Hi everybody, Fran here with your Tango Tip of the Week. In Tango, important concepts often come in groups of three. Today, we're going to focus on what happens -- or, more precisely, what we hope will happen -- during the beginning of each movement you make in the dance.

The way our mentor and good friend the late Carlos Gavito used to express it to Pat and me was: "I lead, she follows, I accompany."

Let's break this apparently simply (but, in fact, extremely complex) idea down into its individual components:

"I lead"

In order to initiate any of the six primary movements in social Tango (forward, backward, to the side, in-place, pause, pivot), it is necessary for the leader to offer an invitation. To do this, he makes use of the lead/follow mechanism. We've talked about how this mechanism is used many times during these Tango Tips, and therefore I won't redefine its intricacies here. Suffice it to say, the lead/follow mechanism consists of a very specific, very precise series of interrelated tools or signals, which the leader brings to bear in suggesting or inviting his follower to implement a single step.

"She follows"

Once the follower receives and understands the invitation offered by her leader, she responds by executing a single movement from its inception all the way to completion (balance). She does this independently of the leader, neither waiting for him to "carry" her through the step nor rushing to respond. Her action ends, when her balance is secure.

"I accompany"

As the leader feels that the follower has understood his intention and is physically taking action, he takes a corresponding action of his own by way of accompaniment. He literally "goes with her" as an escort -- rather than, say, pushing or urging her through her response. In a way, the leader is now "following the follower" for the duration of the movement -- until eventually both partners come into balance independently by way of completing the action.

The concept of accompanying the follower as she responds to the invitation is difficult to understand in the abstract. It has to be experienced within the context of the physical lead/follow collaboration, which takes place during a given movement in the dance. A couple new to this dynamic may feel that their connection becomes momentarily lost as the leader allows his follower to execute an action on her own -- rather than physically "guiding" her through it. However, once this very important dynamic is understood, both partners will begin to recognize that not only does this facilitate ease and comfort during a step, it enables the follower to effectively find her own independent balance at the end of every movement.

From the leader's standpoint, this way of interacting with a partner -- inviting, then gently accompanying -- is the collaboration I'm referring to, when I use the phrase "your dance is her dance." You give your follower something to do, you notice that she is receiving your message and physically taking action, and you join her in a way of your own choosing until the step is over -- after which the cycle begins again for the next step.

This way of interacting is not easy to accomplish at first. It demands a great deal of skill and patience on the part of both leader and follower. However, when you as a couple finally achieve this way of moving together, you'll now be dancing social Tango in precisely the right way.

Asi se baila el tango.

Please join us for our Saturday Practica at Dardo Galletto Studios, 151 West 46^th Street (between 6^th and 7^th Avenues), 11^th floor; 2-4pm, $10 per person. (Bringing a partner isn't necessary.) Pat and I will both be on hand to answer any questions you may have about your dancing, and to help you with material you're working on. Plus you get a new “must-have” tango move each week! If you’d like a private lesson, you can visit our website at www.franchesleigh.com, call Fran directly at 212-662-7692, or email him at franchesleigh@mac.com Join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/franchesleighllc

The following folks helped set up, break down and clean up before and after the milonga. Without them, there would be no Firehouse Tango.

• Tsipoyra Sartan
• Jesse Barton
• ​​​​​​​Steve Maisch
• ​​​​​​​Lynn Gross
• ​​​​​​​