Quoting Deby Novitz <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > I would have to concur with Ron. I find it almost laughable that people > who have never been to Buenos Aires tout themselves as teaching the > Villa Urquiza style of tango. This form of tango, along with orillero > is almost never danced anymore. I learned to dance Villa Urquiza from > Pocho who is 84 years old. It is very demanding on the woman. I have > seen variations of Villa Urquiza in some of the milongas, and always > danced by people who are older than 70. It is not taught here. > Probably never was except by uncles or brothers or cousins. > > Orillero is a form of tango that was danced in Villa Devoto. Mimi > taught me a variation of the dance for an exhibition we did when she > visited San Francisco when I still lived there. Orillero is the one > form of tango where the woman mimics the steps of the man. The back > step cross is very distinct and I use it in some of my steps. Like Villa > Urquiza it is not taught. You see it danced in shows but never in the > milongas. > > Tango never became big business until the crisis hit here in 2001. In > 2003 the government saw tango as an opportunity to promote tourism. > There were seminars presented by the government to the tango business > community on how to maximize their business. Overnight everyone became > a teacher, a shoe store, a clothing store, a specialized hotel, tour > agency for tango. Prices went through the sky. After all, why should > people pay less just because it was Buenos Aires. A pair of tango shoes > now costs upwards of $90. > > Now that we have so many "new" tango teachers everyone needs an angle. > It is no longer enough to say that you are from Argentina. So now > people say they teach "Villa Urquiza", "Estilo Amagro", "Milonguero" or > whatever else sounds good. People who have been dancing less than 2 > years now have ads in the local magazines as teachers and taxi dancers. > It is horrifying. These people are the ones who are teaching and > traveling. A brother sister duo who have a huge bankroll for full color > page ads have danced less than 2 years. A friend of mine and Sandra's > who is a taxi dancer who cannot dance is currently teaching in Germany > for 4 months. It is pretty crazy. > > Then there is those of us who are so far removed from this scene. We go > to the milongas to dance and see our friends. I never look out at the > floor and think "Wow, he is dancing apilado" or "I want to dance with > that guy who dances estilo Amagro." No, instead it is more like, "I > want to dance with El boracho, but he wont give me the time of day." or > "Que hermoso este tango, quien puede bailar conmigo." (How beautiful > this tango, who can dance with me) I don't ever recall my friends here > in Argentine lamenting about styles or names of styles ever. They may > watch a certain couple and comment on their dance (Que elegante o que > disastre). For us tango is always about the music. > > > > > E-mail message checked by Spyware Doctor (5.5.1.322) > Database version: 5.10150e > http://www.pctools.com/en/spyware-doctor/ > _______________________________________________ > Tango-L mailing list > Tango-L@mit.edu > http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l >
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