Musicality - Double Time

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When you are trying to go fast, one kind of problem that you frequently face, after you get the step, is that it still feels fast. Usually, that's because your body has become too tense. Tension gets in the way of speed. While we do want the body to stay energized, we don't want the body to lock.

(David speaking) I have a friend who is a speed skater and he has told me about having excess tension in his body slows him down when he was speed skating competitively. His coaches would shout from the side as he would whiz by, "relax your left hand".

Artist Name:
Momo Smitt
Song Title:
Here In The Music
Album Title:
Tango World
Artist Website:
http://www.momosmitt.net/

From website: My Name is Momo Smitt, I am an independently funded/promoted hip hop artist based in Portland, OR. My music covers a wide range of topics from recovery and personal growth to political and environmental issues. Though much of my music is expressed from a first person perspective of opinions and feelings, I also tend to take a narrative, story-telling approach while detailing my experiences through the role of "observer".

00:05
One common way of interpreting the music is to do double time.
00:09
So, for example, instead of doing walking every other beat,
00:14
Sometimes you'll get excited,
00:18
And you'll do a double time where you step twice as fast.
00:22
We've taught this in milonga, as well. And in milonga, it's very tight. So, for example, if we do a rocking combination,
00:29
In milonga, it would be more like this, where it's very tight. And in tango, especially a slow tango...
00:39
And, because it's a little bit slower, the steps are also a little bit longer than they would be in milonga.
00:46
So, you'd go step, a quick, quick, quick, quick, through, for example.
00:53
But this can be applied in a lot of different things.
00:56
You do a right foot basic.
01:00
A quick, quick, slow, for example.
01:04
Or, maybe you'll go, slow, a quick, quick, slow.
01:11
N: Lot of people do a fast there.
D: Right, right.
N: Which is not one of my favorite places to do a fast.
01:16
And, really, I think half of the trick is not to get hitched up.
01:20
What happens is in your mind you think, "Oh, I'm going to do a fast".
01:23
And you get tense, and then you go super fast. And it's, sort of, jerky.
01:26
And it's outside the music.
01:28
So, if you listen. Da-da-da-da, da-da-dam. Then there's really quick, quick, slow. Quick, quick, slow.
01:36
There's all of that time.
01:37
What we want in double time is for the ends of each of the movements to be really clear.
01:41
D: Thank you.
N: Anytime.
01:43
So, if you're sort of blurry, if you go, quick, quick, slow, that's less good, then you have a... Quick. Quick. Slow.
01:52
Show a quick, quick, slow that's blurry. Can you?
01:55
D: I'm not sure I can.
N: Yeah, maybe not.
01:57
D: Do you want me to try?
N: Yes.
01:58
This is trying to show a blurry quick, quick, slow. If it doesn't work, we tried.
02:04
Yeah, it's pretty good. Now, show what we want.
02:13
N: Can you see how crisp the ends of each of his quicks are?
D: Ba. Ba. Ba.
02:19
So, they arrive and there's that little moment of clear end before he starts the next one.
02:25
In the one, the second one he did, which is the right one.
02:27
Super slow. Freeze-frame, almost.
Series:
Musicality
Tags:
Technique, Musicality
Musicality