Everyday cabeceo
To many people who have not had the opportunity to visit Buenos Aires, the cabeceo can be a strange beast. Often, and especially for newcomers to Tango, the cabeceo seems to be just another mysterious tradition, practiced by people in a foreign land and seemingly quite removed from reality. In fact, reading from the discussions on Tango-L, it seems almost like if you have never been to Buenos Aires then you simply won’t get it! For the record, the cabeceo is simply an “invitation and acceptance to dance by exchanging glances”. That is, once this “invitation” is made and a “confirmation” glance has been received, the man approaches the lady and they commence to dance.
However, it occurred to me the other day that, even right here in Singapore, “invitation by eye contact” is something people do very naturally and. surprisingly, quite often. In fact, it is as simple as hailing a taxi.
Don’t believe me?
Popularity: 43%
Practicas in BA
In this month’s issue of El Tangauta, some notable practicas in Buenos Aires have been mentioned:
- Tangocool
- Music: mostly classics from 1930s, perhaps 1 electronic tango, no cortinas;
- Time/place: every Wednesday at Club Villa Malcolm.
- Practicas en Cochabamba
- Music: mostly from Tangos of 40s and earlier, no electronic tango;
- Place: Belgrando Club in San Telmo(?), no admission charges.
- Some of the people who had run this practica in the past include the mythical Pepito Avellaneda, Gustavo Naveira and Mingo and Esther Pugliese.
- Practica X
- Music: Tango nuevo;
- Time: every Tuesday.
- Attended mainly by professional dancers and advanced students.
See here for the online article (scroll down for the English version). For more information about events in Buenos Aires, another useful resource is the Tango portal of the City of Buenos Aires.
Popularity: 32%
Listen to the heart of the woman
After a while, I believe Tango needs to be much more than just a series of movements. Of course, the fundamentals such as walking, posture, and ability to listen to the music, etc., are all important qualities, but the less tangible aspects, such as being able to connect to your partner and the dance at an emotional level, are even more important. In the articles below, written by or about one of the most respected living milongueros in Buenos Aires, Cacho Dante, we can see glimpses of the mysteries of this addictive dance called Tango.
(Not in the articles listed above, but graciously related to me by Isaac)
When asked what is the “essence of Tango” – from the man’s perspective – Cacho’s answer was:
“The essence of tango is the women, the music and the dancefloor full of other dancers”.
There is no mention of chandeliers, big dance floors, candle-lit tables, fine dining, expensive sound systems, etc., but simply a gathering of passionate dancers respecting each other and the dance floor, driven by danceable music. In short, the people and the music will do…
Popularity: 50%
Milonga codes
With the Tango calendar in Singapore getting rather packed recently with various “baile”, “milonga” and “milonguitas”, it is quite timely when a friend forwarded to me some information on “milonga codes” which exist in Buenos Aires. Because of the slightly broken English, I have taken the liberty to summarise and transcribe some of the key points; my comments on the relevance of the particular codes to our community in Singapore are in italics. As always, it is very worthwhile to read the original (link http://www.zapatodetango.com/files/espaniol/maindir/setiemb/news-set.htm seems no longer valid) milonga chronics when you get the chance.
Note: another meaning for “chronic” is “having a habit of long standing”, i.e. customs.
Popularity: 27%