivots and fans. It is also sometimes called the man’s dance because of the required control in leading and the frame.
We teach the Tango as well as the other dances at our Rockville ballroom dance school, our Silver Spring ballroom dance school and our Fairfax ballroom dance school.
Many people erroneously believe that Tango demands no attention to technique. While it’s certainly true that dancing is fun, regardless of age and practice, you can’t deny the enormity of technique in this buoyant South American art form.
The misconception is, of course, rooted in the untraditional nature of this once-outlawed dance. If you want to do it right, learn from the pros and contact Now and Then Dance Studios for exclusive lessons.
