And so we have been chatting about posture (previous article if you missed it: https://bautanz.com/2017/05/08/intelligent-tango-posture/) and as we all know that chat never ends…NEVER! haha
So I won’t break such important traditions, instead I will keep on chatting on posture but this time through the embrace!
“The frame might have rules but the embrace is yours..!” Sebastian Arce
This is the beauty of Tango, so many rules that can be broken from within from anyone willing to get past the intimacy boundary and explore him/herself a bit further while in a partnership.

The embrace is the first place that you start to see such a differentiation. People getting a bit more expressive, slightly changing the embrace depending on the partner they are dancing with or the song or their mood. And they are still dancing Tango, or better NOW they are really dancing Tango.

I heard that phrase from the great Sebastian Arce back in 2015 but it took some time for me to wrap my mind and body around those words.
I was working so hard to make the rules fit my body that when I danced my ego wouldn’t let go…
“Don’t you dare leave this posture… After 2 hours a day of practice YOU are NOT letting go!” Chrisa’s Ego

haha

After some time though I missed feeling free, I missed moving. And that was when I started practicing on experience, on how things feel, and not on how they are supposed to look or feel.

After a couple of months I danced with a friend I hadn’t danced in a long time. I found myself enjoying our dance so much and avoiding the discomfort his habits caused me in the past, by allowing his embrace to affect my embrace and partly my posture–within the Tango boundaries of course, we didn’t end up dancing salsa don’t you worry.
Maybe that wouldn’t be the way, the style, I would personally choose to dance in but it was the way I could enjoyably dance with him and that is what made it special!

Don’t fight it, embrace! ?
How can the different types of embrace effect your posture
Before I give you the video, I want to say this…
When we read or hear the word “effect” immediately we get defensive. As if something really bad is going to happen…Really really bad! haha
But think about it, do you hug your grandma the same way you would hug your daughter, or your spouse?
I hope not..!

So why would you embrace everyone in the same way. They are different people, different body types, you probably have a different relationship with each one of them and most importantly they are offering a different embrace too.

In the video following you can see the different embrace styles, taken down to 3 basic holds and connected to the movement of the spine which creates our posture.

Here is your video: Intelligent Tango: The element of the embrace

The purpose of this video is to offer insight on how the movement of our arms is connected to that of our rib cage, and therefore to that of our spine.
Also to give you a nudge to start exploring all the different cues different teachers have given you regarding posture and the embrace so you can figure out the common ground supporting all styles, understand how you have your whole body involved to the embrace to make it more efficient and enjoyable, plus find the styles that work best for you!

What this video doesn’t intend to do is say which is the real, the true the one and only, the absolute best Tango embrace.

Find YOURS!

Chrisa