I was talking to a friend at a milonga last night and he said, "So, your partner's out of town. What are you doing?" I told him that I was catching up on my reading and doing my drills.
"Drills?"
"Yes, drills."
"You do those with a partner?"
"No."
It suddenly occurred to me that what I had said was completely foreign. He started asking about these drills and as I went through them, his eyes lit up.
"You do all of this without a partner?"
"Yes."
"And it improves your dancing?"
"Immeasurably."
In fact, I would consider being proficient in the drills described below a prerequisite to working with a partner. If you can't even hold yourself up when you're pivoting, for example, what's the use in trying to find a connection with someone? It doesn't make sense. There are far too many drills to do in one session, so pace yourself. If you select a few drills to do for an average of even 15 minutes a day, you'll see distinct improvements in your dancing in just a few weeks. If you have the time to dedicate an hour a day, you'll be a different dancer in just a week or two. And if you don't get all of the dances you were hoping for, I'll give you a full refund ;-) I'm always surprised when I ask dancers how much they're practicing.
"I'm not improving."
"How much are you dancing?"
"We do this class every week."
"So, about an hour a week?"
"Yeah."
An hour a week is just enough to remind you of what you need to improve. Ask the next musician you meet how much they practice. I guarantee it will be more than an hour a week. In fact, it would surprise me if it were less than an hour a day.
I can't take full credit for these. They're a combination of what Svetlana Petkovic, Jorge Nel, Milena Buitrago, and Andres Bravo use in their warm-ups and in their classes and some of them have simply accumulated over the years. I hope you'll find them useful as well. I would strongly recommend having someone check your technique every few weeks. It would be better not to practice these at all than to become proficient at doing them incorrectly. At the very least, do them in front of a mirror or record yourself doing them and then watch the recording. As painful as it can be, getting some kind of feedback is the only way to improve.
Warm-Up
Counting with a tango: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4, ..., we count the following, for example: front, 2, 3, 4, close, 2, 3, 4, side, 2, 3, 4, close, 2, 3, 4, ..., or plié, 2, 3, 4, rise, 2, 3, 4, ..., so that you begin each movement on the first beat of each measure. If you're counting a tango correctly, you should end up with about 2 beats every second or about 120 beats at the end of a minute. Every time you see an ellipsis (...), you should repeat what came before either a certain number of times or, if the number of times is missing, for the duration of one song. Some shorthand: L for left, R for right, and X for cross.
1. Standing on the R, tendu with the L: front ... x4, side ... x4, back ... x4, side ... x4.
2. Standing on the L, tendu with the R: front ... x4, side ... x4, back ...x4, side ... x4.
3. Standing on the R, tendu with the L: front plié, rise ... x4, side plié, rise ... x4, back plié, rise ... x4, side plié, rise ... x4.
4. Standing on the L, tendu with the R: front plié, rise ... x4, side plié, rise ... x4, back plié, rise ... x4, side plié, rise ... x4.
5. Standing on the R, tendu with the L: front plié, raise the L, lower the L, rise ... x4, side plié, raise the L, lower the L, rise ... x4, back plié, raise the L, lower the L, rise ... x4, side plié, raise the L, lower the L, rise ... x4.
6. Standing on the L, tendu with the R: front plié, raise the R, lower the R, rise ... x4, side plié, raise the R, lower the R, rise ... x4, back plié, raise the R, lower the R, rise ... x4, side plié, raise the R, lower the R, rise ... x4.
Walking
Each of the following lasts an entire song. I love doing these to di Sarli, but pick your favorite orchestra at the outset and then change orchestras regularly. As variations, try the same drills to milonga and vals. At first, the focus may be on the technicalities associated with executing the step, especially in double-time. As your body begins to execute the steps automatically, your attention should turn to the musicality. Where in the song does walking 1/2-time (on the 1 of the 1, 2, 3, 4) make sense? Where in the song does walking on the beat (on the 1 and 3 of the 1, 2, 3, 4) make sense? Where in the song does walking double-time (on each count of the 1, 2, 3, 4) make sense? How can you modify the size or other characteristics of each step to suit the character of the music? Note that the dancer's beat (the 1 and 3 of the 1, 2, 3, 4) is different than the musician's beat (each count of the 1, 2, 3, 4). This is a common source of confusion for dancers and musicians alike.
1. Walk forward (1/2-time), ...
2. Walk forward (on the beat), ...
3. Walk forward (double-time), ...
4. Walk forward, forward, X behind (1/2-time), ...
5. Walk forward, forward, X behind (on the beat), ...
6. Walk forward, forward, X behind (double-time), ...
7. Walk forward, X behind, X in front (1/2-time), ...
8. Walk forward, X behind, X in front (on the beat), ...
9. Walk forward, X behind, X in front (double-time), ...
10. Walk backward (1/2-time), ...
11. Walk backward (on the beat), ...
12. Walk backward (double-time), ...
13. Walk backward, backward, X in front (1/2-time), ...
14. Walk backward, backward, X in front (on the beat), ...
15. Walk backward, backward, X in front (double-time), ...
16. Walk backward, X in front, X behind (1/2-time), ...
17. Walk backward, X in front, X behind (on the beat), ...
18. Walk backward, X in front, X behind (double-time), ...
Some of these you would be able to do forever. Take advantage of the extra time to play with the music. Wait until the last moment to step, for example, or step immediately and then take your time. Pay attention, for example, to whether the music is sharp (staccato) or smooth (legato).
Others of these are easy if you do them once or twice and very difficult if you repeat them for an entire song. The advantage of the repetition, however, lies not only in the fact that your body begins to gain an intuitive understanding of the movements, but also in the fact that your own musicality is exposed and improved in ways that wouldn't be possible otherwise.
One final note on musicality: 6 and 15 above should be counted walk, walk, cross, pause, walk, walk, cross, pause, and 9 and 18 should be counted walk, cross, cross, pause, walk, cross, cross, pause. This will keep the initial movement on the 1 of the 1, 2, 3, 4.
Rocking
For the following drills, switch the foot going forward or backward each time:
1. Rock forward, come back to X in front (1/2-time), ...
2. Rock forward, come back to X in front (on the beat), ...
3. Rock forward, come back to X in front (double-time), ...
4. Rock backward, come back to X behind (1/2-time), ...
5. Rock backward, come back to X behind (on the beat), ...
6. Rock backward, come back to X behind (double-time), ...
For slower tempos, the rock becomes more of a lunge. For faster tempos, it becomes more of a check-step. Try both.
Turning
Each of the following lasts an entire song and the tempo you use may be adjusted to your level and the amount of rotation in each turn. Try moving with your shoulders first and then use the energy collected in your torso to move you through the turn. Then, when using lapiz, try moving with your foot first and use the energy collected in your leg to move you through the turn. Both techniques are important.
1. 1/4-turns on the R, rotating counter-clockwise with the feet collected in either first or third position ...
2. 1/4-turns on the L, rotating clockwise with the feet collected in either first or third position ...
3. 1/2-turns on the R, rotating counter-clockwise with the feet collected in either first or third position ...
4. 1/2-turns on the L, rotating clockwise with the feet collected in either first or third position ...
5. 1/4-turns on the R, rotating counter-clockwise with lapiz and X behind, then on the L, rotating clockwise with lapiz and X behind ...
6. 1/2-turns on the R, rotating counter-clockwise with lapiz and X behind, then on the L, rotating clockwise with lapiz and X behind ...
7. 1/4-turns on the R, rotating clockwise with lapiz and X in front, then on the L, rotating counter-clockwise with lapiz and X in front ...
8. 1/2-turns on the R, rotating clockwise with lapiz and X in front, then on the L, rotating counter-clockwise with lapiz and X in front ...
9. Standing on the R, lapiz to tendu back with the L, full turn counter-clockwise, allowing the L leg to wrap around the R into X, lapiz to tendu back with the L, ...
10. Standing on the L, lapiz to tendu back with the R, full turn clockwise, allowing the R leg to wrap around the L into X, lapiz to tendu back with the R, ...
If you find yourself getting dizzy, which is particularly easy in 1-4, make sure you're spotting and then add a measure or two pause between each repetition.
