Tango for Special Needs & Other Disabilities

Disclaimer: The information offered in this Special Needs & Other Disabilities section is for Resource purposes only . The information is offered to assist current Argentine Tango Instructors ; other Dance Instructors; students of Argentine Tango and of other dances; Special Needs Teachers; and any others, including parents and family members who have loved ones who are Special Needs and/or Disabilities.

The purpose of offering this information is to increase awareness of the option of employing the fundamentals of Argentine Tango to benefit your loved ones.

This resource information is not intended to be a curriculum on this site;  don't hesitate to contact me and I'll gladly teach you a curriculum---no cost entailed--I'm just "paying it forward".

The keys to working with Special Needs and Disabilities are exactly the same as in working with any student:

  1. First learn the material yourself. Take Argentine Tango class.
  2. Be patient.
  3. Be creative.
  4. Be willing to listen and learn from your student.
  5. Be joyous and have a good sense of humor.
  6. Be totally discreet and totally trustworthy for your student.

As a music teacher who employed Feldenkrais (licensed) and Alexander Technique (licensed) in working closely with my students, I have increasingly, for the past 5 years, employed the Fundamental Non-Verbal/Non-Touching Communication of Argentine Tango, especially with Autistics; and used the Argentine Tango to help Attention Deficit Disorder, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's, and my blind students.

I want to mention here that the Argentine Tango is a unique partnered dance whereby a gentleman who is blind can ask ANY lady at the dance to dance. And he can dance the Argentine Tango fully around the line of dance on the floor - even among the other dancers. You see an example of this in the movie Scent of a Woman. Every woman dancing the Argentine Tango should have the wonderful chance to be led by such a leader!

Central to my personal use of the Argentine Tango in working with Special Needs are the following examples of some of the dance's important Fundamentals all of which are taught in Beginning Argentine Tango I classes by a knowledgeable Instructor:

I thank Andrew McCollough for teaching me this important information which I employ with Special Needs.
  1. Tango is climbing one step at a time as if one is climbing a ladder—in that one moves securely, steadily, calmly as one takes each step.
  2. There are thus subtle "pauses" in Argentine Tango, just like one has subtle pauses when one is securely climbing a ladder.
  3. Tango movements are like "honey pouring out of a jar"—smooth and able to be controlled at any moment. Tango movements are not like "water flowing out of a jar on momentum that cannot be controlled".
  4. The Argentine Tango uses the natural alignment and natural movement of the body from the inside-out for all movements. This means that the Special Needs person (or any dancer) can totally trust the body.
  5. All movement comes from the core—the lower abs of the human body (in Tai Chi called the Dantien); movements originate inside the core and are totally natural body movements.
  6. All movement is from the ground up—led from the core (dantien).
  7. The Natural Circuit of energy and life force for the movement of the body runs from the heel of one foot, through the pelvic girdle, and into the other leg and heel. This Natural Circuit is the Sciatic Foundation Control for the whole body's Nervous System.
  8. The Nervous System is the river that carries all the body's motion. The Nervous System has to be in place from the inside out, and steady, before the Muscular and Respiratory Systems can function well.
  9. The Natural Circuit is the following:
    - Ground up through the heels
    - Heels up to hip joints
    - Across pelvis (lower abs; Dantien) control
    - Down leg to other heel
  10. Argentine Tango can help students learn this and learn how to feel - with certainty - this subtle circuit in their own body and learn how to keep this Natural Circuit open and free functioning. Applying this knowledge to moving in rhythm in the non-verbal/non-touching fundamental communication of the Argentine Tango can be of benefit to Autistic Spectrum Disorders, and this unique dance can also help the following:
    - Any Special Needs or Disability that would benefit from knowing and applying totally natural flowing body movement to gain better health for the Nervous System, the Muscular System, and the Respiratory System.

    - In disabilities, such as later stages of Parkinsons, in which the individual may not consciously be able to relate well to the instructor in an obvious manner, the student can be led into the Body Awareness by employing these important fundamentals of Argentine Tango. The instructor can see that the individual's body is learning the concepts. In these situations the individual's body may retain the knowledge for itself.

    - The Parkinson's individual and the dance partner can have many pleasant dances for fun as well as for the obvious benefit of natural movement for the systems of the body.

    - For Autistic Spectrum Disorders, the non-verbal/non-touching fundamental communication unique to the Argentine Tango may help the individual realize that a connection with other humans can be attained and managed. This helps the individual's social awareness to increase. Pleasant times can be had by the individual dancing the Argentine Tango to favorite music and sounds and feeling the specific sense of communication with another dancer that this dance offers.

    - Any Disorder or Disability that would benefit from bringing Mind, Body, and Spirit together into a focused, thoughtful unit,  using the simultaneous options of music and sound, and using movement to the individual's own improvised dance of the Argentine Tango with a partner. Simultaneously employing the subtle non-verbal communication  inherent in the Argentine Tango is also important for these disorders. [for example:  Attention Deficit Disorders; and Post-Traumatic Stress (soul) Disorders.]

These Fundamentals of Argentine Tango are very clear. If they are taught to you by a knowledgeable practitioner/instructor of Argentine Tango, they are easy to learn and fun to teach. The Argentine Tango is so much fun to work with because your loved ones can achieve progress while learning a new dance skill that will continue to bring joy as they dance Argentine Tango themselves for years onward!

Working with Special Needs is always great fun and never boring. We, as humans, are each individual; but Special Needs are even more individual ; and working with them and learning from them is always very creative and fun. Enjoy!


^ Top

Previous page: Tango in Southern Oregon
Next page: Case Studies