You can’t tell a book by its cover

A friend and I were having a phone conversation today about selecting partners in the milongas.  We agree that it is important to observe how a man dances first, but it’s not an indication of what to expect.  Appearances don’t tell the whole story.

There are men who demonstrate their entire repertoire of steps to impress their partners, but the experience is often unpleasant.  These men dance for themselves and to be seen by others.  Their partners are only a means to an end. 

On the other hand, there are those who dance very simply with feeling in every movement with the music.  This is the key element in their dancing.  The steps aren’t important.  They put their soul into each dance.  That is tango.

The artistry of Carlos Di Sarli

El Señor del Tango, as he was named, didn’t permit anyone to film him at the piano.  When someone approached, he stopped playing.  He died in 1960 at the age of 57 with his artistic secrets.

In 1981, a group of musicians decided to form an orquesta playing the Di Sarli style.  They became Gente de Tango.  They were faced with the daunting task of notating the complete scores of Di Sarli arrangements which never existed on paper.  All Di Sarli’s arrangements were created in daily rehearsals.  The scores had to be recreated by listening to the recordings.

I first met the amateur musicians of Gente de Tango in 2005 at a rehearsal in Villa Devoto.  I refer to them as amateurs because most of them pursued careers in something other than music.  Like Carlos Di Sarli, Guillermo Durante directs the orquesta from the piano.  He is the master of the Di Sarli style.  It occurred to me recently that I should film Guillermo at the piano during a performance.

Orquesta Tipica Gente de Tango performed at Nuevo Salón La Argentina, and I was there to record Guillermo’s hands at the piano.  The salón has a grand piano on stage, and I was able to film from the left side of the keyboard.  It was the first time I watched him as he played Porteño y Bailarin, El Amanacer, Verdemar, A la gran muñeca, and Milonguero viejo.  Guillermo couldn’t understand why I wanted to film him.  It didn’t take much imagination to feel as if I was watching Carlos Di Sarli himself at the piano while filming Guillermo.  It was moving to say the least. 

Guillermo Durante has already passed the age at which Di Sarli died.  He should be sharing his expertise with young pianists so that future generations of musicians will continue to recreate the Di Sarli style for dancing.  We always will have the recordings of Di Sarli, but a live performance is very special.

The milonga floor

The daughter of a friend of mine has become interested in dancing tango in the past year.  She and her partner came to a milonga one night where I was dancing.  She noticed everything including how men crossed the floor after the invitation by cabeceo had been accepted.  I was pleased to learn that how to cross the floor is being taught where she attends classes, because it is something men have to know when they enter the milonga.  She commented that the man who came to dance with me didn’t walk along the edge of the floor, but rather he crossed directly in the center.  I knew that he hadn’t done anything improper because he crossed at the beginning of the tanda.  Our conversation got me thinking about all the things men need to know about walking across the floor before they begin dancing at a milonga. 

During the cortina music:  I learned years ago that the floor is considered sacred in Buenos Aires.  One isn’t supposed to cross an empty floor like it’s shortcut to see a friend on the other side of the room nor should one dance during the cortina. Yes, there is always someone who disregards this rule.  An aisle between rows of tables is provided to enter and leave the room without disrupting the dancing.

At the beginning of a tanda:  Men walk from their tables directly across the floor to where their partners will enter the floor or in front of the table if the woman is seated in the first row of tables. 

During the tanda: While others are dancing, men must circumvent dancers by walking on the outer edge to arrive where their intended partners will enter the floor to meet them.  This is most easily accomplished at the end of a dance when everyone is standing still on the floor.  Merging into the crowd is an easier transition when everyone begins the next dance.

At the end of the tanda:  Men escort their partners back to the point where they entered the floor.  This is an important part of ending a tanda, so that women aren’t left stranded in the middle of the floor to walk across it alone.  There is nothing stranger than seeing a woman returning to her table unescorted.  After one’s partner has left the floor, the man returns directly to his table.  Everyone is crossing to exit the floor at the same time when the tanda ends after four dances during the cortina music.

Tango historians

As I’ve become more interested in learning about the history of tango, its composers and poets, the orchestras and singers, etc., I have discovered people whose knowledge of tango would fill an encyclopedia.  They share their love and knowledge by presenting talks.  Finally, after gaining confidence with the language, my comprehension is sufficient to understand their presentations.  When I have a question, I turn to one of these experts.  

A friend from the milongas told me about the monthly tango talks she attends and invited me to join her in May.  That is where I became acquainted with Dr. Emilio Santabaya who  speaks for 90 minutes without notes and provides recordings from his extensive collection. 

 

Several years ago I began attending the “Peña de los Cantores y Poetas” in La Casa del Tango where a friend went to sing tango.  This is a world most dancers don’t know exists in Buenos Aires. My attendance has given me a greater  appreciation for the poets of tango.  I especially enjoy hearing tangos which I know from the milongas.  The peña group will be celebrating 25 years this weekend at La Casa del Tango.

Nélida Rouchetto, general secretary of the Fundación La Casa del Tango, is the one who takes care of everything from her office on the first floor.  She is there all day, seven days a week.   She has a poster in her office from a singing competition held in November 23, 1982, at La Casa del Tango with judges Osvaldo Pugliese, Emilio Balcarce, Alberto Podestá, Reynaldo Martin, and Carlos Garcia.

A friend and I were discussing whether Piazzolla’s music was tango.  I was convinced that most of it is not because of the musical structure.  My friend suggested we arrange an appointment to hear what Nélida Rouchetto, a respected tango journalist, had to say on the subject.  I remember hearing Luis Tarantino say on 2×4 radio that “Nélida knows more about tango than anyone.”  We sat in her office listening to LP recordings as she presented a historical sketch of the evolution of tango from De Caro to Piazzolla.  My friend was prepared with an audio recorder for our three-hour chat with Nélida.  She lost her full vocal capacity after surgery or she would be giving talks publicly.  This soft-spoken authority on tango has a wealth of knowledge that she cheerfully shares with all. 

A few months ago, I wanted to know if the majority of tangos with lyrics were written in lunfardo.  I approached Nélida one night during the break at the peña to ask the question.  I expected a simple answer, but she gave me a fifteen-minute explanation.  I have translated tangos with beautiful poetry without one word of lunfardo.  I wanted confirmation from an expert.

Luis Feldman and I happened to be in the same place at the same time the other day when I dropped off a cassette for transfer to DVD.  I had the pleasure of meeting Luis five years ago when a friend introduced us.  Luis has been a life-long fan of Carlos Gardel and has spent many years researching his life.  Luis, who has a degree in Economics from the University of Buenos Aires, dedicates himself to running his video shop Tango Beverly Hills in El Once where he sells the films of Gardel and Argentine tango films.  My friend and I chatted for three hours with Luis when he invited us to see his personal collection of Gardel photos and documents.   I was pleased to know that Luis continues with his passion and presents talks at the museum which was once Gardel’s home in the Abasto neighborhood.  Luis is the authority on tango in the movies. 

Powerful moments

I don’t know how to describe it other than powerful. It was an overwhelming sensation. The tanda was Juan D’Arienzo with singer Alberto Echagüe. I was dancing with one of my regular partners. We were practically in the center, completely surrounded on a packed floor, something I haven’t seen for some time at my favorite milonga home. The energy was tremendous as we all were being seduced by the recordings of El Rey de Compás. I’ve never experienced anything like it before in all my years in the milongas. I told my partner the excitement I felt at that moment. D’Arienzo’s music grabs your attention, makes you feel it, and  you want to dance. If one hasn’t been moved by the power of his recordings, it’s time to switch to another dance. I imagined for a second what it would have been like to film from the center of the floor, but later I realized that the scene was already recorded in my memory along with the feelings I had of those powerful moments.

Chamuyando con milongueros

I was on a bus after getting a haircut in Lanus.  There are thousands of buses in the city, but Chiche got on the same one I was on Wednesday afternoon.  I hadn’t seen him for a year.  We had a half hour to chat about the milongas.  Chiche said “the dance floors are worse than ever because men look down at the floor and bump into others.  They all dance the same way to every orchestra.  The level isn’t what it was a few years ago.  Many milongueros have stopped going to the milongas.  We were in Gricel one night when a waiter came to our table and said that a foreigner wanted to dance with me.  Elba told him that she would have to pay twenty dollars for four dances with me.  We never danced.” 

I called Jorge for his birthday, and we chatted for an hour. ” I’ve been giving private lessons to a young Argentine who travels to teach in the United States.  He says that he wants to bring me there to teach with him in February.  I gave him my curriculum so his American partner can apply for my work permit.  They have had eight hours of classes with me.  We’ll see what happens.  I have been out of the country only once in my life when I went to Spain.  I would like to visit the United States.“  Have you seen the videos of yourself on YouTube?  “No, how do I find them?  I will ask my niece to help me.”  Just search your name and you will find them.  By the way, I see there is a new video of you from just two weeks ago.  “That’s the one he filmed recently of me dancing with his partner.  I haven’t seen it yet.” 

Last night after the first dance of a tanda, Julio asks, “do you like dancing with me?”  I tell him “no” and wait for his response.  You know I have to dance with different women.  If I dance several tandas with the same one, she falls in love with me.  I can’t let that happen.”  I know what you mean.

When the dance becomes art

Dancing isn’t as much about doing steps as it is about being inspired by the music.  Remembering sequences and guiding a partner through a choreographed set of steps is not the essence of dancing well.  It has nothing to do with memory.  Good dancing is the ability to connect with the music and ones partner in the moment. 

Good following is more than being able to follow the lead with balance and style. It’s about listening to the music and connecting to it for your inspiration. 

When this occurs, the dance becomes art.  This kind of dancing really changes the dynamics of partner dancing. It is more demanding of the woman who needs to express herself and follow sensitively.  It is demanding of the man who needs to improvise while protecting his partner on the floor.

This silent conversation in the embrace provides challenge and inspiration for both.  Creativity and presence develop.  This becomes more important as dancers mature from step knowledge to improvisation.

Tango has captured the hearts and enthusiasm of young dancers in many countries.  They are young in the sense that they do not really understand the music of tango and therefore do not dance to the music.  The milongueros, who learned as teenagers, have a lifetime of experience to prove that tango is a feeling that is danced.  Their tango is art.

Traspié

traspié: trip, stumble.

It’s a word that is used to describe a style of milonga.  There is no actual tripping or stumbling since dancers continue along with the music.  It is actually referring to the triple-step (three weight changes in two beats of music) in milonga rather than the double-step (two weight changes in two beats of music). 

Some milonga recordings are better suited for double-steps and others for a combination of doubles and triples.  My first milongas were danced with Ernesto Jorge De Gouvea before I had seen it danced.  He communicates every movement clearly with his body.  All one has to do is relax and feel it.  That’s easier said than done.  If you think about the steps, you will stumble.  I finally learned that connecting to the music is key.

The milongueros who enjoy dancing milonga con traspiéare Ricardo Suarez, Fernando Iturrieta, Pedro Sanchez, Roberto “Pocho” Carreras, and Ernesto “El Flaco Dany” Garcia, who has earned world-wide fame for his elegant style.

Esquina Osvaldo Pugliese

On the first Saturday of the month, free talks are given in Café Recuerdo of Esquina Osvaldo Pugliese in Boedo. 

Néstor José Scalone was invited to speak about the tango orquestas of the 1940s and provided recordings.

The orquestas had monthly recording quotas.  In March 1941, Troilo completed his monthly quota in one day.  Musicians had salaries of 6,000 pesos at the same time the President of the nation earned 10,000. 

 

In 1942, Ronda de Ases was aired on Radio El Mundo from Teatro Casino where the most popular tango orquestas played for audiences who entered free of charge for the live broadcasts.  During the 40s, the singer became one more instrument of the orquesta.

The walls of Esquina Osvaldo Pugliese are covered with photographs and memorabilia of the pianist, composer and director.

200th edition of B.A. Tango

Tito Palumbo celebrated the 200th issue of his magazine with a cocktail reception at La Casa del Tango in Almagro and invited everyone who has associated with his magazine.  It was a lovely gathering of milonga organizers, tango teachers, musicians, and milongueros.  It was a special occasion to socialize with tango friends in a relaxed atmosphere with delicious hors d’ouevres, wine and sweets.