There are many ways people learn Tango and make progress toward being decent Tango dancers.
But Tango is also like riding a bicycle. You can ride a bicycle or you cannot. There is a point where you show you can dance Tango. Before you reach the point you cannot or do not, although you may not want to admit it.
Here I propose six steps of learning Tango toward decent social Tango dancers.
Everyone is a beginner at first. Nobody can dance Tango at the beginning.
Step (1): Learn six basics (standing on an axis [+pivot +embellishments +gaze], walking, front ocho, back ocho, cross, and giro) and axis-based step-by-step lead-follow
These are the basics of Argentine Tango that were covered in my "Beginning Argentine Tango" book. Although I do think they should be fine to get a beginner started, actually, there is still a long way to go. At this point it is like using third wheel for bicycle. Few can really dance Tango.
Step (2): Practice the basics in front of a mirror and make your moves smooth
How they are done makes huge difference.
Step (3): Learn patterns.
Tango has 100+ years of history and has many recognized patterns that make Tango dancing look like Tango. Each pattern is made of 6-12 count moves. These many patterns include; Sacada, back sacada, chain step, parada, barrida, same-axis spin, gancho, enganche, entanglement .... you can find plenty of patterns online and in workshops. Take your time. Your knowledge on Tango is important, too.
You'd know these patterns are mostly made of modules of basics. For example, a back sacada uses "a step-in, pivot, and step backward" motion, which is a part of basic giro. Once you can see these, you can catch on the patterns quicker.
Step (4): Learn to dance the patterns slow and precise, with good-looking posture.
Use mirror or filming. This is a minimum requirement to be an instructor who needs to demonstrate moves while looking good. Teacher/provider and student/consumer see things very differently. Try to have the teacher's viewpoint.
Step (5): Learn to dance the patterns fast, also with precision and good-looking posture.
Use mirror or filming. Once step (5) is learned, you should be able to use "energy" lead/follow. You are cultivating your muscle memory/subconscious dance response.
However, muscle memory alone is notorious among professional musicians. Pros know that muscle memory alone is unreliable and can crumble under pressure, as in a solo concert situation. Musical interpretation, a brain work, needs to be combined to grow good and usable muscle memory. This slow/fast learning exercise is to get your brain involved and get you prepared for step (6).
Step (6): Learn to break down the patterns to smaller segments, and combine fast and slow, not only doing all slow or all fast as in steps (4) and (5).
With this, you'll improve phrasing of your movements, and practice musical interpretation. You'll know the switching requires adequate deceleration and acceleration (brake and gas). Parada(stop) is the brake move used to change energy flow.
By this time you should look to be a decent social Tango dancer. Carry on.
Your innate talent can be defined by the (shorter) time to go through these steps. The shorter the time, the more talented you are. It is like speed of downloading Tango is much faster for some people. "Talented" people show results fast. They have good "hunch".
I do like political correctness, but some harsh reality do exist in athletic events that include Tango dancing.
Around step (2) or (3), some of "talented" people start showing their promise. That is also the time they start demonstrating that they "can" dance Tango.
To be honest, not everyone is cut out for Tango dancing. However, learning something new is a part of knowing yourself. If Tango is not cut out for you, ... you can still stick around if you like it, or you can try something else. It's your call.
Steps (1)-(6) can be done by yourself (and it is a lot....there is a lot of things you can do by yourself for Tango). If you are aiming at stage tango dancing, this much should serve well as your basis. But if you want to go further, it is a good idea to get some help from established Tango coach/instructor from this point on.
So, where do you find yourself in this "steps of learning Tango, from step (1) to (6)"?
