Preconceptions and other secrets about Argentine Tango

opendoor

opendoor

Forum Master
In the TA section we came to the question..

newbie said:
Why not asking in a non-tango forum, if what you want to know is what people who are not in tango think when they hear the word? Because for us when we hear the word we think "intermediate class tomorrow 20:00"
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So what is your spontaneous association with it ?
 
Hi opendoor.

As someone who's been dancing social ballroom for a few years, my first question would be "Argentine or American (ie ballroom)?" And then curiosity about where you dance followed by trying to find out if we know anyone in common, since around here there is a little (not a lot of) overlap between the AT and social ballroom worlds. But I'd be cautious too as ballroom is sometimes looked down on by AT'ers - I dropped in on a group class with an instructor from Buenos Aires one night and after dancing with me he spat out the words "too much ballroom!", and stalked off in disgust to someone with a less rigid frame.

If you want to know how random people in a pub react to the word "tango" I think you need to post to a non-dance forum - truckers as suggested in the original thread, or stamp-collectors, hang-gliders, cat-lovers, football fans etc. Would love to hear what answers you get!
 
Even though I dance International Tango, when I social dance with beginner ladies, they would associate these as what they think of Tango.

Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman ... or Antonio Banderras in Take the Lead.
 
Heard a funny announcement at a competition "... second dance we like to call a tango". I think I associate tango with its music and as a dance it can be either american or international for me.
 
Gary MacDonald emceeing a AT exhibition comp a few years ago, "Looks like more fun than the one we do". Gavito and Marciella won that one.
 
FaceTheMusic said:
.. dropped in on a group class with an instructor from Buenos Aires one night and after dancing with me he spat out the words "too much ballroom!", and stalked off in disgust to someone with a less rigid frame ..
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Be sure, this instructor was a colourless nobody till he left BsAs.
 
FaceTheMusic said:
If you want to know how random people in a pub react to the word "tango" I think you need to post to a non-dance forum - truckers as suggested in the original thread, or stamp-collectors, hang-gliders, cat-lovers, football fans etc. Would love to hear what answers you get!
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If you search youtube for standard world superstars performances, or basics videos, the tango ones have the highest number of comments underneath them and a huge portion of these comments says something like "this isn't real tango etc" or some other negative stuff. The next target for this type of negative comment are samba videos, and then chacha and rumba. I don't think it's the ballroom people who post them, it's probably people who don't understand ballroom.
 
I heard AT dancers are seriously addicted to it to the extent they stop dancing anything else! I've never tried it, but enjoy watching every time I have a chance. I think it's the most forgiving dance, I mean it's equally enjoyable to watch beginners and advanced AT dancers. Maybe I should check my studio classes...
 
Yeah, we do tend to drop other dances. I can't really think of anyone who fell in love with AT who still dances ballroom. I tried...didn't go so well. I don't think we're addicted any more or less than lots of ballroom dancers...although we do seem to stay out later.
 
HopefulNaiive said:
I heard AT dancers are seriously addicted to it to the extent they stop dancing anything else! Maybe I should check my studio classes...
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Some will have me --- for this, but many BR dancers who try AT never return to BR not because AT is better, but because they didn't fully understand "true" BR. This could be either the fault of the teacher, the student, the system, or all three. Those of us who are dancers find the individual/unique bliss offered by each dance. This is not to say that we can not prefer one over the other. I certainly do. Yet, AT can not offer everything, and I, after studying/dancing/teaching AT for many years, I do not understand, outside of personal preference, those persons who quit everything else.

Having said that, yes, definitely check out a AT class. Become one of us. :raisebro: You might stray from BR, but you'll never stop dancing AT.
 
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