Tango to train the mind...to bring it into contact with the ultimate reality
Making the simple complicated is normal...making the complicated awesomely simple it creativity
Only the truly detached dancer who is completely empty and rid of the self is ready to become one with his partner and the music
The dance floor is the canvass.....your body is the brush....the color comes from your soul !
As light comes from darkness
creation comes from stillness,
As your thoughts comes from silence your essence comes from emptiness
As from the stillness, comes the dance from which comes self knowledge from which comes serenity - Oscar Wright
"The soul of your dance partner is your shadow"
“Your soft hand is a woman of itself and mine the man’s bare breast she curls inside” *(Robert Browning, 1846)
It is necessary for the dancer to become...inspite of himself...an unmoved center
Both present at the same time !
Possibility in immobility....
Interpreting the music through delicious pauses.....
Exercises to increase sensitivity to your partner
Almost everything I teach in tango comes from two sources; 1. lots and lots and lots of dancing,. and, 2. Deep reflection on the experience utilizing concepts of philosophy, psychology and easter spiritual practises.
“Dancing alot” is more significant than you might think. Almost all tango teachers in the world paradoxically dance very little. They will go to a milonga and perhaps dance with their teaching partner or a very good student or accomplished dancer.
I, on the other hand, conditioned by a background in competitive running and decades of Hatha Yoga practise, would go to a milonga and often make it a point to dance every single tango dance of the evening and to try to understand the experience.
In pursuit of this mission, I made it a point to dance with dancers of all types; thin, large, tall, short young, elderly, beginners, accomplished. I realized early on that to truly know what is involved in tango dancing, one had to have an across the board dancing experience. To understand not only the physical aspects of tango dancing but the psychological and spiritual aspects as well
So the mission has been to truly comprehend what is going on when we dance tango - when we lead, when we follow - doing deep reflection through the concepts of buddhism and meditation. But in truth not only Zen but extensive reading in other disciplines; e.g., Mary S. Whitehouse’s, “Authentic Movement” (based on Jung’s psyche theory), Rudolf Steiner’s “Eurythmy”, Dr. Oliver Sacks work on music therapy, William Reich’s "Bioenergetics", Alexander Lowen’s, “The Language of the Body”, to name just a few.
Another very important element is inspiration and application of Japanese aesthetics to tango. In particular Ikebana flower arranging and Haiku poetry. But drawing inspiration as well from the tea ceremony, Zen Archery, Miyabi (Grace, Beauty, Simplicity) Shibumi, (simple, subtle beauty but with complex textures) The powerful application of STILLNESS during the act of dancing tango
Additionally, deep reflection on the extraordinary power of tango dancing to be THERAPY; to be a lifesaver when confronted with life’s harshest experiences.
Especially the experience of loss; loss of a loved one through death and loss of love (itself a death experience). On the power of tango to annul biases of gender and class and race. On the power of tango to help people find love and friendship. On the power of tango to help us personally evolve.
I began both Hatha Yoga and Buddhism practise when I was 21 while at the university where I received a degree in Philosophy. It has been a lifelong search to finally know that those simple and powerful principles were always in front of my eyes. Mindfullness.
I was bewitched by tango music at the age of 16. I would religiously tune into a radio program, “Reminiscencias Del Tango” which was broadcast every Thursday at 7:00 PM by a super station from Mexico. I have memories of a great aunt recounting nostalgically her evenings dancing tango in the 1940s in Mexico. However, it was much later that I began to seriously study tango.
To repeat , most of what I teach, I acquired from lots and lots and dancing and reflection through principles of Zen as well as a number of other disciplines. I feel like I have met with some success (and some disappointment) in my teaching in four cities in Texas, all over Italy, a number of countries in Europe and a few cities in the far east.
It is however an ongoing, never ending endeavor to discern the conceptual tools necessary to explore and understand the depth of emotional and spiritual experience in the act of dancing. And of course as a teacher, to better understand the principles of teaching, of communicating.
And finally, all of this I have distilled it to one powerful, all consuming, simple message, TO LEARN TO GIVE WITHOUT EXPECTING ANYTHING IN RETURN.
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What people say....
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Hernan Celesia
Computer Programer
Buenos Aires, Argentina
You have awakened in me a
passion for this dance. ..the
amazingly beautiful thing
about your teaching is
learning to dance tango with
a passion which goes beyond
the technique.
What people say....
Zen Tango is fantastic ! Not only do you learn to dnce but it helps you to attain inner peace. You dance in closeness and unity
in the present !
Sandy Ma
Pharmacist
Copenhagen, Denmark
What people
say ....
Zen Tango creates an atmosphere
of closeness and friendship and is
alot of fun. It is a system which
focuses on the fundamentals. It
creates a spiritual connection
between the man and the woman
and the music !
Jean Paul L'Huiller
Business Consultant
La Paz, Bolivia
What people
say ....
Zen Tango is like yoga except that you are meditating while
you dance. I love being in the music, being in the flow, being silent inside and enjoying the movement !
Upasna Gupta
Yoga Teacher
New Dehli, India
What people
say ....
Through the exercises of breathing and visualization, I was finally able to relax.
Text LinkIt taught me to feel tango in my heart and to connect to my partner and not think about
whether I was making a mistake
Rosa Borrajo
Spanish Teacher
Granada, Spain
What people
say ....
Zen Tango teaches the essence of dance. It converts tango into meditation It teaches to integrate your soul into your partner and the music to create a total spiritual experience. It becomes
therapy for your well being.
Rahul Sharma
Business Consultant
New Dehli, India
What people
say ....
In Zen Tango we dance the pauses...we dance the silence
In Zen Tango your legs become
paint brushes to create colors !
Rabab Ahmed
Travel Agency Owner
Cairo, Egypt
What people
say ....
From the very first moment,
Oscar creates an inviting and
relaxed enviornment... his
teaching through lovely
metaphors like creating colors
and dancing in the present really
helps you to reach the profound aspects of dancing tango !
Paula Paduroiu
Fashion Consultant
Paris, France