[Tango-L] No dancing before the music

Jake Spatz spatz at tangoDC.com
Thu Feb 21 01:51:31 EST 2008


>
> Trini wrote:
>
> Out of genuine curiosity, did you listen to tango music for a year before you began dancing?
For my part (yes, you had originally asked Janis... too bad ;-P ), I had 
listened to classical music intensely for about six years before I 
started dancing. Plus a Piazzolla CD (the Lausanne concert one) on and 
off for around 5 of those years, with varying degrees of interest. And I 
had played music (by ear), on and off, for about ten years.

And I had been drumming my fingers, tapping my foot, and fidgeting, for 
all but the first 3 years of my life-- this being far more important 
than anything else, in my estimation.
> If I think about those I know who have done very well in tango [...] They're much too accomplished to let a certain lack of knowledge keep them from their goals.
>   
Let me get this straight... They're too accomplished (now) to let their 
ignorance (back then) keep them from... er, no. Their goals (now) are... 
WHAT are you talking about, exactly?

And what the hell kind of goals can they have, if ignorance of the music 
("a _certain_ lack of knowledge") is/was/??? no obstacle to them?
> As one who knew zero about the music when I first learned to dance, I think I did alright.
Surely you'd heard _some_ music before, no? It's not like tango music 
descended from Mars or something... although I do have my doubts 
regarding Firpo.
> he is completely tone-deaf (he never could clap at the same time as everyone else)
What does being tone-deaf have to do with having no rhythm, exactly? Was 
he also deaf-deaf? ;-)

Sean's now-publicized issues notwithstanding, I do recall having always 
had an unaccountable urge to clap on the upbeat myself. More so if the 
people around me were _actually_ clapping on the downbeat. (I wonder how 
many children are thought to have no rhythm thus, by people who have no 
instinct for music, but quite a lot for majority-rule.)
> Janis Kenyon wrote:
>
> I don't see any advantage in having hundreds of dancers in a community if only a few of them know and love the music of the 1940s, respect the culture, and dance with feeling.
That said, Janis... of the _thousands_ of dancers in Buenos Aires, do 
you dance with more than a few?

Does anyone?
> Victor Bennetts wrote:
>
> Perhaps the new Sandra Bullock 'Sex and Tango' movie will bring in a legion of new fans? ;-)
>   
Mind if we send them to you? ;-)

Jake
DC




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