I’ve sometimes heard people grumble a bit that professionals always seem to choose the same songs for their performances. But I don’t see this as a bad thing—the familiarity of the music allows both us and them to focus on their connection and their individuality, while perceiving the common threads that link all forms of the tango. Ballet and opera aficionados routinely view the same pieces put on by different companies, to discover new and exciting ways to interpret old favorites.
Hello. I've been thinking back to the summer of 1986, and all that went on in LA during those early years of tango, and a few things come to mind:
Danel & Maria Bastone: LA’s First Tango Teachers
In the mid 1980s, we greatly benefitted in LA by the arrival of a great tango teaching couple, Danel & Maria Bastone. This was at a time when a great many people wanted to learn tango, and there were almost no teachers of this extremely complex dance. There were many tango performers and show dancers, but almost no one had ever taught a class in the subject. No one, that is, except Danel & Maria. They were (and remain to this day) an exceptional couple. Danel had been a child dancer during the Golden Age of Tango in Buenos Aires and then immigrated to New York in the 1950's. He then trained in all aspects of ballroom & latin dancing, and later owned several dance studios with his wife Maria.
In the late 1950's Juan Carlos Copes & Maria Nieves moved to New York, and studied ballet at a studio that Danel owned. (He later performed on the Ed Sullivan TV Show, four years in a row.) Danel and Copes at that time started working on how to teach this dance: What should basic step be? What is good technique? What material should be taught, and what should be avoided? How should a class be organized, and how should North Americans be taught? And whose version of tango should be taught (since every neighborhood of Buenos Aires danced it differently)? Believe it or not, as old a dance as tango is (nearly 150 years), these questions had never been worked out. Remember that in Buenos Aires, according to Eduardo Arquimbao, there had existed almost nothing in the way of organized tango classes at dance studios, the way that North Americans are used to. In those years, people learned tango from family, friends, and neighbors; and by attending events at social clubs that most families belongs to in the Buenos Aires of the Golden Age (approx. 1935 to 1955). Danel & Maria were the very first to teach North Americans this dance, in New York in the late 1950's.
The great value in having Danel & Maria with us in Los Angeles, is that we finally had a very professional teaching couple, highly experienced, that was able to steer us in the right direction. Danel & Maria were among the very few who were able to conduct a class, count things out, and get people dancing. They were excellent at teaching men (quite a feat with this dance), and the men they trained are among the best leaders and most sought-after partners in New York. They just had so much more experience compared to anyone else.
To this day, Danel & Maria deserve a lot of credit for guiding us and steering us in the right direction during those early years in Los Angeles. I was able to arrange for them to return to LA several times a year between 1988 and 1996 on teaching tours. They also taught extensively in San Francisco. They remain to this day the most experienced of all instructors, and the ones with whom many of us still consult.
Argentine Tango in LA and the show “Tango Argentino”
You should know that tango already existed in Los Angeles within the Argentine community, well before the advent of the show "Tango Argentino." But it was limited to events held within the Argentine community (immigrants from Argentina who lived in Southern California). There was a "Club Argentino" and also the Asociación Argentina (Argentine Association). There was an Argentine Club in Orange County also. The Asociación in those years was located at the present Burbank Hall of Realtors, where many years later Mark Celaya & Joan Yarfitz would hold their milongas; the Asociación would later move to their present location on Glen Oaks Boulevard. In those years, these organizations, together with some small Argentine restaurants, would host various tango musicians, dancers, vocalists, folklore musicians & dancers. Both the Club and the Asociación would have milongas. But all this was pretty much unknown to the general North American community.
With the advent of the Broadway Show "Tango Argentino" playing at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood, Miranda Garrison sponsored the first really nice milonga open to the general North American public. This was at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, in their nightclub called the Cine Grill in those years. That was in May of 1986, and Miranda hired one of the few tango bands that existed in North America. The leader (and bandoneónist) was a man named Osvaldo Barrios, and his band was called "Tres para el Tango” (“Three for Tango”). This was the first time that most Californians got to see what a bandoneón was, and what authentic tango music really sounded like.
At that time in history, it was very hard to put together a true milonga. There was no internet. People did not have PC's. No recorded music was available of tango from Argentina. We had no tango deejays. Ipods did not exist, let alone cell phones or affordable camcorders. Music CD's and CD players were a new & expensive technology. If you wanted to sponsor a milonga, you had to do it the old fashioned way: find a live tango band. Many people spent the next few years telephoning all over North America (before we had the internet) trying to find out if there were any Argentine bandoneónists willing to come out of retirement and play for dancers. As I recall, there was a band in New York that played at a little place in Manhattan called "La Milonga" that Robert Duvall talked about, and we heard of one in Miami. That was all in 1986; there was nothing available in between. No tango yet existed in today's major tango markets. The few people in San Francisco used to drive down to LA and dance with us down here.
“You have to know the past to understand the present.” - Carl Sagan
How did Tango in Los Angeles start ? Who were the dancers and community developers who laid the groundwork for the rich and diverse Tango community we participate in and enjoy today ?
LA Tango dancers Mitra and Holly started wondering about our community's Tango history. Holly started reaching out and interviewing many experts on Tango in LA, including Joan Yarfitz, Loreen Arbus, Linda Valentino, Julie Friedgen, Homer Ladas, and many others, all of whom generously shared their time and their stories. We're so grateful to all of them for all they have done to build Tango in LA.
In the process, Holly got in touch with Paul Palmintere, who personally witnessed much of LA's earliest Tango history unfold. In this series of open letters, Paul shares with her some personal stories from the earliest days of Tango in LA. We share them with the community here with the hope that learning about where we came from as a community can give us fresh ideas on how we might grow in decades to come. Read the first letter here!
Paul Palmintere, who currently lives and teaches in Las Vegas, is a long-time tango veteran, and was a founder of the big Los Angeles Tango Community in 1986. Over the years, he has trained extensively with a great many of the famous instructors of Buenos Aires. A highly experienced and respected teacher, Paul is well-remembered for his pioneering classes throughout Southern California: Hollywood, Burbank, Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino, Redlands, and Palm Springs.
According to the oral traditions and legends of tango, back in old time Buenos Aires when work days and commutes were longer, and people still held local “turf” loyalties, each neighborhood had its own distinctive style of dancing. Back then, so some say, tango contests or tournaments were as important to the egos of local men as fútbol matches and knife fights. An especially good dancer from one place, it is said, would jealously guard his most inventive and spectacular figures, waiting for the chance to show up at a milonga in another ‘hood and show those guys how you really dance tango.
Today, of course, in this era of instant Internet media exchange, all that has changed. Through the miracle of YouTube, we can access videos of today’s most renowned tango performers and social dancers, right alongside the pioneers of bygone days, like Carmencita Calderón, Virulazo, and Antonio Todaro. Dissolved partnerships and dearly departed dancers live on forever in their recorded performances. We can see how various talented tanguerosinterpret the same piece of music in different, original ways.
And today YouTube can start or fuel musical trends. If a couple performs beautifully to a more obscure piece, another may be inspired to use that same song for their performance, and its popularity can explode from there. Then DJs start incorporating it into their sets, and it becomes a chart-topper and crowd-pleaser at festivals around the country.
For your listening and viewing pleasure, I present these videos of timeless performances to timeless tango songs, so you can see how they do things “over there” in different parts of our tango world. Then you can download the songs, put them on, dance around the room, and see how your own body responds to the same music.
Poema (1935) Orq. Francisco Canaro, singer Roberto Maida “Of that intoxicating poem, now nothing remains between you and me...” Here I present to you the first great hit of the Festival Age of tango. From L.A. to Istanbul to Taipei to Perth, this song has been played in countless performances, classes, and milongas—some might say, to the point of exhaustion. But like any true classic, its beauty and charm still have a place in the hearts and minds of the tango public.
For this iconic song, I have chosen performances by two iconic couples. First are Javier & Geraldine dancing to “Poema.” Watch how delicately they highlight different elements in the rhythm, melody, and phrasing, playing delicately with their feet while keeping their upper bodies connected.
Watch what both couples do as Maida holds sings out one long note (“maaaaaal....”) around 1:31-1:33 in both videos.
iTunes album: Poema
Pensalo bien (Think It Through) (1938) Orq. Juan D’Arienzo, singer Alberto Echagüe “Think it through, before you follow that track—perhaps tomorrow you can’t turn back.”
This tango is quite famous, in part because it plays a part in a very tense scene (beginning here around 1:36) in Sally Potter’s film “The Tango Lesson.” Echagüe’s nasal voice, D’Arienzo’s driving rhythm...this tango combines the subject matter of lost love with a faster, older style of music.
Here, Aoniken Quiroga & Luna Palacios interpret this music in a way that harks back to the earliest days of strutting, posing tango. Just look at their jump and corte (pose) from 1:10-1:11. They are having loads of fun, doing their very best to hit every little nuance and fill in the music. At 1:42 you can see Luna singing along and wagging an admonishing finger just as Echagüe sings, “Think it through!”
Showing a smoother, more “modern” or “salón” style, we have two young couples, Sebastian & Roxana and María Ines & another Sebastian. Holy smokes, these kids are smooth! Watch how they interpret the end of the same phrase where Aoniken & Luna do their jump (in this video, it’s around 00:51-00:53 in the music). Totally different!
And yet, near the end, when the bandoneón is going crazy with its long run of notes (the variación) watch how both leaders do similar twisty adornments in the center of the couples’ turns.
iTunes album: The Tango Lesson (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Corazón (Heart) (1939) Orq. Carlos Di Sarli, singer Roberto Rufino “Give me your strong beating, so I can uproot this bloom of amnesia she has tried to plant over my pain.”
Di Sarli is the master of the piano fill, those little runs of notes that come at the end of musical phrases in so many tangos. Rufino is a smooth vocalist who accompanied D’Arienzo in the late ‘30s and early ‘40s, right at the heart of the Golden Age.
Here we have our first non-Argentine couples, Dominic & Jenna from the U.S. and Patricia & Matteo from Italy. In this song, pay particular attention to how both couples treat those lovely little piano fills. From about 00:47-00:49, Patricia & Matteo take a few small, nimble steps to match the energy of Di Sarli’s nimble fingers on the piano keys. At that same point, though, Dominic & Jenna echo the fill with a long, smooth motion, just as the notes smoothly run up the scale. Both movements, though totally different, match the music. There are many fills in this song, so you can watch how both couples do different things to interpret each one.
iTunes album: Corazón
Golgota (Place of the Skull) (1938) Orq. Rodolfo Biagi, singer Teófilo Ibáñez “On this cruel Golgotha, where the most wicked serve as Judge...”
Biagi was D’Arienzo’s pianist from 1935-1938 before forming his own orchestra. This tango was recorded only a few months after “Pensalo bien” (which still featured Biagi’s wizard hands tickling the ivories). His orchestra’s trademark is a surprising use of emphasis on the upbeat, which can sound like little hiccups in the music. His piano fills are not usually as long as Di Sarli’s—whereas Di Sarli is long and smooth, Biagi is sharp and crisp.
For this tango, I have chosen videos by Ney & Jennifer of the U.S. and Detlef & Melina of Germany. Detlef & Melina show us how to beautifully interpret a piece of tango music, with a dance that is composed of 90% walking. They vary the length and quality of their steps to emphasize rhythm, melody, and different instruments at different points of the music. Ney & Jennifer put their own elegant walk on display (especially from 00:50 to 1:00), but incorporate a few more turns and figures. Note how both women keep their feet close to the floor, except when expressing things in the music (watch in particular Melina at 1:14 and Jennifer at 00:43).
Sometimes, taking a moment to connect with yourself makes learning with a partner flow again.For many, Tango has a steep learning curve which requires one to pay attention to a multitude of things like movement, posture, the music, the embrace, step patterns, and that's before even mentioning the universe that is one's partner. This process of learning holds the invitation to expand our awareness and challenges us to stretch the limits of our comfort zones.
It is only normal that sometimes, amidst these changes and challenges, we get upset. After all, while watching our abilities grow, we also get to watch ourselves doing things not-yet-correctly, over and over again. Often we can't help but notice that our partners, too, are stumbling and "doing it wrong." For some, these seemingly innocent experiences may trigger old emotional patterns related to situations where we were pushed to learn beyond our natural interests or current capacity, often by the means of shaming, evaluation and even intimidation.
In an ideal world, we would be learning like champions, our minds focused, our bodies flowing, our senses fully alert. We would be able to enjoy each step, knowing that no matter how imperfect, it takes us a step closer to mastery. In reality, it is not uncommon to become impatient: "get it already!"; discouraged "I will never do this right!"; embarassed "I keep stepping on her toes!"; depressed "I am just not good enough;" angry "what an idiot! How can I be so stupid!" Or, we may become frustrated with our partner: "if only he could do it right... once!" Our minds get cloudier, our bodies stiffer, our senses duller. We become less than ideal students and our moments taste nothing like celebration.
How can you find a way to take a moment for yourself, even as you work with a partner ?This is the aspect of learning Tango which I would like to discuss.
While science has already proven that stress and emotion have a great influence on learning, I am excited about having the most enjoyable and flow-like learning process possible, for myself and all my fellow Tango students.
Having studied Nonviolent Communication with a focus on emotional intelligence for the last five or so years, I believe that there are simple approaches we can use when facing our upsets in a constructive way, even in the middle of a busy class. Here’s the first step, deceivingly simple but powerful:
Notice your state of being, acknowledge what's present, feel what it is to be you. And, of course, breathe.
This may be done in a minute or 30 seconds or even 15 when you become more practiced. It is useful to make it a habit to scan yourself in order to notice if something's off. Emotions often manifest as tension, especially in the throat, eyes, solar plexus, belly. Point your attention to the emotion and name it in your mind. "I am annoyed." "I am impatient." "I am sad." "I am anxious." Notice any thoughts passing through your mind: "I'm so slow! Everyone else gets it!" Emotions are almost always related to a harsh thought about ourselves or another. Name the thought: "I am telling myself I am slow."
Once we take a moment to connect with ourselves, the dance can flow easily once again.Then, take a breath and feel what it is to be you, annoyed or with whatever feeling is present. Take a breath and sigh. Observe your body soften and the emotion lose its grip.
In other words, give yourself a moment. A moment of understanding and compassion, a direct doorway to the eye of the storm. This deceivingly simple act brings quick relief to one's inner world especially when practiced without the intention for change. Yes, a contradiction.
Allowing yourself to acknowledge what you feel for a moment, to feel your predicament, is a simple and gentle gesture. A brief moment, a look inside and a sigh can bring peace, presence and awareness back into your learning experience. You may feel more embodied, more relaxed, more "you." Sometimes, even a little helps.
So, next time you start feeling tense or a bit off,
Scan your body and mind. Look for tension in the eyes, throat, solar plexus, belly. Notice accompanying thoughts.
Notice what's present - e.g., tightness in the throat, feeling of tiredness, maybe discouragement or sadness, a thought: "I'll never get it, I'm so stupid!"
Acknowledge - e.g., "I am feeling a little sad. My throat is tight. I am telling myself I'm stupid."
Feel what it is to be you, experiencing the emotion
Breathe in and let your breath go
A small step for a Tango dancer, a giant leap towards self-mastery!
As you practice, as you become quicker and more precise, take a mental note of the patterns and thoughts you notice. In my next post, I will show you how to see these sometimes uncomfortable emotions as encoded messages from yourself. Messages which we often ignore in our daily lives may turn out to be quite useful once we learn to decode them.
Meanwhile, I invite you to play with the practice above. Give it ten or so tries and notice how it touches you. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions.
Andrei Andreev teaches connected communication to parents, couples and businesses. In his free time he carries a camera and takes photos of dance, such as those featured in this article. He may be reached at Andrei@empathyschool.com.
