Well, I took a Tango Milonguero class on Thursday (quite by accident) with Jorge Firpo and it was fun, though very basic. But at the same time, those little movments are pretty useful in a crowded milonga. Firpo says that in the 1950s Tango changed to Milonguero Style (apilado, shared axis) because the dance floors got crowded. Now his history may be quite doubtful, but the class was fun. Also, it was different than the modern Tango that you'll see everywhere else (well not everywhere).
I also went to a Milonga class on Wednesday night at Copello with Yanina and Adrian at 9pm. That was great! My first class in Milonga Traspie. Cool stuff.
Then... let's see: I was Práctica X on Tuesday night which was probably my best tango night ever. My Tango is getting better, somehow.
Anyway, I wanted to write a schedule here for Firpo before I go paperless, again:
Tango Milonguero
Martes 12.30 to 14.00 Escuela argentina de Tango Rodriguez Peña
Jueves 17.30 to 19.00 Escuela argentina de Tango Center
Técnica de hombre
Jueves 19.00 to 20.30 Escuela argentina de Tango Center
Tango Salón
Viernes 17.30 to 19.00 Escuela argentina de Tango Center
Viernes Milonga Lisa y con Traspié 19.00 to 20.30 Escuela argentina de Tango Center
Vals
Martes 14.00-15.30 Escuela argentina de Tango Rodriguez Peña
Do I think his classes are good? Well, they're definitely a pretty good tie-in with Tango Milonguero. He's a guy who's been around for a long time. The only problem is that, with the exception of the Thursday class for men's technique, the classes are all for beginner, intermediate, and advanced. So the level was quite low. Actually, it MIGHT be a great place to start learning tango.
I have had some new breakthroughs with my Tango, and I'll write about them soon.
2008-01-20
2008-01-12
Grisel Results
Wow, so I made it to Grisel for the Saturday 7pm class (interestingly, the bus back takes a totally different route. Leave it to the Argentinians to do stupid shit).
The teachers were pretty good. However, there were not a lot of general corrections (although the woman did correct me on my overuse of brazos instead of torso). Alejandro and Marisol are good but they are very chicho like (although really pleasant to watch, but enanos).
Anyway, I spent pretty much the entire class planchando (that's what you call it when you're on the bench) because I didn't have a partner. And there you have it folks. Marisol told me at the end of the class, "deberías buscarte a una compañera." Yeah, I know. Soon I will begin the busqueda.
Anyway, there were 5 couples and if you don't have a partner, don't go (woman, man, or child). Good dancers, though. But not very tango salón. More nuevo, really.
The teachers were pretty good. However, there were not a lot of general corrections (although the woman did correct me on my overuse of brazos instead of torso). Alejandro and Marisol are good but they are very chicho like (although really pleasant to watch, but enanos).
Anyway, I spent pretty much the entire class planchando (that's what you call it when you're on the bench) because I didn't have a partner. And there you have it folks. Marisol told me at the end of the class, "deberías buscarte a una compañera." Yeah, I know. Soon I will begin the busqueda.
Anyway, there were 5 couples and if you don't have a partner, don't go (woman, man, or child). Good dancers, though. But not very tango salón. More nuevo, really.
How To Get To Club Grisel
So I'm back to Tango again, although I don't have any clear explanation for where I was in the meantime. Partly, working on Tango with my novia and partly not working on Tango much at all. But I'll have some new software up on my site soon (www.confusionists.com), and I'll have the site redone with Adobe Flex and deep linking... sorry, I digress.
So anyway, on Thursday night I went to take Tango Intermedios II at Mora Godoy (20.30) which was actually quite nice. Then on Friday I took Tango 3/4 at DNI with Hector and Silvina. I love them as people and I respect them as dancers, and they worry about my Tango. So I'll hold any other comments I might have.
And then I had a little chat with Dana from DNI. Might I mention for the record that Dana seems to be a ditz, but in fact she's lucid, intelligent, and buena gente. Props to the DNI people, who I still like better than just about anybody in Buenos Aires on a personal level.
The best thing about Friday's class in DNI is that I met a woman named Silvina (a glitch in the Matrix?) who dances quite well. She told me she studies "tango salón" which is the keyword for what I'm looking for these days. So I asked where she studied, and I have to say that over and over again these people say that I need to study with Carlitos Pérez at Sunderland (I've lost the horario, but I think it's somewhere in my blog. Ratoncito Pérez...). Anyway, I DO like the people who have studied with Pérez, but in the three classes I took there he didn't help me much at all. And the comments he did give me were sort of anticuated. I'm not talking about Tango Nuevo, I'm just talking about Salón. For instance, Perez says that the hand is in the middle of the back of the woman and guides like that. That is not really compatible with Tango Salón these days, in which EVERYBODY is talkinga about an abrazo flexible where the right hand slides right and left on the woman's back.
So I don't know about Sunderland and Pérez. I hope to find another way to do this Tango Salón thing.
Meanwhile, my new friend said that the best thing on Earth (although still a bit moderny) is Grisel at 7pm tonight (Saturday). She told me the name of the teachers like 4 times, but por más que mi español va de puta madre, nunca entiendo palabras nuevas sin verlas por escrito al menos una vez. So I'm off to Grisel for tonight and later I'll tell y'all who the teachers are.
Last night at Villa Malcom was good, good vibe, and too many people. I may never learn to dance in a crowded milonga.
Now for those of you who are not just here in Buenos Aires taking cabs everywhere (which is totally lame), figuring out the buses is a torture because the Guia T is made by idiots (by the way, somebody pointed out to me that GUIA T is really guiate meaning, er, get around or literally, guide yourself). So anyway, so as not to lose my precious research on Club Grisel, I will put it here for all eternity.
Club Grisel is at La Rioja 1180, which is currently on Map 24 of the Guía T in the B1 box, right to the North of Avenida San Juan (North being closer to Córdoba, if you prefer). So anyway, to get to Club Grisel from Barrio Norte (and many other places if you have a 101), take the subte to estación Jujuy and you're done. But that's for wimps. Real men and women grab the 101 when it turns lefts from Córdoba to Pueyerredon. Then it will keep going (street name changes to Jujuy), then it will turn right onto Venezuela, go two blocks, and go left (resuming the South direction) on Dean Funés (Funes?). Now that's all you have to know, because you have to get off at Dean Funes 1000, which is after crossing Independencia but before crossing San Juan. Then you should walk right a block and now you're on La Rioja and ready to find Grisel. Now, for those of you who wanted to go and gave up and took a cab... well, if you're here for more than 4 days you should really use the buses. It's fun, cheap, and you get to see the people. Cabs are annoying and a cab driver told me last night that some guys move the taxímetro ahead while you're not watching. Is that true? I don't know, but I prefer buses because they keep you real.
And being real is what Tango is all about. Or is it?
So anyway, on Thursday night I went to take Tango Intermedios II at Mora Godoy (20.30) which was actually quite nice. Then on Friday I took Tango 3/4 at DNI with Hector and Silvina. I love them as people and I respect them as dancers, and they worry about my Tango. So I'll hold any other comments I might have.
And then I had a little chat with Dana from DNI. Might I mention for the record that Dana seems to be a ditz, but in fact she's lucid, intelligent, and buena gente. Props to the DNI people, who I still like better than just about anybody in Buenos Aires on a personal level.
The best thing about Friday's class in DNI is that I met a woman named Silvina (a glitch in the Matrix?) who dances quite well. She told me she studies "tango salón" which is the keyword for what I'm looking for these days. So I asked where she studied, and I have to say that over and over again these people say that I need to study with Carlitos Pérez at Sunderland (I've lost the horario, but I think it's somewhere in my blog. Ratoncito Pérez...). Anyway, I DO like the people who have studied with Pérez, but in the three classes I took there he didn't help me much at all. And the comments he did give me were sort of anticuated. I'm not talking about Tango Nuevo, I'm just talking about Salón. For instance, Perez says that the hand is in the middle of the back of the woman and guides like that. That is not really compatible with Tango Salón these days, in which EVERYBODY is talkinga about an abrazo flexible where the right hand slides right and left on the woman's back.
So I don't know about Sunderland and Pérez. I hope to find another way to do this Tango Salón thing.
Meanwhile, my new friend said that the best thing on Earth (although still a bit moderny) is Grisel at 7pm tonight (Saturday). She told me the name of the teachers like 4 times, but por más que mi español va de puta madre, nunca entiendo palabras nuevas sin verlas por escrito al menos una vez. So I'm off to Grisel for tonight and later I'll tell y'all who the teachers are.
Last night at Villa Malcom was good, good vibe, and too many people. I may never learn to dance in a crowded milonga.
Now for those of you who are not just here in Buenos Aires taking cabs everywhere (which is totally lame), figuring out the buses is a torture because the Guia T is made by idiots (by the way, somebody pointed out to me that GUIA T is really guiate meaning, er, get around or literally, guide yourself). So anyway, so as not to lose my precious research on Club Grisel, I will put it here for all eternity.
Club Grisel is at La Rioja 1180, which is currently on Map 24 of the Guía T in the B1 box, right to the North of Avenida San Juan (North being closer to Córdoba, if you prefer). So anyway, to get to Club Grisel from Barrio Norte (and many other places if you have a 101), take the subte to estación Jujuy and you're done. But that's for wimps. Real men and women grab the 101 when it turns lefts from Córdoba to Pueyerredon. Then it will keep going (street name changes to Jujuy), then it will turn right onto Venezuela, go two blocks, and go left (resuming the South direction) on Dean Funés (Funes?). Now that's all you have to know, because you have to get off at Dean Funes 1000, which is after crossing Independencia but before crossing San Juan. Then you should walk right a block and now you're on La Rioja and ready to find Grisel. Now, for those of you who wanted to go and gave up and took a cab... well, if you're here for more than 4 days you should really use the buses. It's fun, cheap, and you get to see the people. Cabs are annoying and a cab driver told me last night that some guys move the taxímetro ahead while you're not watching. Is that true? I don't know, but I prefer buses because they keep you real.
And being real is what Tango is all about. Or is it?
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