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This past month of May was full of activities.
We had the good fortune of having Nito y Elba Garcia
visit our city. They are wonderful tango instructors from
Argentina. Our dear friend, Judith Foster, was kind enough
to offer her lovely house, which has beautiful wood floors,
for our private tango classes with Nito y Elba. I had
the pleasure of meeting Nito y Elba in Las Vegas, along
with Marcos Questas. Having the opportunity to see them once
again was a great pleasure for me. We had a Milonga also at
Jazzercise, where Nito y Elba did some beautiful Tango
Exhibition, they are just fabulous! It was indeed an honor to
have Maestro Nito ask me to dance at the Milonga, I was so ecstatic! I was able to follow his tango steps, as many of
you also did. 
Left to right Norma, Elba, Nito y Judith.
A couple of weeks later, we had the lovely
Brooke Burdette also teaching us at a weekend Tango
Workshop at Jazzercise. Brooke is so talented and we all
learned a lot from her. Even though there have been several
tango instructors lately, the tangueros did not get tired
and were able to support Terry Bauch and the SA Tangueros efforts at
Jazzercise. It makes me very happy to see all my friends
enjoying all these tango classes in San Antonio.
We must
continue DANCING TANGO. For me, life is like a Tango Song!
Dear Tanguero Friends, I hope to see you in the near future
at Circa. A tanguero friend of mine from Virginia will be
visiting our city this month of June, please come to
meet him. His name is Roberto, he has a big passion for
tango and has visited Argentina several times and dances
tango very well. Roberto travels extensively and frequently all
over the U.S. wherever Tango workshops are happening.
Tangueras, you will have the pleasure of dancing with my
good friend Roberto, but please allow me to dance with him
also once in a while, OK? He is coming to San Antonio to
meet our group of tangueros so please come visit and dance
with Roberto and help me welcome him
to San Antonio and our tango community at Circa on Monday, June 13th.
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Telling
a Milonga
from a Tango |
Many
beginner tangueros sometimes confuse a tango for a milonga
and vice-versa. Many people think that "if it's fast,
it's a milonga". Although that trick works about 75% of the time, it is not
correct. Others think that you can tell a milonga from a
tango by looking at the original sheet music. That does not quite work either,
because some pieces (like El Choclo and El Portenito, both
composed by Villoldo) can be arranged/interpreted either as a milonga or as a
tango.
What really distinguishes a tango from a milonga is not
the speed or the original way it was composed, it is the RHYTHMICAL
structure
of the arrangement/interpretation.
Here is an absolute "you can't go wrong" trick:
look for the typical CANDOMBE rhythm. If it is there, it
is a milonga. If the piece has more of a up beat followed by a down beat, then it is a tango.
Click here
to hear an typical example of a candombe. This piece is
called Ancestros
de Candombe
(composed by Napoli & Collazo, interpreted by Donato Racciatti). The candombe (like
Racciatti) is from Uruguay and has clear African origins
because of its rhythm and its use of "tamborines" (drums).
Modern milongas follow the same rhythmical structure as
candombes. They are therefore called milongas candomberas
(milongas candombe) or milongas ciudadanas (urban milongas). This
type of milonga was invented by Sebastian Piana in the
30's. You can read more about the advent of modern milonga by consulting
todotango.com. Modern milongas contrast with the older
milongas camperas (milongas from the country side) which, you guessed right,
originate from the provinces of Argentina. These milongas
were usually played on guitar. This older type of milonga is rarely
ever played at social dances. The following are clear examples milongas candomberas.
Click here
for a first example: Nocturna
(composed by Julian Plaza and
interpreted by our famous Texas tango orquesta
Glovertango). The rhythm played by the guitar at the
beginning of that excerpt is
precisely what you need to listen for to figure out if a
piece is a milonga or not. Click here
for a second example of a milonga. It is El
Portenito
(the little guy from Buenos Aires) composed by
Angel Villoldo, played by Donato Racciati). It is a very fast
and enjoyable milonga. Click here
for a third example of a milonga. This is the same piece (El
Portenito),
but this time, it is interpreted by the New York Tango
trio. Notice how this piece is much slower! If you are not
careful, you might think it is a tango rhythm. Do not let
the speed fool you... Listen to the double bass... It is
clearly a milonga candombera rhythm (albeit a very slow one). Click here
for an example of the same piece played as a fast tango
(by Juan D'Arienzo).You can clearly hear the marching beat of the tango
(although with quite a few syncopations). Therefore, that
interpretation is not a milonga, but a tango.
One last thing, if you hear a piece that is fast-paced,
but does not sound like a milonga, then it's probably a
tango-milonga (I am not kidding, these actually exist). These compositions are
usually very old (80-120 years old). They were the very
first tangos (from "La Guardia Vieja"). For more information about "La
Guardia Vieja" refer to my Feb 2005 chronicle
entitled A
"too Short" History of Tango Music.
Examples of tango-milongas include El
Portenito
(by D'Arienzo), and Nueve
de Julio
(composed by Jose Padula, interpreted by
Donato Racciatti. In this piece, the strong tango beat is
high- lighted by the piano.
Keep
the questions coming, I love them! Hasta la proxima tanda,
tango
on friends!
Eric Lanoix |
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Email eric@tangotango.us
with questions and visit tangotango.us
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 Exercise
Your
Elegant Tango!
Some Technical
Hints for Tango
Walk
By Elena Pankey
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I began seriously learn and perform
Tango with a professional Argentine group
“Las Pampas Devils” on the Celebrity
Cruise Lines. A great dancer, a fabulous
leader and a partner, Hugo Gonzalez was my
first teacher. Later, during our several
trips to Argentina, we took classes with
different distinguished dancers, but
nobody talked about the distinctive Tango
walk. However, we always recognize the real
Tango great Master when we see his tango
walk. It makes this dance so unique,
stylish and so special. I was lucky to
learn all my basics with Hugo Gonzalez,
and later polished my skills with other
masters and their private lessons.
Today I would like to give you some observations and knowledge from my own
experience as a dancer and teacher.
Everybody could use these helpful hints to
dance well and improvise your own
beautiful Tango.
First, an elegant Tanguero always walks
with his toes first, never with the
heels. He walks softly, gently as a cat
or as if you are afraid to wake somebody
up. If you make some dragging noise on the
floor, it means you don’t have the
correct Tango walking techniques. Before the first movement, you need to
check that foot the weight of your partner is
on, move your spine from side to side to
put her on the foot you want.. Then,
send a special energy signal, a “lead”
to her; first put your energy in front of
you and then a woman begins to dance. There
are no obstacles on the floor, so
do not step over. You need just throw your
foot from the hip forward fast and
slightly slide (as if you are skating). Your
energy on the foot in front of you is
crucial. The chest energy signals the
women to move, then leg goes, then the
rest your
body, never otherwise.
Your goal is to make a triangle between
your legs below the knees: one leg
slightly bends and another is stretched
forward. This is correct for women as well
in many positions of Argentine Tango. This energy comes with a strong frame,
the dancers connection and communication between the
bodies. In order to control women better,
try to keep your right arm on the bra
line, across her spine, and don’t bend
your elbow. It should be under her armpit,
and sometimes your arm slides farther to
the left side of your partner in order to
give her more space when you lead ochos
or other complicated movements.
Argentine Tango is the only dance in
the world that asks for torque. In order
to be connected, we should accompany each
other; follow each other’s shoulders and
torque. Your upper body should dissociate
from your hips. It means your hips could
look in one direction, but your upper body
should be with your partner, maybe in the
other direction.
My friend, Hugo Gonzalez, who learned Tango from Juan Carlos Copes,
told me, “If you want to improve Tango
technique faster, you need to practice
your walk alone and while you are
dancing, remember about the torque. There is no elegant Tango without this
torque. If you don’t have this
connections with your partner, you dance
as a soldier with a wall across you. All these “small details” make
Argentine Tango so beautiful. You to will develop this well-known
Argentine tango passionate walk, if you
will remember these hints.
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Visit
Elena's website at
www.TangoCaminito.com
Contact
address Epankey@Juno.com
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Ask
Maleva !
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Dear Maleva,
I am going to Bs As for the first time in December and am
looking forward to my first experiences of close-embrace
style. I am a very busty woman and am quite timid about how
that is going to affect my ability to dance, my comfort
level with strangers, etc. Do you have any words of advice
on how not to be shy about this?
-Tango or Bust
Dear Tango or Bust,
They say in Argentina the women are not afraid to put their
chest on the man. Which means, they never collapse inside
themselves. Always keep your lower ribs lifted when you
dance. You might feel like you're sticking your bosom out
too much at first if you're not used to it, but that's good
tango posture (and good posture for life too!). Don't let
your shoulders slouch forward - roll them back and down so
your chest is open. If you're really busty your face may not
touch your partner's face; that's fine, don't round forward
to make face contact. Having a large chest won't affect your
ability to dance, but your connection might feel a little
different that it does for the less-endowed ladies.
You can practice your posture by going up to a wall and
standing facing it, with your toes 3-4 inches away. Bring
your weight forward over the balls of your feet so your
chest comes in contact with the wall. Make sure your chest
is lifted so your bust is against the wall and the lower
ribs either touch the wall or at least are towards the wall.
Relax here, relax your lower back muscles so your butt isn't
sticking out. Turn your head to the left so your face is not
smooshed into the wall and your neck is relaxed. Relax your
shoulders back and down. Keep your stomach strong so you
don't collapse your belly into the wall.
As for comfort level, I think everyone is a little
self-conscious of their body as they get used to dancing
pressed against someone else, regardless of their size or
shape. The more you do it the less you think about it and
for better or worse, pretty soon you'll have no personal
bubble left whatsoever...
Have fun in Buenos Aires and for God's sake don't try and
hide them sister, they might get you extra dances!
Ask Maleva is published courtesy of
www.close-embrace.com
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“THE
BIGGEST MILONGA
IN THE WORLD”
A special report
By ORLANDO BUDINI
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My sincere thanks to: Carolina Simon and *Carlos Furman
When I asked the taxi driver to take me to Avenida
Roque Saenz Pena he said: Where is that? You must
be looking for Diagonal Norte, senor! Popularly knows as
Diagonal Norte Avenida Roque Saen Pena is like a “knife-cut”
born at the historic Plaza de Mayo for six blocks up to
the Obelisco in Avda 9 de Julio and then for only one
more block as “peatonal” (no cars traffic) them died
as soon as it was born. It is a very short but a wide 6
lines traffic diagonal, one of those typical diagonals
built by Paris urbanizes and them applied to our City
when our own planners decided that, in Buenos Aires,
everything was supposed to be built “like in Paris”.
I got there around 8:30 pm, an extraordinary scenario
was set up right on the streets a block away from the
Bank of Boston (on which walls you can still see “signs
and graffiti” as permanent reminders of one of the
saddest chapters of our recent history: “El Corralito”),
an area of offices and banks busy on weekdays but just a
few people on weekends. I usually go for breakfast to
café “Ecuador” a colorful cafe located right in
front of the main stage and at one of the most
traditional corners of Buenos Aires: Maipu and Diagonal
Norte. I was asking myself why my old tangueros instinct
kept telling me over and over that this was going to be
real big when… all the night of Buenos Aires exploded
with thousands of notes and rhythms of the best Tangos I
had ever listen to! (and I’ had listen to a lot,
believe me)… then people started coming in from
nowhere by the hundreds filling up quickly the
sidewalks, then the Diagonal and then all the labyrinth
of streets cuts formed by Florida, Esmeralda, Suipacha,
Bartolome Mitre and Juan D. Peron… tourists walking up
and down the famous Calle Florida could not explain each
other what was going on there... until they found
themselves dancing among the dancers!! … The great “Milonga
al aire libre” had started and with that the official
inauguration of “The year of Pugliese” (100 years of
the birth-year of the great master, composer and
director don ... Osvaldo Pugliese).
Unforgettable night, more than 15.000 Portenos and
tourists (yes, fifteen thousand) got together there. I
was one of the fascinated milongueros listening and
dancing, when the brightest sounds of the different
styles played live by “Tipica Imperial”, “La
Quartada” and “Tipica Rodolfo Mederos” start
invading the sky and the streets of Buenos Aires from
the Obelisco to the Cathedral … then “Color Tango”
the closest to the style of the master, was welcomed by
a long ovation of dancers and fans, Roberto Alvarez the
director (who was also the first bandoneon of Pugliese)
fulfilled all the emotions playing for the first time
“De mi Corral” composed by Pugliese, at this very
moment and perhaps responding to some jealous tanguero
from other dimensions, his bandoneon started failing! Everyone was paralyzed for minutes
... until
somebody shouted: Un fueye!, un fueye! (We need a
bandoneon) and … like in a Hollywood film, one
lonely teenager from the crowd came up to the stage
with his own bandoneon and offered it to the master!
… fantastic … incredible! Alvarez played with that
“Fueye” for the first time too “Como Flor de Yuyo”
the second Pugliese’s composition … the crazy public’s
enthusiasm drew the longest and strongest applauses of
everyone there … including myself!
“Milonga al Aire Libre” was part of the “VII
Buenos Aires Tango” Festival and started “The Year
of Pugliese” on April 5, in Buenos Aires.
*Photo by:
Carlos Furman
At 5 o’clock in the morning with the streets almost
empty on my way to sleep a little, tired like hell but
happy like a tango-fan in his first tango shoes, I
turned my head back and saw the “Obelisco” against
the bright raising sun of the Buenos Aires’s morning
and I could not help to say, looking at the sky: “ I
have been in so many milongas for so many years and in
so many places … but this one, don Osvaldo… this one
was the biggest one in the World … and it was meant for
you, querido Maestro!.
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| Nito and Elba . . . anyone connected with
Tango knows those names without hesitation.
Well, the SA Tanguero group had the
opportunity and pleasure of hosting them
here for a workshop on May 6,7,and 8. What
an impression they made as people from
Dallas, Austin, and Harlingen came to
partake in the workshop and private lessons.
Angela Avila and Frank Huddleston remember
Nito and Elba from the days when Frank and
Angela were just beginning their trek into
the tango life. This event
came as a surprise when Nito and Elba's
Oklahoma trip was canceled for unknown reasons.
Judith Foster stepped into the picture and
worked out a deal to bring them here to San
Antonio. After some discussion by the SA
Tanguero board of directors it was decided
that Nito and Elba should come to San
Antonio. It turned out to be a great success
as many dancers came to the workshop not to
mention the Milonga on Saturday night. That
was a magical night as the legendary Nito and Elba put on a show that wowed the
audience. If you didn't like Tango after
their grand performance you never would. Thanks to
Judith Foster for her hard work and to the
SA Tangueros group for
the foresight of making the Nito and Elba
visit a reality. |
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Enjoying milonga
held in honor of Nito y Elba are left: Rosa
Flores of SA y George
Villalva of Austin. Right is
Orazzio Loayza of Austin y Margie
Valdes-Shick of SA.
Photos by
R. Montejano
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May 22,23 brought Brooke Burdette to San
Antonio for another of her wonderful
workshops and private lessons. The Burdette
workshop was well attended as tangueros from
all over came to participate. It was
good to see Margaret and Vance from Austin
here in San Antonio. Brooke, as
her friends call her, taught some simple to
learn giro's and adornments for everyone to
enjoy. She also gave tips on ways to improve
the tango walk and ochos. As always Brooke
gave an informative class and special
attention to all who were
there. Afterwards on Saturday night there
was a milonga bringing many dancers together
to enjoy tango and secretly try out some new
stuff on the dance floor. Now ladies if the
move didn't come out right it wasn't your
fault ... it was the man's lead!
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 Brooke
with her
baby girl Ines
and
Takemi
with
her
baby boy
Massimo
at Circa.
Photo
by
assistant photographer
Angela
Avila. |
On Monday
Part two of milonga night was held at Circa
1900 that even brought some dancers from New
Jersey and Germany, boy could they dance. My
ego is still recuperating from the bruising
sustained. Well, it is just motivation to
practice more.
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Imagine
yourself walking arm and arm with a
group of friends down a twisty
cobblestone street. Houses are
joined together on either side of
you in colors of fuchsia, mandarin,
and scarlet. Bugambilia tumbles over
the wall; tangled, magenta blossoms
brush your arm. A parrot calls to
you in Spanish from the near
courtyard. The doorways you pass are
wooden art pieces, hewn with
ornamental design, many of them
three inches thick or more. Many of
them have been here for 250 years
and more. The cobblestones you are
now walking are just as old. The
church bells dong sonorously five
times, the grackles take off forming
a dark arrow in the gloaming time of
day. You and your friends laugh and
begin to hurry, singing a tango song
that is in your mind from the night
before. Tango class starts at 5:30,
and you need to change shoes, get
telephone numbers so you can find
out where to salsa on Friday, and
take pictures of teachers and new
friends before class starts. After
class, you may not have time before
margaritas and mariachi music start
at the colonial bar with the
fountains and tiny Christmas lights.
You are in San Miguel de Allende,
central Mexico, at the first
International Tango Festival
“Fiesta” in 2003. San Miguel is
an artists’ paradise of color, and
architecture; mountain desert
cultural mecca at 6,000 feet. The
teachers are El Indio and Mariana
Fresno, Fabian Salas and Carolina
del Rivero and Orlando Budini. Each
day, there are marvelous choices; a
special Persephone’s breakfast
with pomegranates and surprise
“underworld” destinations, the
hot springs with fantastic gardens
and tunnels to swim through, hiking
through the botanical gardens, and
more. Or maybe you like to shop, and
wander through the artists’
bazaar, the galleries, the shops of
Mexican glassware, jewelry, clothing
of original design. Or perhaps,
rather than spending your day on
your own, you join us for many of
the events at the festival. After
deliberation, you decide to go to
the welcome cocktail party in a
building 270 years old, its’
mammoth walls connecting to the
unique wedding cake cathedral. The
“Estudiantinos” are there, eight
of them, in medieval dress with
lutes, guitars, and tambourines;
singing delightful songs and
ballads. We all start an evening of
wandering the historic streets with
the customary bottle of tequila and
pottery sipping cups. We pause in
front of doors, and knock,
serenading the smiling, surprised
inhabitants. It is chilly this
night, and we cluster together in
the mountain air. It is the night of
the tango show, and the theater is
packed with people even sitting in
the aisles. There is a line outside
of those who did not purchase
tickets ahead of time, and sadly,
they will have to miss this
performance. Surprise members of the
award winning orchestra Quintango,
flew in from Washington DC. Daniel
Diaz is here to play bandoneon. The
local musicians are top quality, and
the combination of talents is
unique. Quintango musicians Joan
Singer, violinist, and Jeffrey Waton,
pianist, play the most stunning
version of Adios Nonino that any of
us has ever heard. At the last
shimmering note of the violin, there
is complete silence. Then, the
entire audience is on their feet,
tears streaming down their cheeks,
in a cacophony of applause that
lasts for more than five minutes. As
a finale, everyone who dances tango
is on the stage. The performances of
the teachers, breath taking and
incomparable in their artistry, are
followed by lovers of tango, the
students, the sanely obsessed, the
passionate folk of tango. This is,
as it turns out, not just a tango
show; this is a once in a lifetime
tango feast! Back in your hotel
room, dreamily exhausted from little
sleep, you turn out your lamp. Your
last night in San Miguel is ending
as church bells ring out 2 AM. You
think of the tango vals you danced
that night. You fly, you soar, you
dream the never ending dream of a
tango embrace that holds you within
the music all night long. You smile
in your sleep.
It's a pleasure reporting for you
and let's tango!
Christina
Johnson
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If you are
interested in attending the PASSION
of the AMERICAS TANGO
FESTIVAL taking place in San Miguel
Allende, Mexico in November, 2005
visit www.beyondtango.com
for all the particulars. The best
price for this trip expires July 1st
so don't delay. |
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Tango
Art for You
"Tango Nocturno"
by
Alvarez, Pedro
31 in. x 38 in.
Buy this Framed Art Print at AllPosters.com
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BUENOS
AIRES CULTURE ON THE WEB
Lan's
women ......
A
joining line among Buenos Aires and Rio de
Janeiro 
Lanfranco
Aldo Ricardo Vaselli Cortellini Rossi
Rossini (Lan) was born in Italy in 1925.
At the age of 3, he lived in Uruguay and
in 1948 arrived to Buenos Aires. He worked
for humor magazine Rico Tipo, where he
drew his first cartoons. He also published
at several publications by Editorial
Haynes in Buenos Aires, one the most
important at those times.
Haynes edited magazines such as PBT and
Caras y Caretas-, where chorus girls and
football players were portrayed.
Lan moved to Rio de Janeiro 50 years ago.
There he worked for Última Hora, Jornal
do Brasil, Manchete Esportivo and, since
2002, the man who turned into his 80s last
February publishes bullets titled "Cariocaturas"
at the newspaper O Globo, reviving city
daily scenes.
The renowned cartoonist uses his art to
connect two cities which marked his life.
That's the reason why his exhibition has
been named "A carioca porteño".
"Popular culture -he said- has always
been the main reason for my works. I
believe that the peoples develop through
it. And as I reveal Buenos Aires through
the Tango, Rio is reflected through the
Samba.
It is a different spirit for each
of them, but they share a common truth.
The theme is always the same: the
woman".
For the artist, "porteña woman has a
European elegance. She is elegant,
stylized, charming. She is not as euphoric
as the carioca. Carioca woman is
explosive, she is more curved, has rounded
shapes.
That's the reason why there are
never straight lines in my drawings. I
always say that my favorite consonant is
the S, because it has breasts and
buttocks".
Two
rhythms, one love
"It is curious -Lan says- that both
Tango and Samba reflect love matters in
their lyrics. But while one cries it, the
other hops it; plays Carnival and says
"My woman left me, great!"
At the same time, the master is a referral
for the porteños' Bohemian of the 50s'.
"When I left the editorial I used to
go to the cabaret O al Tibidabo, where
Pichuco (bandoneonist Anibal Troilo) and
Edmundo Rivero were clients, or the
Chanteclaire, usually visited by D'Arienzo;
or the Marabu, on Corrientes street".
At the Marabú, Lan met Gladys and Chela,
two women who left a trace on his life,
and whose figures are drawn at Casa de
Tango, a piece included in the exhibit
selection.
The collection also comprises a section
devoted to politic humor, where Lan
expresses his critics toward Latin
American dictatorships, the political
reason for his exile in Brazil.
Visit
Let'sTanGO! for more information about porteños’ culture, including
tours, sites of interest, restaurants, museums, milongas
and tango shows in Buenos Aires. Enjoy it ! click here!
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"Amor
De Tango"
| Daniel Monserrat sings your
favorite tangos. I enjoy it in the car CD
player and while getting ready for the
Saturday milonga.... BSC |
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| $ 15.99 |
includes shipping
within US |
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