Not sure what to do next

[JournalInTime]

Not everyone is willing to play that game.

I am definitively not willing. I dance with people who synchronize well with me, and who share my emotion and (hopefully) my level and style of dance, not with people who have an x% chance of elevating my status and/or getting me in the door somewhere.

 

[JournalInTime]

But why would you want to be in an event with a higher than normal percentage of annoying people?

I guess that what I meant was that were encuentros truly based on respect and style, I'd happily attend. As they are based mainly on contacts and status, yeah, you're 100% correct.

 

[JournalInTime]

In my very limited experience, they do check that you have a reputation for adhering to the códigos and that you dance in close embrace.

Which I do on both counts, to the point where people have remarked on it to me, my partner, and my coach.

However, as they are invitation-only, you do of course have to become known to the organisers one way or another.

I suppose that's the great mystery for me. I'm not a "casual" or newcomer. My investment in supporting tango here isn't unknown (again, I have this from feedback). But somehow, it doesn't matter to encuentro organizers.

 

[pianistamediano]

I suppose that's the great mystery for me. I'm not a "casual" or newcomer. My investment in supporting tango here isn't unknown (again, I have this from feedback). But somehow, it doesn't matter to encuentro organizers.

It's a variation on a cool kids' club, I suppose — maybe some elements of gentlemen's clubs.

Or, far more likely, one or more of the key figures dislikes you enough that you've been shadow banned from the encuentros.

 

[JournalInTime]

Or, far more likely, one or more of the key figures dislikes you enough that you've been shadow banned from the encuentros.

Possibly true. I've pointedly avoided certain studios and their teachers for reasons of stylistic incompatibility and/or not getting "hello" at the door after 10 years of spending money on them, so I suppose certain folks want to return the favor.

 

[Bailango]

I suppose that's the great mystery for me. I'm not a "casual" or newcomer. My investment in supporting tango here isn't unknown (again, I have this from feedback). But somehow, it doesn't matter to encuentro organizers.

That’s mystifying since you dance a few nights a week, are known in the community by virtue of being long time presence and your other activities like bar tending at tango events or classes.

You also have cohort of followers that know you well and likes dancing with you. Do any of these followers get invited to the local Encuentros? How many local Encuentros are there in a year and who organizes them.

I only know of one or two that get organized locally. For longest time I was unaware there were encuentros locally. I got invited to one because the follower half of the organizer likes dancing with me. Which was by accident since we first danced only a few years back. The other one I don’t even know who organizes it and not sure if it exists.

Most of the locals as well as “cool kids” don’t go to either encuentros from what I understand. I never been to one. I didn’t ask someone who attended one, and was told only a few local ones were in attendance. Most were outsiders. It was also demographically biased towards older dancers (50+).

 

[JournalInTime]

Do any of these followers get invited to the local Encuentros?

The younger, prettier ones do.

How many local Encuentros are there in a year and who organizes them.

It's hard to say exactly how many, but I know of 4-5, organized by people who mostly dance at places I don't go to (mainly for geographical reasons – no disrespect to the places in question). So, it might be that I'm at all the wrong places.

It was also demographically biased towards older dancers (50+).

Interesting. The bias here seems to be "age is irrelevant for leaders, but followers have to be younger."

 

[pianistamediano]

Interesting. The bias here seems to be "age is irrelevant for leaders, but followers have to be younger."

Yeah, that would just leave a nasty taste in my mouth. I'd rather not be associated with them.

I've been invited to a few private events before, one that's ostensibly an encuentro and another that's more of a marathon/tango weekend hybrid, though since the organisers have all been female and at least in their 50s, no gender/age bias present!

 

[tangoing]

There’s not really any encuentros in nyc (that I know of) since there’s usually at least 2 milongas/practicas every day, with one being more high level (also more elitist/cliquey), so that tends to separate the different communities around here. Also space is limited and expensive so organizers can’t afford to be that picky with participants, the biggest competition to milongas in nyc is nyc itself, so much stuff to do in the city that people often have to choose between tango vs a show/concert/dinner with friends etc.

 

[Tango Distance]

I suppose that's the great mystery for me. I'm not a "casual" or newcomer. My investment in supporting tango here isn't unknown (again, I have this from feedback). But somehow, it doesn't matter to encuentro organizers

I have never been to an encuentro, but know organizers and attendees. It seems to be a wealthier crowd who travel a lot. JiT, maybe they know you are poor and don't travel?

 

[Bailango]

I have never been to an encuentro, but know organizers and attendees. It seems to be a wealthier crowd who travel a lot. JiT, maybe they know you are poor and don't travel?

He is referring to local Encuentros.

 

[Bailango]

It's hard to say exactly how many, but I know of 4-5, organized by people who mostly dance at places I don't go to (mainly for geographical reasons – no disrespect to the places in question). So, it might be that I'm at all the wrong places.

That probably explains. 4-5 a year is rather high for one city in first place. Each probably has their niche audience. Will be interesting to know if there is an overlap.

In a big city with suburbs, if you don’t go to milongas, you are invisible. Due to similar geographic factors there are several milongas I never been. Anecdotally I hear about the type of crowd at those milongas. There is very little overlap.

Like the ecuentro organizer who invited me - I had seen her and her partner’s name on the local tango calendar. But had never met them. They taught in a different suburb about 1.5 hours drive. I had checked their website once out of curiosity. One day at a milonga very close to where I live, I noticed an older follower seating and may be I hadn’t seen her dance. Cabeceo due to low lit conditions is hard. I was standing close enough that I could cabaceo. I have written about the rest of the encounter before. After first and second song, I gathered she was an instructor. After next song that she organized this encuentro locally which I never heard about. And by the end of tanda invitation to attend it as her guest. After first song she asked where I learnt tango. I said I learnt it locally. After second song she said I danced like milongueros in BsAs and had similar musicality.

I saw her again after 10 months at an afternoon practicalonga. It was day light and she was mostly leading. I could not fully recognize her but I suspected it was her. It had been more than 10 months and seeing same person in daylight can look different. More casual dress too. When we danced the tanda she again made same comment about my dancing. I reminded her that we danced before. Then she remembered and again invited me to the next edition of encuentro. Also added I don’t have to pay the fees (some $300) as her guest. Took my number and email. Sure enough in a few days I got invitation in my email. I didn’t accept because I wasn’t sure of my plans 2-3 months in advance.

So despite dancing for more than dozen years, I had never heard of this encuentro right in my backyard. Nor had anyone mentioned it to me.

We do have two or three large festivals annually which are open to everyone. In 2000s the big annual festival used to attract dancers from all over the USA and small numbers from Asia and Europe.

Interesting. The bias here seems to be "age is irrelevant for leaders, but followers have to be younger."

Reflects the mindset of organizers. May be the PYTs get recommended by the leaders who are chummy with organizers.

 

[TTanguero]

Which I do on both counts, to the point where people have remarked on it to me, my partner, and my coach.

I suppose that's the great mystery for me. I'm not a "casual" or newcomer. My investment in supporting tango here isn't unknown (again, I have this from feedback). But somehow, it doesn't matter to encuentro organizers.

I doubt that it's a question of not mattering, more a question of them not happening to know you. As with most things in life, once you have a foot in the door, then more doors open for you.

I'm no expert, but my impression is that a typical European encuentro includes among its participants several organisers of other encuentros. So once they've met you at one, you will likely get invitations to theirs also.

 

[JournalInTime]

He is referring to local Encuentros.

Although that does seem to be a common element: Most invitees are, indeed, people who travel. The local encuentros are what they do when they're home and/or things their friends abroad come to.

 

[JournalInTime]

That probably explains. 4-5 a year is rather high for one city in first place.

To be clear, that's in one region: my city, another largish city 3 hours by road from here, and a few towns or smallish cities in the surrounding cantons. Not just my city.

We do have two or three large festivals annually which are open to everyone.

We have one big, general one (called Bailongo!). We used to have two others like that: one (Montréal Aime le Tango), where I volunteered, folded in 2016; the other (Festival International de Tango de Montréal) seems to have gone on indefinite hold in 2019. There are also several smaller ones with narrower themes: Festival International de Tango Queer MTL (queer tango), Festivalito Turco (Turkish tango), Tanguerafest (women in tango), etc. And now we have a "festival" surrounding the Tango BA (Mundial) qualifiers for Canada, though it remains to be seen if that will be every year, because other Canadian cities want to host that, too.

Reflects the mindset of organizers. May be the PYTs get recommended by the leaders who are chummy with organizers.

A few I know for sure are girlfriends, attending as +1s. The one time I was invited to such a thing, I was told that it was role-balanced and that as they had a long waiting list of followers, I couldn't come with my +1. Seemed weird at the time, but maybe "emergency leaders" are a thing for encuentros with long waiting lists of followers (and vice versa). It was the "my +1 but not your +1 aspect" that seemed off, given that a few of the +1s were basically beginners while my partner was (and is) an experienced tanguera.