Expanded Intermediate Vocabulary - Hook Behind

For The Followers: This is a great example of something which can be counter-intuitive but, at the same time, can be crystal clear. In everyday life, if someone moved you that way, most people wouldn't cut behind. And yet, if you have conviction that you should let your free leg move in the direction that your center of gravity is moving, it's clearly the only thing that it makes sense to do.

The conclusion is that first, the followers need to develop the connection between their free leg and their center of gravity but, after that, they have to learn to believe it.

Artist Name:: Trio Garufa
Song Title:: Gran Hotel California
Album Title:: Tango En El Mate
Artist Website:: http://www.triogarufa.com

From website: Trio Garufa is an international ensemble dedicated to performing authentic Argentine music. They have performed across Argentina, Canada and the US. Trio Garufa performs traditional Argentine tango, modern tango styles such as Astor Piazzolla's music or electro tangos, original tango compositions, and Argentine folk music. Their music is exciting, virtuosic, and rooted in the dance. They are the only tango ensemble in the US to have performed extensively in the milongas (tango dance clubs) of Buenos Aires. The group includes Guillermo García, guitar (Argentina) Adrian Jost, bandoneon (Switzerland) and Sascha Jacobsen, string bass (California).

00:21: I like this starting, showing the step.
00:23: That’s cool. Sometimes I like it a lot.
00:29: We call that the hook behind.
00:32: We call that the Max
after a student who really loved that step.
00:36: Breaking it down. Side, he changes, cross system.
00:43: He goes forward left. She goes back left.
00:45: Let’s do that again; different angle.
00:48: Side, he changes. You’ll notice I’m slightly offset.
00:51: He goes forward left, she goes back left.
00:53: Now when I do that I’m going to give her some momentum...
00:55: ..and she’ll feel that momentum in her body
and it will propel her leg backwards.
00:58: So it’s important that we just react,
That we don’t just take our leg.
01:02: This way, he takes our leg.
01:04: And with that, there’s a little bit, a tiny bit of leaning
because of the momentum that he’s given us.
01:08: Tiny and you’ll notice, for the leaders,
I left my right foot back as an anchor…
01:12: ..so that when she was leaning,
I had no problem balancing her.
01:16: Now after that, I’m going to step -
so I want her left foot, point backwards.
01:21: I want it to come into a cross.
01:22: A back cross, not very tight.
01:25: So do that motion.
01:26: So you'll notice her centre of gravity moved,
forward and to the right.
01:29: So you have to move your centre of gravity forward
- backward and to your -
01:33: N: Left. Right.
D: Her left my, my right.
01:36: Right.
01:39: And so from another angle.
01:47: And so, with the step, for the leaders,
you’ve got side change, forward, step.
01:53: N: So it’s a back diagonal -
D: - forward step.
01:56: So you see I leave the right leg back as an anchor
and then I bring it in a little bit...
01:59: ..but it's still behind my body.
02:01: It’s kind of on a diagonal, to the right.
02:04: Now for the followers if we really do this,
you’ll see it flows.
02:16: I’d like the followers - so this is maybe going
a little hardcore into technique but, ah.
02:21: Not that we are ever into technique.
02:24: If I’m doing the follower’s part and she’s the leader.
02:26: She does side, change, forward, left. Here I’ll go -
02:31: And you’ll see in my legs.
02:34: N: Works way better -
D: Then it goes...
02:38: N: Works way better with the sound effects.
D: Or from a different angle...
02:43: So I’m a little bit turned out and I’m cutting shins tight...
02:49: ..and so that’s how my body can really shift
to the ball of the foot.
02:52: Well I think it depends - how you cut,
depends on how the leader steps.
02:56: Oh, this is very wise, right?
02:57: So the leader could go like
in some crazy huge step back -
03:00: N: Or side.
D: And if that happened...
03:02: So do side, change, forward left
and then take a huge step back.
03:06: So if she did that.
03:07: He’d be over there.
03:08: You see that huge cut. That was a good point.
03:11: Thank you.

Series:: Expanded Intermediate Vocabulary
Tags:: Intermediate, Vocabulary