Hello! Just out of curiosity, I would like to know about your experiences watching different performances, specifically in tango salon. In your words, what makes a presentation poor? I'm eager to read your responses.

Hey gang,

I'm going to try to keep this vague so as not to identify myself or others.

I started in tango about two years ago. This year I switched from group classes and practicas to more private lessons as I try to improve my technique and escape beginner-ness. One of my classmates who I like attended most of the private sessions with me. These sessions with our teachers occurred over a series of months. When they were going well, things seemed to be going really great. Our teachers are very thorough and enthusiastic.

My practice partner is also great. I'm constantly impressed with their dedication and focus, their enthusiasm for learning and improving the dance, and their flexibility in dealing with my schedule. They're also a generally kind person, and obviously it's been nice to have that support/friendship as we both develop.

Alongside the private sessions, my dance partner and I have also continued at various times with the usual group classes and practicas and a few milongas, sometimes on our own but often together.

Here's the thing. I was looking at photos of a tango event recently that I was unable to attend and...I noticed myself really honing in on photos with my practice partner. I wouldn't say that I was jealous of their dance partners at the event, exactly. But I was certainly envious that I wasn't able to go, and I definitely noticed myself looking at them in the photos and videos with, uh, ....admiration, let's say. Other times when they are able to go to events when I am not, I find myself idly wondering how the event is going.

Without getting into specifics, "feelings" are not ideal. Both of us have non-tango commitments elsewhere, and I have no desire to change any of that. I have no reason to think *they* have any feelings, no would I want them to. And I know from previous experience that I have jealous and possessive tendencies in the context of romantic relationships that have caused me to behave badly. I would not want those to start affecting me in tango.

Obviously dancers get attached or date sometimes, or even make a career out of being a professional dance couple. But for those who *aren't* heading in that direction, are there best practices for handling this? Go cold turkey for a bit? Go out dancing more deliberately with other people? Or paradoxically, spend more time *watching* them dance with others to grow a tolerance/appreciation of it? (That last seems likely to backfire.) Just say "I'd rather stick with open embrace" forever?

Maybe more generally, for those with regular practice partners, or teachers who teach as a dance couple but are not a couple, what is the normal level of feelings people have for each other? It seems like a totally sterile, unemotional relationship would be ineffective, but an overly attached relationship seems dangerous and healthy.

This practice partnership has been really ideal for me in a lot of ways, and this person has been both a helpful partner and kind when they didn't need to be. I would hate to lose a great working relationship and sometime friendship over lizard brain nonsense.

What is the name of the song with the three beat stick claps around the main reoccurring melody" without further music? I'm sorry i can't explain it better, but that's the only feature that actually stands out from most other tango songs. It's quite popular as I've danced to it in multiple cities. Please help!!

EDIT: WOW, thank you so much for all the tips! So many helpful ideas, this will give me a lot of material to try out and practice.
...

So I've caught the tango virus 5 months ago and I'm seriously hooked. However, with 2 kids my time is very limited so I'm trying to find out the most efficient way to make progress. I know that I can become better by spending more time dancing/going to classes but that's not in the cards right now. My biggest fear is that I'll stop learning at some point and will always be stuck at a beginner level. Sometimes it feels like I already reached this point...

What I'm doing right now:

• Group classes. I've been going 1-2 times a week but honestly, those are hit or miss. I've tried out many different schools and teachers (fortunately in my area there are plenty) and I've found that group classes are mostly tailored to leaders. Sometimes the teacher will correct me but mostly they will correct my partner(s). Pro: Due to frequent partner changes I can get accustomed to dancing with different leaders. But I dance the same sequence with everybody which takes the fun out of following, as I already know what they will lead.
• Private classes. Just started them with my partner. Extremely helpful, but also not very cheap, so I think that 1x/month will be realistic. Is that enough?
• Practicas. Most schools just teach (more complicated) step sequences and you don't even change partners. Most of the time the teachers are busy helping you understand what steps exactly they are teaching. I rarely visit practicas because I feel that I don't really learn that much.
• Milongas. I go with my partner around 2 times a month, however I rarely dance with others. As a beginner follower I'm not exactly swimming in cabaceos. Though I really love dancing with my partner, I'm just not sure if I can progress when dancing with the same partner all the time.
• At home practice. I've found some very helpful videos for balance, ochos, adornos etc. and I try to practice at home at least one time per week. But it's not supervised, so I'm not sure if I'm also learning some bad habits.

So is there anything I could change or add to spend my time more efficiently? I'd be grateful for any advice.

https://youtu.be/6xviEqSSwZ4?si=7SYL4_4lLnDW8rNT

Hi guys. I finally finished my choreography to Brithey’s Toxic. This dance is about toxic relationships and where they lead you in the end. Hope you enjoy!

Which country are you from?

What and how was your first introduction to tango as a dance, musical genre, or culture?

Why did you decide to practice and listen to tango?

What caught your attention about tango?

Who are your favorite artists?

What do you enjoy the most about tango?

How do you see the tango scene today, especially among young people?

What would you change about tango?

I'm asking this because honestly I've never felt interesed in tango that much. I born and grow up in the northern of the country where culture here is more "folkish" (gaucho and indigenous), and yeah in my province there's a tango scene but we're not so connected to it and feel it like porteños do. So if you think young people in Buenos Aires aren’t interested in tango, even less so in northern Argentina lol. Many foreigners, when they found out I was Argentine, would ask if I danced or listened to tango, and when I said no, they were surprised. But I understand it’s mostly due to pop culture stereotypes haha. I think it’s a bit strange to see foreigners being more interested in our culture compared to many young people here, and it makes me a little sad because a few months ago I started listening to tango, and it’s one of the most beautiful musical genres that exist in the world.

Thank you for keeping alive this beautiful dance and music genre.

I'm planning my first trip to Buenos Aires as a solo female traveler. Although I'll have a couple of friends in town, I'm still trying to decide on where to stay. I’m mainly torn between Palermo (possibly Hollywood) and Recoleta—both seem like nice areas with a lot to offer, but I’m looking for advice from those in the tango community.

A few things to know:

• I plan to do an inordinate amount of dancing, and will take Ubers to and from milongas
• I am an introvert and can be skittish—I'd love a safe area with supermarkets, cafés and quiet spots to recharge after dancing all night
• Recoleta Airbnbs seem to appeal to me slightly more, but I'm open to recommendations

Thank you so much for any tips or advice!

After dancing a couple of hours in the milonga, my fingers start to hurt (they even get slightly injured), if I push the ground a lot all the time.

This wasn't the case several years ago when I was less grounded.

I've heard some Ballet dancers have problems with their feet too, so maybe it's not uncommon?

Also, if during classes I dance just with woolen socks, my feet feels better, so maybe it has something to do with the shoes I wear?

Or should I be pushing the floor somehow differently, I'm simply not sure how.

Please read my story before judging, I promise it won't be long.

For starters I want to say that I'm a guy in my late 20's, I've never danced seriously until now, I got into tango because I've always been curious about it and a friend I made recently is really into it, so she took me to dance one day and now I'm taking lessons on my own.

As I said, I'm really having fun with it, and people say that I'm doing great, I've gone to a couple of practicas and I've danced with intermediate and advances followers and they give me positive feedback everytime.

The problem is that I'm always the youngest person there, and by a wide margin (there are exceptions but that's normally what happens). I don't have any problem dancing or spending time with people that are older than me, the friend that I've mentioned before is 20+ years older, so just think about that.

Being the youngest when I'm close to 30 is unmotivating, there are people of all ages that I can dance with and if I'm there to dance it should not matter (and it doesn't), but the energy of the whole scene feels off.

Does this happen in the scene no matter where you are or did I just picked a school where people are older?

For reference, I'd say that the average age there would be around 55-60.

Any good milongas in Cabo? I'll be there for couple of days, wanna check out the tango scene.

Has anyone been to tango classes or milongas in bay area or Seattle? Are they good? How would you compare it to tango in europe?

Hello everyone! I'm Benjamin, a tango singer. I'm inviting you to check out my page and support my work. Thanks for supporting the arts!

Patreon Benjamin Southwell

I am getting out of my comfort zone and some community leaders in my area are offering to let me DJ for the first time, so excited! I'm very familiar with tango, and the common customs for a DJ (examples, usually 4 tangos for a tango, 3 for vals and milonga, Pugliese goes better for the end of the night, D'Arienzo to keep the energy up during the hight of the milonga, La Cumparsita as the end, NO Carlos Gardel, things like that)

My main question is if there are certain eras of popular orchestras that anyone recomend? For example, I learned recently that D'Arienzo 1930s is a fan favorite for many. Are there certain decades you recomend to stay away from that aren't as liked for specific orchestras? Have you noticed that DiSarli, Troilo, Biagi, DeAngelo, OTV, work for certain times? I think dj-ing is definitely an experiment, and may depend on the crowd. But any advice would be appreciated! Thanks!

A few weeks ago I dance with a "new" local in my local Milonga for the first time. As I'm quite familiar with Tango etiquette I was a fair bit surprised when he pretty quickly within the first song told me to stop looking down to the floor and to put less weight on him with my arm and head (we danced close embrace). I live by the principle that you don't comment or criticize someone's dance technique unless they ask or if it really bothers you, you ask if that would be alright if you told the something. He didn't ask, just blurted it out. He is "known" to be quite experienced and many really good dancers around here dance with him, but he never dances with inferior followers. What does he think who he is to behave like that? First of all, he knows nothing about me, so what gives him the permission to behave so snobby? He isn't even that old. We have leaders around who have 30 years of dancing experience and they dance with everyone!

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A little background myself:
As from the start of this October, I am now officially a year old in tango as a leader. I have recently been aware that (based on feedback from followers, instructors, and leaders as well) my main qualities as a leader is a good embrace/connection, musicality and that I am patient with the followers for them to express themselves.

I have compiled a list of milongas in Paris from both parislongas.fr and tango-argentin.fr
But what I would like to know is your own personal take on certain places that left a mark in your heart there.

Would fondly appreciate your insights in advance!

P.S: I speak the language if that makes any difference.

Short background; I've been dancing for just a bit over 2 years (leader, and a tiny amount of follower). I do not claim that I'm some pro/god/whatever. Although I've done a severe amount of privates and have decent all round traits as a dancer (e.g. complimented a lot on my embrace and smooth connection, sometimes assuming I've been dancing for a way more years) I still recognize that I have a lot of room to grow (more vocabulary mainly and unlock certain techniques)

As I improve as a dancer, I notice a lot of minor details that make or break a dance. Have a very strict mentor So for the last couple of months I've started noticing a lot two things 1) 99% of popular leaders, only thing they have good is vocabulary 2) 99% of followers who tend to act very elitist, and dance with 3-4 leaders only, are in fact no more than intermediate or worse (e.g. low quality embrace) Top it all off, what bothers me most is when I see those leaders get carelessly so much space in an overcrowded ronda, while I carefully dance salon appropriate steps minding the ronda & follower. Then be ignored by followers (thankfully not all and not many, still having the occasional super advanced follower that makes me feel alive for days). If by a minor fraction of a chance I happen to dance with one of those followers, I usually e.g. feel the embrace is wooden/air/low-quality. Or assuming vocabulary with no marks given etc.

It's not happening everywhere, but in most communities I travelled in Europe so far (plus the one I live in).

My fear is I don't want to grow resentment and ultimately end up like those leaders. And, my other concern is, especially when traveling, to make most of a tango event.

I’m new to AT, and the footage I see from milongas shows couples dancing in place. They don’t travel round the dance hall. Is this usual?

I started to dance (leader but I follow sometimes) one and a half years ago and start to feel quite comfortable on milongas. I dont do any fancy moves but enjoy the music and often feel that my partners also enjoy my musicality. I was teached that the leader indicates most movements but should give space and time for adornos or moments where the follower can control the pace(e.g. pasadas).

In every milonga I usually meet one or two followers who take on more aspects of leading into their own hands, indicating a rhythm they might like, having fierce pivots, and other aspects of the dance. With some I really like to dance because it changes the way I dance. With that being said, one week ago I danced with a woman who would do so much it really stressed me out (strong and fast giros, ochos, cortados, all that in various directiona non-stop, and shuffling adornos when we were just walking). Maybe that is besides the point of the post, but she also dropped her left arm hanging often so my hand would be tucked away in her arm pit. It was too much for me so I went into the open embrace and she tried to close it again and again...

To my intial question how much do followers lead in your experience? Or more general, how do you think of the responsibilities of followers and leaders?

I'm a beginner with tango (I've had only ca 10 classes) and I currently don't have the resources to buy real tango shoes because they're kinda expensive. So far I've used regular sneakers in classes.

Can I dance in shoes which resemble tango shoes by appearance but are not real tango shoes?

The shoes I'm considering have a little higher heel I believe (9cm) but other than that my inexperienced eye can't see the difference between these shoes and tango shoes.

Hi, can anyone recommend a website/online channel for learning the basics and more of Argentine tango ? Thanks.

Hi, hoping someone can help. Apparently there's a tango song Déjala que siga due to Ray Rada / Edgardo Donato; I can find lyrics a couple of times, e.g. at https://www.eltango.com.ar/letras/dejala-que-siga/. Does anyone know if there's a recording of this available?

This came up while trying to clarify credits for a salsa song: Hector Lavoe's Déjala que siga is likely miscredited to Edgardo Donato; instead it's a combination of a bolero "Decídete mi amor" by José Antonio Méndez with the chorus of a (likely different) "Déjala que siga (andando)" by Reinaldo Bolaños. It would be good to confirm by listening to both.

I'll have to admit I know next to nothing about tango music -- I'm going to guess you have better databases than discogs or musicbrainz?

Thanks!

I’ve heard Milan has an amazing tango scene and since I will be vising would like to give some milonga a try. Having a difficult time finding one online for this Sunday. Any recommendations? Grazie🙏