[Tango-L] Question on Gardel

[Andrew RYSER SZYMAÑSKI]

Amaury & Chris

The popular misconception re Gardel is well
illustrated by Chris's contribution. But the real
reason you cannot dance to Gardel is due to his very
peculiar approach to rhythm. He use a very individual
form of rubato [push & pull] resulting in the same
beat being in two different places in time, a fraction
of a second apart. Furthermore he does this using a
lot of anticipation. This creates much dramatic
tension in the music.
Delayed rubato dancers can cope with to some extent,
but anticipated rubato makes them look like idiots,
and whatever they do, they will feel, & look, out of
time [unless, of course, they are totally
insensitive.....].
Gardel did to the tango what Chopin did to the waltz,
mazurka, polonaise &c...: he made it undanceable. If
you try to dance to a Chopin waltz played with the
right kind of rubato [say by Rubinstein] you will keep
getting lost, but the music will be wonderful.
However, you would be able to dance to it if some
incompetent plodder plays it squarely on the beat [as
they often do in dance studios....] but the music
would be diabolically flat & boring.
Indeed, what is traditionally -and again, erroneously-
portrayed as the champion of "concert hall tango",
Astor Piazzolla, is 100X more danceable than Gardel
-especially for beginners!

Cheers,

Andy.


--- Amaury de Siqueira <amaurycdsf at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Chris,
> 
> Thank you very much for this info.  I learned
> something new today.
> 
> Amaury 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ceverett at ceverett.com
> [mailto:ceverett at ceverett.com] 
> Sent: Wednesday, January 09, 2008 5:36 PM
> To: amaurycdsf at yahoo.com
> Subject: Re: [Tango-L] Question on Gardel
> 
> Amaury,
> 
> Dancing to Gardel's music is considered a serious
> insult to his 
> memory, almost on the order of sitting down for the
> Argentine 
> National Anthem.  It's definitely music for serious
> listening.
> 
> Gardel is a revered national hero of Argentina since
> his death 
> over 70 years ago.   If you say the "Carlito"
> everyone
> in Ba 
> knows who you are talking about, and in fact there
> is
> still a 
> dance step named after him (from his movie
> appearances) called 
> the "Gardelito".  
> 
> Then again, none of it would be considered really
> danceable.
> Consider how little music from before 1935 is played
> at the 
> milongas.
> 
> Christopher
> 
> On Tue, 8 Jan 2008 07:48:56 -0800 (PST), "Amaury de
> Siqueira"
> <amaurycdsf at yahoo.com> said:
> > 
> > 
> > I cant remember one single milonga playing tangos
> with
> > Gardel's voice.  Not
> > once!
> > 
> > 
> > Given his prominence as a singer in the tango
> world
> I
> > would expect hear his
> > voice in every milongas at least in one tanda.
> > 
> > I admit I have very limited experience with tango,
> so
> > maybe I am just
> > missing the obvious.
> > 
> > Anyone with any ideas?
> > 



Andrew W. RYSER SZYMAÑSKI,
23b All Saints Road,
London, W11 1HE,
07944 128 739.


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