opendoor
Forum Master
As I wrote elsewhere: the tango crowed is immune to music.
What are DJs doing wrong
- Thread starter itwillhappen
- Start date
Having vinyl, CDs, lossless digital recordings, valve amps, etc isn't about the 'music'. It's just a mechanism to market the DJ; their USP. Are they adding anything to entertainment? If the DJ can 'read the floor' and choose music on the fly, then thry can be worthwhile.
The music (selection of tandas) and basic quality (good enough) matter, but, for many, a variety of curated playlists is 'good enough' with some acceptable amp and speakers. Digital, even lossy, vs. analog recording probably makes little difference in that environment and with aging participants. I'd rather have a cleaned up, and adjusted, digital recording than some scratchy analog relic. I'd happily ditch the 'DJ' for live music - but there's usually insufficient participants to fund that. Hopefully going to a milonga in an interesting setting with some live music later this year.
opendoor
Forum Master
You replied to me with many lines, Brummbaer — but I'm finally missing something like, "You're right, tango DJs actually can't do anything wrong".
These days, I just sit more at milongas than dance. During the cortinas, questioning miradas always cross my way. I don't react. Eventually, followers ask me verbally, "Will you dance with me?" I say I'm waiting for Pugliese-Maciel, Salamanca-Guerrico, di Sarli-Pomar, Gobbi-Leandró, de Angelis-Larroca, Maderna-Rivas, and then I'm met with even more incomprehensible question marks in the eyes. Today dancers couldn't care less what they're dancing to.
These days, I just sit more at milongas than dance. During the cortinas, questioning miradas always cross my way. I don't react. Eventually, followers ask me verbally, "Will you dance with me?" I say I'm waiting for Pugliese-Maciel, Salamanca-Guerrico, di Sarli-Pomar, Gobbi-Leandró, de Angelis-Larroca, Maderna-Rivas, and then I'm met with even more incomprehensible question marks in the eyes. Today dancers couldn't care less what they're dancing to.
itwillhappen
Forum Master
And how many DJs have you found who have actually (and voluntarily) played the tanda Gobbi/Landó?
opendoor
Forum Master
I'd be perfectly fine with a Pugliese tanda. But even those are hard to find these days, itwillhappen!
itwillhappen
Forum Master
Perhaps you need to pay more attention to the environment you're in, @opendoor?
Just to make you jealous, I'll show the last two hours of my last DJ set:
Just to make you jealous, I'll show the last two hours of my last DJ set:
Code:
85 03:19 Tango Alfredo De Angelis Juan Carlos Godoy No culpes al amor 1958
86 03:22 Tango Alfredo De Angelis Juan Carlos Godoy Quien tiene tu amor 1958
87 03:25 Tango Alfredo De Angelis Juan Carlos Godoy Entre tu amor y mi amor 1959
89 03:29 Tango Osvaldo Pugliese A mis compañeros 1956
90 03:33 Tango Osvaldo Pugliese Corazoneando 1958
91 03:36 Tango Osvaldo Pugliese Alberto Morán El cielo en las manos 1951
93 03:40 Vals Orquesta Romantica Milonguera Roberto Minondi Bajo un cielo de estrellas 2022
94 03:43 Vals Orquesta Romantica Milonguera Roberto Minondi, Ximena Gimenez Tu olvido 2022
95 03:46 Vals Orquesta Romantica Milonguera Roberto Minondi y Ximena Gimenez Pobre flor (Primera ilusión) 2022
97 03:50 Tango Rodolfo Biagi Alberto Amor Nada 1944
98 03:53 Tango Rodolfo Biagi Alberto Amor Seamos amigos 1944
99 03:55 Tango Rodolfo Biagi Alberto Amor Mis amores de ayer 1945
101 04:00 Tango Fulvio Salamanca Gallo ciego 1959
102 04:02 Tango Fulvio Salamanca Jorge Garré Qué te pasa Buenos Aires 1958
103 04:05 Tango Fulvio Salamanca Andrés Peyró, Jorge Garré Alma en pena 1957
105 04:09 Tango Osvaldo Manzi El Once (11) 1969
106 04:12 Tango Osvaldo Manzi Julián 1969
107 04:15 Tango Osvaldo Manzi Sobre el pucho (Un callejón en Pompeya) 1969
109 04:18 Vals Carlos Di Sarli Oscar Serpa Un momento 1952
110 04:21 Vals Ángel D'Agostino Rubén Cané Esquinas porteñas 1953
111 04:24 Vals Ángel D'Agostino Tino García Ella 1955
113 04:28 Tango Aníbal Troilo Francisco Fiorentino Toda mi vida 1941
114 04:31 Tango Aníbal Troilo Francisco Fiorentino Maragata 1941
115 04:34 Tango Aníbal Troilo Francisco Fiorentino Tinta roja 1941
117 04:38 Tango Orquesta Típica Misteriosa Chiqué (El elegante) 2015
118 04:41 Tango Orquesta Típica Misteriosa Eliana Sosa Tema de pototo 2015
119 04:44 Tango Orquesta Típica Misteriosa Eliana Sosa Tamboriles 2015
121 04:47 Tango Domingo Federico Carlos Vidal Yo 1945
122 04:50 Tango Domingo Federico Carlos Vidal Para qué te quiero tanto 1945
123 04:52 Tango Domingo Federico Carlos Vidal Yuyo verde (Callejón) 1944
125 04:56 Tango Francisco Canaro Quejas de bandonéon 1953
126 04:59 Tango Francisco Canaro Isabel De Grana, -choir- Bandoneón arrabalero 1961
127 05:02 Tango Francisco Canaro Juan Carlos Rolón Es mejor 1956
129 05:06 Tango Domingo Federico Presentación 1960
130 05:09 Tango Alfredo De Angelis El escondite de Hernando 1954
131 05:11 Tango Osvaldo Pugliese La Tupungatina 1952
132 05:15 Tango Milva La cumparsita (Questo tango) 1968
133 05:19 Tango Tino Rossi Écris-moi 1938itwillhappen
Forum Master
Yes, sure, but that's more of a theoretical case. The Spotify player is only more effective than a DJ player for beginners who want to copy and paste "their" playlist from other playlists or algorithic suggestions. Later on, the limited options become a significant drawback. How can you at least manually note the release date? How do you insert a short pause between tracks in a tanda, for example?
It's like a good car driver trying to overtake beginners in the race with a junk car. The question isn't whether he can, but why he doesn't want to compete at the front with a race car.
That said, music streaming is "inevitable" for the next generation, and so sooner or later there will be better suited environments for DJs.
TTanguero
Forum Master
There are silent tracks available on Spotify anywhere from one second up. I've created playlists for informal milongas and that's the approach I take. The one thing you can't do, of course, is trim any existing silence embedded in the tracks themselves in order to get a consistent gap.
Tango Distance
Well-Known Member
I'll tie this to Tango at the end.
- I generally do a very accessible form, where many cars are daily drivers and the course is made by cones. It is against the clock, not fender-to-fender.
- Daily drivers are welcomed and encouraged. Most cars can go much faster than people realize! It's fun to drive, and learn how to better drive, your everyday car.
- It's actually more fun to beat people with a junk car. If you beat someone with a $100k Porsche, they say "Of course you won, look at that car." If you beat them with a lesser car, it shows you beat them with skill and not the machinery. I found it great fun to beat cars that cost much more, had wider tires, better suspension, had more horsepower, etc.
- I drove a Ferrari for a few laps. Yes it was fun, but it was restrained fun. I couldn't afford to wreck. My $5k replacement cost car? Yep, it gets driven closer to the limit!
- The 24 Hours of Lemons (yes, Lemons, not Le Mans) is a popular race with cars that are supposed to have cost less than something like $500 to buy.
- There are classes for all kinds of cars. Yes, you can be competitive in your 4 cylinder Honda, in its class. Not everyone wants, or can afford, to run Corvettes.
- It's good advice to run a car you can afford to lose. Insurance won't pay if you wipe it out on a race track. Again, that $5k is starting to sound really good!
- Part of the fun of car racing is error correction. If you aren't doing that, you aren't going fast enough!
- I have danced with 2 Lamborghinis.
It is a taxi dance service. - Yes, you can dance with the best follower at an event. You'll look and feel good. But was it really you? Was she covering for your mistakes? Is this ignorance bliss? Were her embellishments really what made it great?
- You can dance with an intermediate, or even a beginner, and make her look good. She makes mistakes, but you seamlessly cover them with instant switches to Plan B. You might get the compliment "Wow, I never did X before!" and you'd led it so well you thought she had done it 100 times. You feel assured you led the tanda well.
itwillhappen
Forum Master
Sophisticated ideas. But this isn't about dancing, it's about DJing.
So it's an individual time trial, a one-man show. 80-120 spectators have bet their ticket money that they'll see a good race, and with top equipment, please.
If I tell the (professional) organizer I'd like to experience improvised DJing with Spotify and the headphone jack, he'll tell me that I'd better go home and take my temperature!
So it's an individual time trial, a one-man show. 80-120 spectators have bet their ticket money that they'll see a good race, and with top equipment, please.
If I tell the (professional) organizer I'd like to experience improvised DJing with Spotify and the headphone jack, he'll tell me that I'd better go home and take my temperature!
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itwillhappen
Forum Master
"Better music" regarding which criteria? What could be the underlying mechanism?
And why not play these playlists at milongas and save the money for a DJ?
And why not play these playlists at milongas and save the money for a DJ?
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I agree, qualified by 'usually' - which means some are awful; most are ok, a few exceptionally good.
Danceable! Suitable for practice.
But fair enough. Practicas are for a self-selecting group of enthusiasts. You can't please everyone.
opendoor
Forum Master
Sure, but that statement is trivial (no offense intended). At a formal milonga, the DJ has to balance 12 conflicting demands and expectations. At a práctilonga, only one type of consistent music is needed.