headers
Sergio Vandekier | 26 May 18:35
Picon
Favicon

Milonga codes


Dear tangueros,

Recently I wrote: "You accept the dance with a cabeceo and stand up waiting for the man to come close to your
table or walk towards him and meet halfway."

I want to clarify that at the milongas we do not cross the dancing floor. We always walk following the
periphery of the dancing area, even when the floor is empty. We consider the floor as a "sacred" area that is
to be used only for dancing.

What I meant was that the lady and the man can walk towards each other following the periphery of the dancing
floor, not crossing the dancing area where other couples are already dancing.

 A woman has to wait until the man reaches the corner of the floor where she will enter to meet him. Crossing the
floor to meet a man before he arrives shows she doesn't know the codes and hasn't observed other women.

The man, comes for her and returns her to her place. He usually comes close to her table, but not very close; he
remains tree or more feet away, waiting for her to come or to reach her table back, this as a sign of respect
for "her area".

The same when I wrote: the subject covered for talking in between the tangos of a tanda could be an invitation
for a cup of coffee or about "the weather".

I did not mean "the weather literally" I meant"something irrelevant or of little importance".

As a female friend of mine says:

The topic is mainly the orchestra, the tango, the singer, about the music to which we are dancing.  

Local men may take advantage of the fact that many visitors ignore the milonga codes.
(Continue reading)

Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
Tango 22 | 25 May 08:40
Picon

chatting during the cortinas

Sergio comments............The conversation we are discussing is very brief, a 
few seconds, the duration depends on when the couple in front of you 
starts moving, it does (it should) not disrupt the ronda at all.

This is why one wonders if this pleasant custom has become a boorish affectation, with at least a minute of
loud conversation before every song where one can't hear a thing, let alone absorb and consider the
upcoming song (often given as a reason).  never saw Tete do it; he loved the dance too much.
John
Permalink | Reply | 2 comments |
headers
Ricardo "El holandés" | 25 May 07:32
Favicon

New in the appstore: Tango app "Tango Curso"


We like to inform you that in the appstore we uploaded a new tango 
app "Tango curso" version 1.1 (fixed in-app purchases)
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/tango-curso/id500129550?l=de&ls=1&mt=8
the app is free i hope you like it!

Ricardo

Discription app:

Free app with a presentation of tango classes: Tango de Salón, Tango 
de Fantasía, Milonga and Vals

The free app contains:
o	A survey of the course material
o	Dances showing the content of every class	
o	One chapter of every class (the others may be purchased)
o	Texts for every class
o	Text and video on Buenos Aires
o	Ricardo´s CV
o	Video interview with Ricardo

All other chapters of the respective classes may be individually 
purchased as downloads.

The lessons
o	are well-structured.
o	contain all basics, but also sequences for very advanced dancers.
o	explain the most important sequences as well as how to dance in the 
salón, posture, musicality, adornos etc.
(Continue reading)

Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
sherpal1 | 24 May 04:49
Picon
Favicon

milonga chatting

So very perfect Sergio!!!!....such harsh  criticisms and comments on 
the list about such a beautiful social, cultural custom.  If this 
aggression is in your head, what must your dancing be like...the 
dancers in BA are not machines that try to crank out as many dances as 
possible in one evening or matinee...not only don't they start dancing 
as soon as the music starts, they dance far fewer steps to each song, 
there is really far less movement than in our US milongas...all this 
leads to LONGEVITY with out tire or injury.  It is a very valuable 
strategy deployed to enable dancers to dance all night.

And a really good milonga has its own character and pulse and everyone 
through their sensitivity has the shared sense about when the floor is 
going to start moving.  People who want more chat, pull themselves out 
of the dance lanes so as not to interrupt.  And the chatting in my 
opinion is a bit humorous from a foreigner's point of view, usually 
following the lines of: Where are you from, when did you arrive, when 
are you leaving, where do you stay, what is your name, where else do 
you dance.  If they recognize you from a previous trip(and they always 
do since they have great memories of dance styles) they will say : when 
did you arrive, when are you leaving, etc, etc...IF you only learn how 
to speak enough spanish to answer these routine questions, you will be 
a big hit!!!

I don't know why people travel if not to learn and absorb some of the 
most wonderful customs and culture of another country...other people 
might just have it right...and if you incorporate these principles in 
your own life and experiences, you may have a better time than you 
think you are having now.  Sherrie

In a message dated 5/22/2012 2:08:53 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
(Continue reading)

Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
sherpal1 | 24 May 04:44
Picon
Favicon

chatting during the cortinas

One more thing about the chat custom....it is a way to convey charm,to 
amuse, entertain, make yourself indelible in the memory of the partner. 
   Portenos have a wonderful sense of humor and if you can play any sort 
of word trick, pun or even sing songy answer to the question and answer 
period you will be remembered forever.  Reminder: this is fun, social 
interaction, not life and death black belt tango dancing.  Charm....a 
word mostly lost in our parlance and behavior...good to retrieve, 
revive and practice....a good charm offensive goes a long way...to 
providing enjoyment and memorability.  sherrie
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
John Sing | 24 May 00:04
Picon
Favicon

AUTO: John Sing/San Jose/IBM is speaking at IBM Conference in Berlin, returning on 5/26/12 (returning 05/26/2012)


I am out of the office until 05/26/2012.

I will traveling on IBM business returning on 5/26/12.

My manager is:  Pete Potosky/Rochester/IBM,  phone:	1-720-396-3347

Note: This is an automated response to your message  "Tango-L Digest, Vol
74, Issue 7" sent on 05/23/2012 10:20:15.

This is the only notification you will receive while this person is away.
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
gaby luna | 22 May 18:38
Picon
Picon
Favicon

flor de tango a great radio show on the web

http://www.radiocasbah.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=192&Itemid=47 
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
tango | 22 May 11:24
Picon

ATTENZION: Florence/Italy: 'Tango with a View!' STARTS LATER

We are really unhappy to inform You, that the city of Florence has postponed the beginning of the 'Tango with
a View!'
at the Florentine cathedral!

un abrazo
Patricia Muller
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
Sergio Vandekier | 22 May 08:07
Picon
Favicon

Buenos Aires - Milonga Codes


Every code has an important reason to exist, some times more than one; that reason may only exist in
Argentina and in this case the code is not understood or necessary abroad .  If you are a lady who comes to the
milonga alone, you have to be perceived as unattached for  men to ask you to dance.  You show this condition by
entering the milonga alone or in company of other women, greeting briefly some friends, men and ladies; a
kiss on the cheek is no problem. You sit alone or in company of other ladies. You do not talk to a particular
man. You accept the dance with cabeceo and stand up waiting for the man to come close to your table or walk
towards him and meet halfway. When a tango ends and while you wait for the next one to start, this is the only
chance you have to chat with that partic
 ular man. The conversation could be an invitation to a cup of coffee after the dance or about the weather.  In
case of a date, both the man and the woman wish to keep the "unattached condit!
 ion" (for the time being) and therefore they leave the milonga alone as they came. They meet later in certain
place described during the "chat". Another reason for the rest (talking or not) in between pieces of
music, is that a good tango dancer has the need to wait for a moment to get the feeling of the music before he
starts to dance. The same as when he arrives to the milonga, he must sit and relax for a while, absorbing the
ambiance, studying his posibilities in reference to possible dancing partners, perhaps having a drink,
etc., before he starts dancing.  The conversation we are discussing is very brief, a few seconds, the
duration depends on when the couple in front of you starts moving, it does (it should) not disrupt the ronda
at all. Best regards,  Sergio
Permalink | Reply | 1 comment |
headers
Robert Dodier | 22 May 04:21
Picon

chatting between songs, was: Buenos Aires Milonga traditions outside Buenos Aires

Shahrukh,

thanks for your interesting observations. It's always nice to hear
from people in different places.

My $0.02 about talking before the dance begins is based on my
experiences in North America, at regular milongas and festivals.
What I've seen is that festivals have bigger crowds and more
social energy, and that just makes people chatty. What I think I
see is that people are ardently communicating nonverbally while
the dance goes on, then when the song ends, they keep on
communicating -- they just switch to a verbal mode. Then it takes
a while for everybody to switch back to nonverbal mode.

At regular milongas, there typically just isn't the critical mass of
social energy to spark the conversation. Most people just go
back to dancing as soon as the music starts. But sometimes
people do get chatty, which, as a DJ, I take as a very good sign.

As to what people should do, it seems like "when in Rome" is
enough advice.

All the best,

Robert Dodier
Boulder, CO
Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |
headers
Tango 22 | 22 May 02:42
Picon

Buenos Aires Milonga traditions outside Buenos Aires


On 22/05/2012, at 2:25 AM, tango-l-request <at> mit.edu wrote:

From: Shahrukh Merchant <shahrukh <at> shahrukhmerchant.com>

As always, thoughtful and considered comments from Shahrukh.  A few comments:

2. Use of Tandas and Cortinas.
For those who are old enough to remember the '60's (ahem), live dance music, other than "pub rock", at least
in Aus., was always played in brackets (tandas), usually of three songs, with a cortina at the end of each
bracket.  The tanda tradition is quite natural for us, though I have found that studio ballroom parties
seem to have foregone the tradition.  it was revived by Tango and Latin.

3. Table seating.
We much prefer table seating, for the sociability, though we tend to set tables of 6, rather than the smaller
settings often seen in Buenos Aires.  Neither do we escort people to tables or separate singles and
couples.  People tend to sit in groups, with friends.

4. Occasional tandas of other dances.
Agree that occasional other dance music can lighten the night.  we tend to select (rock, Latin, Brazilian)
on the basis of the expected crowd, but if nobody is dancing, cut the alternative as a cortina.

5. Cabeceo.
Traditionally, we used, and still do, eye-contact as you approach the lady.  I find entering the dance floor
an  interesting contrast.  From what I understand, in Buenos Aires, (maybe a bit generalised) the man would
stand on the edge of the floor, waiting for the lady.  She will take the embrace with her back to the tables. 
From here, the couple can enter the dance without disrupting the flow.  Perhaps this has been replaced by
the awful habit of standing in the middle talking through half of each song.  Not sure how traditional this
really is, or if the exaggerated version is a more modern phenomenon. (Never saw Tete do it).  Only dancers
who want to show their "Argentine cred" tend to do it here.
(Continue reading)

Permalink | Reply | 0 comments |

Gmane