Tango Musicality Bootcamp with JOAQUIN AMENABAR

July 21-22nd in Los Angeles
Brought to LA by A Puro Tango and Oxygen Tango

The music goes in my ears, is filtered through my heart, and comes out through my feet. - El Flaco

Close is what the music inspires you to become. The embrace looks personal, but what we are actually embracing is the music. - Carlos Gavito

Tango is music, and it doesn’t begin with steps. We shouldn’t commit the mistake of not teaching how to walk different musical rhythms to recognize each orchestra. - Tete

Whatever your level of experience with the dance, Tango music still holds secrets. And opening our ears and bodies to these secrets is what makes our dancing more relatable, more universal, more sophisticated, sweet, beautiful and bewitching.

Many of us, in some way or another, are slaves to habit or arbitrariness when we interpret the music. But musicality isn’t random self-expression; it’s grounded in a superb logic, a deeply rooted tradition, a learnable structure.

And even when we think we already know the basics, often our knowledge is partial and not well ordered. Rebuild your house of musicality with strong foundations from the finest resource we could find.

Learn these subtleties under the expert guidance of one of today’s few living masters of bandoneon, a world-known musical educator for social dancers, Joaquin Amenabar.

About Joaquin

Joaquin is “one of the few living masters of the bandoneon,” a rare combination of a master musician who can talk the language of social dancers. A conservatory professor of bandoneon in Buenos Ares; musical director and first bandoneon of the “Orquesta Típica de la Guadia Vieja” in Buenos Aires; devoted social dancer; gifted composer and arranger; and creator of the book/ DVD “Tango: Let’s Dance to the Music,” a musical education system for social dancers with no musical background.  Joaquin has toured extensively in Europe teaching Tango musical education courses and we’re delighted to introduce him here in LA for the first time !

Read his full biography.

Bootcamp Program

Day 1: Essential Structures of Tango

Workshop 1: Essential Units of Tango Rhythm: Basic Musical Components. Recognizing the basic musical components of Tango rhythm in the music and adapting our dance to them.

Workshop 2: The Melody as a Rhythmic Element in Tango: Rhythms that Stretch and Sing. As Tango evolved from Milonga into modern Tango, the melody became the main rhythmic element. How do we dance tango melodies ?

Workshop 3: Anatomy of a Tango: Predictability and Surprise. Knowing the anatomy of a Tango allows us to predict when rhythmical changes appear, how long a certain rhythm will last, and when this will happen again: a fantastic advantage for tango improvisation both when leading or following ! !

Day 2: The Layers of Dancing Socially

Workshop 4: Milonga and Vals: Options for Single and Double Time. The main rhythmic units in Vals and Milonga are quite different than in Tango. Understand the differences and use them to the maximum while dancing !

Workshop 5: Musical Expressiveness: Improvisation Across the Tanda. Apply all you’ve learned in previous classes in realtime dancing, analyzing each tango and improvising its distinct rhythms.

Lecture and Q&A: The Evolution of the Diabolical Bandoneon and a Q&A about Tango music’s history at a private meet-the-artist reception/potluck/chamuyo/dance party ! All Workshop Participants are invited.

About the workshops:

• Material is non-theoretical; we will be moving and dancing 90% of the time
• Emphasis on individual work; no partner needed
• Relevant to dancers of all levels, from beginners to professionals and teachers
• No musical knowledge or training is needed. We will be using everyday language that anyone can understand.
• Workshops are progressive so we advise taking them in order to get the most out of the program
• A real bandoneon ! In class ! Wow !

Bootcamp Schedule

Saturday, July 21st
Workshop 1: 2pm-3:30pm at Hollywood Dance Center
Workshop 2: 4pm-5:30pm at Hollywood Dance Center
Workshop 3: 8pm-9:30pm at Oxygen Tango followed by the Oxygen Milonga with Live Music

Sunday, July 22nd
Workshop 4: 2pm-3:15pm at Hollywood Dance Center
Workshop 5: 3:30pm-5pm at Hollywood Dance Center Chamuyo By Invitation 8pm-12am
Lecture, Q&A and Potluck/Tango Party for Workshop Participants: 5:30pm-9pm at a Private Residence

Milonga Schedule

Saturday, July 21st
A Special Live Music Performance with Joaquin and Los Angeles del Tango at The Oxygen Milonga !! Milonga 9:30pm-3am

Tuesday, July 24th
A Special Live Music Perofrmance with Joaquin and Los Angeles del Tango at Tango Mio Milonga Tuesday night ! Milonga 8pm-1am

Pricing

Full Musicality Bootcamp: $110
Three Workshops: $69
Single Workshop: $25
Oxygen Milonga for Workshop Participants: $12
Tango: Let’s Dance to the Music Book & DVD Set: $35 for Workshop Participants (normally $40 + shipping)

Lecture, Q&A & Party FREE for all workshop participants

To reserve a space in the program please contact

Linda Valentino
323-653-5883
http://apurotango.com/
Payable by Cash or Check

For any questions about the program content reach out to Linda (contact info above) or Mitra at Oxygen Tango.  Mitra’s available at 310-854-2466 or mitra@oxygentango.com.

Please be prompt ! You don’t want to miss a minute of this !

Hollywood Dance Center: 817 Highland Avenue, Hollywood, CA 90038
Oxygen Tango: 12958 W. Washington Blvd., LA, CA 90066

More about Joaquin:

http://www.joaquinamenabar.com/
https://twitter.com/#!/thetangobook

Here’s a beautiful review of Joaquin’a workshops. As the writer notes, “Casual dancers overlook these subtleties, but “if you can pick them out and respond to them then a simple basic dance can become full of interest, even just walking and using the simplest steps.”