[Tango-L] Better? Worse? Just different.

[Trini y Sean (PATangoS)]

--- On Thu, 4/21/11, Jack Dylan <jackdylan007 at yahoo.com> wrote:

So does that mean you think 'anything goes' and it's still traditional
tango. If the answer is 'yes', fine; everyone is entitled to their opinion.

But if the answer is 'no', then aren't you doing the same as I did?

Jack



Hi Jack,

At one point in time, walking to the cross would not have been considered "traditional".  At another point in time, molinetes were not considered "traditional".  At one point in time, Tete Rusconi was not considered a "traditional" dancer because he and Maria made everything into a turn instead of simply walking.  He refused to teach for a long time because he didn't think his dancing was proper.

My point, of course, is that what is considered "traditional" changes with each generation because tango is a living dance.  Sometimes something is labeled "traditional" to contrast it with something new.  For example, leg wraps created from a woman's pivot after her side step are considered more traditional than the one created by, more-or-less, swinging her leg around his.

I googled "tradition" and saw this phrase in Wikipedia:

"In artistic contexts, tradition is used to decide the correct display of an art form. For example, in the performance of traditional genres (such as traditional dance), adherence to guidelines dictating how an art form should be composed are given greater importance than the performer's own preferences."


I don't think that will fly in tango.   I believe the tradition in tango was to respect and appreciate the new movements a man came up with and not to copy that particular movement for oneself.  Each person has his own tango.

I think what defines what is classic or modern tango lies not so much in the movement itself but in the energy and the intention of the movement.  I watch Diego & Carolina do a colgada and has a definite salon feel.  I see Homer and Christina do a colgada and it has a more nuevo feel.  I've done close-embrace colgadas with salon dancers years before colgadas were being taught in workshops.

Today, I think that it's becoming more of the context of the dance (space size, traveling versus stationary, music, etc.) that determines whether a tango is classic/traditional or not.


Trini de Pittsburgh