4405 tango learning-- Overcoming bad habits
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2006 20:48:12 -0400
From: "TangoDC.com" <spatz@tangoDC.com>
Subject: Re: [Tango-L] tango learning-- Overcoming bad habits
To: tango-L@mit.edu
Look fellas,
Splitting this discussion into teaching vs. learning really is quite
pointless, because we're talking about one body of knowledge, and three
different ways of parsing it, or shaping it into 60-minute topics.
Now, I doubt there's a *good* teacher out there who doesn't focus on one
area over another, because teachers learn to recognize their strengths
and rely on them. I also doubt this phenomenon, known as "having an
intellectual personality," is unique to American teachers.
Also, I doubt there's a *good* student out there who has failed to
realize that, e.g., step-sequences are different from improvisation.
Bad teachers and students, on the other hand, are almost by definition
those who:
* don't know themselves
* don't know the material
* don't know that the dance is layered with different kinds of technique
In the hopes of moving this discussion a little bit forwards, I'll offer
a couple observations from both sides of the admissions ticket, which is
to me the same piece of paper.
DISCLAIMER: Run like hell. I'm one of those who likes several styles,
dances them, and will even try to teach them. I find different styles
perfectly compatible, so long as one can identify the functional
principles behind them, and allow for slight variations between
individual dancers.
L E A R N I N G
Classes necessarily distort the dance by making it predictable to some
extent. This is especially true when the topic is a particular move, or
a sequence of steps, which it most often is. As a leader, I always try
to throw in off-topic steps, whether to navigate amongst other couples
or just to prevent my follower from anticipating things (which can
interfere with my learning to lead it correctly). (It also interferes
with her learning to execute it correctly, so I do this even if I
already "know" the move being taught, which often happens.)
I also try to time things to the music, because I never really
understand what a sequence or move is For, until I learn it as an
expression of rhythm or pitch.
In addition, I try never to practice anything without preserving the
line of dance, because I've found that such habits stick. Many students
get moves into their muscle memory without considering the social
context-- the big "tango racetrack," as it were-- and that makes it
harder for them to refine navigation later.
All three of these "extra" topics that I try to remember when learning
new steps-- improv, musicality, and navigation-- are what could be
called "structural ideas" of the tango. They're also the three things
that most (/most/) followers I've partnered in group classes find
themselves getting thrown off by, because they're trying to do as the
teacher says, rather than synthesize the new content with what they
already know, or should know.
I synthesize from the start. It's no more challenging, once you form the
habit, and the habit is easy to form. It has helped me accelerate my
learning to a considerable degree. When I partner with a less
experienced follower-- someone who's only been dancing a few months,
say-- I regularly get the comment: "I don't know what else you were
leading there, but I hope I followed it okay." I'm getting tired of
telling them they did fine, and I just threw in some simple maneuvering
steps to keep things fresh. But I suspect not many students are taught
to synthesize their learning in the early stages, and not many do it of
their own accord.
T E A C H I N G
My teaching is built upon my learning, and I challenge my students to be
creative. I teach structural ideas, or functional principles. The
students who are used to sequences get confused at first, but quickly
catch up. The ones who expect a new move get disappointed, because at
best I'll just show them how to lead a move they already know a little
bit better, or more easily, or more musically; I can show them ten new
ways to play with a toy, but if they get upset at me for not giving them
a "new colgada" or something, I tell them to be more creative with their
old one, using the knowledge I've tried to impart.
Or I tell them to do "tango moves" to a milonga. Or whatever. Every
dance is an experiment.
In any case, I find that teaching "advanced" concepts to beginners is
much easier than trying to drill them into so-called intermediate
students, because bad habits are very hard to eradicate. A lot of
followers learn to "kick" their boleos somewhere along the line, for
instance, and teaching them to relax their leg, release their weight
into the floor, and open themselves to a wider range of expressive
shapes and timings can be as frustrating for me as it is for them. They
feel like they're losing something they've worked hard to acquire; I
feel like they're resisting what is, in truth, a rather simple idea too
stubbornly. Now, I don't know if such habits are formed by learning
sequences by rote, or by too-early exposure to moves, or by trying to
copy what the eye sees (which is by far The Worst way to learn tango),
but something's responsible, and I think it's keeping a lot of dancers
from making faster progress.
I've started teaching an "overflow" class for beginning and intermediate
dancers on Thursdays (i.e., dancers who don't qualify for the advanced
class Murat Erdemsel is teaching in the same space), so perhaps I'll
figure out some strategies for coping with students' bad habits, and
getting them to leave them behind-- or at least consider it. But in a
few more weeks, I'm taking over for two months of instruction, and I'd
like to have my toolbox in order when it's time.
What I'll be doing anyway is exposing students to structural ideas, and
asking them to abandon predictability. I'll encourage them to play. And
I'll attempt to illustrate how bad habits inhibit their efficiency and
their expression, and how they can dance much more easily (and
delightedly) without them.
But if anyone can help me figure out how to address bad habits well, I'd
appreciate it tremendously. I only have a short list of ideas here:
* I teach students to do things "wrong," on purpose, so that they can
see the difference between wrong and right more clearly-- and so that
they exaggerate their mistakes into conscious territory
* I teach followers some "self-defense" skills, for coping with overly
forceful or hapless leaders (e.g., loosening their arms with those who
lead boleos with arms only, keeping their free leg under themselves
during volcadas with leaders who do them larger than they can control)
* I teach leaders not to stoop under the weight of a "heavy" (downward,
rather than horizontal) follower's embrace
* I teach both partners to change embraces if and when they need to, and
to be clear about which embrace they're using
All of this has led to student progress in my private lessons (e.g.,
they start learning more about their dancing when they're away from me,
they learn more quickly from other teachers, they dance better), but
group classes don't allow me to establish the same personal rapport with
everyone at once.
So: Bad habits and how to conquer them, in self and in others. I offer
my list to anyone who can use it. Offer me yours if you'd like to help
me (and my students) out.
Jake Spatz
Washington, DC
Stephen.P.Brown@dal.frb.org wrote:
> Wow! Chris must be confused. There is very little resemblance between
> what I wrote and his selective quotation of my remarks.
>
> To clarify my thoughts for Chris and others who may be equally befuddled,
> I will restate and amplify the idea once more.
> (In doing so, I am ignoring the ensuing discussion which has been quite
> informative.)
>
> Most people pursue learning by studying with a teacher who uses a
> pedagogy.
>
> Pedagogies are limited by their nature, and in my opinion each of the
> three major pedagogies used to teach tango in the United States are
> extremely limited.
>
> Because each of the styles of tango are linked to a particular pedagogical
> approach to teaching in the United States, the profusion of poorly trained
> dancers has created confusion between the characteristics of a style and
> the limitations of the pedagogical approach to teaching that style. That
> confusion may have resulted in the appearance that different styles of
> tango are wildly incompatible and do not belong to the same generic dance
> form.
>
> Moreover, it lets the instructors and other advocates of each style
> criticize the other styles for characteristics of the pedagogy rather than
> the style itself. Dancers who have been taught by instructors using
> narrowly conceived pedagogies and who have not learned very deeply on
> their own may be misled into believing they are dancing a style that is
> substantially different/better than the other styles. Dancers who have
> been so misled may polarize into communities of ignorant,
> self-perpetuating belief.
>
> If students are unable to look beyond the one pedagogy by which they are
> being taught, their learning will be relatively limited. Through their
> own exploration, some dancers may overcome the limitations of the narrow
> pedagogy by which they have been taught and actually learn to dance their
> own tango. Others may might find it fruitful to pursue instruction from
> those taking different pedagogical approaches to teaching tango, but doing
> so in the United States is likely to mean taking classes from instructors
> who teach different styles of tango.
>
> Occasionally, you will find a wacky instructor who uses a widely conceived
> pedagogical approach and is open to multiple styles of tango. Run like
> hell to get away because such instruction is likely to prove totally
> confusing or you will end up misunderstood yourself.
>
> With best regards,
> Steve
>
>
>
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2006 21:56:56 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Trini y Sean \(PATangoS\)" <patangos@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Tango-L] tango learning-- Overcoming bad habits
Sean here.
I often tell my female students not to worry if a man leads
something that they cannot follow. It is his mistake, not
theirs. One of the responsibilities of leadership is to
understand your followers, and to lead them to a place
where they are able and willing to go.
There is not a man alive who could lead me back into the
make believe world of academia. I am beginning to taste the
real world, and I like it here. Nor will I easily dismiss
the sacred myths, simply because they do not yield to
rational analysis. Without their myths, humans would be a
dull lot indeed. Besides, I have grown rather fond of
dancing with la Diosa.
On the other hand, this discussion of teaching and learning
is heading in a direction that I will gladly follow. As I
organize my own thoughts on this matter, I may even add
some useful content. For now I say, "Lead on Jake! I was
heading in this direction anyway." :)
Sean
P.S. The worst that can happen:
I will buy yet another mailbox.
--- "TangoDC.com" <spatz@tangoDC.com> wrote:
T E A C H I N G
But if anyone can help me figure out how to address bad
habits well, I'd appreciate it tremendously. I only have a
short list of ideas here:
=== message truncated ===
PATangoS - Pittsburgh Argentine Tango Society
Our Mission: To make Argentine Tango Pittsburgh's most popular social dance.
https://www.pitt.edu/~mcph/PATangoWeb.htm
Date: Sat, 17 Jun 2006 01:34:32 EDT
From: Euroking@aol.com
Subject: Re: [Tango-L] tango learning-- Overcoming bad habits
To: spatz@tangoDC.com, tango-L@mit.edu
Jake,
Interesting, only one caution on your list of correcting bad habits. I would
NEVER teach anyone an incorrect movement under any circumstances. I would
rather take them to a position where their error does not work so they can feel
the problem and then have a starting point to unlearn. Teach them something
wrong and they will remember as your truth at the wrong time.
Just a thought,
Bill in Seattle
Date: Sat, 17 Jun 2006 05:28:05 -0400
From: "TangoDC.com" <spatz@tangoDC.com>
Subject: Re: [Tango-L] tango learning-- Overcoming bad habits
To: tango-L@mit.edu
All,
Thanks for the feedback. I look forward to more responses, and I'll be
happy to post my findings as they continue to happen.
To address one point raised so far...
=="Wrong" techniques==
Doing things wrong on purpose, in the full light of consciousness, has
helped me, and it has helped some of my students, so I'll keep using it
where I think it's appropriate. It's like learning a word's connotation
by learning its antonyms-- which is a perfectly fine way of going about
it. (What's "right"? Well, it's not what's "wrong," and it's not what's
"left.") Writing a bad poem deliberately is an excellent method for
acquiring a brain.
Also, certain "bad habits" arise Because we aren't paying full
attention, and the more we ignore them, the more we get stuck with them.
I'm sure there's a fair number of dancers out there who have gone
through (or are going through) that "cemented foreheads" connection, as
I did. Doing it deliberately is one way to realize you're doing it at
all. Then, by more careful experimentation, one can learn exactly How it
screws things up, so that one can then recover those losses with a more
comprehensive gameplan.
On that note, however, I've found that teaching "wrong" techniques has
another use. (This applies more to advanced students, or to those who
will clearly get to that level.) A technique that's clearly wrong in one
context can occasionally jumpstart discovery in another, and while this
isn't common, I have seen it happen. Doing "kicky" barridas, e.g., isn't
kosher; but if you can find the right moment (in the case I'm thinking
of, the follower doing the "kicking," and the leader doing a front boleo
or a planeo-- an adornment-with-a-cause, in either case), it turns into
a new idea.
Maybe not an elegant idea, but one that could learn to be elegant.
Anyhow, there you have two circumstances in which it's okay. And if
someone misinterprets my teaching, and learns something else (right or
wrong) by mistake, I don't charge them anything extra.
Jake Spatz
DC
Euroking@aol.com wrote:
> Jake,
>
> Interesting, only one caution on your list of correcting bad habits. I would
> NEVER teach anyone an incorrect movement under any circumstances. I would
> rather take them to a position where their error does not work so they can feel
> the problem and then have a starting point to unlearn. Teach them something
> wrong and they will remember as your truth at the wrong time.
>
> Just a thought,
>
> Bill in Seattle
>
>
>
Date: Sat, 17 Jun 2006 03:24:12 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Trini y Sean \(PATangoS\)" <patangos@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Tango-L] tango learning-- Overcoming bad habits
To: tango-L@mit.edu
Hi Jake,
Trini, here. I suggest teaching them how to relax and what
relaxed feels like (say, after a massage). Bad habits
usually include a contraction of a muscle or a muscle
system. We incorporate Alexander Technique in our teaching
(both group and individual). One result is that the
dialogue between men and women is very positive and
productive, as opposed to the blame game.
Trini de Pittsburgh
PATangoS - Pittsburgh Argentine Tango Society
Our Mission: To make Argentine Tango Pittsburgh's most popular social dance.
https://www.pitt.edu/~mcph/PATangoWeb.htm
