Tango Life

So...here's a thing...

2020-07-14T03:49:00.002-07:00

So...here's a thing...

A 2-hour video (you can watch it in small bites) where 6 women talk about their experiences as black and/or gay women in tango.
Much of it is about not being asked to dance (mostly by men), even though they have done lots of lessons, including private lessons.

There are a number of great ideas raised, such as 'if everyone just asked ONE PERSON per night to dance, that they don't normally dance with, then everyone gets to dance!' and 'we need more kindness and inclusivity at milongas!'. ( I absolutely agree.)

But mostly it's complaining about not being asked to dance by men, with the explicit assumption that it's because they're black.

The thing is, while they talk about other women-friends providing alternative reasons why this might be the case like 'perhaps it's because you're tall', there doesn't seem to be any point where they've ...

...asked the men who don't dance with them...why they don't dance with them.

It seems to me a simpler approach which might actually achieve something.

As someone who has been sent to my osteopath / chiropractor by numerous women in many countries, I appreciate when ladies ask this question.

Just so you know.

https://youtu.be/UJiJs-c1Js0

When in BA...contact Janis!

2017-05-13T14:41:00.001-07:00

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

When in Buenos Aires, do yourself a favour and contact Janis Kenyon. She loves meeting new people and is one of the kindest, most helpful people that you'll meet.

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/05/10/look-me-up-when-you-visit-buenos-aires/

Travel and perspective

2017-05-13T12:53:00.001-07:00

I've been back a week from 3 weeks in Buenos Aires and have been so impressed with the quality of the events in Welli, the lack of collisions on the dance floor, the number of people dancing milonga (almost all the dancers last night), and the overall level of dancing.

The great thing about going away is the fresh perspective that it gives you about your home. This is especially true for tango, especially if you live in Welli.

Congratulations to the Welli dancers, the organisers, their helpers and the teachers.

More Lessons? Really?

2015-07-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

I recently read a blog by a well known dancer and teacher, who had responded to a question from a reader about connection. The reader questioned 'why it works with some people but not with others?'. The teacher's response could be summarised that “one could only really change oneself, so dancers needed to focus on improving their own dance and technique, and to take more lessons”.

This is great for those who make a living as teachers, but where is the evidence of progress for all that investment?

There are thousands of dancers in Buenos Aires who enjoy dancing socially and who look like they've taken very few lessons. I'm not saying that they are great dancers, but they certainly dance better than many of those in other cities who have years of lessons under their belts.

I've danced with a lot of women, and a few men, in a lot of countries. Their dance abilities ranged from absolute beginners through to professional dancers and a consistent thread running through that experience was that many of them lacked an axis, lacked connection, or both.

If they had an axis, they often didn't understand connection and so disconnected with every step. The dance was more about what they thought the next step was going to be, rather than about us as a couple.

If they had connection then they often didn't have an axis, but at least we could create the 'one body with four legs'. We couldn't dance to the subtleties in the music very much because they were too heavy on their feet, but it still felt nice because the dance was absolutely about us as a couple.

Then there was 'no man's land'...no axis and no connection. These poor people were doing their best, but had no tools with which to dance. They struggled for balance and were often not popular dancers despite, and this is important, being perfectly lovely people who were dancing their best.

In each of these cases the people had been dancing for years and taken many lessons from many professional teachers. Some appeared to have given up and decided that they simply weren't dancer material, (almost everyone is dancer material!). All of them were very nice people who were trying to dance the best that they knew how, but they were stuck.

I was teaching a big strong guy recently who suggested that my approach to tango sounds too simplistic and “it can't be that easy”. A fair question, so I asked him to follow and started leading him to a milonga. He has almost zero following experience, yet we both had a good time because I obeyed a few simple rules of body mechanics.
My point is less about me being a good leader and more that if following is not so difficult, then why aren't more people better at it?

Similarly with learning to lead, a few simple rules based on body mechanics make it easy to understand, so why do so many teachers make such a meal of it?

Ricardo Vidort once commented that he taught everything that he knew in about 8 lessons (see https://jantango.wordpress.com/2010/07/01/simplicity/ )That sounds about right in that, after those initial lessons, the teacher becomes a coach whose role is to remind the student about the basics whenever a question arises.

Are people really all that crap at learning to dance or are we simply lifting the wrong rocks in our search?
Perhaps 'more lessons' is not the answer? God knows that there are so many people going to lessons in so many countries with such minimal improvement that it does beg the question.

Perhaps developing more empathy toward one's partners may help one move one's dance forward?

Are you a leader with years of experience who still has to tell your partners where to step? Are you a follower with years of experience who spends a lot of time facing anywhere but towards your partner? Perhaps it's time to 'take a step back' and think about how you would like to be treated if you were on the other side of the dance relationship.

You may not wish to learn the other role, but at least consider what it's like to wear their shoes.

Choreography or not? (a beginner's guide)

2014-12-29T21:22:00.001-08:00

I recently got drawn into a tango blog discussion as to whether a tango demo was a video or not. They said it was improv, I disagreed, and suddenly I was called upon to justify my view with evidence and tempers were starting to flare. A bit of an over-reaction but that's the world of tango blogs for you. People care about this stuff. A lot.

Rather than publish it there I thought that I'd publish my beginners guide here, instead.

At the outset I probably need to say that I don't like watching demos, although I appreciate that they're great as a means of drawing new people into tango, and motivating people to improve. However I was sidetracked for a few years by perceiving demos as examples of good dancing. I see many dancers here and overseas in the same situation, so I now see demos as simply a diversion. A bit like ballet, another dance that doesn't push my button.

I also won’t be linking to any demo videos as I don’t want to pick on anyone in particular as you’ll see what I’m talking about in most videos.

I never expect to see improvisation in a tango demo although it does pop up from time to time. To illustrate that point...
A well-respected Argentine teacher-friend told me that if he doesn't have a current partner when preparing for a tour then he just finds a ballet or contemporary dancer who is interested in tango. He said that ballet dancers learn the necessary choreos much faster than tango dancers and then it's just (?) a matter of teaching the ballet dancer to follow. He saw this approach as simpler than to teach a tango dancer the required choreography.

Many professionals insert short choreos into their performances at specific points in the music. This gives them a repeatable map for their performances, which ensures that they do something appropriately spectacular at those points so that their audience doesn't fall asleep. They could map out the entire song but it's not always necessary, as the bits between can look nice enough with fairly simple walking, a sacada here, a boleo there. It's possible to over-choreo the demo so that it becomes an endless string of fancy tricks, all flash and no substance.
As an analogy, a rally-driving dancer might describe the walking bits as the 'transport section’ (on public roads) between the 'special stages' (on closed roads) where the real action happens.

The most obvious and common indicators of choreo in a performance are:
- when the two dancers' feet are landing out of sync with each other, or when the follower is extending her leg so far in the step that the leader is drawn off-balance and/or his posture crumbles.
- when the leader makes an obvious signal to the follower prior to a complex move. My favorite example is when a visiting teacher stretched his leg out forward, nodded at his partner, she then stretched her leg out backward, they carefully did a cross at the same time (click!), and then he hurtled backwards in a front-cross traspie with her trying to keep up, madly changing weight on her own. Laugh? I nearly dropped my fan!

The next most obvious is outrageously fast, lightning-fast, complex steps (see above). Lead/follow can only accomplish so much in a short span of time, even with a razor thin axis, amazing connection and relaxed legs. It's tempting to bow at the feet of Dance Gods, trusting in their fabulosity, but they are only human after all.

Many times when I see 'improv' performances it's often a series of 5-step-or-so choreos that are stitched together on the spot. It may look like an improv performance but the breaks are usually there to be seen. You have to look pretty closely, and it helps if you have led a number of professional dancers so that you know what you're looking for.
The way that I notice it in demo videos is in a hesitation by the follower as she tries to decide which sequence is intended, then a surge forward to catch up to the music and make it look good. It's easier felt as a leader than seen, but once felt then it's relatively easy to see.

To close, I'd like to quote a local lady, a very good follower: "Before I learnt to lead I could never tell whether a performance was choreography or not. Now I can tell the difference straight away!"
Learn to dance both lead and follow and you will, too.

Advice for Followers

2014-12-15T22:23:00.001-08:00

This post is about the most common questions that I'm asked about following. It's a companion piece to my Advice for Leaders post. Read both, especially if you don't do both, because you need at least some perspective into the other half of the dance if you wish to improve.

My apologies for the use of gender when describing leaders and followers, sometimes my typing fingers get tired.

Regarding 'style', I've posted elsewhere on this site about that but suffice it to say that this advice is for a tango approach where a leader and follower move together to build a dance that is greater than both of them.

My post on leading talks about accepting followers as they are, strengths and weaknesses, just like in the movie Bridget Jones' Diary (one of my faves). However, followers can be on the receiving end of some pretty dreadful technique which sometimes means that they have to react rather than follow.

Having said that, you should always be trying to give your partner the best possible time. Even if they're dancing badly they will hopefully still be doing the best that they can. These technique starters will always help:

- define your axis for your partner by pulling the vertical violin string (your axis) tight. A saggy violin string (axis) will result in a mushy, vague and heavy follow. (If you can do this with soft, flexible knees...well, I haven't danced with anyone yet who can do this. Maybe you'll be the first to pull it off?)

- always face your partner and stay aligned with his axis. Not doing this will require you to start guessing what he wants you to do. 'Different style' is not an excuse for not doing this, we're talking basic body mechanics here.

- try to connect with your chest if dancing close hold. Lower connection points like diaphragm and stomach lead to a later and later lead, with symptoms described further down.

- try to connect to his feet via his chest/arms and expect him to place your feet with the music. Focusing on your own steps will just result in disconnections with the leader. You're an equal partner in the dance so feel free to improvise but only as an overlay to the shared dance, rather than interrupting it or taking an After You, After Me approach.

- you'll never be as light or mobile as when you dance on-axis. Don't lean forward looking for your partner.

On to the questions...

Do I collect my feet or not?

Well, we avoid teaching people to collect on every step as it is so limiting as one improves, and assuming you have good posture and are always aligned with your partner then it happens automatically anyway. Having said that, if you're following someone who ambles from foot to foot like a farmer on his morning round and never walks to your centre then you'll end up walking the same way, so I understand why ladies would prefer to look elegant. (My apologies to farmers BTW)

Why do I feel rushed when I'm dancing with some partners?

There are two possibilities here:

- he's not dancing with your feet and expects you to keep up with him. This has never been a good idea. All you can do is ask him to slow down and dance with you, and not the video in his head.

- you're trying too hard to guess where the next step will be. It's easier to just relax and let him lead it.

How can I dance easier with big men?

By 'big men' ladies usually mean Men of Substance who necessarily connect with their stomachs, not their chests. This results in a late lead for the follower with the usual symptoms being knocking knees and an uncomfortable back step in the giro. The leader can overcome this (see Advice for Leaders) but if he doesn't then the only option is for the follower to request nicely that they dance in open hold.

How can I improve my balance?

You manage to walk around by yourself all week so your balance is probably fine. Balance problems are almost always because of misalignment between partners, resulting from one or both partners stepping away from each other's axis. In this case the biggest partner wins ie they feel fine but the smaller partner (usually the follower) is pulled off balance.

If you prioritise alignment with your partner's axis rather than where to step then this problem goes away.

However if your partner consistently turns his chest away from you then you're going to have to consistently step to get back in front of him.

It's not your fault but he is making it your problem.

Sorry.

My partners complain that I push back too hard with my right arm, or I get a sore right shoulder with some leaders.

Yes, it's always the follower's fault with this one!

Ho ho ho.

This is the result of leaders consistently stepping to the follower's right, usually to avoid stepping on their feet. All the energy goes through the follower's right shoulder or hand and she pushes back to save her shoulder from being brutalized. You have a couple of options:

- ask him to walk to your centre, or

- step to get back in front of him every time that it happens.

It's not your fault but he is making it your problem.

Sorry.

How do I dance with small or tall leaders?

Firstly, dance your height ie don't drop down to him or climb up on your tiptoes:

- Dropping down to him looks silly, your axis disappears, you become heavy and difficult to lead, it's a disaster.

- Climbing up on tiptoes means that you're no longer as stable as when your heels are on the floor, your free leg won't relax as easily (if at all) and you run the risk of nosebleeds or altitude sickness if you are too successful.

Read the section on this topic in Advice for Leaders to find out how they can help but as a follower the short answer is that if it's not working then just dance open embrace.

Any other questions? I'm happy to answer them and update this post.

>>>>>>>

Hi Geoff,

How do I communicate to my partner, a friend, how to improve their dance in a way that won't offend? I don't want to avoid them but I don't want my back to hurt, either. I rarely say anything, in order to not appear precocious.

I agree that "one needs to play the cards that one is dealt" but this can be hard in small tango communities like ours...

I wonder what you think about the psychological aspects of helping others to improve their dance, if the advice doesn't come from an established tango teacher?

Only the easy questions, then? This question is from a leader but it might just as well be from a follower.

The immediate answer is 'Don't do it!' but the natural outcome of that in a small dance scene is its stagnation or slow death as better dancers choose to dance elsewhere (or stop dancing altogether) rather than build a better scene where they live. It sounds from your letter that this is what happens now.

If you don't wish to relocate, you want to improve the local standard, and you don't feel that you are able to become a teacher, then you're going to have to become a local Dancer of Respect so that partners may be more inclined to ask for feedback on the dance floor. The value of practicas is often unrecognized by people who need them most, so sometimes dance floor feedback is the only opportunity. But the partners have to ask you rather than you tell them, unless they are actually causing you pain.

Youll need to set out to become the best dancer that you can be, which includes learning to lead and follow. Why would a follower ask for your advice if you haven't walked a mile in their shoes? (Nothing too high in the heel or too fancy. And black goes with anything.)

The fastest way to set out on this path is to spend a month or so in Buenos Aires. You'll be able to find affordable private lessons from good teachers and acquire a halo that will appeal to non-travelers for at least 6 months, longer in smaller places or in cities where dancers don't travel much.

Advice for Leaders

2014-12-15T21:39:00.001-08:00

This post is about the most common questions that I'm asked about leading. It's a companion piece to my Advice for Followers post. Read them both, especially if you don't do both, because you need at least some perspective into the other half of the dance if you wish to improve.

My apologies for the use of gender when describing leaders and followers, sometimes my typing fingers get tired.

Good leading is largely about accepting followers as they are, identifying their strengths, then leading to those strengths (eg wonderful musicality, great connection) and avoiding areas of weakness (eg no axis, not very stable, connection not very good). Having said that, you should always be trying to give your partner the best possible time. Even if they're dancing badly they hopefully will still be doing the best that they can.

These technique starters will always help:

- define your axis for your partner by pulling the vertical violin string tight. A saggy violin string (axis) will result in a mushy, vague lead. It may feel smooth to you but if your lead is not clear then you'll limit the dance for both of you. (You can try to do this with soft, flexible knees, but...good luck with that!)

- try to connect with your chest if dancing close hold. Lower connection points like diaphragm and stomach lead to a later and later lead, with symptoms described further down.

- always face your partner and walk towards her axis. Not doing this will require her to start guessing what you want her to do. 'Different style' is not an excuse for not doing this, we're talking basic body mechanics here.

- dance with her feet, not yours. Focusing on your own steps will just result in disconnections and hurrying your follower. It's not her job to keep up with you, it is your job to dance with her.

- you'll never be as light or mobile as when you dance on-axis. Don't lean forward looking for your partner.

To the questions...

How do I dance with a lady who dances independently of me, changing weight without me, pulling me off balance etc?

Yep, this is frustrating and sometimes it's like they have a video in their head that they're trying to mimic. Usually one can only wait for them to stop moving before leading again. Leading will largely consist of taking a guess about steps that she might know and giving her a nudge in that direction. The dance becomes a halting, stilted affair but apart from thanking her and walking away (not recommended) there's really no escape. Luckily some milongas have video screens playing tango videos and in extreme cases one can watch those until the tanda is over (yes, I've actually done this).

If the dance floor is very busy (ie Buenos Aires-busy) then you can minimise stepping (their weak point) by dancing more with their axis ie pivoting/tiny colgadas/tiny volcadas and taking only the occasional step. The packed dance floor doesn't make this as obvious as it would be on an empty floor, and it lets you explore a different and very beautiful aspect of tango while still giving her a nice time.

How do I dance with a follower who has neither posture nor connection?

I asked this of a teacher once and he gave me the best advice: "Without posture or connection they will fall onto every new step, so make each fall a small one by keeping the steps small."

I would add that one needs to play the cards that one is dealt with each follower. Don't expect someone without posture or connection to be able to dance very well. You will usually be limited to a slow drift around the floor with limited connection to the music. Just accept it and try to give them a nice time. Too many dances like this in an evening will send you home early, so limit them as much as you can.

Connection Problems

Don't try too hard to maintain connection if the follower disconnects from you. There's nothing that you can reasonably do to prevent it and you may hurt your back if you keep holding your chest out in the breeze without support from your partner.

Some followers have been taught to maintain connection by pressing on leaders' backs in order to hold their chestage area against the leader. You may end up with a stiff neck or back the next day if you don't dissuade them from this. Scratch any thoughts of colgadas in this situation as they will usually hang on tight by reflex, and pull you off balance.

How do I dance with small or tall followers?

Dancing with small followers is usually problematic for tall leaders because the body mechanics mean that the follower will receive a late lead when dancing close hold, similar to dancing without chest projection. Symptoms are knocking knees with her, unplanned separation during the giro and a difficult back step for her in the giro.

Firstly, dance your height! Dropping down to go chest to chest with a smaller follower not only looks really really dumb (really) but it throws off your balance, your axis goes to hell, it's just a disaster.

You can push out your diaphragm to connect to her chest if the height difference is not so much.

Draw giros with a longer arc if you want to stay in close hold and the space allows it. Otherwise it's best to separate and do the giros in open hold, returning to close hold afterward.

Late leads also apply to Men of Substance. If you are a Man of Substance then you'll almost certainly connect with your partner via your stomach. Purely because of body mechanics, and not because you're a Bad Man, this will result in the same symptoms as for differences in height because the body mechanics are similar. The answers are the same: draw longer arcs or separate for the giro.

Small leaders dancing with tall followers have no chance to provide an early lead via the chest, so the simple answer is to dance open-hold. If the follower tries to match your height by coming down to you then she'll lose her axis, she'll become heavy and difficult to lead. Good luck with that.

How do I prevent the lady from taking a step when I lead a volcada?

First, don't even try to learn these if your partner doesn't have an axis. She's not equipped for them and will find them uncomfortable or just plain scary. I do lead them to people without an axis but I make them very small and gentle. On the other hand, I'm also Strong, Like Bull 💪 and got that way by leading ladies and men without an axis into colgadas and volcadas, so maybe you'd like to include this in your fitness regime?

Both colgadas and volcadas are easily taught but people get confused by weird advice. I was told recently that there was a specific posture for colgadas for both partners which was 'like sitting on a bar stool'.

Oh dear.

Anyway...

The leader is simply trying to give a reason for the follower not to transfer weight to the new forward foot. If she has support from his arms/chest then she can lean forward in a volcada with confidence. If she has support from his arm across her back then she can lean back in a colgada knowing that the leader is supporting her.

If the leader wants to lead these things then he needs to build her confidence by leading her smoothly, with care and connection (between the couple and behind the follower) through every centimeter of the dance.

Any other questions? I'm happy to answer them and update this post.

>>>>>>>>>

Hi Geoff,

I agree that "one needs to play the cards that one is dealt" but this can be hard in small tango communities like ours...

I wonder what you think about the psychological aspects of helping others to improve their dance, if the advice doesn't come from an established tango teacher?

Only the easy questions, then? This question is from a leader but it might just as well be from a follower.

Janis Kenyon on Ricardo Vidort

2014-11-28T10:16:00.000-08:00

Here's a profound post by Janis Kenyon, reproduced by Tango Commuter, about Ricardo Vidort.
Ricardo taught people 8 lessons and then told them to go away and develop their own style.

Exactly. There's a lot of overthinking and overselling of tango which gets in the way of learning the dance. If the top of the tango mountain appears to be moving away rather than getting closer, then it's time to look for different advice.

Wellington Tango - An Interview

2014-11-10T22:04:00.004-08:00

Wellington Tango
A written Interview with Tango Dancer, Geoff Nicholls by Chris Watson, September 2014

CW: Thanks for taking time to talk about tango in Wellington, Geoff. Firstly, could you explain why you think tango is so special in Wellington?

GN: I think the main reason that tango here is so good is a combination of Kiwis' love of travel and the direct flights that existed between Buenos Aires and Auckland for years (but have now gone). This means that at any local Milonga more than half of all the dancers have been to Buenos Aires at least once and many of them have been many times. Each of those people brought back a small piece of Buenos Aires with them, and all of it has added to the local scene. Now that there are no more direct flights from Auckland it can be more expensive to get there, which may slow down what was at one time a constant “conveyer belt” between Wellington and Buenos Aires.

Another element in the slowdown was that the rising standard of tango in Wellington resulted in people expecting too much of their Buenos Aires tango holiday and returning disappointed. They passed comment on to others and the drive to go there declined somewhat.

My concern is that the slowdown will result in people relying on their development from visiting stage tango dancers, and the local standard will decline to that of most other places in the world.

My advice to people is to not expect a tango paradise in Buenos Aires but to enjoy the non-stop tango-tourist lifestyle for what it is. And buy great shoes!

CW: Tango was started by porteños (“people of the port”) who migrated from Europe to Mariposas in Buenos Aires in the 1890s. How has tango evolved in recent times?

GN: After the revival of tango in the early 1990s a number of professional dancers entered it and established themselves quickly as stars but without the history of social dancing behind them that was tango's roots. Consequently a quick YouTube search will find teaching footage from the mid 90s of dancers who were and are big names, however it's clear that they had been dancing tango only a very short time at the time the videos were made, but had found a potentially lucrative bandwagon.

These dancers set the stage for a number of blind alleys in my own dance career for which I'm still surprisingly ungrateful. The best advice that I can give new dancers is, if they love tango and want to improve, to go to Buenos Aires for at least a month and experience it first hand.

The experience of a trip to BA for intermediate level dancers can be profound. I've seen nice men dancing almost apologetically prior to their trip. They appear certain that their dancing is crap but they feel that they're doing their limited best against an unknown standard which they are sure must be astronomical. Their dancing, on their return was markedly changed. They had been to the “Promised Land” and realized that they weren't the worst dancer in the world because they had seen him in BA! Consequently they were more relaxed, stood taller and danced with a quiet confidence.

I had a similar experience. One of the greatest gifts that one can provide oneself as a dancer is the perspective that "Oh my god! I'm not crap!"

CW: For those of us who have never been to Buenos Aires, please would you describe the milonga halls in the Argentine Capital?

GN: It's quite a surprise for most Wellington dancers on their first trip to BA. On the way to the milongas, or around town, I don't think anything prepares you for the taxi drivers and they're still a thrill for me each time that I go there. They rocket down the avenidas, moving in and out of the traffic flow like fish in a school. I've never seen accidents there but it feels like you're on the verge of one at all times.

But I digress.

The Milonga halls are very different in that the lighting is, almost without exception, bright glaring white. They don't use mood lighting because dancers ask each other to dance by catching their eye and nodding discreetly towards the floor, rather than walking up to ask directly. This head nod is known as cabeceo. This causes me much amusement in other countries when dancers want mood lighting but try to use cabeceo as well. Men and women peer through the gloom, agonizing over whether the other person is noticing their interest or is ignoring them.

CW: So, would the ideal milonga venue illuminate faces of those people sitting, while leaving the dancing area dark?

Perhaps, but I don't notice the lighting when I dance. I'm more focused on the music and my partner. It's a dance of total commitment and men can only think of one thing at a time, so...

CW: Please go on about the Milonga halls in Buenos Aires.

The floors in Buenos Aires are usually marble or timber and almost always good for dancing. This is not accidental. Many organizers around the world accept the floor as it is, often resulting in sticky slow floors with dancers usually accepting the situation because there is nowhere else to go that night. That doesn't happen in Buenos Aires because there are many events each night and and a poor dance floor would mean lost business, so the floors are generally very good.

Similarly regarding ventilation, Milonga venues without air conditioning have multiple large fans located around the room, because if they don't provide comfortable dance conditions then dancers will go elsewhere. Contrast this with events in NZ's mid-summer where many events are sweat baths, with dancers congratulating themselves, "Oh well, I bet that it's hotter than this in BA!" Well, guess again.

Regarding dance floor conditions, I read a lot of websites and hear a lot of stories that mention arcane phenomena that I've never seen eg perfect lines of dance, no collisions, people moving in lanes, la Ronda, the floor moving like a single organism... Well, I've been going there since 2004 and danced in many different milongas and I can't say I've seen any of this. Perhaps before 2004?

The number of milongas each night and their duration is also a major difference between Buenos Aires and the rest of the world. With so many milongas and with many of them operating for 4-6 hours, there is a relaxed pace to them which can't be matched by the 2 or 3 hour milongas in other countries. There's no rush to get there by a particular time to eke out every last minute of dancing. There's time to pause, have a drink and watch the dancing, chat with people. It's great!

I think that one's experience of Buenos Aires is linked to one's level of dancing. I remember in 1998-1999 when people would return from Buenos Aires to Wellington and give up tango because they said the difference was simply too awful to bear. Around 2008-2009, dancers began returning to Wellington saying that it really made them appreciate Wellington tango all the more. What changed? The level of dancing has vastly improved over the past 10 years.

CW: So how did tango start and evolve in Wellington?

GN: David Backler was the first tango teacher in Wellington and started teaching in 1991. When he moved to Melbourne in 1997, he passed the torch to Graeme Dallow and Graeme is the one remembered most as driving tango's growth here in the early days. He dropped out for a few years as he felt unappreciated and sidelined, however Beth and I pursued him and taught him to the point where he felt confident to return. He went on to become universally respected and confided to me that someone had referred to him as the “Godfather” of Wellington tango. He was very pleased!

I began dancing tango in late 1997 at which time there was only one Milonga per month at the Grand Hotel. The only other Milonga opportunity was at a fortnightly salsa party that had a lesson at the start of the evening and a 30-minute tango slot from 12-12.30 at the end. One night this small piece of tango was taken away because 'there was a great vibe going on the salsa floor!' This was so frustrating that it resulted in the first weekly dedicated (salsa-free!) tango event run by Nancy Nichols-Acevedo. This was about 1999.

Tango went through a growth spurt about that time and the number of weekly milongas and practicas has increased over the years, although sometimes held back by politics and small-mindedness. We now have sometimes 11 events per week which is astronomical for a town and dance scene of this size. People will always complain of too many (or too few) events but usually those people do little to welcome new people into the scene, or introduce them to people, and so make their own small contribution to filling those events.

CW: You give a lot of time to teaching. What gives you the most satisfaction about seeing people enjoying their dance?

GN: It's a very special experience helping people change their lives, which is what we often do. Many of the people that we've taught had never thought that they could be dancers, were struggling through relationship breakups, or were being challenged in some areas of their lives. Watching people blossom from a nervous beginner to a confident dancer who then helps other people into the dance scene that has given them so much...that's a special feeling.

Most people find tango a consuming passion that introduces them to warm, friendly people and inspires them to travel, hug people more often and (ahem) buy dance shoes. Lots of dance shoes. Just because. I can stop any time that I want.

CW: You and your wife, Beth, obviously teach tango for the satisfaction of giving other people the enjoyment of the dance. How does this compare with class teaching?

GN: Teaching group classes was a frustrating experience for us because while it can pay well it really isn't a very good way of learning for students. The body mechanics of tango are quite straightforward so we'd use 3- or 5-step moves to demonstrate how good posture, connection and movement made them easy to lead and follow. Some students would understand, others were searching for a teacher pill that would make them a good dancer in 3 weeks, and others were seeking step patterns. We made great friends who've become good dancers but ultimately we decided that we'd rather spend our evenings together and teach mini solos at the weekend.

The advantages of one-on-one lessons for experienced dancers are that we can focus on specifics. The advantage for newbies is that we can demonstrate good technique one on one, rather than have them struggle through a class with another beginner or helpful (but usually unhelpful) intermediate.

We can't teach a lot of students this way but it's a lot more satisfying watching them progress.

CW: What have you learned about life from your passion for tango?

GN: Look for the natural fit with people!

CW: It is referred to as the dance of seduction. How does this representation affect the dance?

GN: Tango had better not lose that association, because I use it as a key teaching metaphor! I don't think that link is familiar to most Kiwis who tend to see tango as just a dance and confuse it with ballroom tango, which I have to say is a negative association among non-dancers that I've met. Sorry about that, ballroom people, but that's my experience.

I use the metaphor of the 'dance of seduction' because the body mechanics of the dance fit the metaphor so well. For example, 'it's got to be smooth, it's got to be nice, otherwise no one goes home with anybody!' It's a very good line for getting a laugh, relaxing people and reassuring newbies who might otherwise be intimidated by rough intermediates, whether leaders or followers.

There's no question that dancing with good leaders and followers can be WONderful, especially if your local scene doesn't have them, but any seductions will always come down to good or bad choices, just as with the rest of life.

CW: People talk about the secrets whispered between dancers on the milonga. Do people dancing tango become a community?

GN: I used to think so but now I'd say only in the loosest possible terms. I'd prefer the term 'subculture' or 'scene' as it sidesteps the feeling of fuzzy-minded goodwill that the term 'community' suggests.

Basically it comes down to natural friendships. If new people enter a scene and find people with whom they're simpatico then they have a reason to stay, and the snowball begins to roll. If they encounter unfriendly people then they will walk away and everyone loses out. Hopefully there are more positive people than negative people in the scene otherwise it will waste away and die.

CW: You are also a keen mountain biker with a background in surfing. Aren’t they very different from tango.

GN: Well, I've been into lots of other action sports too, including windsurfing, snowboarding and motocross. Robby Naish, windsurfing god, was asked why he liked driving race cars when they were oily and smelly, whereas windsurfing was so clean and pure. He replied enthusiastically that it was the difference that was partly the appeal, but that the feeling of accomplishment from doing something well was the same for both.

That's part of it but I have to say that if I have an evening where most of my partners have been guessing steps, had no axis, were wobbling bags of jelly, had been guessing every weight shift, the music/floor was dreadful etc...the mountain bike looks pretty appealing!

Luckily that's an unusual occurrence in Wellington so tango is almost always the highest priority. It's the most inspiring and fulfilling thing that I've ever done.

CW: Why is posture and connection critical?

GN: Good posture ( ie dancing by carrying your own weight with a defined axis) makes you as light as you can be, easy to follow or lead, and opens the door to a wider range of musical expression. Who wouldn't want that? Dancing without a defined axis is like walking in mud. You may be smooth but by god you'll be heavy and/or vague to lead or follow.

Connection between dancers is what separates tango from many other dance forms. The phrase 'one big heart with four legs' expresses it pretty clearly. Without connection in tango then all that we have is a ballet duet.

CW: What would you say are the rules of tango?

GN: Oh dear. So many tango dancers get sidetracked by the rules, especially outside Buenos Aires where some organizers try to be more Argentine than the Argentines. New people especially get nervous about how much they don't know, and some experienced dancers like to play on that to increase their sense of importance.

One of my favourite milongas in Buenos Aires publishes their codes at the door. Most of them are common sense rules for dancing in a confined space eg don't step back, keep your heels on the floor, dance anti clockwise around the room. The lynchpin, however, is this: 'Furthermore, and very important, respect is the first card we play in the game of the milonga.'

Respect for other dancers is so important. Don't be a dick.

CW: Some people may have seen dramatic tango on television or movies. What types of tango are danced in Wellington?

GN: Well, when most people think of tango they either think of ballroom tango or stage Argentine tango ie lots of tricks, short skirts, leg wraps and spectacular moves, danced in open embrace ie at arms length. Wellington tango was quite like that back in the late 1990s-early 2000s, largely because the travelling teachers that came here relied on teaching sequences and patterns to keep people interested. Times have moved on and most tango dancers in Wellington dance close-hold when disparities in height don't make it unreasonable. By close-hold I mean chest-to-chest, gliding around the floor as one body to gorgeous music, while the violin does that special thing where it goes, you know, like...

Sorry. I need a sit-down and a nice cup of tea, I'm getting a little carried away.

CW: What is tango like in other countries?

GN: Travelling between Wellington and Buenos Aires is like walking next door for me, there's not a great difference from a leader's perspective (I rarely get a chance to follow in BA).

Travelling between Wellington and most other countries is like stepping into a time machine, and not in a good way. It usually feels like it did in the late 90s in Wellington, when I started. That is, most men don't lead very well, most women don't follow very well, and there's only a distant appreciation of connection. They're still very nice people and I'm usually a popular dancer because I give of my best, but I get plenty of opportunities to think about why those differences exist. As I said earlier, I think it's because such a high proportion of Wellington dancers have been to Buenos Aires so often.

CW: What are the rhythms and instruments in tango music?

GN: The main instruments are the double bass, violin, piano, and the signature instrument is the bandoneon. This is a kind of accordion with a more sombre tone, made in Germany and shipped to Argentina in the early days as a stand-in for church organs.

There are three main rhythms to which tangueros dance ie

Tango is 4/4 or 2/4 in the case of early tangos
Milonga is 2/4
Waltz is 3/4

I was taught in my early days by Argentine teachers that the three dances had different steps danced in completely different ways. Now I know better and realize that most of our teachers had only been dancing a few years at that time, what with the early 90s rediscovery of tango after it had a Near Death Experience following the deposing of Juan Peron in the 50s.

Now I think that the linkage between them is firstly the connection between leader and follower, and then the connection between the united couple and the music. That musicality defines good tango for me.

CW: Tango is danced on the terrazzo floor at Wellington Railway Station and on the marble pavement with the moon rising over the harbour at Massey memorial. How does tango dancing in the streets compare to dancing in a milonga hall?

GN: We should be clear here that you are talking about guerrilla tango events proceeding in public spaces without prior approval by civic authorities, and I would be the last person to possibly condone such inappropriate behaviour. However I imagine that dancing to beautiful music while a full moon rises over one of the prettiest harbors in the world, with the city lights twinkling in the distance, and even a tall ship gliding past in the channel under power on a still, balmy night … I'd imagine that would be a rather treasured experience, wouldn't you?

Similarly, I'm sure that dancing in a space shared with commuters, many of whom might stop, watch and applaud, has to be a good thing for raising the profile of tango. The atmosphere would be as much about the audience as the experience of the dancing couple, which is primarily what tango is about.

CW: What prompts people to start tango?

GN: That's a small question with a big answer! For me it was because tango was in the air at the time. The movies 'Scent of a Woman' and 'True Lies' included tango as a theme and I started looking around for more. After I had been dancing only a short time I saw 'Tango Lesson' by Sally Potter. After that …

Beth and I met Sally and her co star Pablo Veron in London. They appeared to be having a bad night and looked a little unhappy with the world, so we went over and thanked them for making such a difference to our lives. They brightened right up, their eyes glistening, and thanked us, their evening made much happier. It was a special moment for us, too.

I've seen a surprising range of people become tightly involved with tango, I've seen it change lives many times. Taciturn Kiwi blokes and impassive Asian guys have relaxed and flowered into warm, funny popular dancers. People who've struggled after relationship breakups have found warm, supportive friendships and sometimes new relationships. People who'd never considered dancing as a possibility for them have become very good dancers and able to help others improve.

I have to say that the essential point is that they all like being close to people. It's very unlikely that people will enjoy tango if the thought of hugging other people is a turn-off. That willingness to reach out and engage with another person is central to the dance, otherwise it just turns into a collection of briskly executed step patterns.

CW: Is experience from other dance helpful?

GN: Absolutely! Primarily because almost every dance style stresses the need for good posture, which is the entry point for good dancing in tango. It's much more difficult to teach untrained people not to slouch than to teach a ballet dancer to connect and to follow. The ballet dancer may have to overcome years of experience as a solo dancer, where connection with another dancer didn't exist, but just having an axis makes his or her journey much easier.

CW: How is tango organised in Wellington?

GN: There are anything up to 11 events each week in Wellington, which is astounding considering its small population. These include practices and dance events, and there are a number of teachers teaching group classes and private lessons as well.

The central coordination point is the common tango calendar. I set this up back in the late nineties. It lists the events and lessons for Wellington and some other locations and allows organizers to avoid clashes for the most part. It's located at www.tangonz.org

Some teachers work together teaching group classes but most teachers and organizers work independently. I tried organizing a common marketing approach some years ago but it never went anywhere as there wasn't enough common ground. For instance, one teacher with a ballroom background and who taught step sequences suggested that all the teachers should teach the same set of signals so that followers from each school would have a common understanding of which sequence was coming up next. This was anathema to the other teachers for whom improvisation, moment by moment, step by step, was key to the whole experience.

CW: Do you have any advice for people starting tango?

GN: I give beginners very simple advice ie "It's a dance of seduction. It has to be smooth. It has to feel nice. Otherwise no-one is going home with anyone. If it doesn't feel smooth or nice...and you're trying to make it that way...then perhaps the problem isn't that you're a newbie. Perhaps your partner doesn't really understand the dance."

I call this teaching approach Allocation of Blame. We found that it prevented new followers from being intimidated by experienced leaders who didn't actually lead very well. It helps new leaders in the same way, when dancing with experienced followers who don't actually follow well.

When people ask me for advice about workshops by visiting teachers I usually advise them to check YouTube for their demos, and if they want to dance like those teachers then why not? It's part of each dancer's journey. Some journeys are longer than others but learning discernment is part of all of them.

Bio

Chris Watson is a Wellington architect and tango dancer since 2010

Geoff Nicholls began dancing tango in 1997. He met his wife Beth on the dance floor in 2002 and they have been teaching and travelling together internationally for tango since 2003.

tangogeoff@gmail.com

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/

Tango classes and events in Wellington can be found at www.tangonz.org

My Garden of Linkly Delights!

2014-11-08T14:00:00.002-08:00

I've been sending out links on a weekly email list for a few years now, as well as to my Sacada Tango Facebook page and the New Zealand Facebook page Tango Dancers.

Many of them were archived into a post on this blog A Few of my Favourite Things

where I organised them into coherent groups. This post is where I shall put them in future as an archive. They'll tend to look like a bit of a grab bag but I prefer to think of them as a wilderness garden...

___________________________________________________________________________

Pablo Estigarribia on orchestra styles

Tango Tips and Tricks

https://youtu.be/ut4IgutHbyA

Irene Yung and the embrace

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/08/death-of-embrace.html

The changing face of the BA milongas

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2018/08/20/milongas-are-no-longer-on-my-agenda/

Lucas Antonisse has a really interesting blog https://www.facebook.com/100003152698050/posts/1874085446039860/

Tango Cherie on hero worship...

http://tangocherie.blogspot.com/2018/08/hero-worship-and-false-idols-repost.html

Irene Yung standing up for non-contest tango

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/08/sorry-no-points-for-that.html

Because you can never have too much Ricardo Vidort...

https://youtu.be/I3AJKXydkrI

Mari Johnson on kindness and tolerance: ‘And hope that when it is your time that you cannot dance as well as you would like to, when you will need patient, generous partners - and that time will come for all of us who stay in the dance long enough - that others will not judge you for your "lack of commitment" or potential to improve.’

http://www.mytangodiaries.com/2018/02/the-selfish-dancer.html

Read this and then ask yourself if you should put off visiting BA for another year...

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2018/07/15/antonio-busto-5/

Irene Young writing about non-tango things that made her tango better

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/06/non-tango-things-that-have-made-my.html

A short clip about Gerardo Portalea

https://youtu.be/gTjMfVe-QE4

Here’s a tango video which is actually fun! Romantica Milonguera with ‘Besame Mucho’!

https://www.facebook.com/romanticamilonguera/videos/1508344089276224/

More Ricardo Vidort clips via Tango Commuter

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.com/2018/05/new-videos-of-ricardo-vidort.html

Tango and Chaos, Rick McGarry’s amazing website, is back online!

https://tangoandchaos.org/

Another great post by Irene Yung, this time about the difference between the flingers and the milongueros.

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/04/did-you-know-that-dancing-with.html

It never hurts to re-post this collection of Ricardo Vidort links

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.com/2016/05/ricardo-vidort-list-of-links.html

Fabulous!

Mirta Tiseyra y Santiago Castro- Tango

https://youtu.be/4sOsh4WMcm8

And milonga

https://youtu.be/aw7JYvoq3Oc

A tribute to Ismael Heljalil who died this week.

https://www.facebook.com/lucas.tangodj/posts/1719216884860051

Irene Yung being ABSOLUTELY NOT SHY about why cabaceo is important to her.

Irene doesn’t do ‘shy’!

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/04/why-cabeceo-is-important.html

Milonga Codes from Buenos Aires

A couple of things to note -

- inviting one’s friends to dance can be less formal than the cabeceo

- the cabeceo is SUBTLE to protect the egos of leader and follower. If you are moving your body around to get confirmation then the organiser has set their lighting too low.

https://youtu.be/-pYx4Oxu7KY

What a band!

If you’re wondering why no-one is dancing tango...they are going bananas!

This was the opening song when I saw them live and the custom of not dancing to the opening song probably saved a few lives 😳😳😳😳😳

Los Reyes del Tango, La Juan D'Arienzo playing Huracan!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJxamubYlYw&sns=em

A nice post by Lucas Antonisse on the feeling of being at a BA milonga

https://www.facebook.com/lucas.tangodj/posts/1694879453960461

Maybe you’re thinking of a long stay in BA? Here’s Stephen Twist on that https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2018/03/buenos-aires-long-stay.html

Another great perspective on travelling to BA, advice on teachers and travelling from Stephen Twist

https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2018/03/all-you-need-to-know-about-tango-in.html

Oh no! Has Rick McGarry’s website closed down?

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.com/2018/03/tango-and-chaos-where-are-you.html

Stephen Twist on mindfulness and tango

https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2018/03/mindfulness-awareness-and-tango.html

Stephen Twist writing about the Mataderos fair/open air market

https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2018/03/return-to-feria-mataderos.html

Has it really been 8 years since Tete moved on?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbXtI3ZEdaM

Blas Catrenau and Myriam Pincen exhibition at La Nacional

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/02/blas-catrenau-and-myriam-pincen.html

Another ‘scholarly but worthy’ (difficult to read but ultimately worth the effort) piece from Tango Voice.

Traditional close embrace versus stage dancers who teach.

FIGHT! FIGHT!

https://tangovoice.wordpress.com/2018/02/18/the-vanishing-art-of-the-milongueros-studying-recordings-of-their-dancing-that-preserve-their-legacy/

Christine Denniston on traditional ways of learning to dance in Argentina

http://www.history-of-tango.com/learn-to-dance.html

Aaaaah...Luminaris....where have you been all these years? ❤️

https://vimeo.com/user3708846/httpvimeocomluminaris

Stephen Twist on a night out at Canning

https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2018/02/salon-canning-and-orquesta-romantica.html

A dancer with multiple sclerosis talks about kindness and tolerance

http://www.mytangodiaries.com/2018/02/the-selfish-dancer.html

A dating dictionary for Buenos Aires by Sasha Cagen

https://sashacagen.com/dating/dating-dictionary-for-buenos-aires/

Don’t be shy, Irene, tell us how you feel! 😊

International first world tango problems 🤷‍♂️

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/02/tango-vs-netflix.html

Yikes! Janis’ advice regarding milonga changes in BA

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2018/01/26/keeping-up-with-milonga-changes/

Another great Stephen Twist blog on the BA lifestyle. After several glasses of Shiraz I have to say that I’m feeling fairly Argentine, myself!

https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2018/01/its-time-for-asado-buenos-aires-style.html

So cool...Almuerzo Milonguero part 1 - Lunch with the Milongueros

https://youtu.be/tGCDey3suQY

A great post from Irene Yung on The Way We Were

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2018/01/the-good-old-days.html

Tango is losing its role models. Another good post from Janis Kenyon

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2018/01/06/tango-is-losing-its-role-models/

Irene Yung again, laying into ‘milonga -like tango, but faster!’

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2010/09/once-upon-time-in-milonga.html

Janis Kenyon - doing the steps versus feeling the music and dancing for your partner

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2018/01/10/there-is-no-comparison/

Stephen Twist waxing lyrical about Maldita Milonga in BA

https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2018/01/maldita-milonga-with-lucia-y-gerry.html

An English travel writer learns tango in BA and embraces his inner Gardel

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/south-america/argentina/buenos-aires/articles/tango-dancing-argentina-uruguay/

Ms Hedgehog’s thoughts on leading

http://mshedgehog.blogspot.co.nz/2017/12/some-things-i-have-learned-from-leading.html

Stephen Twist writing about Katrinski shoes

https://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2017/12/its-time-to-talk-about-katrinski.html

So cool! Osvaldo Cartery and his mate Ricardo Vidort

https://www.facebook.com/mpincen1/posts/1228524933916194

Cabeceo technique with Janis Kenyon

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/11/26/which-is-your-technique-gazing-or-staring/

Important news regarding closure of milongas in BA

https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.wellingtontango.co.nz/permalink/784703498386424/

Interviews, videos and recollections of Carlos Gavito via Tango Commuter

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.com/2017/11/gavito.html

Melina Sedò on the art of finding the right teacher for YOU.

http://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2017/11/making-better-choices-wasting-less-time.html

Vio Saraza with some pithy comment on tango teachers

http://tangoforge.com/bankers/

Here’s the always entertaining Irene Yung writing about the effects of visiting teachers on local dancers

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com/2017/11/how-to-look-like-maestro-in-front-of.html

Some really lovely dancing here by Ismael Heljalil and others

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.com/2017/11/one-metre-pugliese-2.html

This almost unreadable article presents the case that travelling professional teachers, and the world tango championships, are spreading a style of dance unrelated to that in the BA milongas.

I agree.

If the article gets too tedious then just page down to the rather pithy comments section.

https://tangovoice.wordpress.com/2017/10/01/tango-campeonato-tango-dancesport-the-modification-of-tango-de-salon-for-competition-a-specific-niche/

I couldn’t have put it better myself

https://karenkaye.net/2016/05/24/we-dont-need-more-classes/

Ricardo Vidort and Anna Maria Ferrara, nice milonga!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6pjyyyoBnM

Overcharging of tourists in BA

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/09/21/overcharging-tourists-is-nothing-new/

I looked over some of my old blog posts and thought this was worth re-posting, questioning the need for endless lessons.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.com/2015/07/more-lessons-really.html

Here’s a fun video of Tete doing role reversals with an unnamed lady

https://www.facebook.com/luca.zammitti.9/posts/1896298173954254

It never hurts to re-post wise words from Ricardo Vidort via Janis Kenyon

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/08/30/ricardo-vidort-4/

Loved it.

Just loved it.

Rosita Cove and Pocho (Roberto Rafael Carreras)

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/08/30/rosa-cove-3/

Awwwww…

https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera/videos/10155949794218690/

Karen Kaye on what to do if you’re not enjoying tango anymore

https://karenkaye.net/2017/08/21/isnt-fun/

After watching far too much choreo this week, even if it’s only a few seconds at a time, it’s nice to watch a bit of Ricardo Vidort

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1753226714368&id=1349911189

And here’s Ismael Heljalil dancing to No me extraña

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_ozbfJECXY&sns=em

Nice timing! Milva Bernardi y Juan Lencina

https://youtu.be/N5qfMGkrrzo

Oh no...

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/07/13/this-is-not-fake-news/

Tango dress advice from Irene Yung

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2017/06/dress.html

Fabulous.

Alberto Dassieu and his wife, Pauline Spinoso, dancing to Pugliese.

Courtesy of Tango Commuter

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2017/06/one-metre-pugliese.html

A tough post from Juan Carlos Copes, a tango legend

https://www.facebook.com/groups/237212296363357/permalink/1360152677402641/

We danced to these guys in BA a month ago. La Juan D'Arienzo playing Loca. Oh yes!

https://youtu.be/qdRXB1_5rVE

Some interesting thoughts from Ms Hedgehog on tango bands of today

http://mshedgehog.blogspot.co.nz/2017/05/developments-in-live-tango.html

Nestor Ray...what a dancer...

https://youtu.be/srHMHJPUSHc

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

When in Buenos Aires, do yourself a favour and contact Janis. She loves meeting new people and is one of the kindest, most helpful people that you'll meet.

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/05/10/look-me-up-when-you-visit-buenos-aires/

Still one of my favourite songs and performances. There's no choreo here, baby!

Marcelo Varela y Analia Vega at Canning, and we were there!

https://youtu.be/Eo8fA5xBvLM

Osvaldo Pugliese and the boys playing 'La Yumba' from 1948

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=640409746145250&id=264070613779167

Advice for beginner leaders from Irene Yung

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2017/05/most-beginner-female-leaders-are.html?m=1

Janis Kenyon presents...Juan Topalian y Hayde Esther Malagrino, Horacio Julian Prestamo y Silvana Anfossi, Jorge Garcia y Cecilia Stier

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=292448081209899&id=100013341277029

Thoughts on how to get more men into dancing

http://tangonorthamerica.com/tango-talk/men-wanted/

We had a great holiday in BA and even got asked to teach at Janis Kenyon's class. Janis is so kind and helpful to visitors!

https://www.facebook.com/TararuaTango/posts/821756161309673

Marcela Duran and Carlos Gavito - click on Tangocheries link, not the video itself

https://www.facebook.com/tangocherie/posts/10155351213444374

Deby Novitz- another night at the milonga

https://www.facebook.com/deby.novitz/posts/10211921181520996

So apparently some tango teachers at festivals still teach endless sequences ie a memory test. And people pay them for this.

https://www.facebook.com/tangocherie/posts/10155341130609374

Everybody needs to go sometime...

https://stephentwist.blogspot.com/2017/03/tomorrow-is_31.html

Here's a second video from the proposal surprise milonga in Cuba St on 5 February. There is a bit of sound dubbing when the volume wasn't loud enough from the boom box.
https://youtu.be/N_oRikga6gU

Romeo Chiche Ferramosca and Pocha
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/03/10/romeo-ferramosca-3/

Tango changing lives. Again. And again.
https://andreastangosite.com/2015/05/14/tango-at-a-golden-age/

Charlotte Wilson explores the tango of Astor Piazzolla
http://www.radionz.co.nz/concert/programmes/composeroftheweek/audio/201761740/astor-piazzolla-tango-nuevo

Amazing. Parkinson's disease and music...
https://www.facebook.com/edward.theologis/posts/10153492168731687

A bit disturbing...decline in milonga numbers in BA
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/03/01/are-the-milongas-declining-in-buenos-aires/

A fab connection exercise
https://www.facebook.com/michael.nadtochi/videos/10210883401020528/

Isabella Szymonowicz & Carlos Bicca via Janis Kenyon
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/02/15/carlos-biccai-5/

Ricardo Vidort and Alejandra Todaro. Quinteto Don Pancho (of Francisco Canaro)
https://youtu.be/6mOwvv3vyso

Alejandra Rogel Alberdi y Pedro Oscar Salias.
https://youtu.be/IjVTQmH2Fb4

Oscar Casas & Ana Miguel
https://youtu.be/0z0z0ycc_JY

Oscar Casas y Ana Miguel dancing to La colegiala
https://youtu.be/G0Ni1mMSGHo

Irene Yung lets rip on walking the talk!
http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2017/02/but-thats-what-everybody-says.html

Pedro Salias y Alicia Marcela Piaggio
https://youtu.be/YNK4S3HlAZs

Maria Darritchon & Ricardo Viqueira dancing to Carnival de mi Barrio
https://youtu.be/ZyyfswPI8-s

Stephen Twist, writing about being the manager of a tango house in BA
https://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2017/01/casa-luna-first-40-days.html

Ricardo Viqueira & María Darritchon dancing milonga. Ricardo is coming to the tango festival this year.
https://youtu.be/vxPKecLfw8g

Alicia Marcela Piaggio & Pedro Oscar Salias
https://youtu.be/e-CrzmlxoLg

Paola Tacchetti and El Chino Perico at Sunderland
https://youtu.be/YKxZSloI04g

Kelly and Facundo Posadas dancing candombe de salón
https://youtu.be/mJHS03V6AyM

Stella Baez & Ernesto Balmaceda
https://youtu.be/oPvJSqMH4os

Eduardo and Gloria Arquimbau talk about some of the highlights of their 60 year tango career.
http://lamilongadel126.blogspot.co.nz/2017/01/tango-argentino-1983-eduardo-y-gloria.html

An interesting interview with Cacho Dante
httpse://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuralwF3naU&sns=em

Current pricing for milongas in Buenos Aires. Isn't it time you dropped by there and helped out their economy? Don't think of it as a fab dance holiday, think of it as an act of altruism that you'll always remember!
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2017/01/03/inflation-in-the-milongas-2017/

Mad about shoes? Stephen Twist would like to chat!
http://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2017/01/mad-about-shoes-katrinski.html
Here's the website
http://www.katrinski.com/flats

Horacio Julian Prestamo y Margot Nunes dancing a vals
https://youtu.be/0vWAioKRwEc

Ricardo Bellozo Myriam Pincen
https://youtu.be/i5eGGgBitPg

Horacio Julian Prestamo and Sonia Peralta
https://youtu.be/mq9R-oE8oXU

Claudio Ruberti and Elina Roldan
https://youtu.be/I3bMIRmE6X0

Hernán Alvarez Prieto y Eladia Córdoba - very cool 😊
https://vimeo.com/193014762

Myriam Pincen and Oscar Hector
https://youtu.be/ScVTJQ3bA1o

One of my favourite videos. Petroleo and Oscar Casas talking about how Petroleo earned a small fortune every night as a milonguero in the 30s, and how he spent it!
https://youtu.be/quHDYyqnJcE

Everybody carries their shoes in their carry-on luggage, don't they?
http://www.wsj.com/articles/stranded-at-the-airport-lets-tango-1481298715

Stephen Twist writes about his first milonga after arriving back in BA
http://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2016/12/casa-luna-and-los-consagrados.html?m=1

Ricardo Viqueira and Roberta Erba dancing to Donato
https://youtu.be/Te2HcdaWviQ

A pretty cool interview with Pedro Sanchez by Monica Paz, followed by a demo
https://youtu.be/3N_r639QhYY

I don't know these guys but they look great. Luisa y Osvaldo
https://vimeo.com/159079187

Julián Prestamo and partner
https://vimeo.com/162605611

Ways to get more dances, for men and women
http://tangonorthamerica.com/tango-talk/8-ways-to-get-asked-to-dance/

Hernán Alvarez Prieto and Eladia Córdoba dancing milonga to Saca Chispas
https://vimeo.com/193801511

Here's a documentary about Animal Troilo (alias Pichuco), $3.99USD to rent
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/pichucofilm

More than you probably ever wanted to know about being a tango DJ
http://www.tejastango.com/milongas_djsrole.html

Here's a great article on improving tango scenes from 2012 by Elizabeth Wartluft of Portland.

http://dancingsoul.typepad.com/dancing_soul/2012/12/last-two-nights-of-dancing.html

Here's an interesting link and discussion from Tango Wellington on the theme of growing tango here and in Uruguay.

https://www.facebook.com/TararuaTango/posts/734580660027224

Adela Galeazzi y Pedro Salias grooving it up

https://youtu.be/sLlZMrtRnUE

Alicia Piaggio and Pedro Salias

https://youtu.be/306Y6VKL6Qs

Janis Kenyon talking about the changing face of tango in Buenos Aires

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2016/11/18/change-is-inevitable/

Tango Commuter with some comment about, and links to, Paul Bottomer's tango music and lyrics 'labour of love'.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2016/11/todays-tango-is.html

Pedro Sanchez y Tina Ferrari - Hotel Victoria

https://youtu.be/axM9KNhqzQw

Ricardo Viqueira & María Darritchon dancing vals

https://youtu.be/F_UeFpsL0G8

Ricardo Viqueira doing a demo after a class

https://youtu.be/xUDpwFNp28Y

Tallatango of Canberra giving advice on dancing in BA from 2013

https://tallatango.wordpress.com/2013/05/01/tango-guide-as-things-change-and-evolve-in-buenos-aires/

Dancing the sandwich by Adela Galeazzi, Elba Biscay and Santiago Cantenys

https://youtu.be/Qe9cQ8V61rs

Here's a vals double-demo by Adela Galeazzi/Roberto Fortunato and Elba Biscay/ Santiago Cantenys

https://youtu.be/orLGhbfLX_c

Fundamentals of a good milonga:

1. a floor that allows an easy pivot

2. Great music

3. Add dancers

https://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2016/10/floor.html

Ricardo Viqueira e Francesca Romana Alfonsi dance to "Poema"

https://youtu.be/cXGPisawqhc

Pedro Sanchez y Tina Ferrari at Cachirulo, BsAs 3/28/09 - tango: Nobleza de Arrabal - Di Sarli

https://youtu.be/H3b3htVb9HM

Here's another traditional milonga from BA courtesy of Norma Marin

http://youtu.be/Cfnv6I-wjmU

And here's Tango Commuter in a post about Norma's posts

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/10/normarin1.html

Maria Nieves celebrating her 82nd birthday with Pancho Martinez Pey

https://www.facebook.com/pepa.palazon/videos/10209306949724053/

Here's a cool video for new dancers. Apart from the boleos, of course, but it's a demo and only an idiot would do one in reality (and they do, because they've been taught to do boleos in class).

The concept is called 'dancing on a tile' because many of the BA dance floors are tiled in 1 metre marble squares. Being able to dance on a tile is kind of like the first level of competence, so exercises like this help one to learn how to chest-connect all the way through giros, and then move up to expressing the music while dancing inside a tin of sardines. 😊

Going to festivals is a good way to experience the crush of BA dance floors, and it's the crush that is the pressure cooker that forces your development as a dancer.

Nothing beats dancing in BA and every newish dancer needs to go there as soon as possible. Why surf a wave pool in Pennsylvania when you can surf in Hawaii?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYKlSo47_kk

This is another cool sardine-tin exercise and as much as developing empathy about other dance couples as it is about dancing small. Dancing with control of momentum so that any contact is a brush rather than a crash.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rwo9Gn7VUeY

This is pretty cool, a milonga by Gabriela Elias and Eduardo Perez to an electronica version of El Lloron by Natalia & The Electronic Tango Band.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zk3nFezA-3k&sns=em

Ricardo Viqueira y Eleonora Rivetti

https://youtu.be/d7bnWqnl_ok

From Stephen Twist, notes on keeping yourself safe in BA, or any big city.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/16PoPpZLkRAiH0srv0zNt_FkDEYmxlHr-YNEbZooZ-3A/mobilebasic

Stephen's Facebook page provides info about staying at Fabrizio Forti's tango casa. https://www.facebook.com/groups/Chacabuco1181/

Adela Galeazzi y Rino Biondi dancing Canyengue

https://youtu.be/vY4NE2CT7ds

Adela Galeazzi, Elba Biscay y Santiago Cantenys Tango

One big heart on six (?!) legs...?

https://youtu.be/HtwLZXHmJvo

Grim reading but provides thoughts on how to improve our local scenes.

http://tangoclay.us/why-i-quit-tango-take-2/

Sacha Cagen on her first tangasm

http://sashacagen.com/argentina/tango-better-sex/

Video clip from the tango festival welcome milonga

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tvDJxFKMCGQ&feature=youtu.be

Peninsula Cho & Yasmin Karatuna

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=5zOYVFwXDEk

Oscar Casas dancing with his daughter, plus some other Dad/daughter couples. Just lovely.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uhGTTV8ps8I

Chan Park's documentary Tango Your Life is available online

https://www.facebook.com/groups/490728321082805/permalink/636443746511261/

Two very cool and fun guys dancing a vals, Özhan Araz & Utku Küley

http://youtu.be/1rGlY8HKkf4

Irene Yung on tango as a cure for too much introspection

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2010/07/most-beautiful-woman-in-world.html?m=1

Some great footage of Alberto Dassieu and partners

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2010/04/alberto-and-paulina-march-2010.html

Faaaaantastic!

Leyendas del Tango Danza - a doco with pocket interviews with...just about everyone!

https://youtu.be/Y1i9EdGZpYs

Irene Yung with another great column with interesting links, and advice on how not to be crap.

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2016/05/mierda.html

Here's a class act, Carole and Bernard Casasréales

https://www.facebook.com/Carole-et-Bernard-Milongueros-330038810480935/

Wow...

The definitive list of links about Ricardo Vidort.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2016/05/ricardo-vidort-list-of-links.html?m=1

Here are some interesting stories about the early days of Argentina, the Gauchos, and their link with tango

http://escuelatangoba.com/marcelosolis/tango-and-knife-fight/

An interesting snippet from Tango Decoder about Charlo, Cadícamo and Carmen Miranda

http://www.tangodecoder.com/2015/04/subtitled-tango-nr-13-ave-de-paso-dagostinovargas.html

Celia Blanco has died. She ran Lo de Celia milonga in BA for many years.

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2016/05/09/maria-celia-blanco/

Here's a tribute to Celia by Deby Novitz

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2016/05/dancing-argentine-tango-adios-celia-blanco-lo-de-celia-will-never-be-the-same.html

Here's an interesting trailer for 'Milongueros'

https://vimeo.com/31258297

A revamped travellers guide to BA by Stephen Twist

http://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2016/05/travellers-survival-guide-to-buenos.html

Irene Yung on dancing with commitment and passion. Why would you do anything else?

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2016/04/all-meat-on-fire.html

Muma dancing with Ricardo Vidort

http://youtu.be/WZSqVO5gQGY

Irene Yung writes on the apparent need for FemBot legs in tango

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/

'This Tango Bandleader Liked Short Skirts, Long Pants, Motorcycles and Chopin'

Alrighty!

http://www.tangodecoder.com/2016/04/would-you-buy-a-used-orchestra-from-this-woman.html

Confiteria Ideál, one of our favourite venues, is closing this week and it's future is unclear. Here's a walk down memory lane in a clip from about 2001-2002.

http://www.tangoaustralia.com.au/2016/03/confiteria-ideal-closes-down.html

This is just fab! Two tango bands, Los Reyes del Compas and La Juan D'Arienzo, playing together at the finale of Festival La Plata Baila Tango.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5rg_Wyxf6zk

Irene Yung and the Using Your Follower as a Human Shield paradigm!

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2016/03/wtltrss.html

Deby Novitz commenting on the Obama tango video

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2016/03/life-in-argentina-obama-dances-tango.html

Ernesto Rassi has added photos from the Wellington leg of Around the World in 80 Milongas

https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10208914691287170&id=693973410

Jonathan Saavedra and Clarisa Aragón. This is one fun couple!

Vals

http://airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1153/exhibiciones/

Milonga

http://airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1156/exhibiciones/

Tango

http://airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1160/exhibiciones/

Brace yourself ladies! It's Colin Firth in a suit! Dancing (kind of) tango!

https://www.facebook.com/Mvpy.PJ/videos/424869084371823/

More pithy commentary from Deby Novitz in Buenos Aires

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2016/03/dancing-argentine-tango-the-return-on-investment-roi.html

Pretty cool milonga from Susana Ferrante and Dante Sanches

http://youtu.be/e0YtaTiCTpU

and here's a tango by them

http://youtu.be/P3Nd_M8hpIM

Ms Hedgehog probably asking too much of another godawful tango show.

http://mshedgehog.blogspot.co.nz/2016/03/undead-tango-at-peacock-and-scenes-id.html

Courtesy of Tango Abrazo, here are Alberto Dassieu and Pauline dancing a Vals. Just great!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9Sq3g-FjiYw

Peninsula Cho and Yasmin Karatuna dancing a Vals

http://queertangobook.org/peninsula-cho-and-yasmin-karatuna/

Here's a post on La Glorieta, a wonderful outdoor milonga in BA in an old band rotunda

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/from-la-glorieta-to-los-cardones.html

More things to do in BA with Millennium Dragon, this time with concerts and famous cafes

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/nothing-better-than-to-start-pleasant.html

Irene Yung presents...Adela Galeassi and her son Gaston Pumar, Elba Biscay, Alberto Dassieu and Jorge Kero

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/more-adela-and-gaston.html

Here are mother and son Adela Galeazzi and Gaston Pumar, courtesy of Irene Yung.

Very niiiiice!

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/adela-galeazzi-and-gaston-pumar-vals.html

Here's a report with video of the annual Canyengue festival in BA by Millennium Dragon of Vancouver Island

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/tangue-canyengue-back-to-good-old-days.html?m=1

Amanda Lucero and Beto dancing a vals, via Deby Novitz

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2008/08/the-milonga-chronicles.html

Here's a 2007 post by Deby Novitz looking back on the change in tango in BA since her arrival in 2000

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2007/08/the-marketing-o.html

The New Plymouth tango weekend made it to the papers! Well done!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/76426722/Tango-dance-party-in-Pukekura-Park-during-Festival-of-Lights

Some background colour for travellers to BA from Millenium Dragon of Vancouver Island.

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2016/02/castellano-or-lunfardoadditions-to.html

Milonga con traspie by El Puchu and Blanquita. So cool!

http://youtu.be/lpYY5nBpblU

Sadly, the well-known DJ Felix Picherna has died. Here's a link to a memory of him by Janis Kenyon https://jantango.wordpress.com/2016/01/24/felix-picherna-2/ and here's a link to an interview with him that is very amusing

http://youtu.be/ZXlAziV8yFo

I'm occasionally at poorly-ventilated milongas and told by people, "Oh well, I'm sure that it's hotter than this in Buenos Aires!”

Er. Yes.

And no.

The greater choice of milongas per night in BA means that if they don't have air conditioning then they don't get customers, because dancing with partners that drip sweat is Just Awful.

If there's no or limited air conditioning then there had better be plenty of large electric fans!

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2016/01/24/some-like-it-hot/

Here's a great tango and milonga by Horacio Prestamo and Maria Marta Lopez Varela

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=grPN0nNQRTI

Blanquita and El Puchu milonga to Se Dice de Mi.

http://youtu.be/IRrIoGofOSU

Coca Cartery & Roberto Escudero milonga to "El Acomodo" by Edgardo Donato

http://youtu.be/VvcZGgilRZg

El Puchu and Valeria Casa Ledo - Milonga to "Se Dice de Mí"

http://youtu.be/hbITkeawnOA

Well...here's a concept for the warmer weather...the Heidelberg naked milonga is still going!
http://www.so-tango.com/blog/miscellanea/myexperienceofattendinganudemilonga

A couple of Tete clips for Christmas, first the well known vals one
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dCqBW9wv3RE&feature=youtu.be
And a lesson with Silvia Ceriani about dancing salon tango, with a demo to di Sarli at the start
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=z21XZWqZ8vE

Celia Blanco runs Lo de Celia, one of the longest running milongas in BA. Here's an interview with her from September on Tango Angeles (it runs for 1 hour, 50 minutes)
http://ubnradio.com/lo-de-celia-dec-16-2015/
And here's the description
'Description: Celia Blanco’s friendly traditional milonga–Lo de Celia–is one of the best in the world. Beyond her famous milonga, Celia has also touched many people around the world through dancing, choreographing and teaching tango. JanTango of Tango Chamuyo joins Ronaldo and shares her own stories about Lo de Celia.'

Here's Mario Marzan demonstrating a number of pianist's styles. The fingering (keying?) is amazing.
https://www.facebook.com/bientanguero/videos/10204645344082217/

Here's an interesting article by Millennium Dragon of Vancouver Island who is in BA at the moment. The new government has removed the foreign exchange control on US dollars.

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2015/12/a-few-days-in-december-in-buenos.html?m=1

Janis Kenyon wrote a series of posts on attorantes, Scurrilous Blackguards who lure women via great tango into lives of Compromise and Disappointment. All the posts are worth a read, here's the first

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2010/07/16/atorrante/

Interesting posts about Troilo's recordings by a true enthusiast

https://ddpsfavoritetandas.wordpress.com/category/troilo/

The great singer Alberto Podestá died on 9 December. Larissa found this link

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KqVCggFWsT8

I refreshed an article on cabeceo that I wrote a few years ago, after a conversation with a newbie this week.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/2012/08/cabaceo-in-small-tango-scene.html

There's a lot of interesting things here! Links to Muma's teaching trips to California, some good videos (with confused commentary) and a 2-hour audio interview with her. Muma taught with Ricardo Vidort for years.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2015/12/muma-teaching-ricardo-vidorts-legacy-in.html

Six reasons why you should not dance close embrace!

http://tangoclay.us/six-reasons/#comment-32785

Watch out especially for number 6!

(At least one commenter took this seriously...)

Weeeell...its choreo...but it's FUN choreo! Esref Tekinalp and Vanessa Gauch Arabacioglu

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1134/exhibiciones/profesionales-turcos-esref-tekinalp-a-vanessa-gauch-arabacioglu

The Greeks are turning to tango during hard times.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/17/why-greeks-are-turning-to-tango?CMP=twt_gu

BA tango holiday suggestion #27

Live tango music at the planetarium in Palermo

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2015/11/tango-orchestra-ledesma-at-el.html

Here's a nice article about tango therapy for alzheimers and Parkinson's patients.

http://www.argentinaindependent.com/life-style/society-life-style/tango-therapy-the-healing-embrace/

Here's a smorgasbord of great dancing by Maria Darrichon and Ricardo Viqueira: tango, vals, milonga and canyengue.

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/exhibiciones/maestros/816-honra-a-ricardo-viqueira-tango-milonga-vals-y-canyengue-aprender-y-disfrutar

Nice tango demo from Julieta Qüesta and Rauli Choque

http://youtu.be/HW08HhUKPcc

Carlos Alberto Rodriguez and partner, a couple of happy groovers

http://youtu.be/UmV8v0skWAo

Great thoughts from Tangoclay on building a tango scene

http://tangoclay.us/building-a-tango-community/

An interesting read from Mari Johnson about widening one's dance circle.

http://www.mytangodiaries.com/2015/11/tango-for-lifetime.html?m=1

Awwwww....Ricardo Viqueira and Eleonora Rivetti
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVcUgEIHvuY&sns=em

Here are some thoughts from Melina Sedò on the development of the encuentro scene in Europe. Encuentros are tango gatherings outside of the usual festival structure eg no lessons. Local examples are Nelson Summer Tango, Vuelvo al Sur in Christchurch and Molino Rojo in Wellington.

http://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.co.nz/2015/10/quo-vadis-encuentro-milonguero-iii.html?m=1

Here's a post by Tango Commuter with some interesting commentary from a London perspective on some social tango clips.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2015/10/good-news-marina2x4-is-uploading-videos.html

Brilliant drone photography of Buenos Aires. Meeeemories! Thanks Agnes!

https://www.facebook.com/agnes.espineda/posts/10153912574469453

Here's a link to an interview with Ricardo Suarez who died last week. It's from 2010 when he was 86 and includes him dancing a milonga with Monica Paz. Thanks Adriana!

http://youtu.be/BZUvDOpkwIs

Some sad news. Osvaldo Cartery, husband of Coca, died yesterday October 9 2015.
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/10/09/osvaldo-cartery/

Muma Valino, one of Ricardo Vidort's dance partners, is giving lessons in 'a private home' (!) in California. The advertisement provides a range of very interesting links and many references to Ricardo's approach of 8 lessons to learn tango.
http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.com/2015/10/muma-in-ojai.html
The original link is here
http://quantumtango.net/workshops/current.htm

This looks great! A trailer for a new documentary about Alberto Podestà and Juan Carlos Godoy.
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/10/06/dos-glorias-del-tango/

Irene Yung on the personal and financial cost of tango. And being the Archbishop of Canterbury.

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2015/09/waste.html

Janis Kenyon's thoughts on dancers becoming teachers and the value (or not) of stage dancers teaching social dancing.

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2010/06/20/dancers-who-become-teachers/

Here's an interesting interview by Vio with Sven Elze and Pedram Shahyah of Tango Kollektiv in Berlin regarding how they are growing tango. It's a very different take on tango which reflects our own experience there eg 'A lot of people only know Piazzola, they don’t know the depths of Pugliese.'
It's worth a read if you're interested in growing your local scene.
http://tangoforge.com/poptango/

Ney Melo's four favourite tango documentaries
http://neymelo.com/2015/09/25/the-4-greatest-tango-documentaries-on-youtube/

Irene Yung weighs in on the world championship, the wrong way to cabeceo/mirada, what makes a good follower, the zombie apocalypse, sleazy leaders...
http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2015/09/winners-and-losers.html

Well,this is jolly interesting, a Wim Wenders-produced biopic about Maria Nieves and Juan Carlos Copes
https://vimeo.com/138545957?outro=1

Some interesting photos of the tango museum in BA and comment on a recent tango congress from Janis Kenyon
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/09/11/first-tango-congress-of-the-national-academy-of-tango-in-buenos-aires/

Irene Yung again, writing about Shoe Love
http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.ca/2010/08/heartbreak-in-my-tango-shoes.html

I posted this link to the Tango and Chaos section on Ricardo Vidort a few years ago, but was reminded of it this week and thought I'd re-send it. It's a great read with video and this link is to the final page which has a very cool video of Ricardo dancing with Osvaldo Cartery, who he practiced tango with when they were teenagers.
http://www.tangoandchaos.org/chapt_5video/32ricardo.htm

For Spanish speakers, via Simbatango, Ignacio Varchausky is doing a series of seminars on the style of different tango orchestras, with audio links included.

http://simbatango.com/2015/08/23/los-estilos-fundamentales-del-tango-por-ignacio-varchausky/

The tango world championship was on in BA over the past few days. The stage and salon contestants all look the same, as usual, but here are some seniors who look pretty cool.

http://www.tangoaustralia.com.au/2015/08/tango-world-championships-finals.html

Claudio Ruberti y Elina Roldan. Very niiiiice...
http://youtu.be/I3bMIRmE6X0

Ricardo Vidort's last interview
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/12/29/his-last-interview/
Awwww...Ricardo Viqueira and Maria Darrichon
http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1130/exhibiciones/ricardoviqueira-el-gran-maestro-en-un-vals-con-maria-darrichon

and again
http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1131/exhibiciones/ricardoviqueira-maria-darrichon-tangazo-bailado-como-un-gran-maestro

Horacio Prestamo and Maria Alejandra Riva
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXlF9jYOrxQ&sns=em

Portland Polly has worthwhile things to say about how we arrive at and grow in tango.
https://tangopolly.wordpress.com/2015/08/16/doors/

Irene Yung with a primer for how to run an Authentic Milonga, Just Like Argentina.
http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2015/08/how-to-run-super-duper-authentic.html

Stories from the Golden Age by Miguel Angel Balbi
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2009/02/01/golden-age-of-the-milongas/
And more stories from the Golden Age
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/miguel-angel-balbi-4/

Origin of the milonga?
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/08/19/were-there-milongas-in-1943/

Claudio Ruberti y Elina Roldan. Very niiiiice...

http://youtu.be/I3bMIRmE6X0

Ricardo Vidort's last interview

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/12/29/his-last-interview/

Awwww...Ricardo Viqueira and Maria Darrichon

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1130/exhibiciones/ricardoviqueira-el-gran-maestro-en-un-vals-con-maria-darrichon

and again

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1131/exhibiciones/ricardoviqueira-maria-darrichon-tangazo-bailado-como-un-gran-maestro

Horacio Prestamo and Maria Alejandra Riva

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXlF9jYOrxQ&sns=em

Ricardo Viqueira dancing canyengue with yet another Unnamed Lady
http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1064/exhibiciones/ricardo-viqueira-el-gran-maestro-en-gran-canyengue

Pedro Sanchez and Tina Ferrari
http://youtu.be/axM9KNhqzQw

Tina Ferrari and Pedro Sanchez. Very niiice.

http://youtu.be/H3b3htVb9HM

Hold me in your arms! (Not me. Janis!)

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2010/11/04/hold-me-in-your-arms/

Tango on Paekakariki Radio

https://soundcloud.com/paekakariki-fm

Quelle fromage! Tango doesn't represent Argentine culture! (Article from 1911)

http://thesleepmeister.typepad.com/tango_decoder/2015/07/1911-last-tango-in-paris-.html

Dancer ego syndrome. It's a killer.

http://grapevine.dzouk.com/dancer-ego-syndrome-and-how-to-keep-yourself-protected/

Ricardo Vidort y Liz Haight

http://youtu.be/o2puX7uOCDg

Ana Maria Shapira y Rubén Harymbat. Ruben died recently.

http://youtu.be/tN3ZU19IsRM

Are more tango lessons going to help you improve?

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/2015/07/more-lessons-really.html

Here's a link to the free Queer Tango ebook

https://havmoeller.wordpress.com/2015/07/10/the-queer-tango-book/

Differing perspectives from Irene Yung

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2015/07/anti-chamuyo.html?m=1

Astor is on the wireless!

http://www.radionz.co.nz/concert/programmes/composeroftheweek/20150712

Here's a bandoneon documentary to watch for:

http://buenosairesherald.com/article/193133/the-art-of-making-accordions-out-of-love

Monty Python does Tango Brujo!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dKQ6Qe4zPdo&feature=youtu.be

Another video of a typical milonga in BA by Norma Marin

http://youtu.be/AJXIUPUyl6s

Two very cool guys: Benjamin Layer and Alex Gastel in Berlin

http://youtu.be/sFRcKzHERxg

Here's an excellent 50-minute interview with Nito and Elba, still teaching and performing in their 80s! Nito does most of the talking and he has interesting things to say about improvisation and 'the young people today'.

http://youtu.be/aSHCkTm2TCU

Tango Immigrant on romantic mood lighting versus cabeceo.

http://tangoimmigrant.blogspot.co.nz/2015/06/dancing-in-dark.html

Don't be shy, Mari, just tell us how you feel! :-)

http://www.mytangodiaries.com/2015/06/tango-bitch-strikes-again.html?m=1

I really enjoyed this vals by Irene Yung and Roberto Segarra (94!)

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2015/06/roberto-segarra-at-el-rodriguez-may-18.html

Horacio Julian Prestamo and Margot Nunes dancing a great vals

http://youtu.be/0vWAioKRwEc

Now you're talkin', sunshine! Apps for your next trip to BA to make it soooo much easier!

http://tangotix.com/blogs/news/26546372-apps-for-buenos-aires

The new music of tango. Oh. Great. But worth a read.

https://medium.com/eder-content-english-version/the-new-face-of-argentinean-tango-music-7c81e7c84e2d

Clara Köhler of Berlin wrote this short piece about dancing there. Beth and I danced there a couple of years ago and it's a nice memory for us.

http://www.discavo.com/berlin/tango-berlin-little-piece-of-buenos-aires

Here's a pretty cool video by Nany Peralta showing exercises to help train oneself to 'dance on a tile' ie dance well in a confined space as in a crowded Milonga. It's the Nany Peralta Workout Video!

http://youtu.be/Z7Rrb5ljKGc

And Ricardo Vidort. What a guy. Dancing with an unnamed but very good follower.

http://youtu.be/EKMPOI8UtyE

If you feel like a bit of a read...here is a peer- reviewed paper investigating tango as an addiction. Oh come on, now, I can stop anytime that I want!

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4117296/

I found this quite moving. Mari Johnson from Austin, Texas writing about how precious tango has become for her since her debilitating illness. A key phrase is:

'I never know if this will be the last time I embrace this human being in my arms. So I remind myself every time I dance:

Show the hell up.
Be present and stay there. '

That sounds like a philosophy for life.

http://www.mytangodiaries.com/2015/05/an-update-journey-so-far.html?m=1

Here are Jorge Hualde and Nancy Niewiadomski, pretty cool!

http://youtu.be/tNrjf8iJXbg

Here's a call to leaders for better posture and "More chest!" but it doesn't mention that the same applies to followers.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2015/05/more-chest.html?m=1

Here's another glimpse of a normal Buenos Aires Milonga from Norma Marin

http://youtu.be/6wuvDVFVnC4

El Flaco Dany Garcia... SUCH a cool guy! Here he is in Berlin with an unnamed partner.

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/05/08/ernesto-hector-garcia-4/

Ricardo Viqueira dancing canyengue with another unnamed partner (grrrr!)

http://airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1064/exhibiciones/ricardo-viqueira-el-gran-maestro-en-gran-canyengue

The teachers Alonso with two of their students, Sergio Giraudo y Teresa Ichikawa

http://youtu.be/PU7vw1h7ogs

Rather beautiful.

Here is Isabella Szymonowicz dancing with Alberto Dassieu

http://practicaelbeso.net/2014/12/04/alberto-dassieu-a-true-maestro/

And here is Isabella Szymonowicz again dancing with Juan Carlos Pontoriero

http://practicaelbeso.net/2015/04/15/magic-milongueros/

A VERY cool article by Jens-Ingo, a Dutch tango DJ, about those 'doesn't that sound a bit like Chopin?' moments at milongas.

http://jens-ingo.all2all.org/archives/712

I really enjoy these Millenium Dragon blogs about tango on or near Vancouver Island.

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2015/04/fourlegged-gardeners-and-two-legged.html?m=1

Here are Oscar Hector Malagrino and his sister Haydee Esther dancing to Di Sarli. Very niiice!

http://youtu.be/tvK-t3AJkRU

Here's a documentary about Juan Pablo Fredes, a bandoneon maker. (English subtitles)

http://youtu.be/Ckur8W4RoJc

Juan Carlos Caceres has died aged 79 in Paris. He gave us the great Tango Negro among other great candombes.

http://youtu.be/9uQh5RfE2XA

A wistful, appreciative blog on returning home from BA to rural Canada.

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2015/04/spring-in-cowichan-primavera-en-la-isla.html

Stephen Twist's Buenos Aires Survival Guide. It's great!

http://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2011/12/travellers-survival-guide-to-buenos.html

Here's a free e-book, an anthology of articles about Queer Tango.
http://queertangobook.org/

This sounds a little 'Happy happy, joy joy' but it's true. All of us are responsible for whether our tango scenes are growing or not.

http://www.oxygentango.com/news/2015/3/19/tell-someone-how-much-they-matter-reflections-on-living-in-c.html

An amusing blog by Irene Yung on how to dance like a BA local? Or at least asking the question...

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2015/03/like-love-itself.html

Sunday in Buenos Aires by Stephen Twist

http://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2015/03/sunday-in-buenos-aires-is-most-relaxing.html?m=1

Thoughts on public domain and copyright in tango music by Jens-Ingo, tango DJ

http://jens-ingo.all2all.org/archives/116

Another post by Jens-Ingo on the history of tango singers and styles

http://jens-ingo.all2all.org/archives/1607#comment-51619

Tango starting up in Queenstown! Just a practica at the moment but from little acorns...

https://www.facebook.com/groups/130115850379690/permalink/847133372011264/

Aaah...this takes me back. The 4th anniversary of the Milonga Yira Yira gives a great look at the dance floor and table congestion at a popular BA Milonga.

http://airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/1023/milongas-de-buenos-aires-y-el-mundo/

Another video of a normal BA Milonga by Norma Marin

http://youtu.be/-K33cGxKVSI

Stephen Twist writes elegantly about De Querusa Practica in BA.

http://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2015/02/de-querusa.html

Stephen Twist again, this time about Los Laureles

http://stephentwist.blogspot.co.nz/2015/02/los-laureles.html

Tango Therapist on the virtues of understanding tango lyrics

http://tango-therapist.blogspot.co.nz/2015/02/tango-lyrics-dangers-in-not-knowing-few.html

Tete and Silvia

http://youtu.be/tOrhRmDHt44

Another typical Milonga in BA, courtesy of Norma

http://youtu.be/vdnnvdOd-6o

Oh well, we've had some nice comments over the years about this video, and another one this morning, so...here we are with La Colegiala

http://youtu.be/OgXENi1fecg

Golly! The perfect embrace...
http://simbatango.com/2015/02/14/the-perfect-embrace/

Great thoughts from Ricardo Vidort, via Janis Kenyon.

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/02/02/he-speaks-and-we-listen/

Via Jane Austen and Julia Millen, rules for social dancing.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=712968898824117&id=340066039447740

Through interviews to musicians from different generations and styles, this documentary makes a musical tour through the work of one of the most fundamental characters in the history of Tango and Argentine music, Troilo.

http://www.pichucofilm.com/

I've had a few inquiries about this song, as I play it in my alternativa tandas. It's the music video of Apoclyptica playing Nothing Else Matters by Metallica.

http://youtu.be/X-B8k0n_3cs

TURN IT UP!

Aaaah...Carlos Copello, a man after my own heart. "There are no tango styles, everyone dances their own style! Quit it with the bullshit like 'Villa Urquiza' style!"

A very entertaining hour-and-ten interview. Beth danced with him on our first trip to BA, ask her about it when you see her!

http://youtu.be/tDhyu5jadTo

Alan Lee is the latest interviewee in Cheryl's interview series

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=GUIH9XX5CS0

Big night in La Boca, fireworks and tango on the river in Buenos Aires

http://millenniumdragon.blogspot.co.nz/2015/01/la-vida-es-una-milonga-cai-guo-qiang-en.html

Another video of a normal Milonga in BA from Norma Marin.

http://youtu.be/Icer_cPYMWk

Let's get huggalicious, baby!
https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/01/18/how-to-give-a-great-hug/

There have been a number of articles on tango's therapeutic effects on Parkinson's. Here's one on helping with trauma for Gulf War veterans.
http://www.sanfrancisco.va.gov/SANFRANCISCO/features/Tango.asp

Secrets of the tango, by Samuel Beach Chester

https://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/one-hundred-years-ago/

There was some discussion about choreography versus lead/follow in performances over the past couple of days, in Welli and on the web. I wrote this up as a result.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/2014/12/choreography-or-not-beginners-guide.html

Leopoldo Federico, a famous bandoneonista died this week.

http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/178294/tango-legend-leopoldo-federico-dies-at-87

Some thoughts from Janis Kenyon on cabeceo

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2015/01/02/cabeceo-confusion/

Here's a man with MS who still can dance!

http://www.nytimes.com/video/nyregion/100000003332784/a-chance-to-dance.html?emc=edit_th_20141221&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=18034168

Here's a snippet about lady leaders from Christine Denniston's excellent tango website. The link to her website is at the bottom.

http://www.tanguito.co.uk/blog/advent-calendar-december-19/

Christine's website is at

http://www.history-of-tango.com/learn-to-dance.html

Latest in a number of articles about health benefits of tango, but this is much more specific and names researchers if you're interested in investigating this further.

Incidentally, I know of one tango group for Parkinson's patients in the Wellington region. Are there more?

The benefits of Argentine tango dancing

http://mariabuenosairesargentina.blogspot.co.nz/2014/12/the-benefits-of-argentine-tango-dancing.html?m=1

It's articles like these that remind me why I like dancing in Wellington as much as I do.

(The clips are very funny, though)

Will the real tangocynic please stand up? | Tango High and Low

http://tango-high-and-low.com/2014/12/07/will-the-real-tangocynic-please-stand-up/

I've been asked the same questions by leaders many times over the years so I thought I'd gather them into a blog post.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.com/2014/12/advice-for-leaders.html

I've also been asked similar questions by followers over the years so I did the same with another blog post.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.com/2014/12/advice-for-followers.html

Mass tango (ho ho!) in St Peter's Square for the Pope's birthday

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/dec/17/pope-francis-birthday-tango-vatican?CMP=share_btn_fb

And video!

http://mobile.francetvinfo.fr/monde/vatican/pape-francois/video-vatican-des-centaines-de-danseurs-fetent-les-78-ans-du-pape-au-son-du-tango_775145.html#xtref=http://m.facebook.com

A tango lesson from 1927

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3Jv1hkB4aXA&list=PLfck7oPkEA0qWFphDeBCbCQm3GULtRSpp

Another nice video of a normal BA Milonga by Norma. No amazing repertoire, just nice social dancing.

http://youtu.be/wHWzfhmbWbw

Some amazing photos here of the numbers dancing in the street in BA for a recent festival

http://www.millenniumdragon.blogspot.com.ar/2014/12/tango-ever-alive-in-buenos-aires.html?m=1

Analia Vega and Marcelo Varela, two of my faves

http://www.argentinetangovideos.net/2014/12/analia-vega-and-marcelo-varela-in.html

Just what we needed to make our otherwise boring tango more interesting! Naked milongas!

Wait a minute...

http://tango-therapist.blogspot.co.nz/2014/12/the-naked-truth-about-naked-truth.html?m=1

Gimme that Ol' Time Religion, by Irene and Man Young

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/new-and-improved.html?m=1

Tete and Silvia dancing a vals

http://youtu.be/XJDowJI0-7s

Felix Picherna talks tango history in a 1997 interview. So many great stories!

https://elfirulete.wordpress.com/1997/04/26/the-music-man/

Petroleo, Milena Plebs, Mingo Pugliese and Miguel Angel Zotto talk tango history. Petroleo says that he made 1500-2000 pesos/night as a tango star, enough to buy a house at the time!

http://youtu.be/quHDYyqnJcE

Contrast this with...

Gerardo Portalea being interviewed in the mid 80s, when he was a tango star but his day job was cleaning tombs for tips!

http://youtu.be/gTjMfVe-QE4

Here's some great old photos of milonga venues from the early 20th century

http://aquelarreforos.com.ar/retro/clubes-nocturnos-del-pasado-buenos-aires/

Some basics advice for everybody from Miss Hedgehog

http://mshedgehog.blogspot.co.nz/2014/12/thirteen-tango-terms-for-beginners.html?m=1

And finally, a clip from a typical BA Milonga from Norma

http://youtu.be/UTdxYEP-jtc

Interesting article for travellers about the blue currency market in BA

http://www.argentinaindependent.com/currentaffairs/analysis/inside-argentinas-blue-dollar-market/

Here's a profound post by Janis Kenyon, reproduced by Tango Commuter, about Ricardo Vidort. Ricardo taught people 8 lessons and then told them to go away and develop their own style.

Exactly.

There's a lot of overthinking and overselling of tango which gets in the way of learning the dance. If the top of the tango mountain appears to be moving away rather than getting closer, then it's time to look for different advice.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/ricardo-vidort-jantangos-comment.html?m=1

Cheryl has been recording short chats with Welli dancers. Here is the one with Nada

http://youtu.be/_KX2oi10pDo

Tango Commuter commenting on a nice video of Ricardo Vidort.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/did-ricardo-vidort-teach.html

Random Tango Bloke, the Angry Man of London tango...

http://randomtangobloke.blogspot.co.nz/?m=1

Roxana, a Romanian dancer writes about life, business and tango

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/how-tango-forever-changed-life-both-professionally-and-personally.html?

Tango Immigrant on how not dancing on every beat will set you free. Hear hear!

http://tangoimmigrant.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/the-beat-prison-or-guide.html

Tango Commuter with some insightful comment on footage from a normal BA Milonga.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/to-gently-rock.html?m=1

Here’s a written interview with (ahem) me about Wellington tango by Chris Watson.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/wellington-tango-interview.html

On a related note, does anyone have contacts in the Victoria Uni Business School...?

Heather Whitehead and Jorge Uzunian. Very groovy.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=XMKrVO_lVh4

Here's what you get when a dance reviewer writes a piece on stage tango. Hilarious! I hesitate to link to it because it really is link bait but...it's too too awful and I can't resist!

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/09/02/the-love-that-kills

Jennifer Brat on the Beginners' Crush. Speaking for myself as a beginner, dancing with good followers usually made me feel WONderful, not intimidated as Jennifer thinks.

http://lasastresa.blogspot.ro/2009/03/beginners-crush-articol-de-jennifer.html

Here's a clip of Helen 'La Vikinga' from Iceland and Coca of Buenos Aires dancing at Sunderland in BA.

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/957/exhibiciones/coca-de-osvaldo-y-la-vikinga-milongueando-en-sunderland

Tango documentary from the late 80s, following Robert Duvall around BA and with some nice dancing in the milongas.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7dNgc3w1CQQ

Janis Kenyon, taking no prisoners with her critique of the worst guide ever to tango in BA.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2010/07/03/the-worst-guide-ever-for-tango-in-buenos-aires/

Here's one less thing to worry about: plans to produce bandoneons in Argentina!

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-29896409?ocid=socialflow_twitter

Marie and Lena, very nice.

http://youtu.be/jZ39TxtcxM0

Tango Commuter on Milonga problems, encuentros and supporting local milongas. Interesting that milongas pop up faster in London than there are dancers to sustain them! It sounds so familiar! :-)

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/10/milonga-problems.html

Angelina of Sydney also on Milonga proliferation

http://www.tangoaustralia.com.au/2014/11/milonga-attendances-down-where-to-now.html

Irene and Man Yung's rather amusing take on identifying sources of good advice in tango

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2014/10/advice.html

Power-posing for more confidence at the Milonga.

http://tangosalonadelaide.blogspot.co.nz/2014/10/to-shrinking-violets-of-milonga.html

I blogged this week on travel stories, mine and others, and finding one’s own way to becoming a good dancer.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/2014/10/travel-talesfinding-ones-way.html

An interesting article about Japanese tango singer Ranko Fujisawa

http://www.lptango.com.ar/en/characters/108-ranko-fujisawa.html

My apologies...this isn't really tango...but it's probably coming to a Tango Alternativa tanda near you soon! Postmodern Jukebox with Kate Davis, All About That Bass.

http://youtu.be/iyTTX6Wlf1Y

Angelina Of Sydney on "Is Sydney Tango snobby?" Well...yeah...

http://www.tangoaustralia.com.au/2014/10/snobby-sydney-really.html

Set aside 49 minutes for this interview with famous DJ Felix Picherna. What a cool and funny guy!

http://youtu.be/ZXlAziV8yFo

'Fermin, Glories of Tango' is finally available to rent on Vimeo $7US), or at least I got to the payment part without being rejected on the basis of my country. It sounds very good!

http://vimeo.com/ondemand/fermin

Here's a very appreciative post by Tango Commuter about a YouTube channel showing barrio milongas in BA where people are relaxed and smile a lot.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/10/normarin1.html

Yet another health benefits study

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/well-good/8339339/Tango-beats-depression

One for the ladies. Or the men. Who am I to judge?

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/10/09/toeless-shoes-need-toeless-hose/

Here is Mario Marzán demonstrating a range of tango piano styles.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=44SqzyUHn2k

And here's an article on the habanera rhythm that underpins tango

http://www.tangomusicology.com/wordpres/the-habanera-rhythm/

Apart from the detail about connecting at the sternum (I used to think so, too) this post from Tango Commuter is spot on. The body mechanics of good tango are straightforward. Other approaches work, but not as well.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/09/it-cant-happen-here.html

Cabeceo in London!

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.com/2014/09/at-last.html

A very amusing post by Irene Yung about the challenges faced by dancing couples. Stay AWAY from the edged weapons!

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2014/09/things-that-man-yung-did-in-tango-that.html

Yet another study showing health benefits from tango.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2280869/Feeling-blue-Then-try-tango-Scientists-claim-dance-helps-rid-depression-anxiety-stress.html

Janis Kenyon on women asking men to dance in BA.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/09/05/desperate-milongueras-2/

And

Ten Commandments of Milongueros

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2009/06/02/ten-commandments/

Finnish tango, a very different experience via Lady Leader

http://youtu.be/Bf1qS9wL3Tg

A different kind of tango holiday, tango cruises

http://www.tango-cruise.com/en/home

An interesting comparison from TangoAddiction of Euro tango versus tango in BA.

http://tangoaddiction.wordpress.com/2011/06/29/dancers-on-two-continents/

Excellent article about Joaquin. Check out his musicality workshops further down the page in Christchurch in October

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2010/01/joaquin-amenabar-workshops.html

Some notes on musicality from TangoAddiction

http://tangoaddiction.wordpress.com/2014/08/29/some-versions-of-musicality/

An interesting discussion about Alexander technique with regard to tango.

http://bodylearning.buzzsprout.com/382/88355-how-the-alexander-technique-can-help-argintine-tango-dancers

How to recognize good tango versus bad tango (tongue in cheek)

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2014/08/good-or-bad.html

Respecting one's partner...

http://tangosalonadelaide.blogspot.co.nz/2014/08/respect.html

Brilliant. A beginners guide to tango music.

http://www.todotango.com/english/history/chronicle/448/Listening-to-tango-dance-music-A-beginners-guide/

Apparently it doesn't take '10 years to learn how to walk'. Jamie Lin of Hong Kong, 23.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/08/10/the-youngest-milonguero-i-know/

And continuing a theme...

http://tango-therapist.blogspot.co.nz/2014/08/tango-is-not-rocket-science.html

And to quote a local milonguera, "it's protocol in tango not to lead with your mouth, isn't it? So why do guys do just that?"

Milongas with the lights down

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/08/between-tangos.html

Here's an absolutely ripping live version of Nada Mas by Juan D'Arienzo and singer Mercedes Serrano!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=adI4-3CvCSU

Here's a thought-provoking piece from Terpsichoral Tangoaddict on the case against performing community service dances ie dancing with less popular dancers for the good of the tango scene in general, not because you have a burning desire to dance with that person. Many of the comments are quite elitist and, having travelled and danced in many countries with a wide variety of partners, I find them ironic in that unpopular dancers in one city would probably be very popular in other places.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=678853895541347&id=100002502284000

Early tango music recordings

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/07/angel-villoldo-paris-and-early-tango.html

Let's go out and raise hell this weekend!

http://twitpic.com/e9bwc0

Is tango sophisticated? A great post by Janis Kenyon

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2010/06/14/is-tango-sophisticated/

Janis again on 'the quick getaway'

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2011/01/01/milonga-101-a-quick-getaway/

A 25-minute doco called My First Tango set in BA

http://vimeo.com/96989747

with background by Janis

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/08/01/my-first-tango/

Ricardo Viqueira and Roberta Erba

http://youtu.be/Te2HcdaWviQ

TangoPolly talks to my soooooul...

You know that you are a Tangoid when...

'You have danced yourself into a near-coma then languished in the morning-after tangover.'

http://tangopolly.wordpress.com/are-you-a-tangoid/

And

http://tangopolly.wordpress.com/be-afraid-be-very-afraid/

Here's a link that I've sent out before but it's like a life buoy to a drowning man after wading through a number of dreadful YouTube demos this morning!

Thank god for Ricardo Viqueira and Maria Darritchon!

http://youtu.be/37PcynXHQxs

And here they are again

http://youtu.be/vxPKecLfw8g

Larissa Merz of Auckland is importing Turquoise shoes.

https://www.facebook.com/turquoisenz

Bev found this interesting article about a great way to improve one's tango. I agree with almost all of it.

http://www.delhimilonga.com/apps/blog/show/42473625-better-tango-is-possible-through-intensive-study-

Via Janis Kenyon, a trailer for a documentary on the life of bandoneonista Anibal Troilo

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/07/12/pichuco-the-documentary/

Cheryl blogged a few thoughts on her experience of the 2014 NZ Tango Festival.

http://cripplecreak.wordpress.com/2014/07/05/tango-trials-terrors-and-triumphs/#comment-702

A lot of well-known names in this clip from 2010, Noche de Milongueros

http://youtu.be/xIkqCQo63Ig

Irene and Man Yung have a few things that they'd like to get off their chests about YouTube demos. I absolutely agree.

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2014/06/the-miracles-of-modern-technology.html

Always a soft spot for a Tete and Silvia demo...

http://youtu.be/tMgv5kSRWZo

A bit of history about Carlos Gardel and a clip of him singing Soledad

http://www.tangofolly.co.uk/node/1157

Here's a clip from the legendary Milonga at Sunderland Club set in a gymnasium. Note the minute or so of conversation time before couples start dancing (!), the bright lights, the wide range in dance ability...so many things!

http://youtu.be/rTtw62VP9Tw

And here's a video from the mid 90s, a couple of years before I started. You'll see very similar things.

http://youtu.be/SIy-I-XIWSw

"Heeeyy...'ow YOU doin'.....?" A milonguero showing his version of the cabeceo.

http://youtu.be/iVLgQDeUHOE

And finally here's Ricardo Vidort, one of the legends, dancing with Liz Haight.

http://youtu.be/o2puX7uOCDg

Here's an article about Enrique Discépolo

http://www.lptango.com.ar/en/characters/84-enrique-santos-discepolo.html

Kapka Kassabova, formerly of Auckland, wrote a book titled 'Twelve Minutes of Love' a couple of years ago, based on her experiences in tango. I really enjoyed it and here is a site with excerpts from it, in case you'd like to try before you buy.

http://gancho.info/kapka-kassabova-twelve-minutes-of-love-part-1/

A German web clip about Finnish tango. It's hilarious!

http://youtu.be/mr_A4ELFhmo

Irene and Man Yung on the latest trends in BA

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2014/05/trendynot-trendy.html

The 2005 documentary 'Astor Piazzolla: Tango Maestro' is now on YouTube.

http://youtu.be/UFuDWMwtx_4

Five good reasons to learn tango

http://callevenezuela2763.blogspot.com.ar/2014/05/5-good-reasons-to-learn-tango.html

I really like this couple, courtesy of Adriana!

Mirta Tiseyra y Chiche Ruberto

http://youtu.be/nsXGIdwuX5c

It has a veeeery cute shuffle in the last 3seconds of the song.

And here they are with a tango

http://youtu.be/vQhMgecTiJ8

This post is long, wordy and quite frankly a struggle. However I think it's very important as it has sparked excellent comments with which I agree wholeheartedly, particularly this bit:

‘Tango Estilo el Centro, the tango danced in the ‘downtown’ milongas of Buenos Aires is relatively simple but not necessarily easy. The core features of the dance are partner connection (embrace and coordinated movement through space), walking, connection with and interpretation of the music, and navigation (The Essence of Tango Argentino). One can be taught to focus on these aspects of the dance, most likely in only a few lessons, but improvement will occur in practice, not in more workshops. It is difficult for tango instructors to derive a living from teaching the core principles of tango. However, if they invent new features of the dance, as is done by instructors of Tango Nuevo, they may be able to make a living. So what a potential tango student encounters are the successful teachers who expand the boundaries of the dance (perhaps beyond recognition), not the experienced dancers in the milongas.’

I recommend reading the comments first.

http://tangovoice.wordpress.com/2014/05/20/variations-in-the-tango-embrace-open-embrace-and-close-embrace-styles-of-tango-the-evidence-from-buenos-aires-milongas/#comment-1389

Irene and Man Yung on Sunday night milongas and work-life balance

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.co.nz/2014/05/why-we-dance-on-sundays.html

A frustrated milonguero from the UK writes about whores, dockers, travelling teachers and dancing for your partner

http://tangogales.wordpress.com/2010/02/27/whores-and-dockers/

Janis Kenyon on different styles of tango

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/05/12/theres-only-one-tango-but/

Here's the trailer for the movie ‘Glories of Tango’.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=T5QWgsTFLtg

Plaza Bohemia, an open air Milonga in BA

http://airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/708/milongas-de-buenos-aires-y-el-mundo/milonaga-plaza-bohemia-bailando-bajo-las-estrellas

Footage from the Fruto Dulce Milonga in BA.

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/707/milongas-de-buenos-aires-y-el-mundo/fruto-dulce-milonga-club-villa-malcom-tango-en-buenos-aires

Larissa from Auckland is now promoting Turquoise Shoes from Istanbul

http://www.turquoise.me/

A post by Janis Kenyon on inflation in BA and it's effect on the milongas. It's a reminder how affordable dancing is here in Wellington.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/04/30/inflation-in-the-milongas-2/

A multiple-couple demo with a singer from BA, very good.

http://youtu.be/2oXXo9qBm4Q

A very interesting post by Tangocommuter about the movie 'El Ultimo Aplauso', a doco about El Chino's bar in BA. It includes a link to the movie on YouTube. It's in Spanish but without subtitles.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/05/el-ultimo-aplauso.html

Here’s a page of tango humour

http://www.verytangostore.com/tango-humor.html

And here’s a video of a cello version of Metallica’s ‘Nothing Else Matters’. It’s not tango but the video is excellent and the music is so inspiring that we danced to it on Friday at Tararua. Twice!

http://youtu.be/X-B8k0n_3cs

The clip was sent to me by an old friend who ruefully admitted to me that he had finally been hooked by tango in New York. His teachers performed a demo to this song on the Thursday, and we danced to it on Friday. That’s social media for you!

Chasing the Embrace with Tango Sexism Part 2

http://chasingtheembrace.wordpress.com/2014/04/17/tango-sexism-part-2/

How to organize a Milonga by Simba tango

http://simbatango.com/2009/06/07/how-to-organize-a-milonga/

Here's a thoughtful piece by Tango Commuter on a TV performance by Troilo.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/04/nocturno-mi-barrio.html

I thought this was pretty cool, just a weekend of dancing on the Sunshine Coast but they threw in a flash mob video to help market it. They seem like a relaxed and friendly group.

http://tangoscf.com/extras/falsh-mob/

Here's the site http://tangoscf.com/

Pablo Ziegler, Piazzolla's pianist, is coming to Wellington as part of the Jazz Festival, Friday 6 June.

http://jazzfestival.co.nz/shows/pablo-ziegler/

Here are some links to him playing

Tangata http://youtu.be/AvTDPNVNrfg

Fuga y mysterio http://youtu.be/mdBaX6YoMmg

Chasing the Embrace on sexism and the cabeceo.

http://chasingtheembrace.wordpress.com/2014/03/30/tango-sexism-part-1/

Tango Commuter is also a big fan of Ricardo Suarez! Well done!

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/03/ricardo-suarez-in-buenos-aires.html

Yes, it's only choreography but it's great choreography!

http://www.argentinetangovideos.net/2014/03/esref-tekinalp-and-vanessa-gauch.html

One of the VidaMia girls on ignoring tango politics. Well done!

http://bailarinasvidamia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/03/the-world-of-politics-applied-to-tango.html?m=1

Ha! This brought back some memories, I can tell you! It's about avoiding letting one's inner Mr Fusspot ruin one's evening.

http://tangoimmigrant.blogspot.co.nz/2014/03/the-tanguera-and-pea.html

Hector Chidichimo and Stella Barba dancing at a Milonga

http://youtu.be/VVjdgkUtSOg

Wellington now has a tango history website

http://www.tangostoriesofwellington.com/

Silvia and Alfredo Alonso, two tangos and a Vals. Some of the best dancing that I've seen on YouTube for a while!

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/643/exhibiciones/silvia-y-alfredo-alonso-en-salon-caning-milonga-parakultural

A plea for options for people who don't wish to watch demos at festivals. Personally I find them a good opportunity to catch up on emails, and get in some quality Facebook time, but some people would prefer to dance. What?

http://tango-therapist.blogspot.co.nz/2014/03/just-let-me-dance.html

Irene and Man Yung on the subject of annoying things at milongas

http://ireneandmanyung.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/green-vegetables-radishes.html

An interesting take on gender balance versus social engagement at milongas

http://tango-therapist.blogspot.co.nz/2014/03/gender-imbalance-with-50-men.html

Tango history in photos

http://www.tangology101.com/main.cfm/id/1165/

Apart from the advice to focus on tango world champions for examples of good dancing (what?!) there's some good advice here

http://www.tanguito.co.uk/blog/5-tips-to-become-a-better-tango-dancer/

Tango music- syncopation for beginners

http://tangoimmigrant.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/tango-music-syncopation-for-beginners.html

There are some excellent thoughts here, on the linked blog and in the comments

http://elizabethbrinton.blogspot.co.nz/2011/10/the-converts.html

And here are the websites referenced in the comments

http://tangoaddiction.wordpress.com/2011/06/29/dancers-on-two-continents/

And

http://tangoaddiction.wordpress.com/2011/09/13/marathoners/

Igor and Morticia are coming for workshops and private lessons!

http://elizabethbrinton.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/workshop-schedule-igor-and-morticia.html

Another interesting blog from the Vida Mia girls on holiday in BA.

http://bailarinasvidamia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/of-hard-times-and-brighter-days-there.html

Well, here's the real deal. Ricardo Vidort dancing with Anna Maria Ferrara. Apart from the late lead from his big tummy causing Anna Maria a few problems, they look great!

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/ricardo-vidort-in-rome.html

Here are a series of interesting posts from a couple of tourists in BA at the moment

http://bailarinasvidamia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/foregoing-milonga-in-favor-of-tango.html

http://bailarinasvidamia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/buenos-aires-stray-experiences.html

http://bailarinasvidamia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/taxi-dialogues-and-brief-overview.html

http://bailarinasvidamia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/first-impressions.html

http://bailarinasvidamia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/02/mysteries-of-musical-body-and.html?m=1

An interesting read: 'Why tango dancers lose interest in improving their skill'

http://www.tangofolly.co.uk/node/1610

Deby Novitz blogging on life in BA. Part 1 of a multi-part story, disillusion with the BA tango dream, and more.

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2014/02/history-repeats-itself.html

Here's Part 2

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2014/02/history-repeats-itself-part-ii.html

And part 3

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2014/02/history-repeats-itself-part-iii.html

And part 4, resolution!

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2014/02/history-repeats-itself-part-iv.html

A strangely amusing take on the approaching crisis in Argentina

http://bubblear.com/2014/01/argentina-devaluation-and-do-we-care/

A map of tango from 1914

http://iht-retrospective.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/19/1914-a-map-of-tango/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=fb-share&_r=1

Let's be careful out there! Shoe you care!

http://argentinetangoclub.org/5-most-common-habits-that-destroy-our-dance-shoes/

Here's a fascinating link about musical appreciation via Janis Kenyon.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/01/31/4-ways-to-hear-more-in-music/

Well worth a read…

https://m.facebook.com/notes/veronica-toumanova/why-years-of-tango-will-not-make-you-an-advanced-dancer-and-what-will/10151715892417499/?__user=693973410

Thoughts on performance tango versus social tango.

http://tango-therapist.blogspot.com/2014/01/rip-tango-1983-2033.html

Julia is starting to blog on tango!

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=503310363123306&id=340066039447740

Growing tango in Sydney

http://tangoaustralia.blogspot.co.nz/2014/01/growing-tango-dancers-in-our-town.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+blogspot/INFve+(Angelina's+Tango+Blog)

An interview with TangoCherie regarding her leaving the USA to live in Argentina

http://www.expat-blog.com/en/interview/141_cherie-in-buenos-aires.html

Dancing at the La Glorieta rotunda in BA

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0Akp9EgdBAc&feature=share&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D0Akp9EgdBAc%26feature%3Dshare

Here's an open letter to dancers and teachers that Tete wrote in 2006. He's gone now. Have a read.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2014/01/09/pedro-alberto-rusconi-2/

1914 headline- shock! Horror! Tango

http://iht-retrospective.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/04/1914-amazingly-popular-dance-causes-widespread-social-controversy/?_r=0

Two movies to keep an eye on

http://nyadiff.org/tango-negro-the-african-roots-of-tango-candombe/

An interesting post from 2007 by Deby Novak, an American who lives in BA, on the state of tango at the time.

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2007/08/the-marketing-o.html

And another one from today, where tango plays a much smaller role in her life

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2013/12/once-a-fruit-flyalways-a-fruit-fly.html

Nelly Omar, the great tango singer, died yesterday

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/12/20/nelly-omar-2/

This is interesting, a a Milonga receiving a national award for running for 10 years, plus the demo and where the audience applauds, plus the relationship between the music and the dancers in the general dancing at the end.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/12/16/the-milonga-lujos-declared-cultural-interest/

Ha! Perfect!

http://elizabethbrinton.blogspot.com.ar/2013/12/non-tango-music.html?m=1

Ladies fashion corner...

TangoCherie http://tangocherie.blogspot.com.ar/2012/07/la-tangueras-new-clothes.html#.UrAcHn8aySN

Elizabeth Brinton

http://elizabethbrinton.blogspot.co.nz/2013/12/outfits-i-like-random-thoughts-based-on.html

And TangoCherie again on what not to wear to milongas

http://tangocherie.blogspot.com.ar/2007/03/no-te-lo-pongas-or-what-not-to-wear-to.html#.UrAdVn8aySM

Luisito Ferrari and Mirta Tiseyra

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.uk/2009/05/luisito-ferraris-and-mirta-tiseyra.html

Alberto Dassieu died a couple of days ago. Here's a half hour interview with him from 2011 where he talks about how he learned to dance, musicality, stories from the old days. It's just great.

http://youtu.be/hogMtNoX8Xw

Two Guardian articles on tango in BA from Chris

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/dec/30/buenosaires.culturaltrips.argentina

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/video/2013/nov/05/tango-buenos-aires-taxi-drivers-guide-argentina-video

Luisito Ferraris and Ricardo Vidort

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2013/11/ricardo-vidort-and-luisito-ferraris.html

Sally Catway wrote a very cool book for tango travelers to BA, and this is a celebration of its success

http://sallycatway.com/?p=3109

Here's an interesting read from Alberto Paz and Valorie Hart

http://gottatango.wordpress.com/2013/11/15/an-adult-guide-to-argentine-tango/

Tango and Parkinson's disease

http://globalnews.ca/news/973055/it-helps-to-take-your-mind-off-the-parkinsons-seniors-use-tango-as-therapy/

If you're going to BA and have a smartphone...

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/11/18/which-milonga/

And here are the links

Apple https://itunes.apple.com/nz/app/hoy-milonga/id547693760?mt=8

Android https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hoy&hl=en

The birth of the bandoneon

http://www.lptango.com.ar/en/articles/54-from-liturgy-to-tango.html

Ricardo Vaqueira and Roberta Buoni

http://youtu.be/eYM0d570I-Q

Here’s a special birthday…

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/11/10/the-birth-of-tangomania/

Ruminations on the Sydney tango scene. Sound familiar?

http://tangoaustralia.blogspot.co.nz/2013/11/ruminations-on-sydney-tango-scene.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+blogspot/INFve+(Angelina's+Tango+Blog)

Here's a hilarious bit of moral turpitude from Junior Cervila http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK6GSfja3ho

I'm sorry, it all seemed a bit pretentious to me.

Dunedin has a new tango calendar

http://tangodunedin.weebly.com/

Another very typical scene from a milonga. Note the bright lighting so that cabaceo is able to be used…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=df6KIR3zBJU&feature=youtu.be&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Ddf6KIR3zBJU%26feature%3Dyoutu.be&app=desktop

If you're traveling to Argentina soon...

http://bubblear.com/2013/11/4949/

I sent this out a while ago but it's well worth another look: 'el Ultimo Bandoneom'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu7nbCuZhfk

Oh noooooo! Maipu 444 was a tango venue in BA which I remember very fondly but it was shut down a couple of years ago. I hoped to hear that it had opened again but...

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/11/09/what-became-of-maipu-444/

Elsa and Julio Duplaa, Ricardo Rojas, Coca and Osvaldo, El Chino Perico...

Brilliant, that's all.

http://youtu.be/sRzaWlOEpdI

Ricardo Suarez and partner dancing Milonga to Tango Negro by Juan Carlos Caceres. This is how I want to spend my retirement!

http://youtu.be/8Is7ZdjcueY

Maria Marta and Ricardo Karpen, very nice!

http://youtu.be/6WHpuPKpbAo

Ricardo Viqueira and Maria Darritchon dancing Milonga, I love this!

http://youtu.be/37PcynXHQxs

Advice on tango shoes for ladies (and some men, I guess)

http://www.helainetreitmantango.com/2013/10/12-things-to-look-for-in-choosing.html?m=1

Let's hear it for Mario Hector Camartino, 85 and dancing great, with Susy Tilbe

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=X1uGwBrERbM&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DX1uGwBrERbM

Two great posts about the need for kindness and friendliness in tango

http://www.mytangodiaries.com/2013/10/a-little-kindness.html

Advice for dancing high heels that also applies for dancing in low heels and for men's shoes.

http://www.helainetreitmantango.com/2013/10/ask-helaine-how-can-i-dance-well-in.html

An article about dancing with one's body, not one's feet. Thank God!

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2013/09/you-dance-with-your-feet-i-can-see-you.html

An interesting commentary from a musicality workshop

http://tangostudent.blogspot.co.nz/2013/10/not-another-musicality-workshop.html

The La Marshall gay Milonga is one of our favorites in BA.

http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-argentina-tango-20131004,0,6021187.story

Sigh...I've trawled through so many disappointing videos this week that I thought I'd just repoint Gentle Readers to this one of my favorites.

Analia Vega and Marcelo Varela, April 2007

My favourite clip. We are just to the left, off camera.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo8fA5xBvLM

Some interesting perspectives on BA from a Turkish dancer

http://gancho.info/my-buenos-aires-finally-it-does-not-matter-where-you-have-danced-all-evening-but-night-should-end-in-la-viruta/

Some more high heels amusement from Jose Garofalo, this time with Carlos Stasi

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IzOTvOY_sHw

And, I don't usually do this, but this is quite the silliest Milonga demo that I've ever seen.

http://www.argentinetangovideos.net/2013/09/alejandro-barrientos-and-rosalie-gasso.html

Some interesting tango quotes

http://tangocritica.wordpress.com/2013/09/10/tango-quotes-moving-thoughts-that-will-reshape-your-dancing/

A pretty cool movie trailer

http://youtu.be/G8-7z3uJWug

Tango Dunedin has a new website with calendar. Hooray!

http://tangodunedin.weebly.com/

Weeeeell...it's choreo but it's a lot of fun! Ariadna Naveira & Fernando Sanchez

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sDX_W6I35rA&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DsDX_W6I35rA

Fernando Iturrieta and Celia Blanco getting seriously involved with the music.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/09/02/fernando-hector-iturrieta-4

Some thoughts on tango teaching methods, inspired by an article by Tango Immigrant (linked)

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.com/2013/08/tango-beginner-to-tango-teacher.html

Sebastian Arce's pride takes a dent

http://blog.tangomeet.com/about-criticism-and-my-own-experience/

What not to do in BA

http://landingpadba.com/what-to-not-do-in-buenos-aires/

Foot care for tango dancers

http://argentinetangoclub.org/footcare/

Well, I found this interesting...

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/08/20/festival-and-world-cup-2013-5/

One too many women's technique classes. Is there room here for a partner...anytime...? Quite funny, though, it doesn't take itself too seriously.

http://youtu.be/8o5IWOKl2gA

Taxi!

http://latinalista.com/2013/08/taxi-dancers-gain-popularity-in-the-tango-clubs-of-buenos-aires

The Tango Fuzz website has some interesting articles. Here's one of them.

http://tangofuzz.com/blog/kathys-seven-tips-for-a-single-lady-at-ba-milongas-2/

Here's Tango Immigrant with some worthwhile thoughts on cabeceo and charity

http://tangoimmigrant.blogspot.co.nz/2013/08/on-cabeceo-and-charity.html

And two comedic links that are very similar, but both from the leader's point of view. Why are there none from the follower's perspective? Should we make one?

Here's Chicho and Margot

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zv07F905I5E

And here's José Garofalo and Veronica Alvarenga

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=98CmUhcJWbw

How's your Spanish? Here's a really interesting book and film via Janis Kenyon, 'de Milongas y Milonguer@s'

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2008/12/15/de-milongas-y-milonguers/

I just finished watching the movie by Chan Park, 'Tango Your Life'. It features a friend from Auckland that lives in BA now, Gyles Blaskett, and consists of many interviews with locals, tourists and transplants. It's well worth watching, and Nada and Sveta love it!. The preview is here

http://youtu.be/0atvWyQ4rrs

and the DVD is here

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DGDINZW

It reminded me of another labour of love by Rick McGarrey, the Tango and Chaos website, which Nada and Sveta hadn't seen. This is always worth a visit. Be prepared to lose a few hours!

http://www.tangoandchaos.org/

Analia Vega and Marcelo Varela, 'Poema'

http://youtu.be/MGWBwwYlvHs

And

http://youtu.be/Lj84cV0csvw

And a bit of history, Miguel Balmaceda, father of Ernesto and Julio, dancing at Salon Canning in the 80s

http://youtu.be/5dHx1BxLo8M

Here's Christine Denniston's History of Tango site. Well worth a look.

http://www.history-of-tango.com/

Raúl Gauto y Liliane Pierrot. They're not stars... I just like watching them dance. Fluid and smooth, always together.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=dMAVmHpULq8&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DdMAVmHpULq8%26feature%3Dyoutu.be

Chan Park's new DVD 'Tango Your Life' is released. Here's the trailer

http://t.co/yq4g5iNSax

Here's a bit of history: Graciela Gonzalez dancing with Pupy Costello in the 70s.

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2013/07/graciela-gonzalez-y-pupi-castelo-en-la.html

This week is the 99th anniversary of the birthday of Troilo, one of the greatest bandoneonistas.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/07/10/dia-del-bandoneon-2/

Here's an interesting story of the early years in BA from Janis Kenyon

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/07/03/la-pista-de-lima/

More typical local dancers in BA.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/07/02/alberto-luis-ayala-4

Some people tell me that there are too many Milongas in Welli for the number of dancers. Well....yerrrrs...but that means more choices for people for whom the choices of a year ago didn't quite work.

Anyway, here's a link describing how BA has the same situation.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/04/02/i-heard-it-through-the-tango-grapevine/

Top 10 Reasons Every Nerdy Person Should Learn to Dance http://t.co/VdcxaZ9JfV

Here are two clips of El Chino Perico and Malena Rodriguez

http://youtu.be/KbH2S95_qOo

http://youtu.be/rlVMuqItCjE

Ricardo Vidort and Myriam Pincen - Chique (Francisco Canaro)

http://youtu.be/mekNwq3AW4E

Here's a video of Independencia 572 in Buenos Aires. Nothing serious, just a look and feel kind of video. The last time that we were there it had a plywood dancefloor which wasn't very nice, it's difficult to tell if it's been replaced.

http://www.airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/54/milongas-de-buenos-aires-y-el-mundo/ncia-milonga-sabados-en-san-telmo-buenos-aires-youtube.html

Two from Janis Kenyon:

How is milonga danced in the milongas of Buenos Aires?

http://youtu.be/oOyYsyktsNw

And

How is vals danced in the milongas of Buenos Aires?

http://youtu.be/7jRJ_b0WtTw

Well, this is handy! Here's advice from Janis Kenyon on booking tables at Milongas in BA, and also a link to Hoy Milonga, an online tango calendar that removes the need to sift through tango magazines searching for events when you're there.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/06/23/do-you-have-a-reservation/

The iPhone app is really useful!

Rowing through seemingly endless links and referrals searching for interesting links gets a bit discouraging. For instance:

Fabulous. Well, not really.

http://youtu.be/xVF3farOPwE

On the other hand, here are Tete and Silvia. Sigh.

http://youtu.be/ZPT2_n55nhk

And here they are again at Canning, with cameramen

http://youtu.be/weLY_CvKw4M

Sing along with Ignacio Corsini to 'El Adios' (translation)

http://letrasdetango.wordpress.com/2013/03/29/el-adios/

Here's a new tango documentary being released on DVD about the experiences of ladies traveling to BA for tango.

http://tangoaustralia.blogspot.co.nz/2013/06/desire-to-embrace.html

Next time that you're on the Quais de Seine...

http://tango-argentin.fr/milonga-el-guerrillero.html

It amuses me that they call their outdoor free milonga Guerrilla Tango as well!

I found this highly amusing!

http://jazzmonkey.wordpress.com/2013/06/06/5-realizations-you-need-to-make-about-dance-teachers/

Lyrics of the week

Sing along with Hector Maure with Juan D'Arienzo! I heard years ago that it drove Argentines crazy when tourists grinned when they danced because they obviously didn't understand the lyrics. This is a classic case of great music combined with a translation which, in English, sounds completely over the top. I never knew...

http://letrasdetango.wordpress.com/2013/06/02/amarras/

Here's an interesting article regarding UK tango and the difficulty of getting work permits for traveling teachers. There's also a very nice clip of Jorge Llado and Florencia Argento.

http://tangocommuter1.blogspot.co.nz/2013/05/jorge-llado.html

Beth and me dancing to Jason Mraz' 'I'm Yours' at the Wellington Childrens’ Hospital fundraiser.

https://t.co/SKbcQF07V1

An interesting article about the different textures and 'voices' in tango music.

http://simbatango.com/2008/11/30/why-we-never-tire-of-tango-music/

An interview with Juan Carlos Copes

http://www.lptango.com.ar/en/interviews/122-juan-carlos-copes.html

A guide to tango music stores

http://simbatango.com/2013/05/23/guide-to-tango-music-stores/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+SimbaTango+%28Simba+tango%29

Here's a blog by Mari Johnson on frustrations arising from lack of developing one's tango.

http://www.mytangodiaries.com/2013/05/reality-check-again.html

This link takes you to Janis Kenyon’s blog about Carlos Alberto Azuate. The link from there takes you to a video titled La Noche de Milongueros. It’s not that its great dancing but I think it’s important as a reference for anyone interested in travelling to BA or the history of tango.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/05/21/carlos-alberto-anzuate-5/

Some thoughts on the vast range of tango 'styles' by me

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/2013/05/different-style-really.html

Here’s a video of Beth and me dancing at a fundraiser for the Wellington Children’s Hospital last night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MScEnniknfI

http://vimeo.com/m/67092849

Here's Juan Topalian dancing with Franca, very tidy, dancing with her feet, splitting the rhythm between her feet and his own...very cool...

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/05/12/juan-topalian-3/

I saw this and thought of our local Welly tanguero, David Chittenden

http://www.tangoconfidential.com/2007/11/blind-man-dancing-tango.html

Here's a 10-minute clip celebrating Ricardo Vidort, one of the legends, with a couple of demos at the end.

http://youtu.be/paeJO4xwn4k

Here's an interesting blog post that I spotted yesterday. It appears to have caused some controversy in various dance scenes around the world, and was the subject of some discussion on Facebook.

http://movementinvitesmovement.wordpress.com/2011/07/19/javier-rodriguez-castration-and-more/

What's most interesting to me is that it caused so much heat and yet still has very little relevance to my own experience dancing around the world.

So, just for the record, it's worth a read but I don't take it seriously at all, as with much of what I read on tango blogs. (You get bonus points if you can read to the end of the comments. It's pretty hard work.)

Excellent interview with ‘El Flaco’ Dany Garcia! He’s 77 and still travelling and teaching. Subtitles are available via the captions button on the youtube screen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COwV6kPmr6E

Here is one of Janis Kenyon's friends, Emilio Lopez Varela. He's quite a groover and a pleasure to watch dancing with Celia Blanco, organizer of the Lo de Celia milonga.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/05/09/emilio-lopez-varela-3/

Here's an interesting snippet on how violinists achieve one of the characteristic sounds of tango, the chicharra

http://m.youtube.com/?client=mv-google&rdm=mmhsx042o#/watch?v=UKFlRd8J2ik&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DUKFlRd8J2ik

TangoTunes is now online, a digital tango music store

http://www.tangotunes.com/

Interesting documentary about Federico and Hosanna of Sydney and their trip to BA in 2007 for the world tango championship. A central theme is the tension between choreography and 'how it looks' versus what they found in BA which was primarily about 'how it feels'.

http://youtu.be/lZMtZ_UZh_Y

There is soooooo much discussion online about importing all or some of the milonga customs from Argentina. Here is Melina Sedó's view of gender-separated seating.

http://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.co.nz/2013/05/divide-and-rule.html

Janis Kenyon has found another gem, an interview with Pepito Avellaneda. Click on the blue link within her article.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/04/29/pepito-avellaneda-2/

A short biography of Julio de Caro

http://www.lptango.com.ar/en/articles/120-decarisimo.html

And of his brother, Francisco de Caro

http://www.lptango.com.ar/en/characters/121-francisco-de-caro.html

Here's another typical milonga, this time in Cordoba.

http://airesdemilonga.com/es/home/todos-los-videos/viewvideo/101/milongas-de-buenos-aires-y-el-mundo/tango-milonga-luna-de-tango-cordoba-argentina

How about some old masters?

Here's Gerardo Portalea dancing with Marte

http://youtu.be/ph6XGNTea9c

Osvaldo y Coca dancing at Sunderland. Yes, it doubles as a basketball court.

http://youtu.be/MNYPC9Inw-o

And here's Analia Vega and Marcelo Varela

http://youtu.be/Cb2ZQq5KakM

Here's an interesting article about luck versus choices.

http://tangogales.wordpress.com/2013/04/14/luck-or-design/

This post has some interesting things to say about tango festivals and celebrations.

http://tallatango.wordpress.com/2013/04/03/on-tango-festivals-and-celebrations/

Ricardo Viqueira and 'Fish' dancing on a table

http://youtube.com/watch?v=g9sYWTE6LTg

And with Mirta Tiseyra dancing milonga

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8gW8QjDGbN0

The well-known milonga Niño Bien is closing in Buenos Aires. Many Wellington dancers will have danced there over the years so it’s a little poignant.

http://thetangolife.wordpress.com/2013/04/04/requiem-for-a-nino-bien/

Here's a comment from TangoCherie. The milonga is moving venues, not closing down.

The Region Leonesa is my very favorite tango hall, but the Nino Bien milonga has been for the past several years a tourist hangout, a place to see and be seen, but not to dance well. The milonga is moving nearby to Obelisco Tango on Entre Rios, and we wish them lots of success and good luck. It's a very positive sign that a new tango hall, open 7 days a week, is opening up in the "centro" area (actually Congreso.) Ruben and I will check it out, and continue to enjoy the gorgeous, elegant antique salon of Region Leonesa on Saturday afternoons at the Milonga de los Consagrados.

Aaaand for Tango Nuevo music lovers, Otros Aires' new album is now on iTunes

http://t.co/vGMzOKlXck

Some notes on sexual politics for women traveling to BA by Janis Kenyon

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/04/03/amigo-novio-amigovio/

One of the more over-used phrases gets a worthwhile workout in this article. I'm not usually keen on the phrase, 'Thats not really tango.' It's often used by close embrace dancers who stagger around as badly as the people in these videos. The nice thing about a larger tango scene as in BA is that rather than worrying if something is or is not Real Tango is that one can just go to Some Other Milonga, or dance with Someone Else. In smaller scenes its easier for people to get wound up about it because there are fewer alternatives.

http://tango-therapist.blogspot.co.nz/2013/04/this-is-not-tango.html

A couple more old clips from what appears to be a documentary starring Petroleo and Miguel Angel Zotto.

http://simbatango.com/2013/03/31/rare-clips-of-petroleo-virulazo-and-others/

The Past in the Present: Hidden Places of Memory in Buenos Aires http://t.co/SYWMdfEXed

Worth a read, one woman's experience of BA.

http://willowtango.me/2013/03/28/milongas-and-milongueros-true-faqs-an-interview-with-a-buenos-aires-milonguera/

Wow! Here's a bit of treasure! Petroleo, Mingo Pugliese, Miguel Angel Zotto and Milena Plebs talking about the early years of tango.

http://youtu.be/quHDYyqnJcE

Loving Life at 90 - tango dancer, yogi, designer

http://huff.to/15ltCYw

Interesting interview with singer Alberto Podestá

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV5uloZgZrE

Noelia Hurtado y Carlitos Espinoza

http://youtu.be/uDRCMYR6jsU

Juan D'arienzo Tango La Cumparsita.

Oh yeah!

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2013/03/juan-darienzo-tango-la-cumparsita-video.html

Mari Johnson on shoe selection

http://leonatraining.blogspot.co.nz/2013/03/surviving-high-heels-part-ii-10-tips.html

Psychology of Tango clip, shot in Auckland a couple of years ago, featuring Sebastian Arrúa, Cecilia Trini, Stefan and Era and other Auckland dancers.

http://vimeo.com/14502347

It's not tango but it's very very cool!

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/03/11/174050748/watch-two-dance-videos-thatll-make-your-day?sc=tw&cc=share

Mari Johnson on dancing barefoot.

http://mytangodiaries.blogspot.co.nz/2013/03/the-poetry-of-foot-adventures-of-would.html

Mari Johnson again on tango shoe selection and its impact on one's dancing

http://mytangodiaries.blogspot.com/2013/03/tango-feet-shoe-selection-and-injury.html

The three types of dancers that you need in your life in order to become the best that you can be: Someone better than you, someone equal to you, and someone not as good as you. Parallels from the world of mountain biking and...umm...Mixed Martial Arts?

http://www.bikejames.com/strength/the-3-types-of-riders-you-need-in-your-life-2/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-3-types-of-riders-you-need-in-your-life-2

TangoCherie on why you need a tango holiday in Buenos Aires. Exactamundo!

http://www.batips.com/tango/why-take-a-tango-trip-to-buenos-aires/

Some thoughts by Janis Kenyon on the decline of lead-follow and the rise of choreography being sold as lead-follow in tango.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/02/25/the-end-of-the-milonga-how-marketing-changed-the-tango-forever/

And here is a similar article by TangoCherie talking about, oh dear God, Milonguero Nuevo.

http://tangocherie.blogspot.co.nz/2010/06/milonguero-nuevo.html#.UTJplIwaySM

Here is a view of the Nuevo Chique milonga in Buenos Aires

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2011/05/esta-es-una-milonga-vespertina-que-los.html

And here is El Beso milonga in BA

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2013/02/el-beso.html

Travel Tales/Finding One's Way

2014-10-21T23:20:00.001-07:00

A friend of mine returned from another city recently and told how while at a Milonga she sat for a long time without being asked. She spent the time watching couples dancing and noticed that the men weren't actually leading. They each did a slightly different pattern over and over and their partners just walked it for them, without regard to connection. Eventually she was asked to dance, she remembered the guy's pattern and walked it for him. He was deeply impressed, told her that she was an amazing dancer and subsequently told all his friends. Each of them asked her to dance, she repeated the patterns for them that she had committed to memory earlier, and each of them was similarly deeply impressed. She hardly sat down again!
I told her that it must have felt good to be so popular and she shrugged noncommittally, "but they weren't leading, so...it wasn't really dancing..."
How do leaders improve if they can't trust their followers to follow?
How do followers who dance with connection get dances if the leaders prefer to dance with women who walk their patterns for them because "you hardly have to touch her, she knows just what to do!" (The obvious answer in a small scene: learn to read patterns quickly or take up gardening.)

I was dancing Milonga with a friend who kept disconnecting and stepping away from me, and she asked me why the dance wasn't working. When I told her how it felt for me she said that she'd recently been to a Milonga workshop with a visiting Argentine teacher who'd berated her for stopping walking during the song. He told her that she should always be walking, no matter what happened. "Why would he tell me that if it wasn't true?"
"Because he's an idiot?" I suggested.

A friend asked me if she was following ok at a festival a couple of years ago. A visiting Argentine teacher had slightly twisted her right hand back and forth as he led her during a workshop and told her, "This means that you do Ochos now." She was very upset because, being a solo mum she had limited time and money and had just realised that both had been wasted.

I taught a newbie the basics of good posture, how to stay connected and how to move with the leader through Ochos and giros. She took a chance and attended a workshop with a visiting Argentine teacher who exclaimed, "But you don't know any steps! How can I dance with you if you don't know any steps?"
How do dancers improve if different teachers tell them different things? How does one sift out the teachers that hinder rather than help?

I danced a very difficult tango with a European lady who clamped her ankles and knees together on every step, only took a step if she recognised it from a set menu, and danced almost completely on her own. When I returned to my seat exhausted the women to my left and right exclaimed to me that it looked incredible and that she looked like an amazing dancer. Such beautiful footwork! I exploded, "Then you dance with her!"
How does a follower improve if they only appreciate how it looks rather than how it feels, and seek to emulate followers who...don't follow?

Beth and I visited a particularly unfriendly Encuentro in Europe where almost everyone ignored us before seeing us dance. A friendly smile or hello were met by a cool gaze and a look away. There was a pecking order at work and we were not on it. It was very unpleasant but we had come a long way, Beth's favourite dance partner was with us and I had met a very friendly lady at the afternoon Milonga, so we were set for the evening. What quickly became apparent was that the standard was extremely low, even at this somewhat exclusive event, with a handful of leaders and followers out of a couple of hundred people. The men generally had terrible posture and shuffled awkwardly around the room. The women appeared to have all attended womens' technique classes and danced beautifully...but not with their leaders. There was a marked migration of men and women to the tables at our corner of the room after they saw us dance, and the amount of cabaceo was ridiculous but...no thanks.

We've seen the same tired formula of bad leaders/soloist followers repeated in cities across Europe, the USA, Australia, NZ and also in BA where we see it mainly among the younger people. Women often attend technique classes, men generally don't. Men tend to dance with women who guess their patterns, women learn to dance in the absence of a lead. Wooden performances on YouTube are greeted with rapture and the circle goes around and around. The years and workshops go by with little apparent improvement.

I only know one way of breaking through the mess of conflicting messages from teachers in order to become a better dancer: learn both roles. There are simple physical attributes that dictate how well two bodies fit together and talk of 'different styles', man's role' and 'woman's role' puts an obscuring mask over a simple truth.

For men who learn to follow it lets them feel in their bones the difference between a crisp clear lead and a sloppy bag of nothing.
For women learning to lead it lets them feel in their bones what it's like when their follower 'puts energy into their feet', strides from foot to foot, changes weight when they feel like it and dances like a soloist.

Men need to learn with men so that they don't burden lady leaders with their weight and, equally importantly, learn not to 'help' the leader which is just another word for guessing and does a disservice to both leader and follower.
Women need to learn with women so that they aren't physically stressed.

For those who prefer to wait until they've mastered their current role, leader or follower, before learning the other...good luck.

Tango Beginner to Tango Teacher

2013-08-26T13:31:00.001-07:00

This post was inspired by one on teaching styles on Tango Immigrant's blog http://tangoimmigrant.blogspot.co.nz/2013/08/the-long-and-winding-road.html

I learned tango the usual way via a mix of local and visiting teachers. The visitors would arrive two or three times per year, talk briefly about technique in their classes and then teach us new steps. This was what most people wanted (including me at first) but when I started looking for more and took private lessons I still didn't get the basic understanding of the dance that I was looking for.

I had group classes and solos in New Zealand, Australia, Germany, the USA and the UK but in hindsight I would say that while those lessons kept the tango dream alive they didn't advance my dancing very much.

The first big step forward was going to Buenos Aires and finding a good teacher who showed us the body mechanics of tango. It became much easier after that but it took many group classes with many teachers in order to find him.

The second big step forward in my dancing, which happened simultaneously with the first, was realizing that group classes were almost worthless. They keep the dream alive, perform a social function, and give students a sense of making progress but (in my experience) accomplish little else apart from allowing teachers to generate an income. (This isn't necessarily a bad thing: 'buyer beware'; 'dancers shouldn't rely on teachers to develop themselves' and all that)

This was driven home when we started teaching group classes ourselves. We would describe and demonstrate concepts, hands-on with students as much as possible in a 60-90 minute class. We tried to keep things easy to learn, interesting and fun, but the group classes gave too little time to each person, and the differing motivations of each student meant that our efforts were usually frittered away. We made wonderful new friends from the group classes but decided that our spare time would be better spent together rather than continuing a mostly fruitless activity.

We only teach solos now, with much more satisfying results, although the financial return is far less than group classes and workshops. One won't grow a tango scene by significant numbers this way but that is what group classes are for, and there will always be people who feel that group classes work better for them, despite all evidence to the contrary.

Incidentally, regarding my comment about group classes/teacher income not being a bad thing, it motivates the marketing of tango and helps to keep it growing. My only concern is when examples arise such as a ballroom studio that had a throughput of 500 tango argentino students per year, of which virtually none moved on to their local tango scene, whether practicas or milongas. Those that did found that the sequences they had learned bore almost no relation to the tango world outside their studio. It was a great business model, it just wasn't very good for growing tango.

Different Style? Really?

2013-05-23T02:01:00.001-07:00

I just tried wading through a web page that tried to describe all the different styles of tango. The writer did their best to define 'style' as a point of difference in dancing that creates a difficulty when dancing with someone with another point of difference, and there is no right way or wrong way, only different ways.
Well...I don't think so.
Some people like to compartmentalise themselves and other people into dance styles. It helps them feel better about their own dancing and gives them an excuse when they have difficulties dancing with someone ie "oh, it's just a different style", when really they don't even understand how their own dance works - let alone why they struggle to dance with someone else.
In my experience there are only two styles:
- Lead and follow (based on body mechanics)
- Nudge and guess (based on familiarity with one's partner, going to the same workshops or school, etc)
I want to write about this because we travel internationally for tango more than many people, and we see and hear the same lack of progress in every country. One's lead or follow is very close to one's pride and it's only rarely, for example, that a man will shyly ask if I have trouble leading a particular lady.
I think it's important to share experiences so that people have a fighting chance of moving their enjoyment of dance forward. Otherwise, like philosophy, it's 'like a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat that isn't there.'
I didn't understand for the first few years of dancing tango why so many women in various countries over the years told me that my style was very different to other men, until I met Beth. "Oh, that's because you don't dance patterns. Most men dance the same pattern all night, every night, and it takes a song or two to learn it. I never know where you're going to lead me next which is why it's so interesting." I was stunned, because I thought that improvisation was the soul of tango and that everyone did it. Well, it's a lot like connection, that way. Every teacher's website talks about it, but we don't see a lot of it in our travels.
Since then I've heard and seen variations on this in every country that we've danced. Two couples will glide smoothly around the floor and look very nice until they change partners, at which point the stumbling begins and after 2 or 3 dances, sometimes never, things smooth out again.
Which means that either he's not leading, she's not following, or both.
When I watch people dance with each other I can usually see if there's a problem and why, just from the body mechanics. Similarly, when I dance with followers from these different 'styles' I figure out how best to dance with them based on their manner of connection, posture etc.
For example, if I'm 3-5 steps into a dance with a new partner and she's already changed weight on her own 3-5 times and shows only the most tenuous understanding of connection...then I'll scale back my expectation of our dance to leading (indicating?) something that she can guess ie very basic sequence-oriented steps with minimal improvisation and the emphasis firmly on repetition.
I'll try to help my partner relax and occasionally lead something a little different just in case it's only a case of nerves, but my experience is that many women in many countries dance this way, including professional dancers and both local and traveling teachers.
When in doubt I just remain smooth, turn my chest back and forth a bit and keep it simple so their guesses are as easy as possible. My partners usually enjoy this but...it's not really dancing, is it?
If she guesses less often and only changes her own weight occasionally then I have more opportunity to lead something that might be more interesting for both of us.
The times when it doesn't work so well is when I've failed to indicate something that they can guess, perhaps because I've danced with too many guessers already that evening, or they are focused on performing a sequence that they saw on YouTube, with or without me. Yes, this has happened to me.
I was asked recently by a follower how I would characterize my dancing and I replied, "I just want to be part of your body and move to beautiful music for 3 minutes."
If I want that to happen on a regular basis then I'll continue to put my faith in body mechanics, thanks.
Different style? I don't think so.

Here's Beth and me dancing to Donato and dancing to Jason Mraz' 'I'm Yours' at a fundraiser for the Wellington Children's Hospital.

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Recoleta Apartment for Sale

2013-02-02T10:00:00.001-08:00

Recoleta Apartment for Sale

My friend Maria has decided to sell her apartment on Ave Libertador in the high class area of Recoleta surrounded by renowned hotels bars and restaurants, and next to the distinguished Patio Bullrich shopping mall and cinemas. A short stroll to the famous Recoleta cemetery, plazas, parks and museums.

Bright, stylish studio apartment, 28m2, with separate kitchen and bathroom, rear-facing and on the 10th floor of a 14 storey building so there is little traffic noise. It has been renovated to a high standard with wood floors throughout, walk-in closet, underfloor heating, air conditioning and ceiling fan, central hot water, wifi and internet connection and cable tv installed. Gas hob and fridge included in price.

$88K USD including furniture if wanted. The furniture was all new 2 years ago and of a high quality.

Maria says that, "FYI the prices over here have gone up substantially and similar flats in the area according to the Clarin are going for similar prices. As a comparison, there is another empty apartment for sale for $82K USD on the 2nd floor in the same building, slightly smaller but facing the street and so is very noisy."

The building has 24 hour security, laundry facilities in the basement and a large roof terrace with plants and benches boasting a spectacular river view.

For tango lovers the apartment also has a wall mounted mirror for practice.

You can contact Maria via maria_murphy100@yahoo.com

Lounge Photos

Bedroom Photos

Kitchen Photos

Bathroom Photos

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Good Posture, Potato Sacks, and Wasted Opportunities

2012-12-15T14:16:00.001-08:00

This is a rant. There are other references to the same topic on this blog but I think that I need to be a bit more direct.

The keyword for today is 'axis definition' which is produced by good posture. This post (and my whole blog) is written from the perspective of dancing tango by connecting to one's partner and dancing in a one body-four legs manner. If you don't dance this way then it may not make much sense to you. Or perhaps that's just due to the rich tapestry which is my writing style.

The blunt truth is that any dancer is a potato sack if they do not have good posture. They are difficult to lead and difficult to follow.

The blunter truth is that if you don't know how to stand up and define your axis then it might be best to learn to do so before wasting any further money on dance lessons.

I've watched so many teachers talk about good posture and chest projection, among other things, as fundamental requirements of dancing tango. Fabulous! Except that I always watch it melt away from their students within a very short time almost immediately afterwards (sometimes within the same workshop) until it re-emerges briefly at the next workshop by the next visiting teachers.

The students are usually being asked to do something which they don't need to do on a daily basis ie have good posture. It takes a conscious and sustained effort if one is going to change the habits of a lifetime, and one can't slouch one's way through daily life and expect to dance like a dream on those occasions when one steps on a dance floor.

Good dancers must produce themselves, teachers can only guide them.

So, the years, the workshops and cash outlay stream by and yet many dancers don't progress. Some of them notice and get frustrated that they appear to have plateau-ed, others don't notice at all and let their partners get frustrated instead.

And then there are the new people who arrive and are relatively good dancers in a short time. What do they have that the plateau-ed dancers do not?

I think of the lady followers that I've danced with around the world who other men enthusiastically described as 'natural dancers' and how that accolade had come to them very easily. It was mainly because they had good posture and preferred to dance 'with' their partners rather than 'at' their partners. This is not to let off the leaders in many countries whose posture and lead is often so bad that the women learn to dance on their own because it's what the men expect. If the local dance level is low enough then that's very often what the women come to expect as well.

Similarly I think of all the workshops and lessons where I've seen teachers giving their students what they want, steps and moves, rather than what they need (posture, connection management, moving with a partner). This is natural from a financial perspective because the teacher won't last as a professional if the students don't come back next week, and if the students pay attention to those fundamentals then they won't need to come back next week.

Two examples to illustrate my point come to mind:

1/ A lady with excellent posture who had not been dancing long asked me for feedback on the dance floor, because she knows I'm receptive to that kind of thing. (I'd much rather someone try to improve while dancing with me than stagger around making my life a Very Difficult Thing, and my income isn't tied to tango teaching so this can only turn out well for me.)

I told her that her axis was already excellent and that she only needed to hold her chest lightly against mine as though she was saving me from falling forward, to concentrate on constant shoulder height relative to me rather than worry where her feet should go, and that I would always walk towards her centre. Deal? Done.

She was immediately a lovely smooth dancer, I was able to lead a wide variety of beautiful things and we both had a wonderful time. How can this be made so difficult by so many people, both students and teachers? It wasn't as though I was teaching her some arcane system of signals which meant that she could only dance with me. It's first-principle stuff.

2/ A lady recently began tango with us after two years of salsa and many years of teaching deportment and modeling, but no other dance background. After one 20-minute solo lesson she knew enough about connection management and movement with a partner to enjoy social dancing as a follower in open embrace, assuming that the leader could lead. A little more time and she was leading me steps of varying length as well as colgada giros. And I'm 90 kg. Teaching her close embrace has been a similarly easy road.

The thread connecting these examples is that good posture and axis definition makes leading and following a breeze. If you've reached a plateau in your dancing then consider whether your posture is holding you back before spending any more money on lessons.

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Buenos Aires Folktales

2012-11-17T02:24:00.001-08:00

I thought that I'd write about popular stories about Buenos Aires that I was told before I went there and still see perpetuated on websites in many countries. Some tango scenes that we've visited seem to be trying to be more BA than BA, itself.

I need to highlight, in case it's not obvious, that this post is based on my experience on many trips to BA since 2004. I've watched and danced in a wide range of milongas, from very touristy through to almost completely local, in downtown and in the barrios. Perhaps these stories came from before that time but I can't really comment on that.

Your experiences may conflict with mine, particularly if they extend to before that time, but that's the great thing about the internet. Write about it and tell me stories of your own.

The Short Version

A condensed version of this post can be contained in the experience of a dear friend on her first visit from New York.. We arranged to meet at a particular milonga and we danced a little and watched for a while until she turned to me and said, "Look, we need to go somewhere where there are locals. This is just a room full of tourists. We need to go where the good dancers are."

I gently told her that we were the only tourists in the room and she replied, "But they are terrible, terrible dancers! Look, we must be in the wrong place!"

I agreed to move on to another milonga and in the taxi she explained, "You need to understand that for 12 years I've been told amazing stories about Buenoa Aires. The men are all amazing leaders, the old men wear suits with carnations, they are very polite and dance with all the ladies, everyone dances in perfect lanes on the dance floor, there are no collisions. Nothing at that milonga fit any of that description. We MUST be in the wrong place!"

I replied that yes, I'd been told all those things as well, and that simply wasn't my experience of BA.

We arrived at the new milonga and after our first tanda I asked how her experience measured up to her expectations.

"It's a war zone! There's only a marginal line of dance, there are collisions all the time! By locals hitting us, not the other way around!"

I told her that both our first venue and our second venue were perfectly normal in my experience, and that much of what I'd been told about BA bore little resemblance to what I found.

The Longer Version

I thought that I'd write about a few of the more common disparities that I read and hear about, starting with…

La Ronda (Line of Dance)

Most of what I hear about la ronda as performed in BA is along the line of 'people dancing in perfect lanes with the best dancers on the outside, beginners in the middle', 'no collisions', and most spectacularly of all, 'the whole floor moving as a single organism'.

I. Have. Never. Seen. This.

There's a wide range of ability of leaders and followers among the locals and while there is a general anti-clockwise movement, as usual around the world, they are pretty much moving to where there is space, also as usual around the world. I need to qualify this with an experience in Germany where an almost completely empty and very large dance floor was slowly filled by one couple at a time, with tens of metres separating each couple, each of whom carefully shuffled their way around the very outside edge of the dance floor. They appeared to have been told a rule about dancing the outside lane and were sticking to it. I've never seen anything like this in BA.

Cabeceo (Catching a Prospective Partner's Eye)

Our first landlady laughed when I first asked her about the cabeceo and told me that I shouldn't be so concerned about it. She was a performance partner of one of the milonguero legends, was a local and had been dancing since 1990. She told me that she heard all kinds of things about the cabeceo from tourists but it was just a way of discreetly asking someone to dance if you did not know them. If you were friends then you should know whether you could go over and ask or not.

I had read that to ask a woman to dance at her table was extremely rude and that men who came to the table to ask should know this, and so were probably bad dancers who couldn't get dances any other way. However I saw kind local men doing this with tourists if they suspected that the women didn't know about cabeceo.

Dance Standard

Oh dear, here's a can of worms.

My view is that much of one's perspective of the standard of dancing in BA depends on one's own level of dancing. When one first goes there it seems like everyone is great but as the lessons and experience roll by over the years then one's perspective changes, as one would expect.

For example, I told a German friend that a Wellington dancer had written back from BA, "Well, it had to happen, eventually. After 4 years of visits to Buenos Aires I FINALLY danced with a porteña (BA local lady) who WASN'T a fantastic dancer!" My German friend burst out laughing and asked if perhaps the guy had walked down a different air bridge off the airplane into a parallel universe.

The standard of dancing varies widely across both the tourist and local dancing populations. Many of the locals cannot afford lessons and a surprising number of porteñas have told me that they didn't need lessons because "Tango is in our blood", as they disconnected from me and walked around on their own. Oh dear.

My wife has had similar experiences with local leaders i.e. a wide variation in ability and with many of the proudest leaders being some of the least enjoyable with whom to dance.

The standard also varies widely between milongas and days of the week. Some say the touristy milongas 'are not the real tango' but I've also been told that many locals dance more in the spring and autumn (prime tourist season, not too hot, not too cold) because the presence of the tourists adds to the flavour of the milongas.

The difference in standard between milongas could be expressed in the number of collisions per tanda. For example, on some nights at El Beso I will be surrounded by couples who can perform a giro within a 1-metre diameter, and at other milongas the majority of couples will easily fill a 3-metre diameter with the same giro.

Guess where I'd rather dance when it gets crowded?

In Closing...

Every tango dancer needs to go to Buenos Aires at least once for at least 3-4 weeks. It is not a tango paradise but is the spiritual home of tango, has an enormous number of teachers and milongas and living the tango tourist lifestyle is absolutely addictive. It will help give them perspective on their own dancing and their home dance scene, and perhaps give them motivation to improve their home scene in some way all their own.

Giving Wellington as an example, there was a constant flow of Wellington dancers to Buenos Aires and back again over the past 10 years due to the simplicity of a 13 hour direct flight from Auckland. Each of those returning dancers brought back a changed perspective, technique, cultural and musical appreciation that substantially improved our local scene.

Ten years ago some dancers returning from Buenos Aires to Wellington abandoned tango in despair that it would ever be as enjoyable in their lifetime. For the past few years local dancers returning from Buenos Aires say that they now appreciate Wellington tango so much more, and the number of travelers to BA has declined as the standard has improved in Wellington.

It's now my favourite place to dance in the world.

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A Few of My Favourite Things

2012-10-13T14:59:00.001-07:00

This is an archive for links which I send out with my weekly email. It's loosely organized as Dancers and Dancing, Documentaries/Movies/Music/Media, BA Milongas and the intriguingly entitled Other...

A thought to live by, via @mountain_goats on Twitter

'dance like lots of people are watching and thinking about how you're so hot they can't even stand it and it's about to make them cry.'

Dancers and Dancing

This clip from 1992 is interesting because it's of Gustavo Naveira dancing with 11-years-old Geraldine Rojas.

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2013/02/1992-un-grande-del-tango-gustavo.html

Tete and Silvia again. Absolutely gorgeous. Firstly in a vals

http://youtube.com/watch?v=fV48NsevVls

And then in a tango

http://youtube.com/watch?v=fV48NsevVls

Anna and Osvaldo dancing canyengue in the street.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=tBXVpkA3LQQ

Tete and Silvia dancing a vals

http://youtube.com/watch?v=tMgv5kSRWZo

Here are Davina and Jeff dancing it up in a New Plymouth coffee house.

HO HO!

http://youtu.be/0pMQG0lbRSg

and the team made front page news!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/8233591/Catchy-lyrics-coffee-flick-had-95-budget

Here's a clip from Janis Kenyon’s site of one of her friends, Marcelo Socoloski. I think it's interesting for a number of reasons including as another perspective of a normal Milonga, of how he moves between open and close embrace, and the wide variety of moves that he leads. He's quite a groover!

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2013/01/30/marcelo-socoloski/

Ricardo Vidort and Myriam Pincen. What is most interesting to me is what and when audience applauds.

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=mekNwq3AW4E&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DmekNwq3AW4E

And here's Ricardo Vidort with Liz Haight dancing to Poema by Canaro. Very niiiiice.

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=o2puX7uOCDg&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Do2puX7uOCDg

Malena Rodriguez with Apolo

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BQORSMWXcTs

Alfredo Alonso y Malena Rodriguez

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mXeaT8GZDOQ

A couple of links of Tete dancing vals

With Gladys Fernandez

http://youtube.com/watch?v=7AUW0K9tKMI

And with Sylvia Ceriani

http://youtube.com/watch?v=dtconavwS_M

Raul Cabral and Agape Pappas. Just lovely. I watched a couple of Agape with other leaders and she doesn't look as good with them. It seems to me that Raul is so smooth and positive (and un-choreographed) that she gets to relax whereas with the others...hmmm...

http://youtu.be/m5xonlj_j3w

Tango CANYENGUE - ROXINA Villegas & ADRIAN Griffero

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JtTGni9kGYM

This is all choreo (ie the amount of lead/follow is minimal) but it sure is fun! Ariadna Naveira & Fernando Sanchez - Tango Malevaje Festival 2012:

http://t.co/fB0B9cgX

Jorge Lladò y Mirta Tiseyra, a great song and lots of drive!

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YjzSLDniZFo

Mirta Tiseyra again, with Ricardo Viqueira

http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=related&v=APAME-RbKQ0

Tete and Sivia, just great.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=related&v=o91w4ZgyUlI

Tete and Silvia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alcBFsaRoPQ

An interview with the tango legend Petroleo via Janis Kenyon

http://j.mp/Qmqx3E

A pretty cool clip of Rafael Barone and Lili Khayatt

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/09/20/rafael-barone-3/

Coco leading a milonga after hip surgery!

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/09/21/hector-guaraldi-4/

Here's some footage of Pedro Sanchez dancing on a tile.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/08/27/pedro-sanchez-3/

Here are two links to a fascinating interview with Ricardo Vidort, one of the legends. There are links to videos of him further down this section

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/08/30/ricardo-vidort-in-his-own-words/

and

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/08/31/ricardo-vidort-again-in-his-own-words/

The annual tango contest has been running in BA over the past week. Here's some interesting comment by Janis Kenyon on the judging politics and how it contributes to the cookie-cutter nature of the dancing.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/08/21/a-closer-look/

and

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/its-impossible-but-they-did-it/

Here's an article found via TangoCherie on the impact of tourism on traditional tango in BA.

http://www.argentinaindependent.com/currentaffairs/tourism-and-tango-dream-partners-or-four-left-feet/

There’s ongoing confusion over the use of the phrase Milonguero Style versus close-hold dancing. Here’s a blog by Melina Sedó that tries to clarify a few things.

http://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.de/2011/02/weve-just-returned-from-italy.html

Here's the often sardonic Deby Novak, an American living in BA, on the 5 stages of tango

http://tangospam.typepad.com/tangospam_la_vida_con_deb/2012/07/the-other-day-after-seeing-yet-another-tango-blog-on-facebook-that-whined-about-a-man-who-had-done-this-dancer-wrong-i-click.html

Here's the impressively smooth Beto Ayala and Amanda Lucero

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/07/02/alberto-luis-ayala-3

And here are a few well-placed words from Janis Kenyon on the topic of traveling teachers and social dancing

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/07/05/improving-your-social-dancing/

One of my favorite sayings is by Ricardo Vidort:

"When you dance tango you must give everything. If you can't do that, do not dance."

http://tangoandchaos.org/

The text descriptions sometimes conflict with the demos on this teaching site but their demos are pretty cool. Rusty Cline and Joanne Canalli of Tucson

http://learn-to-tango.com/colgadas-planeos-leg-wraps-swinging-legs/tango-videos/intermediate-tango/sacadas/

Here's a clip of the very, very cool Oscar Casas and Ana Miguel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXWgAejvj1g

Here are two clips of Alfredo Alonso and Silvia that are well worth a look

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9mo4PVpHEs

and

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjRSoj14DQs

Andrea reminded me of this link to the excellent Tango and Chaos site, it's Ricardo Vidort and Osvaldo dancing with each other. Ricardo is gone now so it's great to have this video of them both. They both lead and follow very well.

http://www.tangoandchaos.org/chapt_5video/32ricardo.htm

Here are Tete y Silvia dancing a vals. Love it. Love it. Love it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJDowJI0-7s

Timely advice from Janis Kenyon

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/02/16/ill-get-to-buenos-aires-in-a-few-years/

Here's Ricardo Suarez again, 89 years old and dancing great!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIHvEyJWJno&feature=related

And here is Ricardo Viqueira y Valérie Lafore

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nS4jSTC0LVc&feature=related

Ricardo Suarez at 87, dancing to Tango Negro by Caceres. What a cool guy!

http://t.co/RPseHkeX

And here's how ladies can avoid the Planchadora Effect

http://tangoaustralia.blogspot.com/2011/12/ironing-out-problem-of-sitting-out.html

Another video of one of the milongueros, Horacio Prestamo, courtesy of Janis Kenyon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v32jbzO4gA4

Here's another link from Janis Kenyon of a number of famous milongueros performing together. I find her comments on it very interesting.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/eduardo-aronson/

Here's an interesting post from Janis Kenyon which contains a number of interesting links.

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/01/07/the-hands-of-carlos-di-sarli/

Here's a tribute to one of the legends who died 5 years ago, Ricardo Vidort, by one of his friends Oscar Casas. Oscar is also a very cool dancer, check him out on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx6eDKvCmXI

via Tango Cherie, another article on Ideal in BA, this time talking about its history and with video of the day that the roof fell in, 2008!

http://tangocherie.blogspot.com/2011/12/la-confiteria-ideal-soul-of-tango.html

From Janis Kenyon's website, Miguel Angel Balbi

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2011/11/29/miguel-angel-balbi-3/

Julio Balmaceda and Corina de la Rosa from CITA 2005

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZalSQzkg9A

Here's an interesting clip from Janis Kenyon of another of her friends, Antonio Busto

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2011/09/29/antonio-busto-3/

Another Analia and Marcelo clip, this time to 'Tu...el Cielo Tu' , one of my favorites.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vBXslBLxRQ

Also, an interesting clip showing a few big names including Julio Duplaá, and Osvaldo y Coca Cartery

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2011/09/15/julio-duplaa-2/

Here are two very cool blogs by Tango Cherie

http://tangocherie.blogspot.com/2011/08/now-why-is-that-again.html

and

http://tangocherie.blogspot.com/2011/08/lucky-7-posts.html

Here's a cool link from Janis Kenyon on the history of tango

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2011/08/05/las-academias-ten-cents-a-dance/

And here's a pretty snappy dance from Los Totis, Virginia Gomez and Christian Marquez. It's not all lead/follow but it looks great!

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2011/07/los-totis-performance-en-la-milonga-del.html

This is a profile of Ricardo Vidort one of the masters who died a few years ago.

http://www.tangoandchaos.org/chapt_5video/30ricardo.htm

This is the site that it came from, Tango and Chaos, a labour of love by Rick McGarrey. He often has rose-tinted spectacles in his articles but you can never doubt his love for what he's doing.

http://www.tangoandchaos.org/

Here's a very funny link showing Jose Garofalo, who runs the milonga Porteno y Bailarin in BA, dancing with Veronica Alvarenga. I think all leaders can relate to Veronica's situation!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98CmUhcJWbw

Here's my favourite video clip. Two of my favourite dancers and one of my favourite songs in one tidy package. Analia Vega and Marcelo Varela dancing to Biagi's 'El Recordo'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo8fA5xBvLM&playnext=1&list=PL501047B6420C71D3

Here's a link to Cherie Magnus (Tango Cherie) and her partner Ruben. It really makes me smile and cuts through a lot of over-intellectualising about tango. There is no time for Cherie to 'interpret' or 'move herself' because this is fabulous music with drive. They are one body with four legs, with a leader and a follower, and they move utterly as the music drives them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGBry37AOUg

Some thoughts on dance style and lifestyle from Tango Cherie

http://tangocherie.blogspot.com/2011/07/milonguero.html

Ricardo Ponce ("El Chino Perico")

I think that this is just great!

[http://jantango.wordpress.com/2011/07/10/ricardo-ponce-3/](http://jantango.wordpress.com/2011/07/10/ricardo-ponce-3/)

Documentaries/Movies/Music/Media

Documentary on the famous El Corte milonga in Nijmegan

http://simbatango.com/2013/02/19/el-corte-documentary/

Here is a 24/7 Tango radio, no ads/news at all, just pure tango music: milonga, waltz, tango electronico / nuevo etc

http://www.2x4gotan.com.ar/

The TangoVia music recovery project is bearing fruit...

http://simbatango.com/2013/02/20/tango-tunes/

And here is a weekly tango newspaper

http://www.milonga.me

More research showing tango is a cure for...just about everything!

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/untangling-lifes-missteps-with-the-tango-20130221-2eunk.html

A fascinating read about the life of bandoneonista Manuel Pizzarro

http://www.lptango.com.ar/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73:pizarro-the-conqueror&catid=7:tango-around-the-world&Itemid=8

A clip of excerpts from interviews with Osvaldo Pugliese

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5L0msKzE-Pg

Orquesta de Tango El Cachivache at Salon Caning Buenos Aires. Stirring stuff!

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2013/01/orquesta-de-tango-el-cachivache-en.html?m=1

Ricardo Vidort's final interview from 2006

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/12/29/his-last-interview/

Here's a very cool interview with Miguel Angel Balbi from 2000

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/11/29/miguel-angel-balbi-4/

Melina Sedó provided this thought provoking post about womens' body shapes and tango

http://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.co.nz/2012/11/young-and-beautiful-tango-obsession.html

Melina's post led to some Facebook discussion and the posting of this clip from a documentary showing interviews with 5 well known tango couples answering a series of questions, such as:

- Why do you ask people to dance?

- What makes a dance good for you?

Some of the answers are very guarded, some are surprising and some are just disappointing. All one can say is that at least Sebastian Arce was honest. Shame about that.

http://youtu.be/ShE3zOP1Fd8 Part 1 of the documentary

http://youtube.com/watch?v=YJrCnI6-Ji4 Part 2 of the documentary

Finally, Melina's comment about tango being like a large family, at least in Europe, got me started on a post about differences between common perceptions of tango in BA versus my experience there.

http://tangogeoff.blogspot.co.nz/2012/11/buenos-aires-folktales.html

Paciencia by D'Arienzo, with subtitles

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uya-FWs62Y

Emilio sent this link in to a rather handy website that has links to dance and recital videos

http://www.tangotrazo.com/

This is a very good music site with other great links off it.

http://tandaoftheweek.blogspot.co.nz/2012/02/tanda-of-week-05-2012-anibal-troilo-con.html

Tubatangos! And cayengue!

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2012/11/exhibicion-de-tango-canyengue-orquesta.html

Let’s have a collective “Awwwww...” on this one. It’s rather sweet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWAqNho-JpQ&feature=youtu.be

A little bit of blasphemy and some advice for travellers to BA

http://mytangodiaries.blogspot.com.ar/2012/10/the-milongueros-and-daniela-arcuri-was.html

And from the same blog, an interesting read about dancing with teachers

http://mytangodiaries.blogspot.co.nz/2012/08/on-dancing-with-teachers.html

Tete- One of my favourite clips, about Tete. He was a dance legend who died a couple of years ago and I always enjoyed watching him dance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCqBW9wv3RE

This 50-minute Italian documentary would be even better if my Spanish or Italian was...but some of the dancing is brilliant. Featuring El Flaco Dany, Nene, Ricardo Suarez...

http://jantango.wordpress.com/2012/10/02/milongueros/

A new movie featuring tango and Chicho, Tango Libre

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-S4IJjvCqkg

Here's a link that I find really interesting from a historical perspective: ‘Bailarines de tango 1940-1980 Bs As (part 1)’

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmeN2rxrj2k

There are some very big names from tango's history, here, and while one can read a great deal on the web about the legends of the past it's difficult to reconcile what one reads with videos such as this and others. Their audiences are very impressed and they appear to be very good for their time. But now? Not so much.

It's a reminder, I think, to dance your best for your partner and for yourself and try not to worry too much about who is watching.

Here’s a link to a video of the NZ Tango Festival produced by The Fabulous Debbie Monigatti (formerly of Welli but has just moved to Auckland...sigh) and her partner in crime, Frank from Christchurch.

http://vimeo.com/46710117

El Ultimo Bandoneon- a full length movie in Spanish- Marina Gayotos makes a living playing the bandoneon on buses and at various pick-up gigs. When she auditions for the tango master Rodolfo Mederos, he informs her that though she has talent, her bandoneon is too far gone to play. But if she can find a better bandoneon, she can play in his tango orchestra. This leads Marina to go on a quest for another instrument, one that takes her to instrument makers, dancers and an array of memorable characters from the tango world, all while searching for "the last bandoneón."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu7nbCuZhfk

And heres a short clip from it, with more linked off it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvZ1-bQBUdg

Here's a link via TangoCherie to the BA Podcast site. You can listen to these podcasts in your browser if you don't have a player. The especially interesting podcasts are about tango dance, tango music and (still to come) tango lyrics.

The podcasts are bilingual ie the Spanish is not translated but there is still enough English content to be really interesting.

http://tangocherie.blogspot.com/2012/06/laws-of-tango-part-ii-music.html

This is a link to the Radio NZ Spectrum programme about tango in Wellington from September 2006.

https://sites.google.com/site/geoffstangopage/links/Radio%2020060910-Spectrum_for_10_September-048.mp3

Here's an article from Kapka Kassabove, formerly of Auckland, on her new tango book. It's posted on the website of Mary Jaksch, also a writer and tango dancer from Nelson.

Memoir Gets its Own Back: Kapka Kassabova on how an Idea Morphed into a Published Book.

http://writetodone.com/2011/12/19/kapka-kassabova/

Tango Ideal- this video from 2001 kept me awake night after night before my first trip to BA 2004, but when I returned I wasn't as impressed. My experience was soooooo much better than I expected from the video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx-LNAVlxbk

Here are two links published on the Tango Dancers group on Facebook:

Tango Playlists- songs and playlist suggestions

http://www.tangoplaylist.com/

and

Tango Lyrics

http://letrasdetango.wordpress.com/

Here's an really interesting 26 minute interview with Helen (La Vikinga) who runs Queer Tango milongas in Buenos Aires. Among the highlights:

–advice every foreign woman should bear in mind when she comes to Buenos Aires with hopes of tango bliss

–why women dancers should say no to dance offers from men more often

–why more women are taking up leading worldwide

http://sashacagen.com/idea-chats/ideachat2-straight-women-in-queer-tango/

Here’s a BBC article on tango in Finland

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18925633

BA Milonga Clips

These are not amazing videos but show everyday Buenos Aires milongas where you could be dancing on your next visit. Check them out for an idea of what to expect in terms of dance floor numbers and the standard of dancers.

Continuing the typical milonga series, the Atlanta Milonga in BA

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2012/10/el-mitico-atlanta-milonga-en-buenos.html

General dancing at La Milonguita

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2013/01/bailarines-en-la-milonguita-milonga.html

Another typical milonga, this time El Pial

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2012/10/el-pial-milonga-tango-en-buenos-aires.html

This is another typical Milonga in the barrio (suburb) of Flores. For people who are new to these 'typical milonga' clips, points to note are the bright fluorescent lights (to make cabaceo easier, rather than ‘mood lighting’ which doesn’t), the standard of dancing (not dissimilar to here in Welli), the dress code (or lack thereof), women leading...

Our first trip to BA was quite an eye-opener because much of what I had heard and read was very different to what we experienced there. That's why it's important for tango dancers to travel there at least once, and to travel and dance in other countries and cities than their own.

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2012/10/la-floreal-milonga-tango-en-buenos-aires.html

And here's another milonga at Palacio Barolo

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2012/10/corretango-la-milonga-del-palacio.html

Milonga del Moran-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2011/09/milonga-del-moran-2011.html

Cachirulo-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2011/09/cachirulo.html

Here's a clip of one of the most popular milongas in BA, it's Porteño y Bailarin. -

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2011/12/porteno-y-bailarin.html

And here's a link to one of my favorite milonga venues, Salon Canning in Buenos Aires. It has one of the few parquet floors in town but as you can see from the video its getting a bit thrashed.-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2011/12/salon-canning-milonga-parakultural.html

Grisel-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2012/01/lunes-de-tango-en-grisel.html

Venue at Independencia 572-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2012/01/flor-de-milonga-en-san-telmo.html

Here's a link of the Yira Yira milonga, held at the La Nacional venue-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2012/02/yira-yira-milonga-de-buenos-aires.html

La Baldosa-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2012/03/la-baldosa-milonga-tango-buenos-aires.html

And here is the open air milonga at La Glorieta, a marble-floored band rotunda in BA-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.com/2011/11/la-glorieta-de-belgrano.html

A view of the A Puro Tango milonga held at Salon Canning-

http://milongasbuenosaires.blogspot.co.nz/2012/09/a-puro-tango-milonga-en-salon-canning.html

Other...

This is a mountainbike site but the approach to learning described here is the same that we used ie working on basics, and writing up our lessons afterwards as a means of committing it to memory.

Most people don't write down their lessons and what we've noticed over the years is that usually the lessons melt away within hours or days.

https://www.bikejames.com/strength/the-importance-of-drilling-and-training-journals-more-lessons-from-bjj-for-mtb/#more-4214

An italian tourist in Buenos Aires because of the Tango World Championship meets a classic argentinian tanguero: in their embrace two worlds and epochs confront each other...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lE3Hs4bsPhg

Here's a disturbing video of a bearded man in a blonde wig talking about S**t tangueras say..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZmtk_IAbZo

I often come across comments by people that 'tango needs to move forward into the 21st century, not stay rooted in the past'. People who say this often haven't learned to dance tango very well.

Then they do something about it.

And put it on YouTube...not always with the best results.

http://youtu.be/j86mjnY0BlE

This is at the Tango Loft in Berlin.

Here's an update on the costs of things in BA recently. It's based on $US.

http://paddyinba.blogspot.co.nz/2013/01/how-much-do-things-cost-in-buenos-aires.html

Kind of tango-related...in terms of the annual Wellington Moulin Rouge Milonga...

http://www.retronaut.co/2012/09/fitting-a-corset-1910s-1940s/

This is really important. It's a fundraiser for a group that's creating a digital tango archive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEd6OHGemFU

It's not tango but it's a lot of fun, Rita Hayworth Stayin' Alive!

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=mz3CPzdCDws

Here's a very heartwarming short video about a 92 year old tap dancer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsYAXPqVnYM

It's not tango but this breakdance clip is worth watching for a few minutes! (It's quite long)

http://youtu.be/LXO-jKksQkM

This is a fascinating interview with an improv musician which among a range of topics discusses how jazz musicians approach improv, in a way that is very similar to tango. No-one really wants to dance the basic 8 all night, right...?

http://believermag.com/issues/201107/?read=interview_anastasio

I believe that dancers are responsible for their own development and they should be constantly looking for better teachers. This means that generally everyone has to 'kiss a lot of frogs before they find their prince', however the journey is all part of it, right? BUT I think it's beneficial when one is starting out in tango if some of the 'froggier' options are identified, so that newbies are aware that....... just because they want your money doesn't mean that they know more than you!

Anyway, a friend in another country asked my opinion on this particular link, so here for your amusement and edification are ...James and Joanna!

It's really quite something but my favorite bit is the music used for the demos!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qY0_zp58ow&NR=1

Here's a link to a motivational video by Will Smith. His approach to life can be emulated by everyone in everything including..learning to dance better! "If you went out to build a wall it would seem impossible, but if you place one brick perfectly next to another brick then you build a brick wall almost without realising it."

I also liked "If you are not helping other people then you are wasting your life."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5nVqeVhgQE

Building a Better Tango Scene, Take 2

2012-08-29T21:00:00.001-07:00

Perhaps the local dance scene isn't all that you would like it to be? You could complain, you could move towns, you could stop dancing altogether (??!!) or you could progress from being a tango consumer to being a tango scene builder and try to build a better tango world.

This doesn't have to be a big commitment or even a big deal. You could help new dancers or visitors to feel welcome, help organizers to clear up after their milongas occasionally...every little bit helps.

Perhaps you'd like to do a little more to help things along? Here are some ideas.

Support Promotional Events

We've been lucky in Welli that the Argentine Embassy has organized lunchtime milongas at the railway station with live music provided by 4XTango. This is a GREAT opportunity to get tango into the public eye. Consider taking a break from dancing at these events to chat to people who stop and watch. They're more potential new friends, right?

Encourage New Organisers

A fact of life is that everyone accumulates history with other people, some of it good and some of it not so good, and collectively these politics act as a handbrake on tango scenes. It's off-putting for new people, can be tiresome for established dancers and also for those directly involved in that there may be milongas which they feel unable to attend. This has a domino effect on events as many people don't dance where their friends don't dance, and so there's less for everyone.

We'd like to think that everyone should get on with everyone but the simple fact is that some people simply ...don't.

This is why new organizers need to be encouraged. They will also accumulate history with people but it will be different history to the previous organizers, which at least gives everyone else something new to talk about for a short time!

An easy way to grow new organizers is by having guest DJ slots at established milongas so that they can gain confidence that their tastes in music won't be the death of any milonga that they touch. It also helps them get a feel for what musical structures will appeal to their local market. An evening of cortina-less tango nuevo might be popular in Paris but might not succeed in Wellington. Then again, we wouldn't get anywhere if we didn't experiment a little and if none of the current organizers are running the kind of event that you want then why not give it a go? Perhaps there are other people feeling the same who will help make your milonga a success?

Teach What You Know

If you'd like the local standard of dancing to improve then perhaps you could help things along? Have you considered teaching what you know?

Purists might say that this is a terrible idea and that only good dancers should teach, however those purists may not have noticed the situation in BA where almost everyone that one meets at a milonga hands you their business card. (Or perhaps it's just that I'm really crap and it's only me? Oh well...)

The reality is that the standard of tango teaching varies a great deal from city to city, and within cities, and glass houses are everywhere so let's not cast too many stones about the place. Every dancer must find their own way and can make their own decisions as to whom they will listen or pay money for lessons.

My view is that there is no harm if people are clear that they are teaching what they know, emphasising that there is a big tango world out there with other teachers, and that they are introducing new people into an amazing lifestyle.

However if people are selling their teaching as the One True Tango then they'd better be prepared to justify why that is so, because there are an awful lot of One True Tangos out there.

You may not feel like teaching is your thing but you can encourage people towards teachers that you respect. It doesn't have to be a negative against other teachers, just a positive affirmation of your preferred ones.

Improving Your Own Dancing

It's easy enough to bemoan the lack of good leaders/followers in your area but are you trying to improve your own dancing? Are you part of the same problem for someone else?

Don't fall into the trap of thinking that dancing with better dancers will help you improve. That better leader may help you feel that you are improving by protecting you from your problem areas, and that better follower may flatter your lead by merely guessing what you wanted rather than you having led it. It's a social dance after all, and we're all hopefully trying to get along while chasing those Tango Moments.

If you'd rather not take lessons locally then how about snagging a cheap weekend flight to another city with a different set of teachers? Ask for recommendations from friends and acquaintances and go into the lessons with an open mind. None of us find magic teachers every time but it's all part of the process.

Make it your own 2-3 day tangofest. Pick a couple of days where the destination has a couple of milongas and take a few private lessons during the day.

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Little Leaders/Tall Followers

2012-08-22T20:26:00.001-07:00

There are more men wanting to follow, these days, and more women leading, so it seems timely to highlight that tall or heavy followers have a lot of leverage over small leaders, leading to smaller leaders experiencing headaches and painful necks and shoulders.

The follower needs to have excellent technique so as to be as light as possible but still with a positive connection. The slumping, slouching and heaviness associated with poor technique, in combination with the taller followers' leverage, will only lead to 'morning after' problems and probable visits to their favorite osteopath.

So, if you're a taller man or woman and would like to try following one of the Leading Ladies then you need to be aware of this, and do your best to be a light follower by at least trying to reach through the ceiling with the back of your head. For more detailed help on technique then ask a teacher, and if they can't talk about technique then perhaps find a better teacher.

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Cabaceo in a small tango scene

2012-08-21T03:35:00.001-07:00

I originally wrote this a couple of years ago and decided that it needed a refresh, based on a conversation with a newbie a couple of nights ago.

New Dancers
My new dancer said that two men from her class had gone to their first milonga recently and had been turned down by women because they had asked the ladies rather than using cabeceo. They were new and they were being brave at their first milonga, but they simply didn't know about it.

Our local scene is not so large that we can afford to greet new dancers with disdain. More grace on the part of the ladies might have made these newbies feel more welcome and encourage them to come back!

Some might say that it's their teachers' responsibility to ensure that they have all the tools necessary for the milonga. However, good manners cost nothing and a kind word could easily help ease new dancers into this new world.

Lighting
Lighting at milongas is THE critical element for cabeceo and whereas Argentine milongas have ALL the lights on to encourage it, the usual standard outside Argentina is romantic, atmospheric, 'mood' lighting.

Mood lighting is often expected by dancers or desired by organisers so while it's a fact of life outside Argentina, and often so dark that it's just ridiculous, here are some tips to help you have a more enjoyable evening:

- Check your surroundings. If you have a light behind you, even if off to one side, then the chances are that you are in silhouette and no one can see your face, let alone your eyes.

- Cabeceo is intended to be discreet in order to protect egos from rejection or from feeling forced to dance when you really don't want to. If you need to do more than nod your head slightly to confirm a dance then cabeceo becomes a joke. If the other person has to move their body in order to make the invitation obvious then it's stupidly dark and consider having a word with the organiser.

- Check your seating location from somewhere else in the room. If you can't see the eyes of people near your seat then...move!

Finally, if all else fails and you still want to rely on cabeceo and don't want to ask or be asked, stand by the buffet table. You never know, you might get lucky, there might be macaroons and home baking, and the lighting is usually better.

A Brief History
Cabaceo, or catching the eye of a prospective partner as opposed to asking them to dance, was not an easy cultural fit for Wellington in the past when the scene was much smaller. Friends and acquaintances had been using it for years but visitors or new dancers were usually asked as in days of yore.

However, when a local teacher (who has since moved on) required that his students only use cabeceo to arrange dances it uncovered divisions within the small tango scene that had been wallpapered over until then by good manners.

It became very obvious that some people really didn't like dancing with particular people. Not an issue with 30-100 people in the room but quite glaring when there's only 15!

This didn't do anything to help grow the scene and acted as a handbrake when those new to the scene would arrive at a milonga and find a cold, cliquey atmosphere.

One could say in these peoples' defence that they were seeking quality over quantity, however that leads to a sometimes uncomfortable discussion over why people dance with each other. That is, quality for whom? The leader? The follower? Are both parties really enjoying it or is one just waiting for it to be over?

The reality of social dancing is that we can't all be tango stars all the time, but we can try to enjoy our time on the dancefloor together. Grace and manners go a long way towards a great evening.

Ladies' Choice
Cabeceo won't prevent sleazy men or chronically bad dancers walking up and asking attractive women to dance. Cabeceo is a subtlety that doesn't come easily to those people and this kind of thing happens in BA as well.

Respect Yesterday, Build Tomorrow, Love Today

2012-08-18T20:05:00.001-07:00

Here's a link that I find really interesting from a historical perspective:

The dancers are performing demonstrations and include:

Carlos "Petroleo" y Alejandra
Raúl Bravo y Haydée
Antonio Todaro y Tití (his daughter)
Pedro Villafañe y Alejandra
Kalisay y Tita
Oscar y Beatriz
Omar Boragno y Marta
El Lecherito e Isabel
Fame y su compañera
Fulto y su compañera
Hector Ruso y su Señora
Arturito y su Señora
Virulazo y Elvira
Miguel Balmaceda y su Señora
Roberto y Angelica
Molina y Teresa
Cocco y Mercedes
Chamorro y su compañera
Coco y Betty
Rocha y Delia
Pedro y Chola
y otros...

There are some big names from tango's history, here, and while one can read a great deal on the web about the legends of the past it's difficult to reconcile what one reads with videos such as this and others. Their audiences are very impressed and they appear to be very good for their time. But now? Not so much. Perhaps their dancing away from these performances is much better?

It's a reminder, I think, to dance our best for our partner and for oneself every time that we step onto the pista. We only have today and while we should respect the past we need to enjoy the present and build for the future.

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Starting Out as a Tango DJ

2012-08-16T22:58:00.001-07:00

Have you ever wished that more of your kind of music was played at milongas? Maybe you'd like to try being a DJ? Today's DJs tend to be tomorrow's organizers and it's always good to have a number of experienced, confident DJs in a dance scene.

As far as gathering music is concerned I regularly check demos on YouTube, not for the dancing but for the music. If I like it I'll check my collection in case I've missed it and then buy it from iTunes. I like to pay for my music and iTunes has mountains of tango music now.

The great thing about online music is that you get to sample the first minute for free. I only listen to the first 30 seconds, usually, because I want my dancers to be enthusiastic and if they're not captured in 30 seconds then it's probably not going to happen.

You'll be able to spend happy hours sifting through Donato, Pugliese, Canaro, Troilo, Biagi, Rodriguez, Calo, D'Arienzo...there are soooo many great songs!

The big thing is to use some kind of music database. I'm an Apple guy so I use iTunes and am happy with it except for a volume level bug when playing off my iPhone.

You need a database in order to manage the music and to create playlists. Work your way gently through your library rating each song (iTunes has a 1 to 5 star rating). It takes a while so don't try to do it all at once, it'll drive you crazy. Just do 10-20 minutes every couple of days.

The benefit is that building a playlist becomes really easy and fast eg for a vals tanda a simple search based on vals, Pugliese, 5 star, will result in a range of great songs ready for copying and pasting to the playlist. I trim the ones that I don't want in order to get the right feel for the tanda and then i move on to the next tanda.

I generally have 7 playlists at any one time and tune them so that they don't get stale. I only run a dance every two weeks so no one really gets a chance to become accustomed to the playlists.

Some DJs like to build their playlists 'live' in response to activity on the floor and the mood, but as I'm a DJ/host I don't have that luxury, and I'd rather be dancing anyway. I love almost all the songs that I play and so I want to dance every tanda!

I used a Windows freeware application to build my cortinas in the past but now that I'm in Apple world 'there's an app for that'. I created 6-8 cortinas of 30 seconds each, excerpts from the Princess Bride soundtrack, Robert Plant, my sister's piano recital...Some people use themes for the evenin's cortinas but I just use cortinas that are gentle on the ear but are obviously different to the music on either side of the cortina.

It's important to have an arc structure ie peak energy in the middle of the night tapering off as people get tired ie no high speed milongas late at night but there's nothing wrong with slow 'character' milongas and valses at that time.

A big deal, though, is the tanda sequence and numbering. I use 4 tangos-4 tangos-3 valses, 4 tangos-4 tangos-3 milongas, 4 tangos-4 tangos-3 nuevos., and repeat This sequence puts nuevo at a disadvantage, usually there's only time for one nuevo tanda per night, but at least it's getting some airtime and that's important for some of your customers.

The reason for only three of the non-tango songs is for two reasons:

Four milongas or valses will tire out most of your customers. We don't want a sweat bath.
Many nuevo songs are slow-paced but last for two or three times the length of tango songs. It's wise to try to keep the tandas to similar lengths so that people who don't like a particular tanda don't have long to wait.

A sequence such as tango-vals-milonga-nuevo (and repeat) will kill your customers or limit the dancers to multisport athletes.

A sequence like tango-tango-tango-vals will probably grind people down, valses and milongas do a great deal to lift the mood when tangos get too melancholy.

Having no sequence at all means that people who don't like the song playing RIGHT NOW have no hope for the future. I'll stumble through a dreadful song if I know that the end of the tanda is only one song away.

Having no cortina at all, as in many places overseas, has the same effect. The DJs that I enjoy the most have a structure and song selection that I feel I can trust. Having no cortinas suggests to me that the guy has no taste, thinks every song in his collection is faaaabulous, and has no concept of how to build an atmosphere.

Random play, anyone?

Lastly, one can worry too much about pleasing your customers. You need to be able to play songs that you adore because if your customers eg want to hear nuevo all night, and you're me, you may just go outside and shoot yourself before 11pm.

If the music that you're playing doesn't fit the dancers who are your market then you can try to educate them by mixing in The Good Stuff with eg nuevo, but you need to remember why you're doing it, and so avoid the need for you to take matters into your own hands before midnight, as above.

If your market doesn't like your music perhaps, like all truly great artists, you are simply ahead of your time. Smile bravely and step back from the front line...or leave town and set up elsewhere!

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Our Teaching Phrases

2012-08-15T19:17:00.001-07:00

Our teaching phrases change over time as we find better ways to describe the same thing. Here are our current ones with some clarifying text for both leaders and followers. These apply to both close-hold and open-hold. The only difference between the two is that open-hold is much more demanding to dance well, whereas you can stumble around the floor equally in either close or open if you have no idea what you're doing. Here they are:

"We don't teach steps, we teach Posture, Connection and Movement."

Posture
- "Stand up tall, build a bridge"- Build a bridge to your partner with your chest, rolling forward from the ribcage upwards, no more than 1-2 inches/3-4 centimetres. The bridge has to have strong foundations i.e. soft floppy knees won't work. Try changing weight a few times with soggy legs and see if your partner even notices it. Try it again with strong legs. SURPRISE!

- "Weight on your heels or mid-foot"- Weight on your heels or mid-foot for stability and so that you can relax your free leg (the support leg is strong so that you can build the bridge).

Connection
- "HOLD ME UP!"

We used to tell our students to use toe pressure and chest projection for connection management ie to create a smooth continuous connection. We also talked about stabilizing their core to ensure that they didn't wobble like a flan as they danced.
That was too much to think about for most people, so now we just tell them to hold us up as we tilt towards them. SURPRISE! They stand up tall, their core stabilizes and they use toe pressure and chest projection.
They also gain the use of their partner's legs for additional balance ie not leaning on the partner but being aware that they should be helping you balance. If your partner doesn't know this then good luck, you're on your own and will have to do your best as far as balance is concerned. And your best as a single person is far less than your best as a couple.

Movement
- "Walk to your partner's centre"- Walk to your partner's centre as if they are the last, hottest person on earth, and never turn away (why would you!?). This lets the body mechanics work, is the most comfortable for the follower and allows changing to either side of the follower with minimal effort.

- "Constant shoulder height"- Maintain constant shoulder height relative to your partner i.e. you can change height but you mustn't slide up and down on your partner's chest, you must rise and fall together. Forget about where you think your feet should go and drift smoothly around the floor, concentrating on your partner's centre. Focussing on constant shoulder height means that the follower can forget worrying about the length of the step or the amount of pivot, and allows the leader to lead pretty much anything.

- "Unwind each pivot from the shoulders to the feet"- Let the turn wind it's way through your body from chest to hips to toes. When followers 'help things along' by performing hip turns then they limit the options for the leader. The follower may expect an ocho but the leader could have been about to lead a luscious colgada variation, but....no, I guess it will just have to be an ocho, now...

- "Walk like a metronome" - A metronome is an upside-down pendulum and we use this metaphor because we try to get the concept of all movement starting with the leader's chest. If the chest moves first in every direction of movement then the follower's legs can get the earliest possible indication of where to move.
Think of a tree falling, which is the same kind of pendulum. All that happens is that you stand up tall, project your chest a little and then tip forward like a toppling tree. Where to step? How far? Oh no!! If you are worrying about these questions then imagine how the follower is worrying! Once again...constant shoulder height. You want your shoulders to glide at a constant height (you can vary the height later) so the tip forward isn't huge, it's just to start moving her feet out of the way so that you don't step on them. Your legs really are just a means of keeping your chest area at a constant height to make it easier for your partner to follow. It's always about her!

- "Broomsticks and pendulums"- The dance relationship boils down very simply to two broomsticks (your axis and hers) connected together and floating about the floor at various speeds but always together. You are supported by pendulums which the leader swings so as to to support the movement of the connected axes.
Any decisions that the follower makes will disconnect you both, any sudden moves by the leader will disconnect you both, so the key is smoooooooth.

Proto-Feminism and the Woman's Role in Tango

2012-08-15T19:16:00.001-07:00

Many nuevo and tango dancers resort to set-piece choreography and hip-turns etc largely because of a fixation on the "woman's role" and "man's role" rather than the simpler concept of leader and follower.
This is assisted by the arrival of large numbers of ballet and contemporary dancers in tango over the years, all of whom are very good at expressing musicality when solo but are not accustomed to the tango concepts of lead/follow and one body/ four legs.

A popular phrase among well known female teachers and performers is "I believe that the woman's role is 50% of the dance". This is usually translated into the woman leading on occasion, changing weight when she wishes, and suggesting new directions by her movements when she turns. The result is an "after you, after me" approach to dancing where both partners dance slowly while each interprets what the other intends.

I believe this has come about because of a misguided application of feminism in order to progress tango, rather than returning to simple body mechanics.

Many well known and influential teachers are unable to perform their "opposite" role to more than a rudimentary degree, and this limits their ability to progress their dance. Learning both roles rapidly exposes that one is just a mirror of the other, and that the body mechanics of the dance are very very simple.

This allows dancers to progress rapidly and quickly develop an appreciation that musicality is the core of the dance rather than complex tricks and patterns. A side benefit is that those previously complex tricks and patterns quickly become as natural as breathing and become an expression of the music rather than an end in themselves.
Additionally, lead and follow can be exchanged easily and naturally, mid-flight, with no need for interpretation of the partner's intent.

Dancing without constant connection quickly deteriorates into 3-5 step choreography, alias "nudge and guess". The dance is then limited by the follower's ability to guess which particular trick that they need to pull out of their bag of known repertoire. They need to guess sufficiently quickly that they can dance smoothly with their partner, however this interpretation lag places a limit on how quickly the couple can change tempo, or respond to crowded situations.
Consequently many performance couples only dance quickly to choreographies, with obvious breaks in connection.
Worse, it limits the couple to what the follower can guess, rather than what the leader can lead.

Constant connection (open or close-hold) requires only a few key components in order to succeed:
- Stand tall to define your axis and let the legs move naturally
- Chest slightly forward from the ribs upwards in order to give the earliest possible lead to the follower's feet
- Align with your partner's centre, always move towards it and never turn away from it.
- Keep constant shoulder height relative to your partner to avoid bobbing up and down.
- Use some toe pressure to maintain constant connection.
- Build a bridge upwards from the floor, across to your partner and down to the floor again. This defines your axis for your partner and allows the dance to move centimeter by centimeter, not step by step. It's a dance of axis connected to axis, moving as one.

These simple rules result in legs that naturally swing to the best possible step length, and allow leader and follower maximum freedom of expression while still maintaining the shared dance. This is as opposed to a synchronized ballet with two partners.

Womens Technique Mens Technique

2012-08-15T19:14:00.003-07:00

I'm by turns amused and frustrated when I see classes advertising women's technique (whereas I'm usually just amused by classes advertising a 'new' style of tango). In my mind's eye all I see is a room full of well-intentioned women earnestly practicing how to dance really well on their own, but whom I'd never ask to dance.

Learning to both lead and follow quickly establishes what does and does not work in terms of the simple body mechanics of fitting two bodies together within what is quite a rigourous musical structure (I'm obviously not talking about tango nuevo music here). The techniques taught in these classes may look good on YouTube to an inexperienced eye but they look and feel utterly dreadful to myself as an experienced leader.

The irony of all this is that I am a popular leader in every city that I've danced, but I couldn't have become the dancer that I am today by dancing with the women who attend these classes. I've danced with so many of them now, and each time it requires me to cut my repertoire down to something brain-dead so that they can guess a step. They expect to interpret the lead and determine where to step, rather than simply follow.

Oh dear.
Tango is a partner dance. Not ballet.

The result is that in many cities the women who are thought of locally as very good dancers are often not even on my radar, and I usually dance with women who are not considered good dancers but who actually follow very well.

I think this is related to the low standard of leading that we see in most cities. More women than men appear to spend money on lessons and with women outnumbering men at most milongas there is little incentive other than pride for men to improve. Women who wish to be elegant dancers but who are surrounded by sloppy leaders cannot rely on those leaders to provide them with great dance experiences so the women must step up and fill in the gaps, themselves. The ones who guess the best are thought of as good dancers and the ones who wait for a lead that never comes...sit out a lot.

This is a sad state of affairs but the news for leaders is mostly good. Just by standing taller and walking to their partner's centre will make such a difference that they will stand out from the majority of men on the dance floor and make them a popular dancer in many cities.

If I'd only known about this when I was starting out...

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