Sunday, March 31, 2013

Social tango

I am getting more and more uncomfortable with the mixed use of words *Social Tango* describing a way of dancing AND a social attitude.

On web and in real life discussions, the social tango refers to close/quite close embrece, certain kind of steps, caminatas central position and so on. It includes the idea that this kind of dancing is the only one caring about the others. This way of dancing is called for social tango including the idea that tango nuevo (put in here any large steps and/or open embrace.. ) never could be social tango, where dancers are enjoying the music and caring about the other dancers.

In future I try to separate these things and as a starting point it could be something like this

professional dancer - amateur dancer
Most of the time social dancer term could be used about all kinds of amateur tango dancers.

social tango - performance
All tango dancing on your day off together with your old or new friends! and of course when you are dancing on a pista is the social one.

There is several sets of rules making the dancing enjoyable for us all, but more thinking is needed about it; do I want to put the rules together with the idea of the social tango?  Isn't social tango more defined by place, number of participants, degree of profession for the moment or similar facts?

Post script
In everyday language the *Social Tango* is understood to involve some of salogn - villa urquisa - milonguero way of movements, but I would like to have a more wide range of members in tangofamily.

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Gangnam style



Are you one of the millions of Gangnam Style fans?  and maybe you even know that Gangnam is a city district in Seoul, South Korea. But you maybe didn't yet know that Gangnam has a connection to tango too, Yes it has, because Gangnam-gu is the place for Seoul Tango festival in May.

I should have gone much earlier! but May 2012 was my first visit to South Korea. It is a lovely period for traveling on this peninsula. Wether is warm but not hot or humid and during my tree weeks in the country I had only one rainy day!
But now to dance  ==>>

Gangnam Dance Hall
My first milonga was the one on Friday night - 4th of May. The venue is a dance hall even on the other nights and mostly for other dances. Many of the routines were the same in Seoul as at home!  You could se the couples and singles with shoe bags walking to same direction as you, at the wellcoming table you name and ticket were checked and your signature was requested here as well as other places in the world. The only and wonderful difference was that the delicious buffet included in the milonga price. People were sitting at round tables and eating a bite every now and then.

This night I talked with the visitors from Japan, China, Honkong, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, a few from Europe, Russian and some of them were here for tenth time.

The most fascinating thing was that my capeceo was understood even if it was the first time for these followers to dance with a femail leader.

Please enjoy  a waltz together with me .....

Click here!


Click here!


SC Convention Gangnam
The Saturday milonga was at a larger venue and I had some difficulties to find there. A friendly young man in a sports car gave me a ride to the place after finding the instructions on his GPS navigator.

There was food again ! highly apprciated after wandering around in the night

Maybe a milonga this time ... ?

Click here!
 

Click here!


Here you find my earlier posting and portal about the Argentine and Asian performers!
http://leadingladyl.blogspot.se/2012/06/seoul-tango-festival-2012.html


Some more information about Gangnam - Gu
http://global.gangnam.go.kr/globalIndex.do?lang=en