Fabian Peralta and Lorena Ermocida are part of the faculty of Tango Masters at the Sydney Tango Salon Festival held from 28 September to 3 October 2011.     
Since winning the World Salon Tango Champion in 2006 Fabian has been dancing and teaching professionally around the world. Lorena has performed in tango shows worldwide including at the Hollywood Bowl in front of 50,000 people and on stage throughout Europe and the USA. 
We asked them to talk about tango and their teaching philosophy - in time for their trip Down Under....

My earliest tango memory is…
FP: I came to Buenos Aires from Rosario when I was 23 years old, and my idea was to become a Ballet Dancer, but after one year I start to take tango lessons, just for fun. My roommate who worked in one theatre told me.. ”there is a tango company that it’s presenting at the theatre would you like to come to see it?” . Then I went, and as I saw the show, I changed my mind, and I decided to become a tango dancer. The name of the tango company was“Tango x2” From Miguel Angel Zotto and Milena Plebs
LE: My earliest tango memory is when i was 4 years old and i was dancing with my father. It was wonderful to have the feeling of the dance, and to the music that is his passion. I grew up with tango music always in my house
I was studying in the National School of Ballet and I wanted to try tango, so I did a few classes in 1987. I realised ( me di cuenta ) that i really liked it but I wanted to do it right. That is why when I finished high school, although I was still studying ballet, I had more time for tango. As I danced more, I started to feel this is it !!!!! This is what I have been looking for!

The greatest influence on my dancing is…
FP: All the great old couples. Roberto Herrera and Vanina Bilous , Gabriel Angio and Natalia games,  Carlos Copello and Alicia Monti, Miguel Zotto and Milena Plebs. And of course, my teacher Mingo Pugliese
LE:  I learned a lot from each teacher and each show where I worked -  Mingo and Esther Pugliese, Gustavo Naveira and Olga Bessio, Eduardo Y Gloria [Arquimbau], Antonio Todaro - and Tango x 2 , Julio Iglesias Show etc ,  Because of them I am who I am today ( por la influencia de ellos y mi trabajo es quien soy hoy).

The orchestras I most enjoy dancing to at the moment are…
FP: Hector Varela with Jorge Valdez, Juan D’Arienzo with Jorge Valdez, Carlos Di Sarli with Roberto Florio
LE: The Orchestras I enjoy are Di Sarli , Pugliese , Calo , Tanturi , etc , ( todo depende de con quien bailes )

What I love most about dancing tango is…
FP: Embracing  another human being, feeling her heartbeat in my chest…
LE: What I love most about dancing tango is the feeling to connect with some one , the passion of the dancing and the music , and that Tango is so strong ,  I can express all my feelings in it

The most exciting thing about teaching tango today is…
FP: I grow as a dancer when I teach, and I also watch how happy the student feels when they finally understand something and can finally enjoy
LE: The most exciting thing about tango today is that all the time there are more people dancing in the world, and young dancers too, which means that tango will not die.

What I would most like to impart to dancers at the Sydney Tango Salon Festival and the Milonga Para Los Ninos is …
FP: The magic of the “simplicity” and how enjoyable it is  to feel a hug
LE: would like the dancers I teach to understand the passion of this dance, the love for the traditional style that you can see with all the great dancers who have been dancing all their lives .The pleasure of the embrace and the connection with some one .( el placer del abrazo y la coneccion con alguien)

My advice to someone who would like to learn to dance tango is…
FP: Work hard, enjoy surrender  yourself to someone else, open a channel where you can send all your energy, all you can feel, all you are
LE:My advice is that dancers t enjoy the process of learning, and to be constant in their embrace of tango

In this Youtube video taken earlier in 2011, Fabian and Lorena dance to Pugliese's Nochero Soy at the European Tango Championship in Torino in July.

You can find out more about both these dancers on Facebook
You will also find an interview with Fabian on 2xtango     

These interviews are copyright TangoAustralia and may not be reproduced with written permission from the publisher.