以下文章轉錄自www.bridgetothetango.com
作者：Daniel Trenner
TANGO, THE ARGENTINE SOCIAL DANCE
by Daniel Trenner
c copyright Daniel Trenner 1998
When I was visiting Buenos Aires for the first time in
1987 I was taken to a dance hall in Palermo called the
Hellenico where I was introduced to Miguel and Nelly
Balmacera, who became my first teachers.
I suppose I had some vague image of the tango from
the reviews of the show in New York some years before,
but I had never seen it danced. I was inspired by the
intensity and the intimacy of the dancers and their
passionate dedication to their form.
The Tango
Tango has been often injected into the ballroom dance
world outside of Argentina without connection to its true
context as an expression of the Argentine soul. The
tango is a dance that can stand on its own in terms of
technique and intricacy, but to separate it from its
cultural milieu is to dilute its power. The dance exists as
one facet of a very rich culture that includes poetry,
music, great historical personalities, changes in the
Spanish language, and evolutions in its style and
acceptance. To fathom the depths of tango culture one
needs to have an experience of Porte隳 culture (the
culture of the city of Buenos Aires).
There is a distinction between two esthetics of tango
dance which is not always so clear outside Argentina.
Salon tango involves improvising each step according to
the nuances in the music, and, like any other social
dance, it involves communicating each decision to your
partner. Fantasy tango is theatre, choreographed for the
stage.
Tango began in the late 1800s. There are many
competent dance historians who have tracked its early
development, its great impact in Europe in the early
1900s, and its further development in American and
International style ballroom dancing. Less is known
about its evolution within Argentina that led to its golden
age as the great Argentine social dance of the 1930s
through 50s.
Petroleo and the Modern Salon Tango
In the 1940s there was a great innovative dancer named
Carlos Estevez whose nickname was Petroleo ( from
petrol or oil meaning slick, slippery, fast, etc.) His ideas
were at first received as strange to the tango dancers of
the preceding epoch, that of Canyengue (Kahn-jen-gay)
tango. The Canyengue style had a macho swagger, was
more bent-kneed, gaze down, with the frame more
introverted. The man's left hand was lower or even in
his pocket (her right hand the same or on her hip). The
dance was characterized by the footwork which included
lots of interlocking legs and complex syncopation.
Petroleo's ideas included a change in the frame to a
more erect, outward looking, and elegant stance. His
style followed closely the development of the smooth
dance music characterized by the orchestras of Carlos
DiSarli and Osvaldo Pugliese. He replaced the strong
hold of the canyengue with the lighter lead and follow of
modern salon. The big ganchos (hooks) were refined
into the fine and subtle displacements of the feet.
Smooth walking became the measure of good dancing.
Figures with turns in combination with displacement
became popular. Today almost all of the older dancers
with whom I have spoken can show off popular Petroleo
steps that influenced them.
Loss of Several Generations of Continuity
Between the 50s and 80s Argentina was in the grip of
some cruel dictatorships. Public gathering of any kind
was discouraged. People stopped dancing. Many of the
best artists went into exile or stopped working
altogether. Several generations of continuity was lost.
The revival today is an example of the dedication of
dancers who, having lost the tango social world, are
returning in this era of new freedom. That is also why
the salon style of the forties is still the contemporary
style of today. There is a passing of the torch to a
younger generation.
There are truly great masters still teaching in Buenos
Aires. However teachers alone would not have given me
the tango experience necessary to really understand the
dance. Its the older couples that hang around the
practice sessions and the dance halls and call you over
to offer comments and anecdotes, the countless
meetings, conversations, theatre productions, music
concerts, tango shows, bookstore and flea market
browsing.
The "Pinta"
Good dancing begins with one's pinta or look. It is based
on how one stands and walks. As with any sophisticated
dance technique, like ballet or international dancing for
example, this is the hardest thing to learn. The most
common advice I received from the older dancers was to
walk my kilometers and not to be distracted by the
fancy steps until I was prepared. In Argentina the
quality of dancing does not depend on how many steps
you know. That's because everyone knows so many
steps. Only steps that you have invented yourself, that
have your signature, get peoples attention.
Inventive ways of using the known vocabulary to
interpret the music is judged to be superior dancing.
Efficiency in movement, doing more with less, and the
most subtle changes in the displacements of feet are
what bring the murmurs of appreciation from an
educated audience. The finishing touch is the endless
variety of tiny movements of the feet, called chiches,
which embellish a step and can fill a moment of stillness
with a musical flutter of controlled passion.
Method of Instruction
In teaching tango outside of Buenos Aires I try to
provide a cultural perspective by presenting a visual
display of photos and prints that I have collected in my
travels in Argentina. I also show video of salon and
fantasy dancing so that people can see the difference.
Class begins with a review of the ladies basic technique
and everyone learns it. Men who can dance the ladies
technique have a chance to then lead in an elegant and
courteous manner.
Everyone learns to lead the basic walks around the
salon. When dancers are comfortable navigating the
salon then they can begin to learn turning figures
without being rude to each other as they share the floor.
This way the development of figure work and
embellishments is never separated from the floorcraft
that underlies it. The dance progresses as a smooth
walk around the floor and dancers have the possibility to
listen to and interpret the music.
It's essential to dance milongas and waltzes as well.
These dances are lighter in spirit and really complement
the more melancholy tango. Without them the tango
dance will lack its full musicality and emotional range.
The Tango Salon
If authenticity is important to the dancer than dancing
salon is the base for learning to dance tango. Every
Argentine performer I know of learned the salon base
first. Thats where they get character. When Argentine
tango is performed by people who do not have a salon
base it is quite apparent to the educated eye. When
people show off their tango fantasy routines in a social
context it is rude. Learning salon makes tango more
accessible and choreography easier to do well. The pity
is that there are so few people teaching it outside of
Argentina.
For serious students of the tango I lead an annual
expedition called Bridge to the Tango. It is a dancers
journey to Buenos Aires. This tour provides the
opportunity to visit the Milongas of Buenos Aires. These
social dance halls of Buenos Aires are hidden from the
usual tourist routes. Every night we will organize trips to
the dancing, which usually means 11 PM to 4 AM, and
offer daily practice sessions in our own practice space
with local salon master teachers, and talks with these
teachers on Tango history and culture.
We will also invite many of our friends in the Tango
community to stop by and dance with us. The object is
to visit the living social dance world of Buenos Aires, to
meet the living masters of the dance, and to practice
with authentic social dancers in an atmosphere of
communication and exchange.
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幸運是最強的力量