Fuertes Raíces (strong roots) Tango kata

[update: I've now developed a new and much improved version of the kata, please see new post for videos!]

I've been thinking for a while that a kata would be a very useful teaching and practising tool for tango. But I've not seen one anywhere yet. It's fairly common for teachers to use relatively short sequences that (hopefully) encapsulate some principles of tango. What I have in mind though is a more comprehensive sequence of movements specifically designed for retaining and passing on tango knowledge. (You may have guessed by this point that I have a background in martial arts.)

This first one is a solo kata. Obviously tango isn't so often a solo activity, and I intend to develop pair katas soon, but one of the prime uses of katas is to be able to practice when you don't have a partner, so I hope this will be useful for that.

I've called the kata 'Fuertes Raíces' meaning 'strong roots', reflecting the intention of the sequence. Performed uninterrupted it takes between 6 and 8 minutes, which includes a minute of improvisation. I guess with a class, and stopping to re-examine some steps and give instructions it would take closer to 15 minutes. I'll be posting an example performance video soon. I expect I'll break it up into 2 or 3 stages for teaching and assessment purposes.

Specifically this kata tests: balance, control of weight, basic technique of stepping, double time, crossing, pivoting, giros, enrosques, plus improvisation.

I expect to refine the kata over time, and your feedback is very welcome!

Fuertes Raíces Kata ('strong roots' kata)

Start standing straight, relaxed but with good posture. Heels together, toes slightly apart.

Balance

Change weight to left leg.

Right leg makes circles with toes pointed. Start with knee raised making circles in the air, slowly lowering leg to make circles with toes gliding over floor. Left leg slowly bends to allow right leg to make bigger circles. Core and chest should be still.

Repeat on other side, with left leg making circles.

Stepping

Change weight to left leg, extend right leg to the front, side then back, without transferring weight, collecting between directions and extending leg so that it is straight.

Extend right leg as before to the front, side and back, but now with a weight transfer to make a forward, side and back step, coming back to the same point between each step. Look for level shoulders on all steps.

Repeat above two steps on other side, extending now the left leg.

Using the above stepping technique demonstrate two slow and continuous forward steps followed by two back steps, starting on the left leg.

Repeat above step, starting on the right leg.

Demonstrate with double time. Repeat the above two steps with a [* * _ * *] (double, rest, double) rhythm, where the second step of the double time is a weight change without extending the leg. This means the leg that extends is the same for both actual steps.

Demonstrate the above principle with side steps, starting on the left leg. Two steps in each direction.

Demonstration a continuous 'double time triangle'. Step to the left, change, step forward right diagonal, change, step back right diagonal change and repeat triangle 3 times. Then again but starting with stepping to the right.

Crossing

Weight on left leg, heels together, take right foot and cross over the front of the left foot to bring toes together with roughly a 60 degree angle between heels. But do not transfer weight. Bring right foot back to normal standing position.

Repeat above step but now transfer weight back and forth four times but without uncrossing.

Repeat step before last, but now transfer weight and uncross to complete 'the cross'.

Repeat above three steps on the other side with the left foot crossing over the right.

Repeat the above three steps, but now with crossing behind. Look for the height staying the same as the back cross is made and the standing foot is raised to the ball to make space for the crossing foot. Crosses should be slow and controlled.

Now chain 4 front crosses together from standing and then 4 back crosses all at a faster speed.

Pivoting

Weight on left leg, extend right foot to begin a step, transfer weight completely while turning upper body to the right and keeping hips facing forward. Do not collect left leg, which should be straight and foot facing slightly outward. Return to standing on left leg.

Repeat above step but now collect left left and untwist, creating a smooth 180 degree turn.

From that position repeat above two steps with the left leg making the forward step.

Repeat the above three steps but with back steps.

Using the above pivoting technique, demonstrate 4 sets of 180 degree smooth forward and backward ochos.

Repeat the above step but now with moving 90 degree forward and backward ochos, keeping the chest facing forward throughout the movement.

Giros

Using the above pivoting technique demonstrate giros, first clockwise, then anti-clockwise. Perform three each way, starting with a side step. Keep regular pace with chest facing into the centre of the giro.


Combined pivoting with crosses (enrosques)

Forward step with the left foot, into a 180 degree turn with back cross enrosque, stepping out along the same line with a back step onto the left foot. Look for smoothness and control.

Repeat above step from current position stepping with the right root.

Repeat above two steps but with a forward cross enrosque. Look for the turn being generated from the enrosque movement.

Improvisation

30 - 60 seconds of improvisation, incorporating the elements of walking, weight changes with double time, crossing, pivoting, giros and enrosques. Personal expression encouraged, needn't be 'tango as we know it', so long as the aforementioned elements are shown, and some thought given to flow and good posture.

freedom and connection in the open embrace - practica session notes

This monday, 15th Nov, we'll look at some simple ways of getting more connection at the same time as less restriction or blocking of intended movement in the open embrace.

The focus will be on pivoting.

Some key ideas:
The frame as a circle. two connected circles that may rotate independently. this idea allows a lot of rotation and change of orientation between leader and follower to happen without strain. Leader and follower are not fixed in their relative positions within the frame.

Softness and structure. how do these two important qualities come into the embrace? we'll explore the idea of 'mirroring' in the quality of contact from leader to follower, with the result that different parts of the embrace can offer solidity and structure, while other parts offer softness and freedom of movement. using this idea, ochos (and everything else involving pivoting) feel more relaxed while allowing the possibility of being very dynamic.

Obviousl,y groundedness is key to connection and this was covered some weeks ago (see '3 elements to walking as one').

pivoting technique and moving without strain - practica session notes

This coming monday, 8th Nov, the theme will be pivoting technique and moving without strain.

how can you pivot with minimal effort? how can you keep your balance more easily when turning, doing ochos and giros? There are some particular things you can do in the way you move and hold your chest, waist, hips and legs that really help. We'll be going over those in the session and also giving some practical tips to avoid strains in your body when dancing.

pivoting
3 step forward turn kata:

1. project free leg with out-turn of foot
2. weight transfer with turn from waist and open hip, straight back leg with outward angle of foot
3. bring back leg to close, keep shape of standing leg fixed as you rotate on ball of foot, allow waist to untwist, do not allow your trailing leg to cross the line of your standing leg

repeat above for forward ochos

flowing super relaxed forward ochos with front baleo - effortless rotation applying above principles

contrast with some stressful alternative ways of doing forward ochos, feel the difference in your body.

3 step back turn kata:

1. project free leg back and staight with out-turn of foot
2. weight transfer with turn from waist. do not rotate or 'close' hips.
3. bring free leg to close, keep shape of standing leg fixed as you rotate on ball of foot, allow waist to untwist, do not allow your trailing leg to cross the line of your standing leg. visualize being pulled around and slightly into the floor from the middle side of your back, as if by a rope.

repeat above for back ochos

try 360 back rotation in relaxed fashion.

strain

comes from compromising your core, pinching or over twisting back, stepping with hips out of alignment, etc. leaders and followers be mindful to allow your partner freedom to take their axis and to pivot freely. discuss elasticity and mirror quality of frame. applications, back ocho into back secarda. 

common trouble spots for strain: barridas, step overs, ganchos, boleos

brain teaser: leader does continual 270(ish) rotation back ocho secardas to the follower's 270 rotation forward ochos. This is practically impossible, unless you get the above principles and are able to relax in your pivoting.

further questions?

EDIT. here's a quick video I recorded to demo some of the above ideas:

fearless colgadas - practica session notes

This monday, 1st November, the theme is 'fearless colgadas'. How to do colgadas in the most effortless way possible and really explore the range of movements and expressions available with sharing axis in this way.

Colgada means to 'hang', that is, there is a shared axis and follower and leader are supporting each other while hanging outwards. There are broadly 2 things that make colgadas challenging for a lot of dancers: technique (posture, lead and follow) and trust. We'll work on both in this session.

Technical points and concepts:
connection through back and arms,
both sides of frame are important,
straight, vertical back (classic technique, but other options possible),
weight on ball of feet.
'sitting down at a tea party',

game: stop your partner from falling over. tests trust and if you're really sharing an axis.

exercises: back, side, circular colgadas. start small.

game: two foot colgada, swing from side to side. build momentum, distinquish from pretend 'squat colgadas'.

game: two foot colgada, stationary secada chain (challenging)

colgada (like boleos, ganchos and volcadas) can be seen as steps interrupted. slight emphasis of impulse for clarity. distinction between colgada (without boleo) and linear boleo (with colgada): 'up, over and back' vs. 'down and back'. can also use compression to control free leg.

variations: turning colgadas, sideways outer free leg colgadas.

applications: vals, general phrasing, endings, fun.

free leg play with circles, boleos and ganchos - practica session notes

theme for monday 18th Oct: free let play.

What is the free leg? The leg which is free to move, because it has no weight on it. As we walk, each leg goes from free to fixed to free ... and so on.

While a leg is free it can move according to the energy of the lead, or the follower can move it in some expressive way often referred to as a decoration. We'll focus on leading the free leg.

Exercise: finding the free leg. hands on wall, make circles with leg using movement of centre. Contrast forced circles with free ones. Break down into four positions, let the leg hang. Get the circle going freely.

Exercise: walk with an occasional circle (as per exercise above). Try to fit to music. Watch for followers 'helping' leaders by faking the movement. Encourage dialogue between leader and follower.

Exercise: Linear boleos. Start from stationary, follower lets the leg hang. Leader experiments to find how to make the leg swing like a pendulum. Stress importance of trust between leader and follower to allow the true lead to be discovered. Go into walking boleo, backward and forward.

Game: Gancho pendulum. leader and follower face same direction, side to side. follower swings inside leg like a pendulum. Leader moves inside leg between follower sporadically, creating a gancho. Tests trust. Emphasize the difference in feeling from a hesitant gancho to a full leg wrapping one. Technique points: allow slight bend in standing leg for follower, have free leg foot making contact with only the ball of the foot on the ground.

Exercise: Put into pactice, backwards ocho into gancho. Try to get the same flavour as with the game. Gancho's should feel more 'delicious'.

Exercise: Gancho rebound into follower secarda. Emphasize difference in timing and direction of lead 'into the ground'.

Idea: Introduce the idea of the free leg freeze, from compression or tension in the embrace.

safe and relaxed tango in confined spaces - practica session notes

11th Oct practica plan

theme: Safe and relaxed tango in confined spaces


Question: How do you help each other relax in a busy milonga?

Shrinking dance floor. Continually reduce allowed floor area during practica.

Avoiding collisions: side steps and turns.
Dancing expressively in minature: small giros, favouring the open side. slow steps, fuller body communication, the richness in comunication is only between the two of you.

Game: take half a song without a single full step, projection and balance changes allowed. Try with different partners.

Game: use line of chairs to make a narrow corridor (could use people if enough) to practice following line of dance. Two couples going through at once. Do ochos and giros along line. Can you do your favourite figure?

Dancing within a circle of people (2 couples to make circle, 1 couple in the middle).

Blind folded tango within protective circle. Practice feeling for safe space.

Go from dancing in small circle back to a 'normal' small floor, compare level of relaxation.

Stepping with intent - practica session notes

4th Oct practica plan

'Stepping with intent'

Sub-themes: trust (as comes from patience and respect)

How can leader and follower step with confidence and precision?
What makes steps: indecisive, disconnected with leader or follower, uncomfortable, rushed, etc.?

Lack of technique, respect, patience and trust. Other ideas?

A recipe for more confident and precise steps..

Follower:
Always listen for direction.
Aim for smooth resistance while transferring weight.
Trust that the space is safe.

Leader:
Be clear about direction but do not force it.
Aim for smooth lead energy while transferring weight.
Make sure the space is safe.

Walking exercise -
striding out, big smooth steps. how can you stay connected? (revise ideas from '3 elements to walking as one', e.g. grip floor, role weight)

Exercise with ochos -
Question: what angle are the steps of an ocho?
How long is a piece of string? It depends on the lead.
Try varying forward and backward ochos from a walk with a slight zigzag to large over-rotation going in the opposite direction to normal? Leaders and followers try to apply the above recipe.
For leaders, try leading a forward ocho, while you are in cross basic, so that the follower is stepping deep into your space, brushing your leg with each step. (Demonstrate)
(Typically some followers will be hesitant to follower the actual direction and strength of the lead, either increasing the angle of the step, or cutting it short. Both of which diminish the connection. Some leaders will respond to that by being ever more forceful, or giving up and dancing with less interest.)
Help everyone feel the difference the recipe makes for this stylish and sensual step. Strategy for leaders to encourage followers to make such steps: gentle confidence, and building up from very slow movements. Strategy for followers: trust, but with discretion.

Demonstrate a change of embrace that relies on giving clear direction and listening for it.

Questions?

Give 5 minutes of play to find a new or unusual way of using the recipe.

fun with density and dynamics - practica session notes

27th Sept practica plan

fun with density and dymanics

Objective: share some ideas that may help you to maintain connection while changing speed, resistance and direction. to have fun with it.

sub-themes: patience, respect


1. density
what is it? level of resistence.
altering density adds an expressive dimension and allows greater connection at higher or lower speeds of movement and for changes in direction. changing density creates dynamics in a dance.
when changes in density are unintentional or incongruous with the music then connection is diminished.
how can you lead it? followers, how do you understand when it's being led, what do you feel?
compression to increase density. leader adds compression to frame. follower holds their frame and translates the tension into legs to create more resistence. keep shoulders back and down. channel resistence into floor, not shoulders.
relaxation to decrease density.
exercise: transition from normal to slow walk. try with and without change in density.
question: what does changing density (as an option that can be chosen sometimes) add to the experience?
talk about what happens with above idea with a lack of patience or respect. e.g. scenario: supposing follower doesn't understand about the frame, or leader or follower does not wait for the other?

2. dynamics
change in speed and force. change in density makes expressing dynamics in the music easier.
musical example: slow and fast passages. demonstrate clearer connection and expressiveness through changing density.
game: stop the leader. follower increases densisty quickly to mark a beat of pause, causing the leader to stop. it's a bold and playful movement that adds excitement and new sensitivity to a dance. it can also remind a leader that tango is a dialogue, not a monologue. some leaders can get confused or take offense. best used with good rapport and as an occational surprise. speaking of dynamics this action from the follower can really alter the emotional dynamics in a dance and spark fresh creativity from the leader. the stop the leader idea can be used sublty to great effect, it is also especially nice in close embrace.
talk about what happens without respect from leader or follower with above idea.
breaking the embrace is one example of reducing density to nill (show example). stopping the leader is an example of dialing it up to 11.

any questions?

what observations or discoveries have you made playing with these ideas?

3 elements to walking as one - practica session notes

This the first posting of my session notes for the guided practica I've started giving at Povey's dance studio in Southampton. (Essentially for the first hour I work around a theme and share related ideas, principles, examples and exercises to help people develop their tango.) They're fairly rough, as notes go, but I hope someone might get some use out of them. Eventually they may all get distilled into a new book on tango next year. This first session I over planned slightly and only ended up getting 2/3s of the way through.

'3 elements to walking as one.' given on 20th Sept:


Objective: share some ideas that may help you to connect more deeply and consistently in your tango, which will improve confidence and creative potential. The elements are: smoothness, opposition and density.

participation - question: what can you do with these principles that you couldn't without them?

sub-themes: patience, respect

1. smoothness
forget about the step. frame.
contrast with stepping as an autonomous action
"what do you need to do to make it smooth?"
tips: rolling weight from foot to foot. gripping the floor. quick movement of trailing leg. (straight back leg for style and avoiding leg clashes)

2. opposition (or resistence) in every direction
exercise: two forward steps followed by two back steps. play with level of oposition
ideas: mirroring, frame, innertia. (respond to push with push, pull with pull, like moving through water, it resists in all directions of movement)
application: secarda chain - try with and without opposition. (with, typically feels much nicer for everyone, no rush, more controlled and flowing)
question: how does it feel for leaders? how does it feel for followers?

3. density - level of opposition
dynamics.
intentional change in opposition or resistence. adds expressive dimension.
question: how can you lead it? followers, how do you understand when it's being led, what do you feel?
compression to increase density: leader adds compression to frame. follower holds their frame and translates the tension into legs to create more resistence. keep shoulders back and down. channel resistence into floor, not shoulders.
relaxation to decrease density.
game: stop the leader

any questions?

what observations or discoveries have you made playing with these ideas?