3438  Cortes? (was: Quebrada)

Date: Mon, 16 May 2005 23:20:54 +0900
From: astrid <astrid@RUBY.PLALA.OR.JP>
Subject: Re: Cortes? (was: Quebrada)

> Describing "corte" as a "sudden suggestive pause" may give something from
> observer's point of view, but for a tango dancer it is completely useless
> and even misleading.
>
> It would be very useful to know it from internal mechanics. Or at least

very

> precise visual description, picture, so it can be reproduced. Isn't it so
> old that knowbody knows what it actually is?

I will not guarantee you that my explanation is completely correct, but let
me try to remember how I once learned a "sudden suggestive pause" from
Gloria and Eduardo Arquimbau. They were teaching classes on canyengue and
tango orillero, and I cannot even remember any longer which one it was,but I
believe it was the canyengue class.
We were taught to dance something very ungraceful and burlesque looking,
walking with very bent knees,and lifting the foot off the floor at every
step. There was a step,where first the woman did sort of an inner gancho on
the man with her right leg, both with very bent knees, legs hooked into each
other, and the woman's knees apart (as I said, very ungraceful). The next
move was something, where the woman jumped back (forward) on her right foot,
the man kept his right leg out, still bent at the knee, while the woman
placed her left knee on his right knee and her thigh on his thigh, with the
knee bent even more and her lower leg up in the air, the foot bent at an
angle, and in this position they froze for a moment.
As I said, the elegant bits were not yet added to the dance at that point in
history, like keeping the knees closed, stretching the foot, straightening
the knees, or even straightening and elongating the back and neck.
The whole thing looked rather sexual, but in a vulgar, almost grotesque way,
and I can see why people invented a different kind of tango "para las
hermanas" (for their little sisters).
So, I assume, that this may be one possible corte, if you talking about
freezing a pose.

Hope this helps
Astrid

>

Date: Mon, 16 May 2005 08:51:13 -0700
From: Igor Polk <ipolk@VIRTUAR.COM>
Subject: Canyengue ( was: Cortes? (was: Quebrada))

Astrid

Thank you for the great explanation! This sort of things is incredibly
useful! Thank you, thank you!

You described Canyengue very vividly!

Unfortunately, from the negative side.

I do dance Canyengue. This is my favorite style of dancing. There is tango
music when it is the best to dance Canyengue. I have met some woman who
dance it great! And others follow pretty well.
I am so so so sorry that you like many other woman do not understand how
nice Canyengue is. It is great fun, in feeling close to Milonga but
different.

Main points are: bend knees, knees together (yes), legs leave the floor (
pretty high ) stepping very precisely and carefully, apilado close embrace
( bodies are unified very tightly in one), feet move more sharply and there
are a lot of little cortes, but bodies move very smoothly, it is a very
smooth dance. I can recommend a tape: Martha Anton and Luis Grondona " Asi
se baila Canyengue" vo.2. from Trenners Catalog:
https://www.thetangocatalogue.com/browse.asp?ids=2&idb=8&idg&&idpA51 (
NTSC, PAL available)

This is a glorious dance, feeling like flying over the floor, incredible!
And again, I am so sorry that it does not look nice to dilatants, for me it
is full of beauty and grace! Let keep eyes open and trust tango history.

Let us dance Canyengue!!!

Igor Polk