[Tango-L] Live music

[Kace]

Keith Elshaw wrote:
> So, without wanting to annoy anyone, I say:
>
> Perhaps there should be more musicality workshops
> taught by dancers to help musicians figure out how to play tango music of
> today when they are hired to play for dancers.
>   
Hi Keith, list,

I agree with your analysis.  Most of the endless argument on this list 
comes from the inability of
a producer and a consumer to see each other's point.

Musicians create music for an audience of paying customers, and whether 
they choose to go
down the path of playing at live ballrooms or in the studio is an 
economic one. 

If the community can offer a constant source of income via the live 
music opportunities
the supply will be created whether or not the talent exists. 

(Kind of like how the Filipino dance bands in my city are adding tango 
to their repertoire
because of the increasing number of patron request -- and they play them 
on the electric
guitar!).

When someone says, "musicians don't know to play music to satisfy the 
dancers", I think it is
the parallel of "dancers don't know how to perform to satisfy the audience".

Dancers have very intense personal opinions of how to dance, and most of 
it matters only to
the two people involved in the dance.

But when a dancer is given a task to perform for an audience, he has an 
obligation to get off
his high artistic horses and think satisfying the low-brow audience 
expectation as well. 

At the very least, this means wearing a suitable costume, and 
choreographing a few technical
moves to reflect the highlights of the music.

Most dancers won't even be able to pass this test, so what position are 
they in to criticize the
musicians?

Kace
tangosingapore.com