Trini texted: > It's a shame when young people sacrifice elegance for the sake of steps, which is what this couple is doing.
Sorin scribet: > Of course, elegance, like beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Yes, I guess elegance is in the eye of the beholder. Like when a man wears a polyester leisure suit with the shirt color open over his jacket collar - that might be "sport elegante" for some. But even allowing for taste, I think that there are probably some common principles of elegance in tango dancing. Otherwise, why would people use the word? I would suggest that elegance in tango dancing implies . Upright posture - not stooping or looking at the floor . Graceful movement, flowing - not jerky or rough . Composure, dignity - not falling or stumbling or losing control Fred Astair is elegant. Fred Flintstone is not. Elegance seems to be one of the traditional values of Argentine tango dancers. I tend to agree with Trini's comment, and feel that elegance is not a privileged value among many of younger dancers. Has anyone ever heard Chicho, or Fabian Salas, or Pablo Inza, or Sebastian Arce talk about the importance of "elegance"? Or heard them say anything like "no matter what, don't ever sacrifice your elegance to achieve a move"? ... As for Pablo Rodriguez's left arm - if that's the one we are talking about - clearly this is a fad, and not a personal idiosyncracy. It's one of those abrazo viruses spreading everywhere. I suspect that it's more than imitation and people are actually teaching it. Cherie Magnus called it "hand on a plate" in her blog (http://tinyurl.com/564rs5). It produces a hand position that is, in my opinion, aesthetically disagreeable. I think it is a weak line for the man. For the woman it looks fine. It may score points in mechanics but not in beauty (IMO). .... BTW - I agree that Pablo & Noelia are wonderful dancers. _______________________________________________ Tango-L mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
