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worthwhile to read the original (link http://www.zapatodetango.com/files/espaniol/maindir/setiemb/news-set.htm seems no longer valid) milonga chronics when you get the chance.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.
Choice quotes
Just returned from the Taipei Tango festival a few days ago. Body is still aching, courtesy of taking too many classes… 😉
This year, I was very happy with the workshops conducted by all 3 Argentine couples. I was especially and quite pleasantly surprised by the quality of teaching from Javier Rodriguez and his new partner Andrea Misse. In fact the classes, while at times physically challenging, were quite entertaining. Some examples:
On that category of movements in Tango where the woman’s leg wraps around the man sharply in a whip-like action:
“The secret of the gancho is not in how you put it in, but in how you take it out…”
On dancing with rhythm:
“Need to have an uplifting feel, make the woman feel so happy that she will move her
ass(Javier’s words) butt (Andrea’s translation)…”
Teachers for community growth
Lonewolf had some good insights on how he chooses Tango teachers while he is in Buenos Aires. I agree with most of the points raised.
However, for me personally and from the community’s perspective, a teacher’s compassion and care for his/her students and generosity are the top priorities at the moment. While a teacher’s dancing prowess is important, given the overall level of dancing in our community, there is no doubt in my mind that most travelling Tango teachers (Argentine or otherwise) have something to offer technically. It’s really their willingness and patience to impart their skills which is even more critical. For such teachers (and we have been fortunate to have 2-3 such couples visiting Singapore in the past 6 years), I am quite certain that, just like me, they get a lot of satisfaction when they see their students improve.
Milonga, milonguita?
It’s perhaps rather confusing to new-comers to our small Tango community in Singapore that the words “Milonga” and “Milonguita” are used almost interchangeably to mean pretty much the same thing – a Tango dance party in this context. In fact, I sometimes wonder, when we use such terms, if we really have a full understanding of the original intended meanings ourselves? According to the Guide to Tango terminology on Stephen Brown’s website,
Milonguita – Questionably, an affectionate diminutive for the milonga.