[Tango-L] A painful loss for the world of Tango.

[TangoForum]

A painful loss for the world of Tango.

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Publication of "La Capital" Buenos Aires, Argentina. 

Translated for the benefit of readers of "Tango-L/Tango-A

   

Thursday, November 30, 2006. 

  

TANGO IN ROSARIO LOST ONE OF ITS DEAREST DANCERS  

  

  

Teacher Orlando Paiva died on Tuesday night, at 70, victim of a respiratory illness.  

  

Master teacher and dancer of tango in Rosario, Orlando Paiva died Tuesday night victim of a lingering respiratory disorder, three days before he turned 71 years old. Paiva had an extensive trajectory in which stands out the fact that he was the first Argentinean that taught tango classes in Japan, besides having conducted classes in United States. In 2003 he was declared "distinguished artist" by the Rosario City Council and his name was posted at the corner Güemes and Callao streets, in the neighborhood of Pichincha.

  

Paiva was considered by his colleagues the best dancer of their generation. The statement was made by prestigious and legendary figures like Juan Carlos Copes and Jorge Martín Oscaizaguirre, known as "Virulazo ".    

 

The style that all admired and that gave character to his work it was "Tango de Salon", of which he was considered the highest exponent. His style was recognized for its leisurely rhythm and posture of the couple, with a precise accuracy of stepping and the feet positioning of the lady partner.



 Those qualities, together with the fact that he developed 160 unique figure compositions accounted for having among his student's,  professional dancers from Buenos Aires and different parts of the world, some of them would come to his studio at Bay Serbando 947 where one of his two sons, Oscar, continues with the tradition. The other son, Orlando, has a Tango school in Los Angeles, where Paiva lived on and off between the 70's and 80's.  

   

 In his almost five decades as a tango dancer he danced in theater performances and appeared with artists like Tita Merello, Julio Soza, Edmundo Rivero and Miguel Montero. He was on tours with the orchestras of Osvaldo Pugliese, José Basso, The Quinteto Real and Leopoldo Federico. He trained in the 2 by four rhythm celebrities like Madonna, Robert Duvall, Sean Penn and Jane Fonda, among others. He also participated in the film "Assassination Tango", played and directed by Robert Duvall and produced by Francis Coppola.  

    

Paiva was born in Rosario, Argentina on December 1st.1935 as Orlando Manuel Martínez. He interpreted the dance like a simple art that required a complex string of details for it to be developed into a personal style.

 

When revealing his "secret" how to be a good dancer, he said: "There are many secrets, but one of the most important is to not gloat in the figures. It is necessary to learn how to walk the tango, how to place the feet well. It is very difficult to walk with elegance", he explained. 



When he was honored by the City Council, he stated that tango is a particular symbol of Argentinean culture of which the new generations should feel as the legitimate and proud heirs. "The youth should take conscience that the tango represents us in the whole world because the world needs an "embraced couple dance", the teacher said and later he confirmed his words by demonstrating what gave him international recognition:"The dance".   



May he rest in peace.



http://www.lacapital.com.ar/2006/11/30/escenario/noticia_346950.shtml