An Open Letter to Professional Tango Teachers

I have been dancing Tango since 2002. Except for one year, I actively took lessons during this period of 6 years until now (as of 2008). I have seen extremely talented teachers, and some so-so ones. Today, however, I won't be talking about skills and talents because that is not what teaching is about.

To quote Nito Garcia: "Tango does not have an official school that grants degrees". What is considered good and what is considered bad are only people's opinions. Most of these opinions are well-established and logical within themselves. Still, there are a lot of points that not everybody agrees upon. Many teachers I have seen were bold enough to know this fact and respect it. Some others were not. Please, don't be a member of the second group. It is extremely discouraging for a student of yours to hear your claims on how other people are dancing like a "mess", when actually there is no universally accepted "mess". This will just decrease your credibility. You may be making your living out of teaching Tango (i.e. you're a "professional"), yet this does not make you the ultimate authority. Keep in mind that your students in that class might have been taught by other teachers, some of them you wouldn't like to compete on a dance floor. Overreaching statements, as in every aspect of life, is not so welcome by many tango dancers.

What I have been talking about so far shouldn't be understood as if I want some sort of chaos in Tango.

Examples of perfectly valid statements are:

- "Always collect before pivoting"

- "There should be no weight on your supporting leg"

- "You should be facing your partner"

Examples of not so valid statements are:

- "You must never do xxx on that side because it feels unnatural" (maybe it just feels unnatural to you?)

- "What you just showed me is a mess because we don't do it that way"

Please remember that this is not a high school, and your students are not your kids. Treat them and their already established dancing styles with enough respect. If you're a professional, then behave like one.