42  Ballroom tango

Date: Mon, 25 Jun 2001 14:46:53 -0700
From: Mark Sussex <doktordogg@YAHOO.COM>
Subject: Ballroom tango

I went to see a friend of mine compete in a ballroom
event. During the event there was also a
demonstration of Argentine tango. I've seen some
other presentations of Argentine tango choreographed
by ballroom instructors.

It's definitely not American tango that I'm seeing,
but it sure ain't Argentine either! What gives?

I think it looks very peculiar. It isn't just because
it's choreography. The style is weird. For example,
the woman's ochos are done without the ankles
together. They've all done that, so it seems like a
stylistic choice. I find it unappealing.

Does anybody know the style I'm talking about? I
think it would be fun to work out choreography with a
partner and dance one of these demonstrations, but is
there some (non-Argentine) standard we must conform
to, the way you have to conform to International
standards in ballroom? Or can I put together a
routine the way I like it?

Mark

Date: Thu, 28 Jun 2001 12:10:51 -0700
From: "Larry E. Carroll" <larrydla@JUNO.COM>
Subject: Re: Ballroom tango

There are two major kinds of "ballroom" tango.

The "International" kind was created by the British and is specified in
the kind of detail you see
in manufacturing blueprints. This is the kind you see in so-called
Dancesport competitions, with
its lizard-like head flicks and both partners leaning far away from each
other as if to avoid the
other's bad breath. I don't recall if it has ochos or not. If so, they
are not used much in
competitions.

The American tango is the kind you used to see in old Hollywood movies.
It is a little bit closer to
the Argentine tango. Its ochos are called fans; the feet do not come
close together, as they do in
the Argentine style.

The Danes have a third variety which you rarely see outside their
country.
_____
The Argentine tango has changed a lot since its creation. The kind you
see in Argentine movies
made in the 1940s, the "Golden Age" of tango, resembles the style that
'Mingo Pugliese and his
family teach. It is based on the molinete, and has the two partners
circling each other all the time.
These figures were done in very crowded floors but the partners had a
little distance separating
them, reflecting the mass culture of the time that wanted the tango to be
genteel.

The rectangular figures that we see outside Argentina today seem to have
been created by show
dancers rather than social dancers. It's ironic that much of Nuevo tango
focuses on the molinete
and its "straightened out" variations, a return to the older figures. But
then the core teachers of
Nuevo tango seem to have dropped the "Nuevo" label for themselves.

Larry de Los Angeles
https://home.att.net/~larrydla

Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2001 08:13:36 EDT
From: Clifton Chow <TangoPassionMoon@AOL.COM>
Subject: Ballroom Tango & Argentine Tango

Hello my fellow Tangueros y Tangueras,

As I have been following the discussion on American and International Styles
of Ballroom Tango, I must share a story with you all about my experiences
with ballroom Tango. On New Year's Eve I attended a private party in Beverly
Hills, CA. At this party there were at least 2 or 3 male escorts whose
primary function was to dance with females at the party who do not have
partners. Whenever the host would announce he was playing "Tango," I and my
partner would go out on to the dance floor with these other couples. While
we were dancing Argentine Tango, these other couples with their head arched
outwards, would glide to Ballroom Tango. The music was awkward. I had
considerable difficulty following the rhythm. But the more I danced the more
I felt very self-conscious because we were the only couple dancing Argentine
Tango. In fact, I found it easier to follow traditional Waltz music than I
did their rendition of "Tango."

The highpoint came when there was a game called "musical dance," in which,
like musical dance, we must dance around the ballroom as music plays and find
vacant chairs as quickly as possible when the music stops playing. We won
the game because, using technique we learned in Argentine Tango, we were able
to maneuvre around the floor more efficiently and easily (around other
couples) than did the ballroom tangueros (who seemed too restricted to their
rigid form. I mean, how can they see the chairs that are located in the
center of the room if their heads keep pointing outwards?).

Keep dancing,
Clifton de Boston