[Tango-L] My Definition of Tango Nuevo

[HBBOOGIE1@aol.com]

I’ve put a lot of thought into what I think  tango nuevo is and I finally 
figured out what I believe identifies nuevo.   It’s not the figures It’s 
just different footwork and unconventional  movements.  What I see in nuevo that
’s different from other styles of tango  is the leader stepping without 
closing the feet standing usually in a squatting  position always looking down 
at the floor with a lot of arm movement.
I also  see this occasionally in other tango styles but that’s just bad 
dancing they  should know better. The difference is this must be how nuevo is 
taught because  everyone I’ve seen dancing nuevo dances this way.
I have seen a couple of  nuevo dancers who are excellent only because they 
had traditional training  before nuevo so they know the fundamentals of 
tango and it shows. 

Tango  nuevo reminds me of the jive from the 1940’s that’s become very 
popular again.  They squat down and keep the feet apart jumping and jiving and 
taking up a lot  of space on the dance floor. Ultimately they had to have 
separate venues because  it became impossible to dance jive on a traditional 
crowded floor.

If the  nuevo craze continues to grow it will consume most of the milongas 
and there  will have to be separate venues for the few remaining pockets of 
traditional  tango dancers.How sad is that?

Hbboogie1