Tango

Classes

Tango

The dance of true passion and deep emotion, alluring, mysterious and addictive, are you ready to try? While Tango is regarded as the pinnacle of latin dance it is made easy by GLD with private and group classes in 4m dance studio, Galway. The main Tango teacher at GLD is Niall O Floinn.

Niall began teaching Argentinian Tango in 2003. He was the first Irish dancer to perform in a national theatre in Argentina in 2007 dancing in a 6 week show called Contratango directed by choreographer Claudio Fortes.

Over the years he has studied with unquestionably the best teachers in the world like Chico Frumboli and Juana Sepulveda, Ruben and Sabrina Veliz, Fabian Salas, Sebastian Archaval and Roxanna Suarez, Sebastian Arce and Mariana Montes, Eugenia Parrilla, Federico and Ariadna Navoeira, Los Totis, as well as Marcelo Ramer and Selva Mastrotti, Enrique Ringa, Laia Barrera, Damian Rosenthal and Celine Ruiz, Monina Paz, and at least 40 other couples.

He currently uses Sabrina Veliz's teaching pedagogy for lady style with his female students and incorporates knowledge from all his teachers in his classes for couples. He believes in never stop learning and having a beginners mind in any class he attends.

Tanguizomba

Tanguizomba: Our new style of mixed fusion latin dance Still being developed and refined, Niall is the creator of a new style of dance called Tanguizomba, which is a fusion of Argentinian Tango and Milonga steps with Kizomba and Semba steps.

The name was given by Elisabetta Lanzafame from Sicily, Niall's long term friend who he invited to teach with him at the first ever Tanguizomba workshop in the world in Galway city, Ireland. Like all great discoveries it came about by accident when they were preparing to teach kizomba together and Niall suggested adding some Tango steps. Kizomba is often called the Angolan Tango and while the roots of its music come from Semba, Haitan Konpa, zouk, Dominican bachata and Congolese Rumba, you can clearly see influences from Tango in many of the best teachers in the world especially those who have pioneered Urban Kiz.

But there's a twist because Tango also has some African roots in the form of Candombe so in the end all roads lead to Africa where Niall first began his teaching career! So when Eli pondered upon what Niall was showing her she came up with the name Tanguizomba joining an abbreviated form for Tango and kizomba with the concept of a word linking them that was 'gui' coming from the Spanish 'guiso' for stew meaning it was the flavour of both styles creating a beautiful and magical new style of dance.

As Niall and Eli both love cooking Niall fell in love with this name and was quick to remind those critiquing his innovation that the word salsa is a Spanish name for sauce that was used to encompass many styles of music and dance and look what it has become today!