Gotta Tango » (New Edition)

Alberto Paz and Valorie Hart own Planet Tango, a school and tango salon located in New Orleans, where they also produce the widely successful New Orleans TangoFest each year. Together, Paz and Hart conduct master Argentine tango classes as well as lectures and workshops in cities across America and the world. They also publish El Firulete, an online international Argentine tango magazine with a quarterly publication in English, and they have been featured dancers on the Buenos Aires TV show Tango Around the World. With their Web site, www.planet-tango.com, Paz and Hart provide dancers the opportunity to network on an international level.

Paz is a native of Argentina and grew up in the streets of Buenos Aires, while Hart was born in the United States and is ballet trained with experience in both off-Broadway and summer stock. The two met in 1995 during a tango conference and workshop at Stanford University. Since then, the pair has become internationally reputable Argentine tango masters and historians, known for their smooth, creative, and elegant improvisational dancing style.

Both authors are disciples of the legendary grand master Mingo Pugliese, who said, "Alberto possesses one of the most impressive powers of improvisation in the world today." They teach and dance the traditional and modern authentic concepts of improvisation originally developed by the masters in the 1930s, revamped in the 1990s, and practiced by dancers of all ages in the social settings of the Buenos Aires dance halls to this date. Paz and Hart reside in New Orleans.

Gotta Tango is a superior instructional package for learning how to dance the authentic Argentine tango at a social level. Master teachers Alberto Paz and Valorie Hart take you on a journey through the rich culture, history, and music of Buenos Aires that inspired the romantic passion, alluring creativity, and natural elegance of the Argentine tango dance. You will learn the fundamentals and roles each partner plays in this exhilarating and intimate social dance.

The book describes, illustrates, and explains the fundamental concepts and techniques, while the DVD visually demonstrates the concepts and movements of the tango in real dance situations with a partner. This combination provides tango lessons that are infinitely more effective than a stand-alone book or video product-and will have you dancing with confidence in less time than you thought possible.

Each tango dancer has a unique way of expressing movements. Gotta Tango offers a logical, structured approach that will help you learn quickly how to move spontaneously with a partner and with the music. It provides the tools you will use every day as a tango dancer as you immerse yourself in the experience, pleasure, and addiction of dancing the Argentine tango.

Part I: The Magic and Addiction of the Argentine Tango

Chapter 1 The Everlasting Tango

Chapter 2 The Romance of the Bandoneon and the Night

Part II: The Learning Process to Dance the Argentine Tango

Chapter 3 Welcome to Tango Boot Camp

Chapter 4 To Hug or Not to Hug

Chapter 5 Sharing the Journey Up and Down the Tango Roads

Chapter 6 What Goes Around Comes Around

Chapter 7 A Sleight of Legs

Chapter 8 If You Get Tangled Up, Tango On

Part III: Joining the Tango Dance Party

Chapter 9 Fancy Dancing on a Crowded Floor

Chapter 10 The Social Milieu and Beyond