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  La VidaTango

E-zine 

  email

  b@lavidatango.com

Mission
 Statementt:

Our mission is to provide a

 virtual home where all

 tangueros, from

 beginners to advanced,

 can access the rich

 culture of tango

and the many and varied

 resources available to

 them. Remain inclusive

 and impartial with regard

 to styles, theories or

 organizations.

 Strive to help individuals

 raise their level and

 understanding of the

 dance. Inspire tango

 lovers to have fun and

 enjoy their tango.

Our Advice: 

 VAYA PRONTO A UNA MILONGA !

Views expressed by

 reporters or

 contributors are not

 always the views of the

 publisher or staff. 

La Vida tango is happy to

 give equal space to all

 points of contention.

Have something

 to contribute or say? 

 
Contact the Publisher

Revised
June 30, 2007

© 2004

LaVidaTango
 E-zine

THE FASHIONS of EL TANGO

From the Tango’s Capital

Jorge Arias Cavana and one of his tangueras models in his atelier at the top floor of "Palacio Barolo" in Buenos Aires, Argentina

It was early in the afternoon, one of those hot days when the sun burns everything that walk in the City’s streets even human beings, because in Buenos Aires my friends, when is cold is cold but when is hot … it is very hot! I was supposed to meet a very good friend of mine who is in the “Tango Fashion” business in his office, atelier and shop located in the last-top floor of “Palacio Barolo” an historical, fascinating and very unusual construction in Avda de Mayo. I’ was already late but I could not help to stand for several minutes in front of that incredible building to admire its beautiful “cupolas” and his fabulous entrance, the extremely high ceilings, its impressive big and large columns on the sides and all that atmosphere that make this place absolutely fantastic and out of this world . Entering in “El Palacio Barolo” is like entering in a different galaxy, it is like entering in one of those fantastic chapters of Dante’s “Divine Comedy” with its Paradise, Purgatory and Inferno, just like its architect wanted to be.

Jorge Arias Cavanna is an old milonguero that enjoys, like myself, going to dance every week to Buenos Aires milongas. His favorite place however is “Club Espanol” but, as any other true milonguero, he pays a visit to every one of the others places and dances there with all the girls that know him, respect him and are his friends. Originally an accounting professional Jorge dedicated his talent, later on, was to work in advertising and marketing. He has been dancing tango for the last 15 years, I did met this Buenos Aires prototype tanguero at …. guess… a milonga of course, and we beil came after some time, very good friends inside and outside milongas. A natural entrepreneur after all, he saw a business behind this world wide “tango fever” and started, 6 years ago, to put together all his knowledge and love for tango organizing, developing and marketing what it is today an international fashions company catering to the fashions needs of the growing number of worldwide Tangueras and Milongueros. “ Six years ago I started to shape and create in my mind “TANGO MODA” (Tango fashion) and in the 2005 I was already investigating and planning this idea”. Why? Because in the Argentinean market there was a real need for that: nobody within the real tangueros like you, myself and many others that have to dressed up “elegant” every week and same times every day, to go to dance to a milonga. The idea was not to end up designing Hollywood style expensive dresses for stage dance, like everybody else is doing now, but to make simple, affordable and practical designs for an elegant evening milonga” When I asked Jorge what were his plans for the future he respond: ”My main concern now Orlando is to establish the name brand “Tango Moda” in Buenos Aires, the Tango’s capital of the world, and then began to develop this concept everywhere and in every place where tango is danced. To do this Jorge said, “I have a time table of 10 years”. Why so long Jorge? I ask him, “Because I firmly believe that Tango is still growing world wide and it will continue to do so for the next 10 years”. “Jorge please, I asked again “close your eyes and think on something that had really paid off all your hard work and efforts in this ambitious project, something for you to remember”. “Well Orlando, let me tell something for what I’m proud of: “I organized tango fashion shows and, instead of hiring professional models like everybody else does, I used only authentic milongueras and tangueros modeling tango dresses and I’ presented the show myself saying: This is a Tango fashion show with models who are not professional models … instead they are real tangueros and milongueras!” “Jorge please, I asked again, tell me and to my readers what kind of industry and what kind of big business has been growing behind our backs in the last times around the tango and the fashion of el tango”. “Orlando, it very hard to say numbers about it because this has become and is today international business. Last year some newspaper reported that Tango was an international market of 3.500 million dollars including shows, classes, clothes, shoes, spectacles, etc., out of this 3.500 million dollars only the 8% remains in Argentina and the other 92% go to the pockets of the rest of the world”. I replied, “Well Jorge I guess that once again we, Argentines, have invented something with that everybody else makes money, except us… it's not the first time!”. “I know Orlando, said Jorge, part of our job in “TANGO MODA” is to try to distribute all our “Tango Accessories” all over the world with the professional principle that we design our accessories keeping in mind our milongas and malingers. We design our dresses and accessories thinking in “Nino Bien” in “Club Espanol” or “Gricel”. Our job is original and we only try, as good milongueros, to design the right accessories for the milongueros to dance at the milongas.” With these last words of Jorge Arias Cavana, tango dancer and tango fashion designer, I said good day or… better than that… until tonight’s milonga, to a good friend and a Tango entrepanuer. 

The fantastic background of “Palacio Barolo”, on my way out, remind to me that the architect of this building Mario Palanti was a real fanatic of Dante’s “Divine Comedy” to the point that he divided the building in 3 zones with its correspondent ornaments: “Paradise” for the tower an upper floors, “Purgatory” in the middle floor and “Inferno” for the button floor. Myself, my good friend tango dancer Jorge Arias Cavana and his “Tango Moda” were fortunately…… in Paradise!   Jorge Arias Cavana tanguero and Manager of TANGO MODA with the magnificent background of the main Cupula of "Palacio Barolo"

 Rules for the Followers 

By Elena Pankey

The good answer for a happy tango relationship or for a happy marriage is in traditional role of the Tango leader. But, Ladies, let your partner be a MAN. Learn how to be a follower on the dance floor, and during the tango lessons. Most women consciously or authentically feel that they need leaders in their lives. They feel it, but still try to take too much burden on their shoulders, even in the dance. They are so accustomed to teach, to help, to talk, that they cannot stop doing it even during the perfectly good dance lessons with a good teacher, who also talks.

First thing, that most women need to do is to train themselves NOT TO TALK all the time. Try to learn how to listen and turn to your partner. Listen silently to the energy that he is trying to project in the frame of this dance. If he already gave up, tango world never happened. Tango asks for “mucho macho”! It is a man’s dance about women. But it was and is about leading by men.

So, FOLLOWERS, try to give your partner a chance to express himself. Give him a moment on the dance floor to do something on his own, let him make an initiative! It would please him tremendously! THEN, he would feel joy! And THEN he would make you happy!

All women dream to dance with good, strong leaders, who would take them to "unknown" patterns, to some new heights, and to new achievements in tango adventure. The better the leader is, the better his partner looks. This is why some followers try to avoid dancing with some beginners or with some dancers who did not study tango well. She cannot make up a dance for a man, if he does not lead it. Women like to investigate tango steps with new partners. They like to try new things and new challenges. Actually, if we talk about the techniques, there are no "man only" or "woman only" techniques. The Tango dance is skilled when a man and a woman exchange leads. But they always use the same tango principles, and techniques are the same for both parts. At the beginning most of us would try to memorize the patterns. But this is not how to follow. Every pattern could be broken and could lead to something else. Every pattern has many "windows" where the real great dancer would take a Lady for a great pleasure of discovery.

How to improve: take lessons persistently and in sequences with the same teacher at least for ten lessons. Then you might see the logical connections. Try to separate your personality from the dance, and remove all obstacles between you and your teacher. However, you need to have a compatible teacher with the same energy that you have. Otherwise, you would not learn, but would concentrate on something irrelevant (like her body, for example) Also, since your brain is the best computer, try to watch the best tango movies. The videotape inside your brain will record the best movements and style! If you have been learning Tango persistently with a smart teacher, video lessons will help you to recognize many movements. One day on the dance floor, it might be unwinding to the action, and you would start to dance... Then you and your dance might shine during Milonga. Watch what dancers are doing between the steps, what kind of adorns they dance. Personal style comes mostly with well done adorns.

For example, women need technique to perform gancho well, if men give an opportunity. But since, gancho is the strongest intimate movement, it is UP to a woman to do it or not. For women, it is NOT necessary to do a gancho, even when men clearly lead it. Men lead, but women decide what to do. She could choose to dance a BOLEO instead. However, if she chooses to do a gancho, she should not ever lift the upper part of her leg or her knee. It is the movement of her leg down - inside - between men's feet/foot. Her knee should go down directly looking to the floor. All the steps are not difficult to dance, if you see the Principals of Tango: stretched straight up axes (which might be changed), how you see in most steps parada, corte, neutral position (when 2 feet equally on the floor with the same amount of weight on each of them), "screw and unscrew effect," brush your ankles before going, keeping your tailbone under yourselves, flexed knees, breathe together, stretch and relax with him simultaneously, and so on... Moreover, you can learn many different combinations, but IF you don't have somebody to practice with, you would not progress fast. This is why it would be ideal to find a person with whom you could learn, practice and experiment together. When some couples take tango lesson together, they can take their new knowledge to home with them. If both partners want to dance, they need and want to practice together (which happens not very often, by the way). Just never give up! Have fun!

Music is not what is on CD. Tango music is inside you. You have it or NOT. If you don't have this talent, and don't feel it, you might try to develop it. It does not matter what part you are dancing: follower or leader. Tango has similar techniques for both parts. If you don't listen to the music, or don't understand that music has
specific energy to dance, you will not lead it. Furthermore, your
follower would not dance it. No follower could make a dance for a leader, or make him "look better". If she does, she has a very pitiful dancer with her. The followers can dance alone though. You need to have the music inside and need to listen to the CD music, as well. "Music" on CD is just some maybe even mechanical expression, written thoughts in the sounds of the Real Music, the original one, and only one that lives inside a creator of it; OR in some of us. The same is in Dancing: if you have some music inside you, you will dance the music. Some who do not have the music inside, will NOT dance it, but might be moving with the patterns that have been taught... he/she learned. You can see this big difference while you watch dancing couples. You might or might not have some success trying to develop the sense of music . . .

“Powerful NOW of Tango" means the Appreciation for the Present moment and You in It. While learning this life – dance (Tango), people realized that it helps them to understand the importance of being right here and right now.

visit  www.TangoCaminito.com  email TangoCaminitoSchool@Yahoo.com  AllRightsReserved©2006

Hola Tangueros
How is everyone today? Today’s topic isn’t about a workshop or a milonga but
about a pratica location. It is the one held every Friday on the University of
Texas at Austin Campus. Now why would this be a topic? Well, the way I see it
milongas, workshops, and private classes are all important aspects of learning
and enjoying the art of Tango but, so is having a place to practice the new
steps, brush up on the old steps, and help new comers into the world of tango
in advancing their skills. The pratica is run by the UT milonga club and I
think it was the brainchild of Ella and Tim, no I don’t know their last names
but that is not what is important. What is significant is the fact that these
people made the effort to get this venue going. It is a difficult task that
involves planning, coordination, and cooperation just like dancing does. Anyway
I think a word of recognition is appropriate. Sometimes one takes these venues
for granted until it is no longer available.
 Group dancers practice. 

While I was at the practica I observed young students, older students, dancers
I knew, and dancers I didn’t know. The dancers would sometimes just dance,
while others worked on their walk, others placed emphasis on their embrace and
others put their study on particular steps but all of them toiled at some
aspect of their dance. In between the dance steps couples would stop and confer
with each other about what they were doing right or wrong and if they weren’t
sure they would ask a third party for some input on the possible solution to
their dance dilemma.

I found the atmosphere comfortable, warm, gracious and inviting. This site has a wonderful wood dance floor with several mirrors along the wall on one side of the room, even though most of those mirrors made me look fat, anyway the music was easy to practice with. I think this pratica location will be around a long time. Thanks again fellow Tango aficionados for providing valuable practice space allowing dancers to hone their dancing skills. Li and Mardi dance All photos by Roy Montejano