- Artist Name:
- QTango
- Song Title:
- 9 de Julio
- Album Title:
- It Takes Q To Tango
- Artist Website:
- http://www.qtango.com/
(From the website): Created in July, 2009 by Erskine Maytorena, a third generation tango musician and opera singer, QTANGO performs authentic Argentine tango arrangements as often as two to three times a week throughout the Southwest for tango dancers and listeners.
- 00:06
- So, in this chapter, we're going to talk about creating chemistry through distance.
- 00:11
- And, we're going to dispel two myths, or at least, make progress, dispelling them.
- 00:15
- The first myth, is that...
- 00:19
- You know, if you're closer, there's more chemistry. And it's not really that simple, that closeness equals chemistry.
- 00:23
- And the second, is that chemistry is something that's either there, or it's not. And, while, you know, there's something there about that.
- 00:30
- It, definitely, is also, to a larger extent than most would believe, something that can be learned.
- 00:36
- So, to dispel the first myth that closeness equals chemistry,
- 00:42
- D: You feel the mad passion? I hope not.
N: I don't think so.
- 00:47
- So, it's not just about distance. But the first principle is that it's about the consciousness of the distance.
- 00:53
- So, as that, as you're changing the distance, I'm aware of being here, of being here, of being here.
- 00:58
- And that, as every micron of movement and distance changes, I'm aware of every bit of it.
- 01:05
- So, the first point is that there's this awareness of distance.
- 01:09
- The second point is that people tend to wimp out.
- 01:12
- You say, "Have chemistry", and this is what students do. We talk to them, you know, this is what you have to do.
- 01:17
- And they do something like this. They're great, they're great, they're great... "Oh my God, can you believe we're doing this?"
- 01:23
- And then, right about the middle, then... And they giggle madly, because they can't take it. So, don't wimp out. Take it.
- 01:31
- So, as we go - we'll go. And we'll keep going, and we'll keep going, and we'll keep going. And we'll keep going.
- 01:38
- Right? At no point does it give. You can giggle when it's done. Yeah, wait three minutes, then start giggling.
- 01:45
- Final point. Take your time.
- 01:49
- D: So, the instinct is to say, "Alright, chemistry. Huah!"
N: Ha-ha!
- 01:53
- And, what the ladies do is they go something like this, "Whaa". Which is not good.
- 01:59
- So, take your time. So that it can build.
- 02:03
- So, if I do this once to the camera. I want you to be aware of my movement, as I go from here...
- 02:17
- And, I mean, that little bit of movement - that's a lot.
- 02:20
- So, take advantage of the fact that moving from here... ...to here is something we're trained to really feel.
- 02:29
- On that note, right now, stop. And do it. So, just pause the video camera. Do it.
- 02:37
- Alright. So, you've done it. My first observation is that, almost surely, you did it too fast.
- 02:44
- It's not... This is not slow. This is slow.
- 02:51
- And then, I begin to shift. And then, my back heel, front heel hits. And then, I begin to shift. And more. Now I'm half way.
- 02:59
- And then, I shift over more, but I'm not there. And it keeps coming.
- 03:02
- And going, and going. And then, finally, I'm over. And I just finished taking one step.
- 03:07
- Right? So, that's slow. It is not, bang - you're there.
- 03:11
- But I want to make two interesting asides, that are tangentially related.
- 03:14
- And the first is that I'm aware, when I'm dancing with a new partner, of the psychological distance.
- 03:21
- And, as we dance... if she's someone, you know, we don't know each other, I'm not going to be, like, "Whaa, you, here".
- 03:28
- She'll be, like, "Whaa, maybe not. These tango dancers are crazy."
- 03:32
- So, instead, as I walk towards her, I'm aware of keeping the psychological distance constant even as the physical distance decreases.
- 03:40
- What that means is that, if we're here and I'm looking straight at you...You're my partner now,
- 03:45
- As I walk to embrace you, you'll see that my gaze will drift to the side.
- 03:51
- And, by everting the eyes and the face, I make the psychological distance less.
- 03:56
- Even as the physical distance comes in. And so, they, sort of, counteract each other.
- 04:00
- The other idea is that it really is about the direction of your energy.
- 04:04
- So, that, as I'm here, if I'm like this, and she's over there,
- 04:10
- You don't know... If you saw a picture that was cut right here, and you saw only me, you wouldn't know that she was there.
- 04:15
- If I was like this, you'd say, "Oh, someone's there. And that's pretty important someone, too." But also, I could be like this:
- 04:24
- D: And you'd also know that there was something there. A scary something. That's very scary, and powerful.
N: Some thing there.
- 04:31
- N: Grrr!
D: Grrr!
- 04:32
- But, so it really is about this sense of the
- 04:36
- Way in which you acknowledge the presence of your partner, by taking your energy towards and away from them.
- 04:40
- See? Even if I'm facing away from her, there can be the sense of, "Oh, there's someone there."
- 04:45
- Which is, really, what I want you to think. And then, she pulls me to her magnetically.
- 04:51
- So, this chapter was about three things, primarily. Or, there are three things I want you to remember.
- 04:56
- The first is that we create chemistry through distance, by being aware of the distance.
- 05:02
- The second is that you shouldn't wimp out. Right? So you're not going to walk up to someone and then burst out laughing.
- 05:07
- In to this sort of heap. Limp heap. Which is not, like, full of chemistry.
- 05:12
- The final thing is that, as you do this, you want to take your time.
- 05:17
- So that it goes, and it goes, and it goes, and it builds. And it builds, and it builds. Right? Instead of, "Oh, I'm there".
- 05:27
- The last thought I want to make
- 05:30
- Is that, if you get to a position, you can get to the exact same position, but it will feel radically different.
- 05:36
- Depending on how you got there. So, for example, if I ask someone to dance.
- 05:42
- I have to get in character.
- 05:51
- They asked to - They accept and so I get very happy.
- 06:00
- So, that's one place. Now, let's say, I ask another person to dance. Someone I'm very comfortable with, obviously.
- 06:18
- Now, I ended in the exact same position. But it did not feel that way.
