QuickStart to Tango

by Jeff Allen and Jeff Allen

- Second in the Quickstart Dance series. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0965442322
• ISBN13: 9780965442329
• Release Date: April 1998
• Publisher: QQS Publications
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 8.3" x 10.8"

Customer Reviews

Jeff Allen's Books Are Hot!!

At least once a week since 1998 we open up one of the Quickstart series books and find solutions, techniques, and additional choreography that either amplify or add to what we have learned in many classes. We have taken both group and private lessons. When we mention some of the examples that we've read my teachers are generally very interested or in agreement. Evidently Jeff Allen is very well known in the dance community throughout the United States and his opinions and teaching methods are highly respected. We were not at all surprised to find that he writes a regular column in "Dancing USA" magazine called "The Dance Lesson."Admittedly we both tried to read these books as if they were novels and were overwhelmed by the quantity and increasing level of content. Perhaps by osmoses the intellectual transfer of information from the book's pages would become our dance experience. Remembering assembling a bicycle step by step got the job done, we started to do what we should have done from the beginning practice the elements according to our level of understanding at the time. When we knew nothing we worked the information from the beginning and as we succeeded and became moderately competent we moved to the next level. It is amazing that some of the problems we have as mid range beginners to Tango & Swing had been anticipated by the author. Then came the methods for corrective measures. The technique in the Quickstart to Tango & Swing books by Allen brings these books to a whole different level not just assembly of dance steps but how to do them and then how to do them better - a great partner!

This is a great start! A Review of Quickstart to Tango

The Argentine Tango-dance is an esoteric dance based on quietness of mind and body contortion, linked by a full awareness of the here and NOW. After reviewing Jeff Allen's book, Quickstart To Tango, where he compares and explains different styles of tango around the world, and also establishes the components of what makes a good Argentine Tango, I said to myself, "This is a great start! At least someone has stopped talking and has started to write!" In Argentine Tango, we have a saying: "To progress quickly, you must close your mouth and move your legs."In Argentine Tango, body action is based on contortion, the torque of the body, which gives rise to CBM (contra-body motion), as well as walks across the 3 lines which construct your axis, CBMP (contra body movement position). These factors have to be well understood, and Quickstart To Tango explains them very well. But these actions cannot happen without correct posture, poise, frame, and contra-frame, which are also described in an impressive manner in the book.Change of weight has nothing to do with just walking. That is the essence of Salon-style Tango, which has nothing to do with the Tango we used to dance in the Salon. This is fully based on one complete circle divided by two people establishing space to dance between them and changing weight together. The book does a good job of explaining this is an easily understandable manner.Argentine Tango is a stepping tango developed by undirected steps in opposition with other styles of tango, which are based on direct walking steps. This is also explained well in Jeff's book."Rule of Step Then Turn": This is so important for beginners! And very refreshing for those who are used to more advanced turns such as the Torcimiento, Destorcimiento, Enrosque, Rulo, Tornillo, Planeo, Recorte, etc. Thank you for this chapter Mr. Allen."Improvisation: Recombining your knowledge and knowing exactly what you are doing all the time" is another fabulous section in this book. This section describes how the music, including musicality and rhythm (owned by the man), time (owned by the woman), and Timing (owned by the couple) dictate the improvisation. The couple is the 3rd entity, an investment of a man without ego and woman without impatience. Jeff discusses this approach to improvisation with great clarity."How To Practice": Jeff talks about this subject in specific and useful terms. Personally, I would say that if you are practicing or learning without guidance, you are just repeating injuries, and you retrieve yourself not in dancing in a milonga, but keep practicing. Yu have to find out where practice stops and dancing starts. That's why you need a guide. Your muscle memory doesn't detect what is right or wrong! It just records it."Lead and Follow": Man starts as a leader and merges into a follower, while the woman starts as a follower and merges into a leader. This process can happen in single step.

Excellent Reference - Belongs in your Library!

This review was written by Feature Writer Michael Ditkoff for the publication La Voz Del Tango:A few months ago, I read a recommendation for this book and decided to purchase it. I am glad I did! Quickstart To Tango is a comprehensive book that covers both the American and the Argentine Tangos. For this review I will limit my comments to the general dance and Argentine Tango sections. This book is more than a picture book that describes figures and whether or not a step is quick or slow. That is a review of Paul Bottomer's "Tango Argentino" book. Mr. Allen's book includes tango's social development - collaborating with well-known teacher Daniel Trenner. A sample of the chapters and salient point of each are: What is a dance step? - "Moving the body to new vertical position with all of your weight over the next foot" Learning timing - "If you can hear the knocking on a door, then you can certainly hear the beats in the music while you are learning to dance" Using Good Foot Contact - "The ball of the foot carries the weight in the Argentine style." Rotation in Tango - "Both of these figures - Fans in the Ballroom style and Ochos in the Argentine style - are initiated by one of the partners and concentrate heavily around the established center of rotation of their partner." The Basic Dance Positions and Body Framing - "A major difference in the Argentine style is that the weight of the body is poised over the balls of the feet while being compressed through the knees." Attitudes and Priorities : Mental and Physical - "Be very kind to your partner and remember you are learning too." There is a thorough discussion of contra body motion. Dancers should be "split at the waist" so that the top half and the bottom half can rotate in different directions. For example, in leading the woman to the cross. The man's hips face the left after the second step, but the chest should face the woman. Contra body motion has been rarely discussed in the group classes I've attended. There are black and white photographs of dancers illustrating various figures, e.g. Salida, the Walk to the Cross, and Grapevine. The woman wore brightly colored shoes so her movements show clearly. The man wore traditional black shoes which don't show up as well. This book is an excellent reference and belongs in your library.

A MUST READ - AND RE-READ!

I became interested in Tango about 4 years ago after a visit to South America.When I returned home I went to a dance studio to begin lessons and to learn more of this fascinating dance. Two years ago my teacher recommended I get a copy of Quickstart To Tango and read it. "Do not read it like a dimestore novel, and do not look for footprints on the floor to follow - this book is more than that" he told me. And he was right! I appreciate the fact that Mr. Allen does not treat his audience like a kindergarten class - he assumes his reader is intelligent. And also when that reader buys a book - that reader must read it. If you are looking for a 'coffee table book' or a syllabus with charted figures, amounts of turn, specific foot placements of each partner, etc. then buy that type of book - there are alot of them out there. Quickstart To Tango contains exceptional explanation of the technique used in this dance - both American and Argentine. In fact the technique contained here is applicable to any dance. And the figure descriptions are quite accurate - but again you must be willing to read them! It is,as the cover states, a wonderful complement to dance lessons and I have used mine as such.But this book is also very helpful to beginners who have never taken a dance lesson. Quickstart To Tango is like the books we used in school - it is meant to be looked at more than once and, as you progress and learn more, the parts you re-read take on more meaning. I enjoyed the interesting historical background on the Tango, and was very entertained by the interview with the great Carlos Gavito. What a pleasure to read an informative book that I can continue to refer to and learn from. It was also a pleasant surprise to find that Mr.Allen is accessible by email happy to discuss Tango, answer questions, or provide help with anything he has written. Bravo, Mr. Allen and thank you.

Great book for beginners and all dancers!

Wow! Quickstart To Tango not only gives the beginner dancer an excellent understanding of the basics of Tango, but also provides some historical background of its origins and `lore'. Mr. Allen's explanation and presentation of both the American and Argentine style of Tango, is very thorough and detailed. As a dancer of both styles of Tango (and International Standard as well), I was pleasantly surprised at Mr. Allen's ability to present the American and Argentine styles as separate and unique, yet also point out where the two styles are the same. I really enjoyed the practice exercises that are included; they are not only fun but very helpful in gaining a firm grasp of the basic movements. Also the `common errors' and the solutions for them provides some excellent information for all dancers.. There is choreography included beyond the basics, which challenges the beginner and adds interest for those with some dance experience. Although this book is especially helpful to the beginner dancer, it contains some wonderful explanations of the proper dance technique in general. As a student of dance and competitor, I have found the information about technique in Quickstart To Tango to be very helpful in my lessons in all the dances! My instructor enjoyed this book as well and is even using some of Mr. Allen's physical analogies in his lessons and classes! Another big "plus" is the offer of online support to the reader. I decided to try it an e-mailed a question to the author - and he answered it the very next day! I am looking forward to book #3 of the Quickstart Series.