The Tango Lesson Members Group

The motto for the day ❤️
„… I have lived almost 60 years of dancing. I have tried to give the best of myself, not only with steps, but through the feeling of the sensation of dancing with rhythm and cadence, chest to chest and cheek to cheek. It was marvellous. That’s why, trying to preserve this, the tango, is my biggest desire. Let’s preserve the tango... let’s dance for ourselves.
Today... now, without a doubt, there is a new tendency in dancing tango, but not all these young men and women should think only in choreography, which is good only for those who dance in the theatre, but the real and true place to dance is in the milonga. Practising in the milonga will give them better security and style; it will develop their own personal feeling to understand this passion, which is tango.
Feeling and dancing without thinking about the steps, the feeling that each one of us will give to their own body, so that it can be expressed through the dance. Improving in a small place where the man has to find the way in the middle of a crowd of dancers on the floor, taking care that no one bumps his partner, with both dancers in the beat and rhythm, embraced inside a vibration which cannot be compared to anything else — this is the therapy which liberates the soul.
Tango is a choice of a moment. When the obsession is finished, you realise tango will be inside you for all your life, like a feeling that never dies…” - Ricardo Vidort
Source: https://ricardovidort.wordpress.com/ricardo-baila/
In the photo - Ricardo Vidort

“Tango is found in the space between the steps”.
(El tango está entre paso y paso, allí donde se escuchan los silencios y cantan las musas.” - Carlos Gavito).

There are many layers in this short quote. At one level, it describes a simple, but often disregarded key to Tango technique. At another level, it is about deep communication between partners or strangers.

Tango has been called many things over the years—a theatrical spectacle, a signifier of passion, a louche pastime, an artifact of a bygone age. These are emotional and symbolic touchstones that are often hard to square with the reality of a social dance but they still contribute to its popular appreciation and acceptance.

In practice, Tango is none of those things. It is both simpler and more complex, guided far more by personality and emotional maturity than choreographic prowess.

Our conception of tango seems to swing wildly between the poetic reading given to it by Gavito, the consummate showman, whose performances are a battleground of desire, an arena of conquest and surrender, and the mundanity of social dancing: surface and depth.

Far too often we seem to skate tentatively upon the surface of the dance, never visiting its still depths. We are dazzled by complexity. But this is performance, often used to “sell” Tango. Performance, by its very nature, is intended for an audience. But Tango is an intensely private, personal conversation, not intended for the viewer.

The desire to introduce greater and greater complexity into the dance often leads to overlooking all the things that make it so profound and that have allowed it to endure for over a century. Those features are what Gavito was alluding to in his oracular comment.

To the uninitiated, videos of social dancing in traditional venues often seem static, not at all what they have come to expect from the glamorous images of stage tango or the demonstration of guest “maestros”. From the outside it appears that not much is happening, there is little to draw our attention. What such images do convey is an absence of display, a refusal to cater to an audience.

It is worth remembering what an older generation of dancers tried to tell us—that we focus on connection, listen carefully to the music, make do with simplicity, learn to introduce stillness into our dance.

Instead there is a turning inward, with the couple rotating about the central core of the music, the supporting structure around which the dance revolves.

This is Tango

https://www.tangomasterclass.com/blog/milonga

Milonga Lisa y Milonga Traspié Milonga Lisa y Milonga Traspié

This article struck a chord with me, making a clear connection between heart and brain. We often say Tango is "heart to heart" but this adds a new dimension as to why it may be so compelling. Love to hear your thoughts? https://www.jacedser.com.au/resources/heart-and-brain-coherence

We've known Jac for a long time, when she was concentrating on occupation therapy. She cured a frozen shoulder when nobody else could.

Heart and Brain Coherence — Jac Edser Learning the science and application of  heart coherence  and  brain coherence  has been the most important and profound lessons in my professional and personal life thus far. 

Dance showed me the untapped power of our attention muscle | Psyche Ideas Through tango, I sharpened attentional skills that make any moment richer. But these can be honed on or off the dancefloor

At last night's class, we started adding layers of meaning; how to interpret and dance to different music and different eras. It's hard to get good demonstration, since most of it is performance rather than social dance (where the objectives and technique are complete opposites). No flashy decoration like Claudia, who has been dancing and performing for as long as us. We did a class with her and Esteban Moreno in 2000.

Eduardo "El Nene" Masci Y Claudia Codega Osvaldo Pugliese Rondando tu esquina Tango Milonga Salon Canning 17-03-2014 Tango-Articulo " A Buenos-Aires Por Primera Vez" Контент танго-статьи "Впервые в Буэнос-Айресе"https://www.facebook.com/grou...

Milonga Playlist

Tango - Flaco Dany - Performance Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

Tango is more than steps and figures.

Tango Zen: A Way to Dance, A Way to Live – Chan Park’s Message from Buenos Aires I’m Chan Park—tango dancer, author, and filmmaker.After nearly three decades on the dance floor, I’ve realized that no technique alone can carry you to the h...

Nice classic Tango

MYRIAM PINCEN y JORGE UZUNIAN bailando El Cencerro J D'arienzo Exhibición en Nuevo Chiqué (noche de inauguración 4 de juni ode 2009).

This is a straightforward (and rather strict) view of the development of Tango as a commercialised product, modified for international consumption.

We do try to give you the essential elements of the classic Tango., and why it is different and special.

Message from Myriam Pincen - An Argentine dancer's reflections on Classic Tango

"Hello Chan!!! Welcome! I understand perfectly what you're talking about, a lot of fault that happens is partly to us (the porteños/as) in their voraciousness for billing, and try to get foreigners to approach their classes, dance them all here, men and women, which, at another time that never he was giving in.

A teacher or a milonguero, NEVER danced either with his students or with foreigners, (it has nothing to do with xenophobia nor anything strange) it was simply because both a beginner student and a foreigner can not make you feel that pleasure of good dancing, which requires many years and above all it is very difficult for those who do not have our culture.

The difference is that we receive hugs and kisses all around us since we were born and continue to do so throughout our social life.

Which does not happen in Europe, Asia and other cultures. That's the big difference. (Comment - In our experience Tango dancers quickly fall into, and enjoy, the warmth of closeness)

I must say that I continue with that behaviour, only exceptionally do I dance with foreigners and much less with a student, and even though it seems shocking to you, it is for the good of that person, because if more advanced people dance with them, he will never again continue to progress on his way to a good dance.

Before you had to peel your feet to learn and get a good milonguero to take you to dance, you had to show that you were ready with a dance level more than acceptable. Today is absolutely the opposite of what was previously described... and just like that we are!

In fact, you can check how in recent years the dance level has deteriorated in the vast majority of milongas.

Hopefully our traditional tango can be recovered, there are still people (like me) who keep persevering so that it doesn't disappear... "

Chan's Key reflections on Myriam's message:

1. Cultural change driven by money
The urge to commercialise tango has lowered standards and neglected tradition.

2. Wear and tear of old habits
Back in the day, dancing was earned, not given away. That practice protected the dignity and level of tango.

3. The cultural foundations of tango
Tango is not just a dance—it's a cultural expression born from a life of physical proximity. That intimacy can't be easily replicated in cultures that don't know it.

4. Inclusion as a false form of progress
Dancing with everyone may seem inclusive, but it weakens the structure that made tango a transformative experience. Today that inclusion is contributing to the deterioration of dance level.

5. Loss of respect on the way
Earlier, a good fight had to be won. That effort made sense to the dance. Today, “eas-ism” has replaced humility and discipline.

6. Called to preserve traditional tango
Myriam reminds us that tango can still be saved—but only if we actively choose to hold and protect it.

Chan's Personal Note:
I want to thank Myriam for expressing what so many feel, but few dare to say out loud.

If you're reading this...
So you're already part of the resistance—act or not.
The simple fact of becoming aware is already a start.
And if this message speaks to you, I invite you to:
• Share with someone who still believes in traditional tango.
• Talk about it with your community.
• Keeping the spirit alive—not just in the steps, but in the heart and culture.

A thousand hugs,
Chan

Dany (El Flaco) Garcia is one of the best milonga dancers. Super smooth. (Ignore the lady's exaggerated embrace)

Lucia Ek y Daniel Garcia