[Tango-L] Closing remarks on the Apilado, marketing thread

[Amaury de Siqueira]

Sergio and Chris Thank you for the genuine effort to keep the discussion coherent, civilized, and even toned.  I was compelled to write the initial posting after disheartening experiences on past milongas.  

In the past two years I have encountered some hostility from folks claiming that Apilado style is the only way to dance tango.  While visiting a milonga for the first time in a certain mid-west city I was approached by one of the milonga organizer and literally belittle for not adhering to a strict closed embraced tango dance. In yet a second mid-western city, a dancer from Atlanta, Georgia refused to step on the dance floor with me unless I danced strictly close embrace!  In both instances I conformed (in sadness) with the local requirements.

On a very recent trip to Boston I had an incredibly pleasant time on the dance floor. Pamela and her husband (MIT tango instructors) were very hospitable and courteous. I also had the opportunity to dance with (two local dancers) Gina Mora and Debbi Hobson ... marvelous dancers... neither imposing a particular dance form. 

I believe our learning process is not limited to dancing alone.  Students will learn much more than just steps from instructors.  It would be wonderful if instructors would act more responsibly placing their marketing needs in a secondary place to teaching tolerance and respect to all styles.

And Nancy in regards to your postings on Susna Miller... No one attacked her reputation ... its sad when peoples ideas and opinions are purposefully twisted and misrepresented as personal attacks.  It is responses like yours  that promote disruption and flames in online environments.

Amaury



--- On Sun, 6/29/08, Sergio Vandekier <sergiovandekier990 at hotmail.com> wrote:

> From: Sergio Vandekier <sergiovandekier990 at hotmail.com>
> Subject: [Tango-L] Apilado, marketing
> To: "Tango-L List" <tango-l at mit.edu>
> Date: Sunday, June 29, 2008, 6:12 PM
> Thank you Paul for the correct date of the Clarin article :
> "La guerra de los roces"  (The war of the roces).
> Roces means rubbing, friction.
> 
> A reference to the "War of the roses" (a dynastic
> English war 1455- 1487), playing with the words Roses and
> Roces.
> 
> The article in Spanish appears if you specify the correct
> date August 8 1999. It does not appear if you just specify
> the year 1999.
> 
> 
> The paragraph in question (in clarin) says:  "A little
> later, Susana Miller began her classes at the traditional
> Club Almagro. Miller (of academic extraction) associated
> with Cacho Dante (a veteran aficionado) begun from her
> classes the propagation of which usually is known as the
> Almagro style - very similar to the typical style of the
> downtown night clubs of the 40's. Its less demanding
> requirements gave access even to those who were less fitted
> naturally, technically or sensitively. And it quickly put on
> the dance floor an enormous amount of new fans, generating a
> true leveling off of the dance."
> 
> The web page cited by Chris says :  "Susana has
> probably put more people on the dance floors of Buenos
> Aires than any other single teacher. An article in Clarin,
> the major Buenos Aires daily paper, cited her as one of the
> four most important influences on contemporary tango, along
> with Miguel Angel Zotto, Gustavo Naveira and Gerardo
> Portalea. (Clarification & citation added by Karen
> 6/29/2008.) ".
> 
> I guess everything is clear...finally...I hope.
> 
> As I said before she did a good job propagating the
> milonguero style abroad.  The marketing story was/is that
> it is the  only possible way one can dance at the milongas
> in buenos Aires.   
> 
> So some people here in the USA started becoming upset by
> any one that used any other style at their milongas. 
> Accusing them of not knowing how to navigate the floor,
> being dangerous, a continuous annoyance difficult to
> endure.  
> 
>  Some started making the floor very small so that they
> could imitate the lack of space present in the crowded
> milongas of Buenos Aires.  But all this is another story.
> 
> Have a nice weekend, (what is left of it), 
> 
> Sergio
> 
> 
> 
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