[Tango-L] obsession with nuevo

[Trini y Sean (PATangoS)]

--- On Mon, 12/1/08, Tango Society of Central Illinois <tango.society at gmail.com> wrote:

Cultural validity of the product is irrelevant in a marketplace where consumers are largely ignorant and indifferent regarding accurate representation of the cultural art form they are acquiring.

Ron
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Sean here,

I suspect I could be labled an avid tango consumer. Yet I have to admit that I've never gone shopping for a "cultural art form". Maybe the largely ignorant consumers are smarter than you think. They buy what they like, not what you want them to like. (Or need tham to like to improve your market share?)

Very few American tango dancers are likely to become Porten~os. Tango in the US is not and never will be the same as tango in Bs. As. But at least one thing is probably similar. I suspect thare are as few Porten~os as there are N. Americans trying to buy a "cultural art form".

I dance a rhythmic close embrace style of tango to golden age music because I like it; not because I need some form of 3rd party "authenticity" validation. I have friends (I think?) who dance nuevo to all sorts of wierd alternative music, because they like it. I don't tell them what clothes to wear, what food to eat, or what car to drive. Why would I tell them what style to dance? If someone is rude or interferes with other dancers, whether through poor navigation (or by preaching authenticity ;) I might intervene and ask them to be more considerate of their fellows. But I'm not going to try and impose my preferences on them. 

Sean

PATangoS - Pittsburgh Argentine Tango Society  Our Mission: To make Argentine Tango Pittsburgh’s most popular social dance!  http://patangos.home.comcast.net/