more tango nuevo

Yuck. That felt like an exercise in architecture rather than dancing. Technique sound, but it felt like it was more strength than flow. Respect for the slowness of it, and I hasten to add, far better than I can do.
 
Thank you for posting the clip!

First I would like to say the dancers are not bad. They are, however, in dire need of some originality.


My opinions on the style they are dancing, and why I wish they would find something different for themselves:

- For starters, I have grown to truly detest that horribly, horribly overplayed Narcotango song. I watched the first part of this dancing clip only because it was posted to the DF. If I had been browing Youtube and found it, I would have immediately clicked out.

- I am also bored with nuevo dancers using the same stock moves.

Lady's part: Walk walk walk, big leg swing, walk walk walk, wrap my leg around the guy, walk walk walk, another big leg swing...

Guy's part: Walk walk walk, pause, walk walk walk, pause, walk walk walk, ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

- Lastly, I am also completely bored with nuevo dancers using the same, thoroughly deadpan, "bored magazine model" expression on the face. Models are coached to use these expressions to draw attention away from themselves and to the clothing. It's the kiss of death for any performance, in my opinion, and so many nuevos dancer seem to use it.

Again, not ripping the dancers - and again, thank you for posting the clip!
 
Actually, Me's post has struck a chord with all the social nuevo dancing I have seen. It lacks heart and emotion, being mostly a continual challenge of choreography and balance.

The really great nuevo dancers can bring their style to life, but those less accomplished (read: most) tend to kill it in favour of fanciful leg motion. I think perhaps the gymnastic element of nuevo is really really difficult to master enough to remain connected the whole way through.

Perhaps they love every single second they dance together, but the message they convey to the outside world is one of disinterest and routine. Only nuevo can make a 45 degree lean look dull.

Narcotango is probably one of the most difficult pieces of music to make anything interesting out of since it is so uniform for so many minutes.
 
Me said:
- Lastly, I am also completely bored with nuevo dancers using the same, thoroughly deadpan, "bored magazine model" expression on the face. Models are coached to use these expressions to draw attention away from themselves and to the clothing. It's the kiss of death for any performance, in my opinion, and so many nuevos dancer seem to use it.
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that's an interesting comment and could apply to pretty much any style of social tango dancer that I know in fact a smile only happens if we make a mistake and start giggling about it.

And maybe one could make the same observation about Chan Park's Zen tango dancers?

If my partner smiled more than the Mona Lisa during a dance I would turn round to looka t whatever she was looking at!
 
Anyway i was trying to figure out what the essence of this style is as I am trying to work out to teach people how to move with flow and not get stuck in everything being rhythm. I have no problem in doing things slow but I see my students crumple mentally if they can't hear a tac tac tac in the music.
 
Reserving comment. Interesting posts, though. Glad Me picked up on some interesting things about the maojoral misconception of what nuevo is.
 
Liked the first clip better, but have to admit I found it kind of boring. But that's just my take on their take of the music...I just didn't care for their interpretation.

Regarding the deadpan expression--I see that on the vast majority of dancers, regardless of style. I know I'm the same way. It's not lack of emotion, necessarily, just concentration on anything and everything other than what my face is doing. If I wanted to think about facial expressions and emoting for other people, I'd be interested in ballroom. Which I'm not. (In fact, I hate the ballroom emoting.)

I don't see how it's a big deal, though, that they look like they're not enjoying it. I'm sure they probably are enjoying themselves--else, why would they spend enough time practicing and dancing together to get to the point that they're performing, eh? How many times have we all said, on this forum, that so much of the joy of AT is what goes on between the dancers themselves, invisible to anyone watching. Why should this be any different?

(And, ftr, I like nuevo just as I enjoy salon and apilado and any mix of them and anything else. If it's done well, it's great.)
 
so, this is probably a stupid question, but what makes the first video tango nuevo? okay, i only watched the first two minutes (the song bored me pretty quickly), but i saw lots of sacadas, ganchos, blocks, leg wraps, colgadas, etc. all in open.

wasn't all that done in 'traditional' tango as well? what's new about it? is it the predominance of those kinds of motions?

i guess i'm curious because i don't see myself as adhering to any particular style, at least not consciously. definitely not 'milongeuro' -- definitely not nuevo. elements of both, probably... but whenever i read that such and such is supposed to be a distinctive of one style or other, i end up thinking, isn't that just a subset of tango?

when i care to think about it, i get confused...
 
Peaches said:
Regarding the deadpan expression--I see that on the vast majority of dancers, regardless of style. I know I'm the same way. It's not lack of emotion, necessarily, just concentration on anything and everything other than what my face is doing. If I wanted to think about facial expressions and emoting for other people, I'd be interested in ballroom. Which I'm not. (In fact, I hate the ballroom emoting.)
Click to expand...

Yes I agree 100%! Paso Doble in dancesport is probably one of the worst for this. The reason I hate this mugging and prancing so much is because it is a prime example of bad theatrics. It is extremely fake and bad to the point that it is painful to watch and detracts from the dancing. Part of performing is to make things convincing. Make the foxtrot look easy. Smile as though you are enjoying it - don't plaster a big ole Joker smile on your face and stick your chin in the air!


Peaches said:
I don't see how it's a big deal, though, that they look like they're not enjoying it. I'm sure they probably are enjoying themselves--else, why would they spend enough time practicing and dancing together to get to the point that they're performing, eh? How many times have we all said, on this forum, that so much of the joy of AT is what goes on between the dancers themselves, invisible to anyone watching. Why should this be any different?
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I believe this should be different because it is a performance that should (ideally) engage peoples' interest and make them feel involved. And you are right - many people say the tango is about what those two people feel, period, regardless of what others might see or think. I think this is part of the "Tango performances aren't real tango" debate.
 
jhpark said:
so, this is probably a stupid question, but what makes the first video tango nuevo? okay, i only watched the first two minutes (the song bored me pretty quickly), but i saw lots of sacadas, ganchos, blocks, leg wraps, colgadas, etc. all in open.

wasn't all that done in 'traditional' tango as well? what's new about it? is it the predominance of those kinds of motions?

i guess i'm curious because i don't see myself as adhering to any particular style, at least not consciously. definitely not 'milongeuro' -- definitely not nuevo. elements of both, probably... but whenever i read that such and such is supposed to be a distinctive of one style or other, i end up thinking, isn't that just a subset of tango?

when i care to think about it, i get confused...
Click to expand...

I admit I have the sort of idea that Peaches has... "I'll know it when I see it." Nuevo is my least studied style to date. (Not because I don't like it - There's just so much out there!)

I don't know if you have access to any of the recent Cosmotango DVDs but the last two have quite a bit of good nuevo.
 
Me said:
I believe this should be different because it is a performance that should (ideally) engage peoples' interest and make them feel involved. And you are right - many people say the tango is about what those two people feel, period, regardless of what others might see or think. I think this is part of the "Tango performances aren't real tango" debate.
Click to expand...
Heh...that debate... I think it depends on the audience. If it's for an experienced AT-dancing crowd, then making them feel involved is vastly less important, and engaging the interest comes from good musicality and good technique.

If it's for a non-AT-dancing crowd, then...well, flashy and showy wins the day.
 
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