ArbeeNYC
Forum Master
You could stick around and listen to the music and socialize. Make a night of it, so to speak.
Has Buenos Aires lost its tango soul?
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opendoor
Forum Master
Sometimes I do it, but at other times I find it difficult. That’s why I usually leave at the peak of the evening and hold onto the fond memories. What I find hard:
-enduring the looks and questions from followers asking, "Why aren't you dancing with me?"
-listening to the music often is hard; bad music really annoys me, while good music would make me feel melancholic.
-there aren't always interesting people around to talk to.
pianistamediano
Forum Master
Unfortunately not, just London and probably Spain!
Back to the original question asked in this thread. "Has Buenos Aires Lost its Tango Soul?"
I didn't have an opinion on this as I have never been there.
But I was at an Encuentro at the weekend and became an observer on the fringes of a very interesting discussion on this question. There were a number of very good dancers involved including at least one Argentinian who has subsequently relocated to Europe but still visits family and several who have spent a large amount of time in Buenos Aires over the years. Obviously this was an Encuentro and so the discussion was mainly focussed on the Milonguero style and is heavily biased by that. But the general consensus was that, at least for Milonguero, the torch has now passed from Buenos Aires to Northern Europe. Specifically Poland, the Baltics and Scandinavia. In their opinion its dying out in BsAs as it is no longer being taught and the older dancers who embraced (pun intended) that style are retiring or sadly are passing away.
Please don't shoot the messenger! As I said before I personally don't have the experience to have an opinion but I thought it was interesting enough to pass on.
I didn't have an opinion on this as I have never been there.
But I was at an Encuentro at the weekend and became an observer on the fringes of a very interesting discussion on this question. There were a number of very good dancers involved including at least one Argentinian who has subsequently relocated to Europe but still visits family and several who have spent a large amount of time in Buenos Aires over the years. Obviously this was an Encuentro and so the discussion was mainly focussed on the Milonguero style and is heavily biased by that. But the general consensus was that, at least for Milonguero, the torch has now passed from Buenos Aires to Northern Europe. Specifically Poland, the Baltics and Scandinavia. In their opinion its dying out in BsAs as it is no longer being taught and the older dancers who embraced (pun intended) that style are retiring or sadly are passing away.
Please don't shoot the messenger! As I said before I personally don't have the experience to have an opinion but I thought it was interesting enough to pass on.
opendoor
Forum Master
No, not at all. I'd been posting about this development before the pandemic. And of course, I was attacked for it.
To clarify:
1) Northern and Eastern Europe are currently experiencing the second Milonguero wave. This wave originated in France, Germany, and partly in Italy, and reaches the periphery some years later.
2) The first Milonguero wave was superseded in Central Europe at the beginning of the millennium by the Villa Urquiza style. The Encuentro movement, in turn, arose as a counter-movement to Villa Urquiza. This revival remained a European phenomenon and never reached Buenos Aires.
3) In contrast, Buenos Aires hasn't really had its own Milonguero style in the last 30 years. (I was heavily criticized for saying that.)
3b) There were a few Porteños like Vidort and Tete who presented themselves as pillars of the milonguero style. Alas, they were financed by Europeans and only gained recognition overseas. The esteemed Cacho Dante, co-inventor of the milonguero style, openly admitted to having despised dancing in the milonguero style throughout his entire life.
4) The milonguero style always was vehemently rejected in Buenos Aires as a North American brand. Locals only ever tolerated the milonguero style at least as a resort for crowded dance floors.
5) When tango was canonized as a world cultural heritage and when the Mundiale del Tango was established, local politicians did not consider the milonguero style worth and favored the styles of the established local tango families and their schools.
What is your source for this statement that contradicts everything Cahco has said and written?
He never claimed to invent the style.
I'll save further comments on your post while I wait for the source for your statement.
New to DF? Here's an old (2012) thread that may be of interest.
opendoor
Forum Master
Its still the same source: the interview at Practimilonguero. Its the only source I've got.
Right, that was my own framing. But indirectly, through his collaboration with Susana Miller, he became the face of the Milonguero style.
Please don't shoot the messenger !
itwillhappen
Forum Master
I’m busy enough dancing in a way that pleases my girlfriend, so I can’t also worry about the opinions of tango influencers in BsAs. That said, I think my current trend is leaning towards a "Mundial-Pista-Style".
And towards the end, Susana Miller was teaching a style that was more about yoga and bodywork anyway.
And towards the end, Susana Miller was teaching a style that was more about yoga and bodywork anyway.
ArbeeNYC
Forum Master
Certainly doesn't imply that he or she invented it. Both of them, especially Miller, expressed that they were trying to maintain the tradition and help train future dancers.
ArbeeNYC
Forum Master
Yoga?
I've watched the interview with Cacho several times and don't recall him saying what you have written.
Maybe you can give us a time stamp so we can listen for ourselves.
Maybe you can give us a time stamp so we can listen for ourselves.
This is so totally wrong. I hope any newbies here don't take it seriously. If anyone agrees with that statement, please tell me why and we can explore the evidence that the style was an authentic one from the center of Buenos Aires.
opendoor
Forum Master
Now that you've studied the interview carefully, I have absolutely no doubt about your critical observation. I don't feel like watching the video again right now. But perhaps we also interpret statements made by Argentinians, and Porteños in particular, differently. And I prefer European or American authors. If I remember correctly, you (or someone else) had already stood up when, years ago, I quoted Denniston, who denounced the GA dance style as the "low point" of tango history. We've both danced long enough, read enough books, researched extensively, and spoken with enough Porteños to form our own opinions. If there are discrepancies, they're inherent in the subject matter. But overall, I'm not as idealistic as you are !
That's not my opinion. I was just relaying what those numerous Porteños tell me, who pull a sour face whenever the term milonguero style is mentioned. And newbies should have heard all perspectives, right? Learning tango is a process of self-discovery and orientation. I have no intention of pushing anyone in a particular direction.
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itwillhappen
Forum Master
When I took two private lessons with her eight years ago, she was also teaching yoga in Buenos Aires.
itwillhappen
Forum Master
Cacho Dante said something like this in the interview: "There were the milongueros... and there were the dancers."
I don't believe that the sophisticated construct called "Milonguero Style" here in Europe has much to do with the robust dance style of the historical milongueros.