Dear Maleva,
Lately I have noticed a increasing number of followers doing what appear to be ?shoulder embellishments,? for lack of a better description. What I mean is that I see followers randomly shrugging their shoulders: they lift them either at the same time or move them in a rolling pattern. What do you make of this? Is this a trend? Where does it come from? I never saw anything like it in any of my trips to Buenos Aires.
-Shrugging in TX

Dear Shrugging,

Traditionally in tango the dancers keep the upper body quite still while they go crazy with their feet. They like swans on the surface of a pond: serene up top but paddling furiously underneath. The only time you would sometimes see shoulder movements would be during milonga, often in the rolling pattern that you describe. However, these days it actually HAS become trendy for followers to put shoulder and hip movements into the dance - in Buenos Aires as well as other parts of the world. I think these sorts of 'embellishments' can be quite nice - not only do they look nice but they are also nice because the leader can feel them, where as he can't always feel embellishments done with the feet. Dana Frigoli (of Pablo and Dana in Buenos Aires) and Eugenia (of Chicho and Eugenia) are both prime examples of this way of moving, and there are many other good dancers who do it as well.

One thing you want to be careful of as a follower is not letting the artful 'shoulder embellishment' turn into the unsightly 'nervous tic'. This is the unconscious shrugging of shoulders on every beat without cease. Worse yet is when the shoulder shrug travels down and the elbows begin to flap up and down rhythmically with the beat as well - don't let the swan fly away! I have also heard more than one leader say that they think it is a 'cop out' when followers play only with the shoulders and not at all with the feet, because it is much, much harder to embellish with your feet.

That said, I think the occasional shoulder embellishment feels nice and you let the music move your body in any way you feel as long as you don't overdo it.

Here is a response from a fellow tanguero & teacher in a city far, far away. He shall remain nameless; let's just call him MALEVO. Enjoy!

Dear Maleva,

I wanted to weigh in on this issue because, well, because I am a big-mouth braggart, who can't shut up. I am honest, no? My $.03 is that the shoulder shrug, when performed gently and correctly, can be a nice physical suggestion and expression of the music for the follower. That having been said, what troubles some in the social dance community is that the shrug has:

a) become the 'embellishment of the week',

b) it can too easily become a "nervous tick, as Maleva so aptly put it; and

c) lead to the disconcerting problem of the follower disengaging her shoulders from their rib cage and subsequently from her frame.

Points a) and b) are self explanatory. The fact of this discussion points to the obvious popularity of this embellishment and it's entry into the dance vocabulary. It is point c) that I would like to elaborate on here...at considerable length. During this 'embell-shrug-ment' (boy, am I pithy), the follower is raising the shoulder blade up on her back. If done improperly, the muscles that support the shoulder blade on the back --the most important with respect to the tango embrace being the trapezius muscles-- are allowed to become too relaxed. This is a huge mistake for the follower (sacrificing posture and frame for an embellishment). Let me explain. The trapezius muscles are the ones that the follower needs to keep her back engaged and firm, so the leader can lead her with his reach-around arm. The trapezius "sheaths" the back, attaching at the neck, back and shoulder blades. If she allows her trapeziae go loose with the action of raising the shoulder blade (accomplished mainly by engaging the levator scapulae [more below] with some help from the upper trapezius), then the follower is a sack of potatoes and cannot be lead accurately or easily, as she will loose control of the connection between her waist and chest. In fact, if the same action is done by the leader (improperly lifting the shoulder blade by disengaging the trapezius muscles), it becomes the dreaded shoulder lift, usually followed by the "lift and row" effect, particularly aggravated during turns. I have yet to meet a follower who doesn't hate that! How can this be done effectively and without compromising one's axis and frame? It is not difficult, but it requires some body knowledge and plenty of practice. First the follower and leader must practice lifting their shoulder blade while completely relaxing the back to the point of feeling mushy around the lower spine and ribs. This lifting action acts to isolate the levator scapulae, the muscles that attach, at one end, to the top inner edge of the shoulder blade (scapula), and at the other end, to the lower and middle neck.

[Note: Contraction of this muscle is often poo-poo'ed in many body awareness circles because over use of it leaves us tense and "wearing our shoulders as earrings", as the popular saying goes. That sounds like good advise, yet often leaves people actually aggravating neck problems due to lack of strength and over stretching of the levator scapulae muscles. In fact, proper strength and use, coupled with release of these muscles, is imperative and directly affects the dancers ability to preform quality embell-shrug-ments as well as many other skillful body movements.]

OK, where was I...Oh, yes.

Next, the dancer should begin pulling the scapula down the back, achieved mostly by engaging the trapezius muscles. Try to execute this without flaring one's ribs forward; simply engaging the stomach enough to counter-balance the trapezius is sufficient. Now, for the good part, do both actions, keeping the shoulder blades engaged onto the back (trapeziae) while allowing them to be lifted by the levator scapulae. Do not strain or hold your breath, nor should you do allow your waist and shoulders to become so relaxed that you cannot maintain a clear connection to a dance partner. Try this alone at first, and then with a partner, both while standing still and while dancing. You will start to notice that if you are too relaxed, with no "structure" in your trapezius and stomach muscles, then the lead and follow will be difficult to read. Conversely, if you are too tense or trying to hard, then you will find difficult be more subtle and musical with your body, and it will be much harder to walk smoothly forwards or backwards. Give constructive feedback to your partner on what works and what is too much.

Remember, in social dancing we are looking for quality in our movements and not quantity (for quantities sake). Followers, be frugal with embellishments just as one wants the leader to be sensitive to the music and not "do too much". With a little bit of practice and a small dose of inspired feedback, we can really grow to perform embellishments of all kinds with grace, connection to our partners, and above all else, musicality.

-Malevo