[Tango-L] Musicality. What is it?

[Carol Shepherd]

OK, I wasn't gonna but I'm gonna jump in.

1.

There is a WORLD of difference between XYZ "musicality" class and ABC 
"musicality" class.

Some people need 2 + 2 = 4 because they do not understand basic rhythm 
and phrases in music.  Don't mock that!!!!  That's just mean, people.

They probably have never been exposed to basic structural concepts of 
music, such as AABA (motif-motif-new motif-motif)...(which is not 
typical for tango but it is for the pervasive pop music and that is 
where most people connect with the idea of musical structure).

Others dance at a level where they only need a class of 'shines' to use 
to punctuate the 'hooks' and/or 'breaks' (ie, good things to do at 
various points where the music is recognizably cadencing, or a phrase is 
terminating, or the style changes from rough to smooth or vice versa - 
maybe a musician on the list can find a better set of lay terms to 
replace that jargon).

I think the reason this discussion has gone on so long is that you walk 
into a quote-unquote musicality class, ANYTHING could be on the menu. 
There's no consistency in the level or the approach, or even the 
objective.  And the levels of ability in any such class will range from 
no-comprendo to extremely gifted.

It would be ideal to select for different levels/styles of musicality 
classes by prerequisite -- ie, observation of the student by the teacher 
and placement in the right type of musicality class.  IMO.

2.

OK, certain people are gonna hate this but.  I have observed that when 
the Michigan Tango Club plays a tanda of popular music with a rhythm 
conducive to tango steps, the beginner leaders all of a sudden get major 
amounts of musicality.  Meaning, they can all of a sudden dance to the 
phrase and they start using all of the vocabulary they have been 
learning, rather than having their brain burned out by parsing 
unfamiliar music while leading while navigating the line of dance while 
not toppling or overleading the follow.  So, it's a great exercise in 
learning tango.

So yes, my point supports all those listmembers saying that knowing a 
song cold makes you a better dancer (to that song, and to other songs, 
because you start to recognize the building blocks of the music genre). 
   But beginners don't know tango music cold and are not likely to make 
that investment except in the couple of songs they get in class.  I 
don't even listen to tango casually around the house and I love it.  It 
makes me listen too much and I can't do anything else but listen.  This 
knowledge of all the stuff regularly being DJed in your community comes 
eventually with many hours of dance experience, but frankly a lot of 
those beginner leaders will quit if they never experience that high 
level of comfort.  So I enthusiastically support the 
tangoing-to-non-tango tanda at the practica and yes, even at the milonga 
(if purists are offended they can just leave for a smoke or an 
interesting conversation in the hall, or sit down for a few minutes).

Huck Kennedy wrote:
> Bruno Afonso <bafonso at gmail.com> writes:
>> I find interesting people here saying that classes on musicality are
>> worthless when even top musicians in schools like berklee school of
>> music have them from others. And those are soon to be professional
>> musicians.  But hey, I'm sure a tango aficionado knows more about music
>> than some of the best musicians in the world... people here tend to
>> know more about everything than anyone else, so that wouldn't surprise
>> me :)
> 
>      Congratulations on building and then successfully slaying
> a strawman with penache, Bruno!  Some of us saying that most
> musicality classes taught to tango students are of little use
> in no way logically implies the ridiculous sweeping
> generalization that music colleges are worthless as you claim
> it does above.
> 
>      Music is indeed a very technical subject.  When Berklee
> School of Music starts teaching musicality classes at a tango
> festival, let me know, and I'll gladly sign up.  Meanwhile,
> I'll pass on the usual Hand Clapping 101 Class and Phrases Are
> Eight Measures And Oh By The Way Two Plus Two Equals Four Class
> next time I go to a tango festival, if you don't mind.  :-)
> 
> Huck
> _______________________________________________
> Tango-L mailing list
> Tango-L at mit.edu
> http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
> 

-- 
Carol Ruth Shepherd
Arborlaw PLC
Ann Arbor MI USA
734 668 4646 v  734 786 1241 f
Arborlaw - a legal blog for entrepreneurs and small business
http://arborlaw.com