The Tango has been declared part of the 'World's Intangible Cultural Heritage
of Humanity'
by UNESCO, which aims to preserve a list of legacies under threat from global
change.
An Argentine official said he was "very proud that the music and dance of the
Tango have
now been safeguarded for humanity".
But has anyone wondered just what they intend to preserve and safeguard
and just how
they intend to do this? The Tango that is danced in much of the world is very
different to
what is danced in the traditional milongas of Buenos Aires and, with the growth
of tango
tourists to Buenos Aires, is there a danger that the traditional milongas will
be unable to
survive in their present form?
The Argentines themselves seem to understand that, when they attend a
traditional milonga,
they adjust their behaviour and dance and respect the codes and culture of
those milongas.
If they want to behave differently and dance differently, they attend other
venues such as
the nuevo practicas and places like La Viruta and others. From my own
experience, many
non-Argentines just don't seem to understand this.
Will the situation get worse as time passes or do the milonga organisers [or
UNESCO]
have some contingency plans to stop this from happening?
Does anyone have any thoughts or information on this?
Jack
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