Tango salon walking technique

Hi Tangueros.
 
I am always talking about tango walking and how important it is in the dance. If you can walk in tango, you  can dance. Here is a wonderful video showing Adrian and Amanda Costa only walking.... but they are dancing!!  it is spectacular. In this video you see the Argentine tango in its essence. Of course, in the milonga, we don’t have the space to only walk but there are certainly times when there is enough space. This dance is in the closed embrace. For people who are dancing in the open embrace, the same principles apply.
 
Here are some things to look out for in the musicality:

1. How the leader is using the phrasing of the music which consists of 8 beats
2. How he sometimes emphasizes a strong beat
3. How he sometimes used a syncopated rhythm (half beats)
4. How he sometimes slows down his steps to walk one step over two beats

Leaders technique:

1. His feet stay on the floor when he walks
2. His trailing leg is relaxed
3. His knees are relaxed
4. He hesitates while passing through the axis, slowing down slightly
5. The position of his left elbow is in front of his chest and hip and stays constant throughout the dance.
6. He is pushing off on his back foot to send him forward
7. He is walking with a heel-toe connection, rather than projecting his toes forward (I prefer this one because it is easier to master than sliding your foot forward)
8. He is holding her in front of him, not to his side.

Followers technique:

1. Her feet are turned slightly outwards. When she steps backwards she makes contact with the floor through the inner ball of her foot.
2. Her upper body stays stable in contact with her partner
3. Her hips are back in relation to her chest
4. Her knees are relaxed but not very bent
5. She passes through the centre for each step
6.. Her steps are the same size as her partner's
7. She is connected to her partner at the chest but she is in her own axis.