Suffering in Tango

'... look to suffer too much in the dance. Putting too much thought into technicalities, how to move, how to step, how to do this figure exactly, how to do exactly what this teacher said, what that teacher said, trying so hard to copy exactly how every teacher moved.'"

Excerpt from Crossroad

I have been reading some blogs and realized quite a few people out there are talking about the technical aspects of tango down to the specific bones. I tried to follow the detail descriptions. Two paragraphs later I was overwhelmed by the amount of anatomy in the writing: how one's pelvis should be placed in this movement, the degree of hip movement for that movement. For a moment, I thought I was reading a medical journal rather than a tango post.

I try to image how one dances while being conscious about one's shoulder, pelvis and feet. I can't do that, thinking about my body and dancing to the music at the same time. I used to HATE teachers counting step. I still can't associate 1234568 to the beat of the music. Maybe it is just ME who has never taken a class on Music. (Mind you, I am often told that I have great musicality.:)) And who invented this way to teach tango?

At my pre-intermediate classes, the Argentine teacher taught embrace as imagining yourself holding a bady, the American one a round cylinder. For some reason, when my American said that, I had the image of a steel pool in my arm, and i had shivers.

At a workshop on sacada that I attended a year ago, this young American taught about forming the triangle and stepping in 45 degree. At the moment, I thought I was back to college studying Mechanics 101 again.

"Soy, Voy" Javier taught me how to do a sacada: with intention and just go. He showed me, I followed; Andrea's leg was flying. No 45 degree, no triangle, no thinking, just go.

"When they (the Argentine) embrace, man or woman regardless, they don't tear their hair out trying to obsess in technicalities, posture, figures or the teachings of tango teachers."

"Instead they indulge in the shared embrace, listen to the music, to the singing, let the body move naturally and have fun; be happy together! They just want to enjoy the music, enjoy the partner and dance!"

"Why agonize over a perfect side step, or a perfectly led giro? As long as you don't throw each other off balance, and two of you get from point A to point B together, let whatever happen in between happen!" Javier dismissed with a wave of his hand.

Remember, tango for most of us is a social dance. It is not a rocket science, nor a fine art. Teachers, please teach tango as what it is. And dancers, let your body go, enjoy the music and the embrace of your partner. Enjoy tango.

Interview with Geraldine y Ezequiel

viewable from www.tangonoticias.com, excerpts:

Right now it's the fashion to dress casually all the time and make fun of the people who dress up and wear suits. When you dance this style, the people believe that they automatically become artists.... were only interested in "being artists" and dancing tango nuevo.... the main group, were making fun of these people that wanted to learn Argentine tango.

Tango was designed by normal people, the regular crowd.

The only thing we have in Argentina is our spirit. Everything else is from outside-imported. For normal people, relationships are important.

People say tango is sad but it just gives you in poetry the real situation. Nobody is purely happy. Tango takes your sadness out.

These are the reasons that tango outside BsAs is different. Few people truly understand the essence of tango. Most only see it as a dance, a movement and glorify it.

While you sit in a milonga, observe. See how people dance. Do they dance for themselves? For the people who are watching? or for each other. It is rare to see a couple dancing for each other.

D'Arienzo

My morning coffee, my RedBull, my Gatorade.

Buenos Aires Relived

My feet hurt. I had been dancing from 11:00am to 2:30am, with 4 hours lunch and dinner break in between. I HAD my tango fix this weekend. Will try to make it to the Sunday night milonga later, if my feet are feeling better later, that is.

Caught up with a girl whom I've seen before. She just got back from BsAs. We had a great conversation. And two great tandas. She said it was the first time she felt real dancing after she got back. We both loved to be in each other's embrace. It felt so, how should I put it, Buenos Aires. We hugged each other a few times at the end of the songs, savoring the lost feeling. She was the third person that I had danced with that familiar embrace.

I felt I was back in Buenos Aires, doing my milonga marathon again. Ah... less than a month...

Slowing Down.

I had a milongaless weekend. And I only went out one night in the week. The weather hasn't been nice enough: snow, freezing cold, rain, and strong wind. The thought of going out in the weather and having a bad or even a so-so night deterred me further. I still remembered driving on the icy side streets of Manhattan to attend milongas last year. Now the desire of dancing with all those "hot" women is waning. Tango, for me, is no longer to dance till my feet hurt.

My enthusiasm is still here and growing strong. Besides working on the technique in my living room, I am undertaking the work of putting lyrics to my 4000 song Itune library and building my own tanda list. It is to help me with my musicality, which has always been raved by most of the followers. Now only if I understood the lyrics, had I have more control over how to express music. At the mean time, I am expanding my Spanish vocabulary. Maybe by November, my third trip to BsAs, I can finally converse in Spanish.

Two of the bloggers have taken down their blogs. I think that I can relate to it. I wiped out my posts from March to October 2007 without backup. At that time, I felt that I needed to move on and there was no need to look back. Two weeks later, I found myself posting again, only that it was changed to a journal to my first trip to BsAs. Amidst my post BsAs blue, I wanted to close up shop again. A few days later, I couldn't resist but voice my opinion again... I do hope one of these days they will find the desire to write again and share their voices.

Part of the reason I am so into tango is because it is a life long experience, like martial arts. There is always another level you can reach to. In the end, it is not so much about the physical aspect of the game but the mental one. One doesn't stop learning if one chooses not to.

It is rewarding to have a blissful tanda once a while. And it makes the whole experience more cherishable.