"And the music?" "Oh, he doesn't let the music get in the way of his dancing!" ~ Anonymous
[One of my photos...]
Showing posts with label "Tango Sayings". Show all posts
Showing posts with label "Tango Sayings". Show all posts
Thursday, June 14, 2018
"And the music?" "Oh, he doesn't let the music get in the way of his dancing!"
Shared on FB by Vania...
"And the music?" "Oh, he doesn't let the music get in the way of his dancing!" ~ Anonymous
[One of my photos...]
"And the music?" "Oh, he doesn't let the music get in the way of his dancing!" ~ Anonymous
[One of my photos...]
Tuesday, March 20, 2018
Somewhere between firming up and melting :: Tango Quote
On the subject of the embrace, or tension in the embrace...here is the entire post...
"Tone without tension, melty but not flaccid, presence VS "resistance", awareness but not micromanagement, assertiveness without force, grounded while also buoyant..."
Catherine Young (on Terpsichoral Tango Addict's FB post)
Saturday, September 10, 2011
The Tango and Trapeze Acts
Re: the Cacho Dante quote I just posted...he's the one dancing in the video down below with Sally Potter (from 0:30 to 0:58) in this scene from "The Tango Lesson". You will also notice Gustavo Naveira, Fabian Salas, and Omar Vega (RIP).
Re: the title of this post - it's a 1998 article by Cacho Dante - and the source of the quote. Here it is, by Cacho Dante:
The Tango and Trapeze Acts
By Cacho Dante, Milonguero de Buenos Aires
November 1998
Thirty years ago, the tango wasn't a trapeze act. It didn't have choreographies, and the woman was not just a follower, she was to whom the tango was dedicated. Around that time, under the pressure of the dictatorship in Argentina, many milongueros stopped dancing. They were tired of getting picked up by the authorities every weekend to see if they had a police record.
Some milongueros went back to the neighborhood clubs where they had to dance with their neighbors,their cousins, the sisters of friends—all under the watchful eyes of mothers. It was an enormous bore.
The guys at that time had already surpassed the stage of steps. They had already passed through the filter:When they didn't really know how to dance, they did 20 steps; when they knew a bit more, they did 10; and when they really knew what they were doing, they danced five...but with real quality.
The rest they learned from the orchestras at the time: how to navigate the dance floor; how to lead the rhythm. They danced then to some of the best orchestras live every day, Osvaldo Pugliese, Anibal Troilo,Juan D'Arienzo, Francisco Canaro, Alfredo Gobbi, etc.
Later, everything changed. The tango climbed onto the trapeze and became choreographed. And it became a dance of the deaf. The dance floor today also sometimes seems like a war zone. Women don't even get the chance to choose their partners. Men snatch them from the tables as if they were fruit in a supermarket bin.
When some of the milongueros returned to dance, myself included, we wanted to be in style, to learn choreographies. But it was late for that because for us it was more important to be appreciated by the woman than to be admired by those who liked to be seen. Women chose the tango milonguero. They embraced the old guys and then later embraced the young ones as well. Even if we milongueros are fat and bald, we still carry our heads high and have plenty of women to dance with.
Sometimes you hear that tango milonguero will die with the last milonguero. But those who say that don't seem to be aware that the last one is only 17 years old and is already teaching the dance.
Nowadays, we dance to orchestras and singers that are long gone. The sons of the great orchestra leaders,as children do, did not listen to their parents. Today, unfortunately, there isn't really any new music to dance to. The orchestras now knock themselves out to follow the singers, whereas in the old days the singer was just another instrument.
The tango, some say, is growing. Others say it is getting fat. I believe it is swollen, like someone who has eaten too much. Luckily, the example of the milonguero exists and it is not by chance nor just because it is something in vogue that some young people here and other people abroad dance in a close embrace and fly. To fly, you must have your feet firmly on the earth. We Pugliese fans plant our feet on the dance floor and we fly with our torsos. There is no other way to dance the silences and the pauses. With D'Arienzo,you dance in fourth gear, with Pugliese, in first. For Pugliese, you must lower the turns and with D'Arienzo, lift them.
The tango is a feeling that is danced. That's why it is not choreographed, though it can have sequences,like all feelings. You can dance love, rage, happiness, pleasure, every mood. The tango is not a dance to demonstrate ability but rather an interpretation of feeling. It is not just moving your feet and posturing.The tango is Argentine, but it belongs to all those who understand its feelings and its codes.Guys, to dance tango, you must listen to the heart of the woman.
Re: the title of this post - it's a 1998 article by Cacho Dante - and the source of the quote. Here it is, by Cacho Dante:
The Tango and Trapeze Acts
By Cacho Dante, Milonguero de Buenos Aires
November 1998
Thirty years ago, the tango wasn't a trapeze act. It didn't have choreographies, and the woman was not just a follower, she was to whom the tango was dedicated. Around that time, under the pressure of the dictatorship in Argentina, many milongueros stopped dancing. They were tired of getting picked up by the authorities every weekend to see if they had a police record.
Some milongueros went back to the neighborhood clubs where they had to dance with their neighbors,their cousins, the sisters of friends—all under the watchful eyes of mothers. It was an enormous bore.
The guys at that time had already surpassed the stage of steps. They had already passed through the filter:When they didn't really know how to dance, they did 20 steps; when they knew a bit more, they did 10; and when they really knew what they were doing, they danced five...but with real quality.
The rest they learned from the orchestras at the time: how to navigate the dance floor; how to lead the rhythm. They danced then to some of the best orchestras live every day, Osvaldo Pugliese, Anibal Troilo,Juan D'Arienzo, Francisco Canaro, Alfredo Gobbi, etc.
Later, everything changed. The tango climbed onto the trapeze and became choreographed. And it became a dance of the deaf. The dance floor today also sometimes seems like a war zone. Women don't even get the chance to choose their partners. Men snatch them from the tables as if they were fruit in a supermarket bin.
When some of the milongueros returned to dance, myself included, we wanted to be in style, to learn choreographies. But it was late for that because for us it was more important to be appreciated by the woman than to be admired by those who liked to be seen. Women chose the tango milonguero. They embraced the old guys and then later embraced the young ones as well. Even if we milongueros are fat and bald, we still carry our heads high and have plenty of women to dance with.
Sometimes you hear that tango milonguero will die with the last milonguero. But those who say that don't seem to be aware that the last one is only 17 years old and is already teaching the dance.
Nowadays, we dance to orchestras and singers that are long gone. The sons of the great orchestra leaders,as children do, did not listen to their parents. Today, unfortunately, there isn't really any new music to dance to. The orchestras now knock themselves out to follow the singers, whereas in the old days the singer was just another instrument.
The tango, some say, is growing. Others say it is getting fat. I believe it is swollen, like someone who has eaten too much. Luckily, the example of the milonguero exists and it is not by chance nor just because it is something in vogue that some young people here and other people abroad dance in a close embrace and fly. To fly, you must have your feet firmly on the earth. We Pugliese fans plant our feet on the dance floor and we fly with our torsos. There is no other way to dance the silences and the pauses. With D'Arienzo,you dance in fourth gear, with Pugliese, in first. For Pugliese, you must lower the turns and with D'Arienzo, lift them.
The tango is a feeling that is danced. That's why it is not choreographed, though it can have sequences,like all feelings. You can dance love, rage, happiness, pleasure, every mood. The tango is not a dance to demonstrate ability but rather an interpretation of feeling. It is not just moving your feet and posturing.The tango is Argentine, but it belongs to all those who understand its feelings and its codes.Guys, to dance tango, you must listen to the heart of the woman.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
You know, when you dance tango, you should really put a little bit of your life into it...
"What we get is the mood. She doesn't listen to my thoughts, I don't listen to her thoughts, but somehow we communicate the same mood to each other. Marcela and I don't have a personal relationship, we are friends and dancing partners, but our souls communicate, we don't need to talk. So, right now I feel like ...I'm dancing with my ideal, but really, my ideal does not have a face. She's a dream of something I want in real life, but that ideal does not have a face. You know, when you dance tango, you should really put a little bit of your life into it. If you dance your life, you dance better." [Carlos Gavito 1942-2005]
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Tango is danced in the heart chakra
"Tango is danced in the heart chakra. If you are dancing anywhere below this, it ain't tango." [E. Brinton, Artist]
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
I find my tango bliss
"I find my tango bliss in a place far deeper than a dance, in a place far beyond the music or the surroundings or the people watching, in a place of pure energy between two exquisitely matched dancers and the music, that perhaps I can never explain."
[Sally Blake aka Sallycat aka Sallycatway]
Me too.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
*BE* the tango you wish to see in the world...
Photo by alex.tango.fuego...
Stealing from Ghandi's famous quote "Be the change you wish to see in the world"...
BE the tango you wish to see in the world...
Saturday, December 13, 2008
On Boleos
[I tried to find a photo with a woman doing a boleo, but I couldn't... which tells you where I've been dancing...]
From Limerick Tango, this one bears repeating in every class, practica, milonga and blog across the land...
"You don't *do* boleos. Boleos happen." [Limerick Tango]
At the aforementioned recent tango event, unled boleos were being done all over the place.
The difficult part is conveying that instantaneous state of controlled flaccidity or ready relaxation in the free leg, alternating from leg to leg, so that the leader can cause a boleo to happen.
Comments?
Saturday, July 26, 2008
On nuevo tango :: Sex with Pornographic Athletes
I didn't say it, Suzy Vegas did.
"Salon tango is like having sex with someone you love, nuevo tango is like having sex with a pornographic athlete."
Suzy Vegas [www.lasttangoinbuenosaires.com]
But now I'm wondering what happens when you dance tango with someone you love who has the skillset of a pornographic athlete....?
"Salon tango is like having sex with someone you love, nuevo tango is like having sex with a pornographic athlete."
Suzy Vegas [www.lasttangoinbuenosaires.com]
But now I'm wondering what happens when you dance tango with someone you love who has the skillset of a pornographic athlete....?
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Required reading...from Sallycat :: When Tango Cultures Meet
"Please, just for me, forget the steps...hold me, feel the music, and give me your soul. Then I can give you mine." [Sallycat]
When Tango Cultures Meet or "Tango of the soul"...
When Tango Cultures Meet or "Tango of the soul"...
Vincent van Gogh on Tango :: What if?
Someone recently told me about a quote attributed to him...something like...
"Treat a person as he is, and he will never change. Treat a person as he ought to/might be, and they will become that person..."
Anyway, I was googling around looking for it, and ran across some other quotes of his that seemed apropos to tango...
Original van Gogh:
“By working hard, old man, I hope to make something good one day. I haven't yet, but I am pursuing it and fighting for it . . . .”
Tango re-write:
"By working hard, old man, I hope to make something good of my tango one day. I haven't yet, but I am pursuing it and fighting for it..."
Original van Gogh:
“What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?”
Tango re-write:
"What would life be if we had no courage to attempt tango?"
Original van Gogh:
“If you hear a voice within you saying, 'You are not a painter,' then by all means paint... and that voice will be silenced.”
Tango re-write:
"If you hear a voice within you saying, 'You are not a tango dancer,' then by all means dance tango... and that voice will be silenced.”
Original van Gogh:
“I dream of painting and then I paint my dream.”
Tango re-write:
"I dream of dancing tango and then I dance my dream."
Original van Gogh:
“How difficult it is to be simple.”
Tango re-write:
"How difficult it is to be simple in tango."
Original van Gogh:
"Paintings have a life of their own that derives from the painter's soul.”
Tango re-write:
"Tango has a life of its own that derives from the dancer's souls."
Original van Gogh:
"One must work and dare if one really wants to live.”
Tango re-write:
"One must work and dare to dance tango if one really wants to live."
Original van Gogh:
"I often think that the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day.”
Tango re-write:
"I often think that the night, with tango, is more alive and more richly colored than the day."
Stuck in there with the van Gogh quotes for some reason...from Dr. Seuss...
"Don't cry because it is over...smile because it happened."
Last one:
“I can't change the fact that my paintings don't sell. But the time will come when people will recognize that they are worth more than the value of the paints used in the picture.”
The painting above, "Portrait of Dr. Gachet", sold for $82 million...
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
The Lead :: Tango Quotes, Tango Sayings
From Steve Brown (Dallas) on Tango-L, on a woman telling him about her dance with Pablo Veron....
"It's not so much that he led me, but more like he willed my movements..."
"It's not so much that he led me, but more like he willed my movements..."
Monday, April 21, 2008
Tango Trance
Photo by Alex...Denver Tango Festival...Outdoor Milonga @ Cheesman Pavilion...dancers Heather & Nick...I just realized that my very first tango trance was with Nick's Mom at the Tango House in Denver...
From Dan Boccia & www.tangotrance.com way, way up in Anchorage, Alaska...
I have not seen it said any better...ever...
"The state of being so completely immersed in the music and so profoundly connected with your partner that movement flows from within the partnership uninhibited by conscious thought." Dan Boccia
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Dana Frigoli and Pablo Villarraza
They said this in an interview with Jackie Ling Wong...paraphrasing again...
"Students must obligate their teachers to continue learning - the teachers must continue to learn."
"Students must obligate their teachers to continue learning - the teachers must continue to learn."
Tango :: Filter the music with your heart
From today's Tango-L Digest...
Said by "El Flaco" Dany Garcia, subsequently interpreted by others - and now paraphrased here by me: "The music goes in my ears, is filtered through my heart, and comes out through my feet."
Terrible photo [below], but it's El Flaco standing at the end of my table talking to friends...at the Buenos Aires Tango Club...a very cool and very funky tango dive you don't hear talked about much...
Said by "El Flaco" Dany Garcia, subsequently interpreted by others - and now paraphrased here by me: "The music goes in my ears, is filtered through my heart, and comes out through my feet."
Terrible photo [below], but it's El Flaco standing at the end of my table talking to friends...at the Buenos Aires Tango Club...a very cool and very funky tango dive you don't hear talked about much...
Friday, March 7, 2008
Tango Quotes :: Tango Sayings
"Life is like Tango... sad, sensual, sexy, violent and quiet."
"Other music exists to heal wounds; but the tango when sung and played is for the purpose of opening them, for the purpose of sticking you finger in the wound and to tear them until they bleed."
"Tango is not a dance, it's a feeling. And how do you teach a feeling?"
"We dance tango because we have secrets." :: Marilyn Cole Lownes
"Great dancers are not great because of their technique; they are great because of their passion." :: Martha Graham 1894-1919, Dancer, Teacher and Choreographer
"Other music exists to heal wounds; but the tango when sung and played is for the purpose of opening them, for the purpose of sticking you finger in the wound and to tear them until they bleed."
"Tango is not a dance, it's a feeling. And how do you teach a feeling?"
"We dance tango because we have secrets." :: Marilyn Cole Lownes
"Great dancers are not great because of their technique; they are great because of their passion." :: Martha Graham 1894-1919, Dancer, Teacher and Choreographer
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Tango Quotes :: Tango Sayings
From Igor Polk's Blog ::
A friend of his who is a professional modern dancer said this to him once:
"I come to tango to relax - the music carries me and makes a dance for me. With other music, I have to make a dance myself"
I like this...
A friend of his who is a professional modern dancer said this to him once:
"I come to tango to relax - the music carries me and makes a dance for me. With other music, I have to make a dance myself"
I like this...
Monday, February 11, 2008
Tango Quotes :: Tango Sayings :: Johanna
If Johanna doesn't mind...I got this from her blog..."Tangri-La"
"I believe that Tango has the potential to bring out the best in each of us, at least while in the embrace. We surrender our egos; leave prickly personality traits at the table; and cease to be CEOs, taxi drivers, engineers, unemployed. We replace all our externals with a purity of spirit, a generosity of kindness, splendid caring. And when these elements flow freely between partners, it is...the joy." (Johanna)
"I believe that Tango has the potential to bring out the best in each of us, at least while in the embrace. We surrender our egos; leave prickly personality traits at the table; and cease to be CEOs, taxi drivers, engineers, unemployed. We replace all our externals with a purity of spirit, a generosity of kindness, splendid caring. And when these elements flow freely between partners, it is...the joy." (Johanna)
Tango Quotes :: Tango Sayings
"Tango is not about what is done, but how it is done"
(E. Santos Discepolo)
(E. Santos Discepolo)
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