Tango dancers often think that the great divide in tango dancing is in the styles, but it may be in the musicality. Good musicality connects the dancers and even connects dancers to the onlookers. No matter your tango taste, whether open embrace, closed embrace, tango nuevo or other styles, good musicality is important.  Regardless of the style, dancers become connected by interpreting and enjoying the tango music in that moment.

Many tango teachers and dancers think that musicality and connectivity can not really be separated.  Followers often gravitate to dancing with partners who have good musicality regardless of their level of knowledge of steps and movements.  They enjoy the tanda more when the partner appreciates and keeps time with the music.

Some teachers emphasize musicality in their teaching.  Other tango teachers ignore the musicality, but teach the basic patterns or movements.  Those students who seek musicality will eventually gravitate to the teachers who teach this as a fundamental. 

Teachers who have good musicality often encourage improvisation and natural musicality in their students.  Musicality adds enjoyment to the dance and helps tango students to feel their tango dancing is developing quickly.

Some beginning tango students have more of a talent for musicality than for connection.  Connection comes in different forms. There is the physical connection like the embrace and the emotional connection. The latter is not really possible to teach, but it is related to musicality.

No matter how good the embrace, if the musicality is poor many think there is not real emotional connectivity.  Some teachers emphasize musicality very early on in their teaching. Many tango students like this approach if they have considerable dance experience before starting Argentine Tango and have well developed musicality.

For leaders, learning musicality helps them to get over the awkwardness of leading.  It becomes so much easier to communicate through steps and movements when the partners are connected by their musicality.

Good leaders give the followers a chance to express themselves. They give the follower a chance to play, but not every follower is comfortable expressing herself and does not take the opportunity.  Both partners should be free to express themselves and their unique musicality.

When a leader has a good appreciation of the music then it is a pleasure for the follower to dance with them regardless the degree of complexity in their steps.  For many followers, musicality is the key to connectivity.  For a follower, apprehension turns to enthusiasm after accepting to dance a tanda with a new leader and then discovering his good musicality.

Tags: musicality