tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91835776056661171062024-03-05T08:16:25.308+01:00Melina's two centsMelina Sedo, tango teacher, organiser, book author, dj, coach and ex psychologist writes about her work, studies and encounters.Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comBlogger110125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-80058295133758174282023-08-06T19:52:00.001+02:002023-08-06T19:54:13.384+02:00The Straight Way Lost<p>Have I lost it? I don't know...</p><p>All these years, I was working <i>the mission</i> in a very straightforward manner. Always trying to be a better tango teacher, organiser, dancer... Growing and maintaining a business! Living the tango life. But now I am definitely at a point where decisions have to be made. </p><p>Tango has not recovered from the corona regulations. Will it get better?</p><p>I have started a dance therapy training. Will that be a new me?</p><p>And I have written a book. A 400-page roleplaying book which is now on Kickstarter. This project has helped me get through the corona years, was a great pleasure and a huge endeavour. Still is! </p><p>We are now in the last 4 days of the campaign and would love to get some more backers to reduce the deficit. Do you know what such a project costs? I won't tell. I just wanna say that the official kickstarter goal is far from it. </p><p>So, if you want to help: back us now!</p><p><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/vortex-verlag/the-straight-way-lost-sourcebook-and-adventure-for-5e"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;">Click here!</span></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqre4KRH5xOgd7mxafOZLGjKMFzDAdXpcW905djbVHM_dPLAFJcNwhK0JEkVAI8BuXOG1r4gTNLq9ilG-ZmvV4HUCdPfVAH-J6xVrgz4rHROhiEwRG1CQwT97rO9TQ125w1IuXuUnzh-BN3mM4mbEFyNJIvr3iNHlRocqJDx5Tzj4XR5KjupfEqyawg/s1080/ES2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqre4KRH5xOgd7mxafOZLGjKMFzDAdXpcW905djbVHM_dPLAFJcNwhK0JEkVAI8BuXOG1r4gTNLq9ilG-ZmvV4HUCdPfVAH-J6xVrgz4rHROhiEwRG1CQwT97rO9TQ125w1IuXuUnzh-BN3mM4mbEFyNJIvr3iNHlRocqJDx5Tzj4XR5KjupfEqyawg/s320/ES2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqieWtyhLlMW4ZQuq-866vA3Z78s7QUuCsnFmNicCtbP8lwnUzvTOnJDXgRm_76axdQ4K0jqX7CJzeJHWaLfq28_8F4xSG4O35XRMxCMg8AlWjX_q0JfEwACTw2NNhzwYBGvvkuWNBFOhTkLZcfLRfJnfXnFq8thY_SPLoyrSc-Nb5PZSxd8r6dPKUHA/s320/ES10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE4FGsdkz_sW7w26nP_dQ5MZyac5kgVH9cWn6awpgAX9WQCLwzJcPCQz-QVH2V-ZEe7NeoiRcnJBLJIUmWPM-OIGsIyGqgHWno-hiIqXtPvsRppIDqXQrKyq847Sb7JSifM5lq34vSnUT2lGWRzBvfzS7fn1gWF8ABsp3_0EmJjgOUSdEA9RQoC7xcEg/s1080/ES23.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE4FGsdkz_sW7w26nP_dQ5MZyac5kgVH9cWn6awpgAX9WQCLwzJcPCQz-QVH2V-ZEe7NeoiRcnJBLJIUmWPM-OIGsIyGqgHWno-hiIqXtPvsRppIDqXQrKyq847Sb7JSifM5lq34vSnUT2lGWRzBvfzS7fn1gWF8ABsp3_0EmJjgOUSdEA9RQoC7xcEg/s320/ES23.jpg" width="320" /></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNsG3Ggu_HJqmKEKroe9xQNAuzbj3echUNymK70HbpobX9eMfMzO91-DofeJZBSWP26pB3JBsQnXbU4ysTi75f3sZsjNNTVflsRY32zsa7-2R8VHmcN5aJfgCddy23VwGEnP26jtICy871zOYpRMe_r03jVhJAqOuyVnEPV9y2aWdkAsykG80o1Miuw/s1080/ES24.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNsG3Ggu_HJqmKEKroe9xQNAuzbj3echUNymK70HbpobX9eMfMzO91-DofeJZBSWP26pB3JBsQnXbU4ysTi75f3sZsjNNTVflsRY32zsa7-2R8VHmcN5aJfgCddy23VwGEnP26jtICy871zOYpRMe_r03jVhJAqOuyVnEPV9y2aWdkAsykG80o1Miuw/s320/ES24.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4TcSO9R1twFfrJMtP6FEztqiUKpeAX5P2hHcc7W9STofUBLVCYSvubM7cuUtV0UIfVsS2km1iIgGeFlXmdUGqvb45sPoaObFH72KzDg7lnM1jlhSf2_zSusoJytMa6KwEHgcWwAT0YszH7ZZ8VrI3oKtYwoCeic6MjH__4V8DKizoyF_BqbCQl72pYA/s1080/ES3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4TcSO9R1twFfrJMtP6FEztqiUKpeAX5P2hHcc7W9STofUBLVCYSvubM7cuUtV0UIfVsS2km1iIgGeFlXmdUGqvb45sPoaObFH72KzDg7lnM1jlhSf2_zSusoJytMa6KwEHgcWwAT0YszH7ZZ8VrI3oKtYwoCeic6MjH__4V8DKizoyF_BqbCQl72pYA/s320/ES3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p>Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-90443922190348591802023-04-27T10:29:00.005+02:002023-04-27T17:22:39.550+02:00Growing Old in Tango<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">A few days ago, I attended a seminar about "Dance Classes with Senior Citizens". This got me thinking about ageing in tango. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Again.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">When I started dancing tango, I was in my early 30’s and pleased about how age did not seem to matter: Young people were dancing with older ones. Also social dance is something that you can do at any age if you are willing to adapt your movements over the time. All seemed fine in tango-wonderland.</p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But this was when there just were only few dancers and milongas and everyone was happy to dance with whomever else showed up. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Now tango has diversified and the sheer number of dancers allows for more age-appropriate and interest-based sub-groups. I actually find that a good development, because now I don't have to listen to neo-tango-music anymore or deal with being led into ganchos. This is nice. </p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But I still worry - in particular about all of us who are used to travelling so much to meet their friends and dance at international tango events. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There are two main issues: </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">1. Acceptance of older dancers at events: It is quite obvious that old age is not very much appreciated when it comes to choosing dance partners. It is kind of ok in the encuentro community where many dancers are way past 60 or 70. But even there, events seem to segregate between the encuentros for older dancers and the ones for a more mixed crowd. </p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">For me, not dancing is really not the main issue as I dance much more now than when I was much younger. Back in the day - even at the height of our "career" - I used to sit a lot and found most milongas or events super depressing. Now I seldom lack partners, also (but not only) because I dance both roles. But I know that it is a huge problem for many other women of my age or older. </p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And when I look at the much younger marathon community, I fear that many of those who are popular now, will be very disappointed when they are being replaced by younger dancers in the future. This applies of course more to women than to men, where old age seems to be more accepted. Why, I do not know. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">2. What happens when we all become too old to travel or cannot afford it anymore because we are living on a small pension? So many of the local communities have been drained of dancers and collapsed because of the exodus of the more experienced dancers towards international events. </p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I am happy that we are turning the wheel in our hometown and are building quite nice local community. But what if I become too old to dance at all? I'll miss not only the dance, but also the company, the hugs, the chats... And even if I manage to keep on dancing a bit where I live, I am definitely going to miss all of my international friends when I stop travelling and they stop coming to our events. I actually miss many of you already.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There are so many dancers with whom we have bonded in these 22 years as tango teachers, but whom we might never meet again. I used to meet you at workshop weekends in your local or regional communities, but as we are not anymore invited to teach in this places, many are becoming distant memories. And also this is due to a process of ageing.</p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Not because of dementia though. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Detlef and I are both in our later 50’s and in Argentina we’d be called "maestros of the maestros". Thousands of dancers all over Europe and the USA - many of them now teaching - have taken classes with us or even participated in our teacher trainings. This should count for something. But the contrary is the case. Despite the fact, that we are now way more experienced than in our 30's, we receive almost no more engagements for workshop weekends or events. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Don’t get me wrong: I saw this development coming for many years as our western culture is bound to sort out the older generation. I also witnessed this process with other formerly famous colleagues. The corona pandemic has somehow accelerated the development for us but it was bound to happen. I don't complain, but take it as an opportunity to slowly transition towards other fields of engagement. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But I am going to miss you. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">That said: This weekend we’ll be meeting many friends at a sweet encuentro France. Then we’ll be in Portugal for two weeks and then there is Pequeña… So...</p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: large;">Carpe Diem! </span></p>Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-64886316957857068492022-09-01T10:24:00.006+02:002022-09-01T10:48:22.803+02:00Do not obsess about repertoire!<p> This is just a short reminder for all leaders (male or female) in Tango: </p>Do not obsess about boring your followers with your limited repertoire. <div><br />During a milonga, followers will dance with all kinds of leaders and each of them has a different musicality, repertoire and embrace. So unless this follower will dance with you only, he or she will have enough variety in the dance. </div><div><br />In addition to that most followers complain about leaders trying to dance too many "steps" and therefore forget about musicality and embrace. Hence: less (steps) is more (wellbeing)!</div><div><br /></div><div>Female leaders should actually know that because most of them have been making exactly this statement for years when they were "only" following. But as soon as they start leading, they forget about it. Very stupid.</div><div><br /></div><div>The only person being bored by a limited repertoire is the leader him- or herself and this is quite understandable as she or he has to dance the same steps over and over again. So if you want to enlarge your repertoire, please do it for your own sake, not with the excuse of having to entertain "the ladies". </div><div><br /></div><div>But remember: Unless you are very skilled in leading and adapting the repertoire to music and partner, the steps will only stress the followers. </div><div><br /></div><div>Last tip: Female tango teachers are particularly annoyed by all the leaders wanting to impress them and show how they can dance better than their dance partner. THIS is really boring. A nice embrace and connection to the music however can never be boring. </div><div><br /></div><div>So: cut it out! </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-20025504075443409742022-08-28T11:03:00.008+02:002022-08-28T11:19:10.003+02:00My most exciting non-tango project!<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span>Today, I am would like to share some information about a wonderful project I’ve been working on since corona started in 2020. It has got nothing to do with tango, but please bear with me for one moment. This work has helped me to get through the past two years, not only financially, but also motivationally. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span>So, what is this about?</span><br /><br /><span><b>I have written a roleplaying adventure</b></span><span> and am now supervising the illustration and production of the book.</span><span> <b>The Straight Way Lost</b></span><span> will be published by <a href="https://www.vortex-verlag.com" target="_blank">Vortex-Verlag</a> via a Kickstarter campaign in mid-2023 and I’d be happy about contributions and recommendations to your friends.</span><br /><span>In case you do not know what a roleplaying game is, please click <a href="https://www.melinasedo.com/role-play" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br /><br /><span>This work might be of interest not only to those who love roleplaying games, but everyone who is intrigued by renaissance history, the work of Dante Alighieri, beautiful art or mythology. </span><br /><br /><b><span>The </span><span>story</span><span> is based on the ancient tale of a voyage into the underworld and back again, one that lies at the base of all classical and medieval sagas:</span></b><br /><span>It is the year 1492 in the mighty city-state of Florence. Girolamo Savonarola, the charismatic prior of San Marco is fighting to rid society of the decay that has beset it under the reign of the Medici family. The adventurers are drawn into this political game of intrigue and set out to find a cure for the evil that has befallen their home. Their journey will lead them into the realm of the mysterious fey queen of the Apennine, but only after following in the footsteps of Dante Alighieri through the netherworlds can the heroes return to face the tyrant and help create their City On A Hill.</span><br /><br /><span>Illustrations</span><span> in very distinctive styles for the different stages of the voyage are by Jana Heidersdorf, Mark Smylie (see below) and Gwenevere Singley. </span><span>The </span><span>layout</span><span> will be done by my partner <a href="https://thorstenjanesphotography.myportfolio.com" target="_blank">Thorsten Janes</a>, who has already worked with Detlef an me on <a href="https://www.caminarabrazados.com" target="_blank">Caminar Abrazados</a>. <b>The Straight Way Lost will be a wonderful addition to any art-loving friend’s library.</b></span><br /><br /><span>If you are interested in staying informed:</span><br /><span>- <a href="mailto:melina@thestraightwaylost.com">subscribe to our newsletter</a></span><br /><span>- like us on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thestraightwaylost " target="_blank">Facebook</a></span><br /><span>- follow us on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/the.straight.way.lost/" target="_blank">Instagram</a></span><br /><span>- visit our <a href="https://www.thestraightwaylost.com " target="_blank">website</a></span></span><br style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px;" /><div><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNLCnHNG2zCfIvzNDjdeKaOSxitdGiuWAulvhPqKQGKJGIL4Esj2fqoKmvYWruwoHhImB74Qt8ZdixN-ztKA8MQ-xOpveDzsdRiBrLlZHj-RJcjTtr2WtTpVzdC1p4Xzpa0PS4t6jtADuCKC1yA0om0PYQNY56OZgvGBM0EA3D_ULOyvrGPNaF4L0/s1000/Ac0_Chapter0_MainRenaissanceImpression_web.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="809" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNLCnHNG2zCfIvzNDjdeKaOSxitdGiuWAulvhPqKQGKJGIL4Esj2fqoKmvYWruwoHhImB74Qt8ZdixN-ztKA8MQ-xOpveDzsdRiBrLlZHj-RJcjTtr2WtTpVzdC1p4Xzpa0PS4t6jtADuCKC1yA0om0PYQNY56OZgvGBM0EA3D_ULOyvrGPNaF4L0/s320/Ac0_Chapter0_MainRenaissanceImpression_web.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></div>Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-34065084594549596042022-05-03T07:54:00.013+02:002022-05-24T13:57:48.145+02:00Annoying post about my signature issue<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I have not written for quite a while, mostly because I nowadays also post longer texts on facebook and because I wanted to keep this blog (relatively) free of my everyday corona-rants. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">So this is another annoying post about my signature issue, leading women.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">...</span></p><p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">As you many of you will know, we (Detlef and I) are using the concept of role-change in all of our local classes and most of our international work. This is why many of our female students have taken up leading. Some have worked real hard, e. g. in our teacher training and are now registering as double-role dancers at many events - if the organisers allow for it. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">We of course encourage role-change at our milongas and encuentros and so the "leading ladies" and the few "following men" usually get enough dances in both roles at our events. We are very happy about the development because no-one has to wait as a wallflower anymore. It changes everything for the better!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">But it is common knowledge that double rolers don't have good chances in most environments and that</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> leading women in particular are often criticised for not being "experienced" or "good" enough. And sure, many of them have only taken up the "other role"</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">recently, so they are still learning and very well aware of that.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">But I ask myself: With whom are leading women implicitly compared when people are making such a statement? Not good enough in comparison to whom?</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Is it with male "beginners" who have been leading a similar amount of time? Surely not, because as a tango teacher I can confirm that experienced followers who take up leading will be much, much, much more competent than the average man who starts tango. And I think that most people are aware of that. But are women praised for their achievement of learning much faster? Certainly not.</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">So, are these women then maybe compared to the average dancer at milongas or encuentros? That would actually be appropriate, because I am honestly convinced that many, many female leaders have long achieved that level of competency. Honestly: it is no rocket science. </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">And if you observe more closely, you will discover that the reason for them being of equal competency comes from the fact that they are taking classes and practicing and therefore still improving, whilst most men stop learning from a certain point on. Why should they? They will always get enough dances. I have danced with hundreds, maybe even thousands of so-called "advanced" leaders at events and will clearly state that the majority have a quite limited repertoire and musicality. That’s fine, because when I dance with someone, I do not expect "perfection" and I do not judge. I connect with another person and if that person is willing to "give" something of him or herself in the dance, I am perfectly happy. Most followers are, because this is after all a social dance. </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">So why are female leaders not likewise accepted with all their imperfections and restrictions? Why will another woman not accept the invitation of an average female leader, whilst she is happily dancing with the guy who has been dancing the same ocho-cortado variation for the last 15 years without even adapting the move to the melodic rhythm?</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Because women have to be better to be perceived equal!</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I think that they are implicitly compared with the very small amount of top dancers who are musical, have an extensive-enough repertoire and a fine embrace. Most likely, they are also good looking and are, well, men! These are the few guys with whom every follower will want to dance at an Encuentro or Marathon.</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">What most forget: These guys have often been dancing for more than 20 years and are either very talented or have worked hard to get there. Yes, they might merit the praise but how unfair is it to compare a female leader, who has started to lead 2-3 years ago to these "tango gods"? Also, no matter how good she gets, she will not lead "like a man". Because she is no man. But do you have to lead "like a man" to lead well? I very much doubt that.</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I am impressed by everyone who tackles "the other role" despite the social inhibitions, the time consuming effort and the huge amount of money that they have spend to learn, to become better, to develop. I see how many of them improve by the day!</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I do not want anyone to give leading women any more leeway than male leaders. But please give them the same chance that you would give to a male leader of a comparable level of competency. Try to judge them by their dancing and not by their sex. </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Ok, unless tango IS about sex for you. Then of course, this is ok. Women will stay women and men men. If you only get your tango highs with the big hairy bloke (quoting a male friend), then so be it. ;-)</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Personal note: </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">I have for 21 years lead in class, but only recently (2019) made the serious attempt of leading at milongas. I have practised despite the fact, that I understand all moves and musicality and can perfectly demonstrate them in class - mostly in an open hold. But it is different in close embrace at milongas. So it is obvious, that it will take me some time, until I’ve incorporated our repertoire in my everyday milonga life. I am improving. </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">But I have got the advantage to be a teacher and well known at many events I go to. So I will mostly reach my goal of leading 50%. It is only at events where I am not known (marathons) that I will be perceived in the same manner as the other leading ladies. This (and the fact that I actually talk to our female leaders) is why I know what I am writing about. And guess what: There are female followers who have learned with us but will not accept my invitation at a milonga. They will of course accept Detlef’s invitation - if he happens to be there on time and is not chatting at the bar. ;-)</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Let’s see how that works next weekend at the Heidelberg Tango Marathon. By writing this post, I have certainly not improved my chances with the guys. ;-)</span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: medium;">Update: At the HTM it went well after a little while. I did not reach the 50%, but close enough. ;-)</span></p><div><br /></div>Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-7010914862958130312021-07-01T11:05:00.005+02:002021-07-01T11:10:25.357+02:00 Where do we go from here?<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I have not written for a long time, but even those who do not follow me on Facebook can imagine what it has been like in the past 15 months: </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Tango has basically collapsed and apart from a few months last summer and early autumn, we were not allowed to work at all. These restrictions have taken their toll and I am in a quite bad condition - physically and mentally. </span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Still, 2020 was manageable:</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Our Indiegogo campaign last June went well and we sold a lot of digital content or vouchers for classes. Some friends even made donations - which we did not ask for, but that were welcome nevertheless. Your help added up to more than double of what we received from our government in 2020. This was is a wonderful sign of solidarity and we are super grateful.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Our financial situation last year was also aided by the fact, that many events and classes had been payed in advance. When the lockdown started, most participants agreed to re-schedule and let us hold onto their money. Unfortunately, many of those classes and events had to be delayed much longer than anticipated and some have still not taken place. </span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">But as restrictions were lifted a bit in May, we were now able to work-off a few of our teaching obligations:</span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Bootcamp - finished after 15 months</span></li><li><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Tango-Teacher-Training - finished after 1 year</span></li><li><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Mini Vals Seminar - finished after 8 months</span></li><li><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Local courses - to be finished next week</span></li></ul>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Damocle’s sword of refunds has now become a little less threatening and I am very relieved.</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">There nevertheless still remain: </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Many vouchers for privates and other classes bought in our Indiegogo campaign</span></li><li><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Pequeña that was re-re-scheduled for June 2022. With all costs (djs, venue…) still awaiting us.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Quite a few local dancers who have not yet completed their classes from 2020 and who will hopefully do so in autumn.</span></li></ul><p></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">But in most German regions, regulations are still strict and apart from small classes for tested and vaccinated dancers, nothing is possible. No real milongas, no events… Travelling to other countries is still difficult as well and organisers are not yet inviting us for workshops. And even when they do: it takes many months - up to a year - from scheduling a weekend until earning a salary!</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">So, given that there will be very few opportunities to generate new income in 2021, our car died and that there are still some studio renovations to be finished, this year remains difficult. Much more than 2020.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We will nevertheless not start a new funding-campaign, as some of our friends suggested. </span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It is now the responsibility of the governments to give us back our lives and livelihoods. We have complied to all regulations and the incidence rate in Germany has dropped to 5,1. But now the hysteria is raging again and new lockdowns are discussed for autumn and winter. Despite the fact that 80% of the population (including me) will have had their vaccinations by the end of summer. This makes planning for the nearer future almost impossible. </span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I also observe that many people have retreated from tango. After 1,5 years of abstinence, they have acquired new interests and are not finishing courses or signing up for new ones. Others might never overcome their fear of the virus. The tango community has shrunk to a few passionate survivors and classes fill up even worse than 2020 when there were no vaccines and no antigene-tests. Who knows how many years it will take to re-build all this!</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In any case: If we are not given back our right to earn a living soon, I do not know, whether we will survive as tango professionals. Detlef is more optimistic than I am, so let us hope that he is right. </span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In the meanwhile, I have taken up an exciting and challenging new work, writing a roleplaying campaign set in 15th century Florence and Dante’s afterworlds. You can read everything about it <a href="https://www.melinasedo.com/role-play/" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">If you want to help me and Detlef, please feel free to <a href="https://shop.tangodesalon.de/shop" target="_blank">buy our digital content</a>, sign up for <a href="https://www.tangodesalon.de/schedule" target="_blank">our classes and tango-holidays</a> and invite us for workshops in your community. We are not scared of travelling.</span></p><div><br /></div>Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-36364166599536086542020-06-10T09:37:00.000+02:002020-06-11T18:37:55.788+02:00My incredible shrinking world<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">First they closed the borders, so that it is you and the others again: Germany (low infection numbers = safe) vs. Italy (high infection numbers = dangerous). Or: Germany (strict measures until present day) vs. Switzerland (contact restrictions stopped). Europe has ceased to exist and all of a sudden its countries are separate again. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Even worse: Germany consists of quite independent federal states and because most of the corona measures are decided on a "Bundesland"-basis, it really matters where exactly you live. You start comparing your situation with those of the other provinces: I live in the Saarland. As our regional prime minister is particularly interested in showing resoluteness, the measures here are stricter than in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinat. All these months, I was really envious of the relative freedom they had. They could sit on a bench in a park. We were not allowed to. In Hesse, they even were permitted to visit friends. Here, this was strictly forbidden for a long time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Then recently, the government decided that lockdowns will be made stricter again, when there are more than 50 (in Saarland 35) infections per 100.000 inhabitants over 7 days in one immediate region. So now you start comparing the numbers in the different cities of your "Bundesland" and hope that your city’s won't go up. The "Regionalverband Saarbrücken" looks very good at the moment. Our average infection rate over the last 7 days is 1,22. Neunkirchen is more critical - they’ve got 6,83 daily infections per 100.000 inhabitants. So I hope it will not seep over. (Note how I am obsessing over such low numbers! We’re far away from the 30, have not reached this number since mid April, but I am already worried, because every single registered infection now endangers the lifting of restrictions and therefore my livelihood.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Also, I almost never leave the flat. I have no fear of the virus, but there are only very few reasons for me to go out: there is no work, no travel, no money to spend in restaurants or with other activities, no inclination to go into stores having to wear a mask... I go out once a week for grocery shopping, occasionally to run and in the last two weeks, we’ve again taken up privates. But our studio is in the same house. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I spend my entire days in front of the computer screen. When I am not working on our digital versions of Caminar Abrazados, I am trying to coordinate other dance schools in our region, writing protest-letters to ministries and watching the numbers. Day in, day out observing the numbers on John Hopkins, on the site of the RKI, the WHO and some others. This is my new hobby.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In past years, the whole world seemed small, because I felt connected all over it. I travelled all year, made friends in so many different countries. The distances between us became irrelevant. Now my world <i>is</i> small and the others are far, far away.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Even the distance to my non-tango friends in the same city has become huge, feels unbreachable. Their lives have changed considerably less as they went on working normally all these months and have hobbies that were not prohibited. They meet colleagues, go out, earn their living. I am reduced to receiving charity and trying to sell digital products, that (I guess) most buy out of pity. They are successful university teachers or computer specialists. I am the looser artist who’d better stuck to her profession as a psychologist.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">My world has collapsed. It is now only one room, one chair with the same view every hour of the day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">One day, this might disappear too. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Note: Yes, I know that it should be "My incredibl<b>y</b> shrinking world". But those who know me might have guessed the pop-culture reference.</span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-12417523118516702652020-03-18T09:16:00.000+01:002020-03-18T09:22:03.159+01:00I'm so worried<div class="_2cuy _3dgx _2vxa" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #1c1e21; direction: ltr; margin: 0px auto 28px; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 700px; word-wrap: break-word;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know that as a tango teacher and organiser, I should now be confident and send out positive vibes and believe me: this post will also come. Last afternoon, Detlef, Thorsten and I made plans on how to survive the complete stop of our work. I will therefore have to snap out of my temporal paralysis. But before I soldier on, I have the urge to write about my worries. If you only want to read positive things, please skip this post.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">On Sunday, we had our last workshop for an indefinite time and I started to cry during our final words to the group. It was very embarrassing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The weekend had already been difficult because of cancellations and because of the fact that we could not correct by dancing with the students, but only by "show & tell". There were also no changes of partner, every couple kept their distance to the others and I felt that although we tried our best, our teaching quality suffered. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But this was not the reason why I cried.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I wept because I could not greet and see off any of our students with the usual hug and because we do not know when we'll meet anyone again. Yes, I cannot deny my distress caused by the financial insecurity, but the relational aspects of this crisis are far more troubling. Teaching and organising tango has been my life since 2001 and it has now come to an end. <span style="background-color: white;">In these 19 years, we've helped build an international community of dancers and friends: the encuentro scene, our students, our teacher training graduates... We've traveled so much and I feel close to many people around the globe of whom I am now cut off. </span>For how long? Who knows! </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am also extremely unhappy because we have only taken up teaching in our hometown last year and are in the process of building a very fine thing. We’ve got super motivated and talented participants as well as assistants and helpers but now had to stop working with them in the middle of two great courses. The same goes for the intensive bootcamp. We had just finished the first module with a brilliant group and now the rest is suspended. It is so frustrating! </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">And social media did not help in the last weeks. Usually I enjoy communicating via Facebook, exchanging information, casually sharing a bit of your lives or just being silly. </span><span style="background-color: white;">But now Facebook just upset me.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So many interactions and posts were and still are being ruled by fear and distrust and the social pressure on teachers and organisers these past weeks was immense. Anyone who held a milonga or taught a class was accused of jeopardising the public well-fare, independent of the individual circumstances. People seemed to be giving all the responsibility to organisers and teachers instead of believing in the sensible behaviour of others. Names of infected persons were openly circulated in Facebook-posts and organisers of past tango-events connected to corona-incidents were being dissed without knowing all facts. All of a sudden, everybody was an expert and tried to regulate the lives of others. My life! As if the regulations and measures by the governments as well as the media were not already draining all my energy and disturbing my sleep! As if I was not aware of the situation myself! As if I was not spending most of my days reading the sites of the WHO, the RKI and the John Hopkins institute! It has now gotten a bit better and people are talking about ways of helping organisers and teachers, but this feels a bit weird after being scared into immobility.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As a psychologist and person, I find all that very worrying. It reminds me of the AIDS panic and its impact on society in the 80s.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">That's not good!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because this tango community will not only suffer from illness caused by a virus. It will also be harmed by how we interact with each other. What do you think will happen when not only all tango activities are suspended over a long period, but tangueros continue behaving in hurtful and often irrational ways? Sure, many dedicated dancers are counting the days until they can go to the next encuentro or marathon. But do you really think, that things will just resume, where they were left off? I am not so convinced. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">This is what I worry about: </span></div>
<ul class="_5a_q _5yj1" dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px auto 32px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 14px; width: 676px;">
<li class="_2cuy _509q _2vxa" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #1c1e21; direction: ltr; list-style-type: disc; margin: 0px auto 12px; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap; width: auto; word-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Many not (yet) being infected with the tango-virus will disappear and take on other activities. That concerns in particular newbies whom we and others have lovingly groomed into becoming tangueros. Without these dancers, tango schools will have to close and the communities (already deprived of advanced dancers by the international events) shrink.</span></li>
<li class="_2cuy _509q _2vxa" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #1c1e21; direction: ltr; list-style-type: disc; margin: 0px auto 12px; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap; width: auto; word-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Organisers who do not only have to cancel their events, but also refund payments will make losses because of the obligations towards venue, artists and other parties. People thus affected might not continue organising events - which is already a high-risk/little-income activity. (Ok, let's be honest: less encuentros or marathons would actually not be such a bad thing, but not at the expense of motivated individuals.)</span></li>
<li class="_2cuy _509q _2vxa" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; list-style-type: disc; margin: 0px auto 12px; text-align: left; width: auto; word-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #1c1e21;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Anyone living from tango has to start seeking alternative sources of income less volatile to catastrophes and difficult social interactions. Not everyone will survive on online videos. I am planning to visit the local “Arbeitsamt” (public agency of work) to check my options of returning to psychology or another line of work in the social sector. Let's see how many other tango teachers go back to being computer specialists, </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); white-space: pre-wrap;">engineers or nurses.</span></span></span></li>
<li class="_2cuy _509q _2vxa" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #1c1e21; direction: ltr; list-style-type: disc; margin: 0px auto 12px; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap; width: auto; word-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Anyone being upset by the public discussion might turn away from tango or at least from certain persons. Sensitive people already stopped using Facebook because of this. Who wants to interact with a community that denounces infected persons and puts such a pressure on individuals? </span></li>
<li class="_2cuy _509q _2vxa" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #1c1e21; direction: ltr; list-style-type: disc; margin: 0px auto 12px; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap; width: auto; word-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">People for whom tango is the only social activity and the only form of physical contact with others will feel isolated and lonely. This goes in particular for everyone living alone and for many older people. Depression rates will go up amongst those groups. Yes, people die from the virus. But they also die from depression. I am incredibly worried about that!</span></li>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know that I paint a very dramatic picture but please do not dismiss my words as the ramblings of a professional pessimist. I beg you: Let’s all behave sensibly and carefully. Dancing and hugs have an immensely positive impact on life-quality, well-being and our health. Please do not destroy these resources with fear and distrust. When everything has calmed down, you still want to be able to take your friends into the arms.</span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-59023147396312295022020-02-28T09:54:00.002+01:002020-02-29T10:51:23.252+01:00Tango Queens Congress 2020 - an organiser's perspective<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In early 2019, when I accepted the invitation to a new Facebook group, the Tango Queens, I would never have imagined how much it would become a part of my life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I actually considered rejecting the invite because I could not relate to the name. Although I use the term in class (e.g."walk like a queen"), it somehow sounded girly and I mostly expected make-up or shoe recommendations. Yes, there are such threads, but many more serious topics were and still are being discussed in a very engaging manner. This group was indeed needed!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Very soon, the idea of a congress for women was born and I found myself in the organising team</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> gathered by Monika Jurkiewicz, </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">a polish dancer living in London</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. Monika is the founder of the Facebook group and therefore it was natural that she took the lead. Most of us did not even know each other personally and as we were spread far apart, our team met over the course of an entire year via Skype to prepare the intricate details of this ambitious project. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The other team members were: </span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Juliana Thutlwa, a German tango organiser and psychologist, who would handle the website and research about "tango visuals and imagery". Juliana was the only one whom I knew personally.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Carmen Cordiviola, an Argentinian powerhouse and coach living in Berlin, who'd be responsible for the feminist perspective.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Evren Jülide Koç, a Turkish dancer and yoga teacher, who would become our liaison to the South-Eastern hemisphere.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I, Melina as the local representative and co-ordinator as we choose my home town Saarbrücken as location.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As anticipated, the logistical preparations </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">for the first TQC </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">would become quite extensive. Although I have been organising tango events since 2001, this was an entirely new category. We needed a venue in which 3-4 different activities could be conducted at the same time, a round-the-clock catering, a main hall with a podium and complex technical setup to allow for panel discussions, lectures, big workshops and milongas. That all went far beyond the scope of a simple Encuentro, Festivalito or workshop-weekend. I was nevertheless lucky to have an experienced local team as well as the support of the location owners and we even got a small grant by the city of Saarbrücken. So all went well on the home front! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As for the programme, our team put together a multifaceted choice of activities:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">5 plenary sessions for all women present: The opening activity focussing on "The Embrace" (lead by myself), a lecture "Woman in red" by Veronica Toumanova, a panel discussion about "Tango visuals and imagery" with most of the organising team members plus the psychoanalyst Rachel Seidel and the photographer Viktoria Fedirko and two sessions "Feminist Tango" lead by Carmen.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">7 body workshops about "Empowered Follower", "Leading for Women" and Yoga. The teachers were Mila Vigdorova & Corina "Abraztango", Veronika Toumanova, Imme Oldenburg & Ramona Steckermeier, Evren and myself.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A workshop about "Organisation of tango events" by me, Melina.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A lecture by Theresa Faus about "Women in Tango History".</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">An interesting choice of small-group discussions about "<span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(89, 89, 89);">Leader and Follower roles & stereotypes", "</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Getting more leaders into classes & events", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Discrimination – being in the minority in Tango", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sex & Dating in Tango", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Clothing & Gender – Stereotypical expression & expectation", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Tango & Ageing", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sex & Abuse – the dark side of Tango", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Competition among women – how can we be more supportive?", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">International Tango – cultural differences in dancing", "</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(89, 89, 89);">Women as teachers, performers, mentor</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">s" and "Women as DJs". All sessions were lead by the organising team members reinforced by Rachel Seidel.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And last not least there were 2 milongas with the DJs Gabriela Ioana Manea and <a href="https://www.melinasedo.com/" target="_blank">myself</a>.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because I was so busy with the logistics and leading so many group activities, I unfortunately had very little opportunity to sit in as a mere participant. I regretted that because my original motivation was to bond and engage. Now I spent far too much time running between the different rooms and facilities. I would definitely take on less responsibility at another occasion. But this is not uncommon when organising a new event: it took years until I had developed a form of organisation that allows me to actually dance during our encuentros. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is why the following observations are more from an organiser's and teacher's perspective. Those who were "only" participating had the chance to develop a more emotional connection to the whole process compared to someone who is on the clock. I nevertheless would like to share some impressions:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I found it astonishing how harmonically and constructively 120 women of different age-groups, cultures, sexual orientations and tango backgrounds interacted. There were differing opinions and </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">not everyone felt a deep "sisterhood", but the general benevolence created a very special atmosphere that was different from every other tango event. I have been leading Ladies-Only-Seminars for many years. They have a similar feel, but the sheer number of congress participants had a very uplifting and empowering effect that is impossible to create in a smaller group. It also allowed us to experience two milongas in which men were not missed. I hope it convinced everyone present, that we need never complain about too few male leaders with such a potential of lovely dancers right at hand!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As a teacher, I am super proud that so many of my students and numerous of my teacher-training-graduates took part in the congress, either as participants or as helpers, teachers and speakers. Over the past few years, many of them have not only worked on their leading skills, but have also participated in building a network of women in tango. From their personal feedback I can tell, that their motivations and connections have been reinforced through their experiences at the congress.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Before and after the congress, there were quite a few critical voices, in particular when it came to excluding men. I understand the fears beneath some of the critics' accusations, but can assure them that the "safe space" created by the congress was at no time abused for bad-mouthing men or for resorting into mere complaining. Most of the time, we did not even think about men. Discussions and talks were either referring to one's owns feelings or a more general perspective trying to understand the female situation in tango. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">We also did not burn bras or hold other rituals that are connected to hard-core-feminism. Actually during one of the plenary activities, only very few women raised their hands when being asked if they understand themselves as feminists. I feel that what matters aren't labels but the wish to stand on your own feet and be self-determined without having to put the blame on "the men". The red thread in all discussions, workshops and talks was that we've all got it in us to change our situation to the better!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But besides all these empowering words and the fact that women can be as good leaders as men (in all fields) we cannot deny that there is still a technological bias that makes many women dependant on men. We discussed this when it came to women as djs. There are still quite a few female djs with very little technical know-how who rely on their "guys" being present. A limited technological focus can also be an advantage because it makes women concentrate on what is important: creating a flow and playing nice music instead of obsessing about nerdy sound-quality-details. But for our congress, it also meant that we could not do without male help. After a quite desperate search, a good friend of mine volunteered to travel from afar and be there over the whole weekend as our sound-person. I have to admit: </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">My logistical team anyway included my sweetheart who - as a non dancer - acts as the chief logistics-person at all our Tangokombinat events. Having such an experienced help in the background allowed me to actually conduct the content-sessions I was responsible for. Our technical advisor on the other hand</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> actually was "in the room" during some of the sessions because of the complex technical setup. He did super in being invisible and I don't think that any woman was disturbed by his presence, but still: more radical voices could argue that a female congress should not have to rely on male help. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am not one of them because I <i>do</i> believe that we anyway have to cooperation to make our tango world better. Independence is important, but no one lives in a vacuum. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is why I also think that there should be future events that include male dancers. Most likely not the next one and maybe not under this label, but ultimately some important discussions should not be held without this significant minority in tango.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Out of personal reasons, I will not be participating in the organisation of the next Tango Queens congress. I hope to be there as a participant or - if the new team decides so - as a teacher/speaker and I will certainly follow the development with geat interest. 2020 was just the beginning of something wonderful and necessary. I am looking forward to what comes next!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Information about location and staff: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The first <a href="http://www.tangoqueens.com/" target="_blank">Tango Queens Congress</a> took place on January 24-26, 2020 in Saarbrücken Germany. The venues were the <a href="https://www.acting-and-arts.com/" target="_blank">Acting and Arts</a> school, the space of photographer <a href="https://laffitau.net/" target="_blank">Jean Laffitau</a> and the <a href="https://www.tangokombinat.de/" target="_blank">Tangokombinat</a> studio. All local helpers were Tangokombinat members or students of the acting school who were co-ordinated by <a href="https://thorstenjanesphotography.myportfolio.com/" target="_blank">Thorsten Janes</a>. I would like to mention <a href="http://inaestrella.de/?fbclid=IwAR0Adu_k_yBc5NkCIHK8HmFXm13DqN-CA1H_2k-GS9p_d8X59G6wsHxmMM0" target="_blank">Estrella Ina</a> in particular who produced the great wall-tattoos. The sound-specialist was Gregor Killing, dj and dedicated tanguero. I would like to thank all of them. Without you, it would not have been possible!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Photos in this post:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Photos 1-3 are by me and show three different setups of the location: Milonga (with tables), opening activity (no tables, but space to move on the floor) and plenary discussion/lecture (in this case lecture by Veronica).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Photos 4 + 5 are by Viktoria Fedirko and show me leading the dj-discussion and teaching an empowered followers class. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Photo 6 shows the wall-tattoo and is by myself.</span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-50654114933451754272019-12-30T16:41:00.001+01:002020-02-28T11:11:22.973+01:00The reasons why I lead + resolutions for 20202019 was a very exciting tango-year: After 25 years of dancing tango and 18 years of teaching it, I found myself as a student.<br />
<br />
Ok, this is not really new, because I constantly research and develop my tango-knowledge as well as my teaching and organising skills. I constantly initiate new projects, that "force" me to go out of my comfort zone and explore new fields: developing a teacher-training, learning more and more about website building and hosting, offering new forms of events, researching tango music in great detail, exploring various forms of bodywork and much more. I am an eternal student.<br />
<br />
But when it came to dancing, I felt a bit stuck. Sure, over the past years, the dance with Detlef has become much better connected to the music. This was mostly a result of the musical work for and in our classes. But as we dance what we teach and nowadays almost never teach patterns, our repertoire has been streamlined to the basics. This is good, because we've eliminated all the superfluous and become even more puristic. But it does not feel like a great challenge. It is just what we do.<br />
<br />
But this year, I practised my leading skills.<br />
<br />
Although I had always been leading in classes. I almost never did it in milongas. In the first years as a teacher, I would still lead sometimes, but later it completely stopped. Mostly because of the shoes (not wanting to change them) and because of the Encuentros (more interesting leaders).<br />
<br />
But it always bugged me that I was not capable of applying all that I lead in class in the ronda. The few times that I was leading in the past years, I just walked rhythmically. That was nice, but not interesting enough to want to do it more often. So finally I started practising consequently with one of our teacher-training-graduates in Saarbrücken. Over the first half of the year we managed to meet regularly, sometimes twice a week. Unfortunately this was not possible in the second half of the year, but I am going to take up practising again in January. Here's a resolution!<br />
<br />
But the most important change was: I consequently started leading at milongas and encuentros. From the 520 tandas that I have danced socially this year, I have lead 184.<br />
Yes, I count tandas. And yes, I know it is crazy. but craziness aside: Yay! I lead 35%!<br />
<br />
But then recently I was asked: why do you lead?<br />
<br />
My first impulse was to say: "Why not?" But that sounded lame.<br />
<br />
<br />
So here are my reasons:<br />
<br />
1. It is fun. It is different from dancing the followers role, but as much fun. (It could even be funner, if it weren't for the <a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2019/03/incompatibilities.html" target="_blank">incompatibilities</a>.)<br />
<br />
2. It is a challenge. As stated above, I like learning and the sense of achievement that comes from successfully doing something new. Luckily I am no perfectionist but forgiving towards my own mistakes. I'm fine to know that I am "on the right way". So, most challenges don't frighten me. They inspire.<br />
<br />
3. It is the right moment. This year was my year with women in tango, the preparation of the Tango Queens Congress, so many talks with women, bonding.... It was the right moment to also spend more time with women at milongas. Yesterday at the milonga, I sat and chatted with women and I danced with them. I only danced one tanda with one guy: Detlef. No, I've not had a sudden coming out. I just enjoy the company of women.<br />
<br />
4. It is the right thing to do. I cannot preach that dancing both roles is good for the understanding of the dance and absolutely necessary from a practical point of view and then <i>not</i> lead myself.<br />
<br />
5. Independence and peace of conscience. If I manage to up my game to 50% leading, I will have less problems getting into events. Ok, I don't have any problems getting into events now, because I often register with Detlef and most Encuentro organisers know me and want to be admitted to my evens as well. But when registering as single follower, I just feel super bad for the organisers. They will have to balance me with one of the rare leaders and that is so hard nowadays. For my conscience and karma, it is much better to register as double-role dancer.<br />
<br />
6. The music. After so many years of musical work, I often suffer from unmusical dancing or diverging musical interpretations when being in the follower's role.<br />
Sure, I <i>can and will</i> of course influence the dance actively. But depending on the receptive skills of the leader, this can be a bit of a struggle and I don't want to fight.<br />
My considerable musical demands do not apply to every orchestra. To some orchestras, I am totally fine with some nice hugging, to other with dynamic moves, depending on what the leader's core skills are. Musicality is not always my first priority.<br />
But there are quite a few orchestras that I can only dance to when I know that the musical interpretation of my partner goes conform with mine: D'Arienzo, Biagi, Pugliese, Troilo, even Canaro, all milongas and most valses... and some more. Di Sarli (formerly a hugging orchestra) has now transformed into a musical-priority orchestra. So... actually, my musical standards apply most of the time. ARGH!<br />
I am lucky, because at many Encuentros I will often dance with our students who know what I like and mostly have the skills to put it into action. But at other events, I will more frequently prefer to not follow.<br />
I might be exaggerating a bit, because there are now many more musical leaders than 10 years ago. Just recently I danced a Biagi tanda with someone I had never seen before. It was lovely!<br />
Maybe I should take more risks, but I am not that brave. What if someone runs over the end of a musical phrase? My system might go into shock! Yes, I know, drama queen!<br />
Long story short: Very often, I prefer to lead. Then I am on the safe side. ;-)<br />
<br />
7. I am a leader. I always was. I am making decisions, taking action and "showing the way" to others. This is what I do. I can also follow and it is super nice to hand over responsibility. I can even perfectly overlook "mistakes" and compromise when someone else "leads the way", but not always. I lead. This is who I am. So my initial answer "why not?" to the question why I lead, was actually the most authentic.<br />
I ask myself: Why have I not done it more consequently from the beginning? Maybe out of the same reasons, why so many women in tango want to follow: It is nice to not always be responsible for everything. But the more you understand, that both partners shape the dance, that both are responsible, the more "active" you become as a follower, the less you will ever feel that you can "just follow". So the whole concept gets reversed and restricting myself to the follower's role does not make any sense.<br />
I am glad that I finally got it, but sad that it took my so long. Because I wasted 25 years in which I could have enjoyed both roles. Stupid me!<br />
<br />
To all ladies out there: If you feel that leading would be the right thing to do, don't wait 25 years. Please <a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2019/03/long-due-post-on-gender-and-roles-in.html" target="_blank">read this post</a> to be reminded that leading is no rocket-science.<br />
And to all guys out there: if you feel, that following would be right for you, please don't renounce it out of misunderstood masculinity. Men can be super followers. They often just don't dare.<br />
<br />
I am now looking forward to my last milonga of the year where I am going to dj and will therefore not be dancing a lot.<br />
<br />
And next year?<br />
<br />
That will be full of new experiences. I wish myself and you lots of fun and success!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-6319535683097254472019-12-21T09:20:00.001+01:002020-04-30T17:22:06.026+02:00Festivalitos & Encuentros Milongueros 2020 + Historical Notes<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I really did not want to do this again, but so many people keep asking for my recommendations for milonguero events.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">First, let me (again) summarise my criteria for festivalitos or encuentros milongueros.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">These events</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">1. require participants to pre-register for the whole event,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">2. use role- or gender-balance to ensure that everyone gets to dance, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">3. have a duration of 3+ days and separate milongas,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">4. use traditional music in tandas & with cortinas,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">5. encourage cabeceo & mirada,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">6. encourage dancers to leave the dance-floor after one tanda to find a new partner,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">7. encourage the use of close embrace,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">8. encourage a civilised ronda, by supporting the "codigos milongueros para la pista",</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">9. Festivalitos will offer some classes that focus on social tango and there might be a short demo. There will </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">nevertheless </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">be no</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">live-music</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> or </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">extended shows</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. We could called them Encuentros+. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please note that neither separate seating nor exclusivity (personal invitation) are necessary requirements of milonguero events. Some have it, others not.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">These days, I am facing numerous problems when trying to put together my list of recommendations:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- The number of milonguero-events has multiplied and I have no chance of visiting even a fraction of them. (Please remember that my weekends are mostly reserved for work.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Quite a few of the new events do not guarantee the same quality standards that I am used to. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Because of the huge competition, even established organisers start admitting dancers who do not have the necessary skills to participate at such events. Often the floor craft is far from ideal.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- It is getting harder and harder to motivate men to commit. Very often this results in a large "surplus" of following women. One solution to this problem is to abandon the gender-based booking format and have dancers register by leader, follower and double-role dancers. We and some other organisers do so and by that achieve a perfect balance of leaders and followers. But at many encuentros, women are frustrated because they have to sit much more than anticipated.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Some of my favourite or long-lasting events have died: <i>Abrazos</i> in Devon, the <i>Festivalito Rural</i> in Slovenia and <i>Yo Soy Milonguero</i> in Crema are no more. <i>Ex-St.Julien</i> will make its last appearance in 2020. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- In general, the "milonguero" events are changing its character. There is a e.g. tendency to not visit all milongas of an event and t</span>he borders between marathons and encuentros are getting blurry. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">All in all: I feel that a</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">n era is coming to its end. Change is good, but I am a little sad and disoriented. Where will I meet my friends in future? </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In earlier years, such encounters could even get a little boring, because you would always meet the same people.</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> But </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">because there is such a huge choice of potentially nice parties, it is </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">now </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">hard to gather them all in one place. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
And there is another issue that has presented itself to me in 2019:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This year, I have visited 10 Encuentros/Festivalitos Milongueros and danced more than 500 tandas (not all at encuentros), approximately 1/3 of them leading. My experiences with changing roles differed a lot. At some events, I managed to lead almost 50% of the tandas, at others only very few. Whether I get dances as a leader, depends on a complex set of factors: seating arrangements, lighting, size of the event, openness leading women and many more. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Also: Because I have for many years only lead in classes, I am not yet "on the radar" of followers, who love dancing with the (quite numerous) leading ladies in the milonguero community. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">For me, the events that work best are smaller encuentros or festivalitos that actively encourage double-role dancing and that do not have separate seating. For all who are interested in dancing both roles or the gender-atypical role at milonguero events, please <a href="mailto:ms@melinasedo.com" target="_blank">contact me</a> for for recommendations.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The following overview is far from complete. I will exclusively present events, that are either well-established or organised by milongueros who have regularly been participating in encuentros for many years. You need street-cred to fill up such a meeting with committed milongueros and experience to create the right ambiance! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Private events will not have a link. I nevertheless list them </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">because the information is valuable for the coordination amongst organisers. But also </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">because you always could contact the hosts and express interest. Just because you do not have an invite now, does not mean that you won't receive one in the future. Be bold!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So, here goes:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">EVENTS, that I will definitely attend:</span></span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://sites.google.com/view/nnencuentro/home" target="_blank">Encuentro +</a>, Newport News VA, USA, June 9-14 </span><b style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">EDIT: Postponed to June, 10-13, 2021</b></li>
<li><a href="https://www.tangokombinat.de/pequena-festivalito-milonguero" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Pequeña</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> - Festivalito Milonguero (Tangokombinat), Saarbrücken, Germany, June 19-21 <b>EDIT: Postponed to June, 18-20, 2021</b></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Clermontito, near Clermont-Ferrand, France, June 26-28 </span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.embracenorway.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Embrace Norway</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> - Festivalito Milonguero, Lillehammer, Norway - July 3-5</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">FCA (Tangokombinat), Saarbrücken, Germany, Oktober 9-11 </span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">NEW EVENTS:</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Garua</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Ireland, June 26-28 / I would have loved to go, but unfortunately, cloning does not yet work properly and Clermontito was faster with their info.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.justango.be/" target="_blank">JusTango</a></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Bruxelles, Belgium, August 7-9 </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There might be a new edition of our friends Armin + Elena's Festivalito Milonguero </span><a href="http://www.dos-miradas.com/" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;" target="_blank">New Year Tango</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> in Saarbrücken, Germany. This event has already taken place in 2019, so it is actually not new, but because it was planned very late and people could register for single milongas, it had not been added to last year's list. Let's see how they handle it next year.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">EVENTS that I have visited in the past:</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.anem.dk/lacolmena/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">La Colmena</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Copenhagen, Denmark - April 17-19</span></li>
<li><a href="https://lerdvdesamisdesaintjulien.blogspot.com/p/les-dj.html" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Rendez-Vous Milonguero</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, (formerly SJMM), France, May 1-3 / This will be the last edition of a lovely event.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Whisky.Tango.Foxtrott?!, Linlithgow, Scotland, May 22-24 / My favourite event in 2018. Unfortunately we cannot go in 2020.</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Les Cigales</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, France, May 21-24 </span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.ensuenos.pt/2018/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Ensueños</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Porto, Lisbon, October</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.nocitango.it/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">TangoAGoGo</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Lago di maggiore, Italy, October </span></li>
<li><a href="https://www.tres-besos.ch/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Tres Besos</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Basel, Switzerland, November 5-8</span></li>
<li><a href="http://milongueandolisboa.wixsite.com/te-quiero-lisboa" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Te quiero Lisboa</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Lisbon. Portugal, November</span></li>
<li><a href="http://romamilonguera.org/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Roma Milonguera</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, near Rome, Italy, November</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.abrazamebarcelona.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Abrazame</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Barcelona, Spain, December (marathon-encuentro mixer) / At this year's edition, I danced incredible 47 tandas. Next year, we won't go, because of our USA tour.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>I might to go to 1-2 of those towards the end of the year. I am hoping for Tres Besos that I had to cancel because of illness in 2019. Or maybe Roma Milonguera. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">EVENTS that I have not yet visited, but that get good feedback: </span></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.nochesdeinvierno.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Noches de Invierno</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Reichenau an der Rax, Austria, January 3-5</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Juntos</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, France, February 7-9</span></li>
<li><a href="https://rondaestense1.blogspot.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Ronda Estense</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Ferrara, Italy, February 21-23</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://milonga-a-promotora.pt/wpp/1192-2/" target="_blank">A Promotora</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">,</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> Portugal, February 21-25</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Bomboncito, Basel, Switzerland, springtime </span></li>
<li><a href="http://encuentrodebrujas.be/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Encuentro de Brujas</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Bruges, Belgium, May 1-3</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nochesdeprimavera.com/de/" target="_blank">Noches de Primavera</a>, </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Reichenau an der Rax, Austria, May 8-10</span></li>
<li><a href="http://encuentroporteno.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Encuentro Porteño</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Amsterdam, Netherlands, May 14-18</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.luoghiditango.net/eventi/para-dos/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Para Dos</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Bologna, Italy, May 22-24</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.nocitango.it/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Avventura Milonguera Peace & Love</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Nocy, Italy, June 11-14</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://lolitaencuentromilonguero.com/" target="_blank">Lolita Summer Encuentro</a>, Barcelona, Spain, June 31 - August 2</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.nochesdeverano.at/de/index.html" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Noches de Verano</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Reichenau an der Rax, Austria, August 7-9</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">La Franteña</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, France, August 13-16</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Silueta Porteña, Hamburg, Germany, September 11-13</span></li>
<li><a href="https://laparadamilonguera.wordpress.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">La Parada Milonguera</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, Treviso, Italy, October 2-4</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Yupie</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, France, October 16-18</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Paquita, Sarrebourg, France, New Year / All my friends are there and I would definitely go if it weren't for my New Year's eve allergy.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I would like to add a few historical notes:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The were of course always (well, from the 80s on) milongas and tango festivals and shortly after the turn of the century the first tango marathons were initiated. But the idea of full-weekend events for milongueros is quite new, because it took many years for the so-called "traditional" communities outside of Argentina to develop. (Read <a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2019/12/tango-traditions.html" target="_blank">this post</a>.) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The first encuentro-like event was the Raduno Milonguero in Impruneta, Italy. In the beginning, the attendees were purely Italian and I actually don't know if it was always over an entire weekend. In its later course, the event grew to be very international. This meeting gave inspiration to encuentros, but ended in 2013 after 9 editions.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Our FCA (Festivalito con Amigos) is now the longest running international weekender for milongueros in Europe. It started as a festivalito milonguero with workshops and a demo in 2008, but has been an encuentro since 2011. We nevertheless preserved a short demo of two milonguero couples until recently, because we believe that social tango needs inspiration and engagement for the community should be honoured.</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> 2020 will be its 13th edition.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Les Cigales in France and Yo Soy Milonguero in Italy (the latter discontinued) started in 2009, one year after the FCA. These two events were pure encuentros from the beginning without classes or a demo.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But please note, that all the events mentioned above in their early years looked quite different from what we are used today. Neither event had a balanced number of participants and YSM still admitted dancers per single milonga, like we also did until 2010. Even the original Raduno Milonguero opened the Sunday milonga for the general public without balance or having to book the full event. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It took some years until the above listed criteria were well established. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So. This is it for today. I might add the exact dates for some events later, but only if I am actively informed about them. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I wish you lots of fine dances in 2020.</span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-8135130916425968872019-12-18T14:31:00.004+01:002019-12-21T10:14:29.705+01:00European Milongueros: Les Anglais<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>Although I had planned on writing this article for months, I actually started it on the day after the general election in the UK and now fear that it might be overshadowed by the sad news of a conservative majority and certain Brexit. But even such a disaster cannot break the bonds that have formed across the channel!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What is this article about?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In 2011, I published a <a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2011/07/european-milongueros.html" target="_blank">series</a> of articles to introduce some friends who have contributed to the early development of milonguero culture in Europe by promoting and living social tango, the "codigos milongueros" and a culture of the embrace as teachers, organisers, djs and dancers. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Today, I would like continue by presenting a few of my British friends, who were not so much "on the map" when I wrote the original series. Back then, the UK had not yet developed a distinct milonguero culture, but that changed after the first edition of Abrazos - Encuentro Milonguero, organised by our <a href="https://www.tangokombinat.de/" target="_blank">Tangokombinat</a> colleagues <a href="http://milonguero.uk.com/" target="_blank">Andreas</a> and <a href="http://milonguero.uk.com/lynn_dj.htm" target="_blank">Lynn</a> in Devon. Today, a large number of Brits are not only amongst the most popular dancers at any European meeting of close embrace dancers, they also shape tango culture by organising events, teaching, djing and spreading milonguero culture through their tireless travels. As our French friends say: "Sans les Anglais - ça va pas du tout!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I find it super hard to make a choice, but the ones that I am going to introduce share not only their milongueroness, but also two other important properties: All of them have repeatedly taken classes with us and/or visited our events, so that I had plenty opportunities to get to know them better. In addition to that, they are dedicated Europeans who have fought actively for the UK to stay in the EU by going to and organising rallies, by posting about it on the internet and by trying to reason with those who want to bring us apart. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In the photo below, you can see Matthew, Nikki, Dawn, Eleanor, Krissy, Nick and many other tangueros during a march against Brexit. The others are not on it, but believe me, they've also done their part.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But let's look back to 2009.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This was the year when Detlef and I were for the first time invited to teach in the UK. The SuperTangk in </span><a href="https://tango.uk.com/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">Bramshaw</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> exceeded our expectations. We had been told to be prepared for a bunch of lazy open-embrace dancers but what we got were enthusiastic students, eager to immerse themselves into close-embrace social dance. This was when we first met:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Nikki Mellor + Matthew Cooper</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">These talented dancers don't teach or organise but an encuentro without them is like a picknick without sun. Matthew is one of my favourite partners and the most positive person. When being nervous before a demo, I just have to look at him to know that everything is fine and that what we do is appreciated. Matthew's presence lights up my mood every time. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Apart from being a remarkably musical dancer, Matthew also has an incredible eye for the small things around him. Have a look at his </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unqKVozPjmQ" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">short film of loss and hope</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. It is one of the many moments that</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> he captured with his camera.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nikki is less visible on the internet, but she is one of the preferred partners of Detlef and many other leaders. She also leads, but not as regularly as Dawn and Eleanor. I unfortunately only got to dance with her very few times, but always enjoyed her embrace immensely, no matter in which role. I think you will get to know this strong woman best, when you </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdEnKOppv4Q&fbclid=IwAR13scfBpWLA2jl5_co703uA3brbFDYuqKEIqeATf22zqjWRpLvBWWSdaRw" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">see her through the eyes of her beloved</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. And by the way, I lied: Nikki has started teaching women's leading classes with her friend Krissy. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/39ww5p76b4869zi/IMG_1001.MOV?dl=0" target="_blank">This video</a></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> shows Nikki and Matthew dancing the last tanda of Matthew's "40th spectac-EU-lar birthday" party- an occasion on which all his European friends united to celebrate tango, friendship and the EU. By the way: Dawn and Eleanor, whom I will introduce below, can both also be seen dancing in the video.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The cool photo below was made in Berlin where Matthew works in software development. Hopefully, he'll be able to continue this employment after Brexit. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Eleanor Durrant</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Eleanor has not taken many classes with us, but she is a dear friend, whose opinion I highly value and a fabulous dancer in both roles.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I first met Eleanor in 2009 on occasion of our <a href="http://mshedgehog.blogspot.com/2009/07/festivalito-de-los-angeles-st-wendel.html" target="_blank">Festivalito de los Angeles</a> in St. Wendel, the next year at <a href="http://mshedgehog.blogspot.com/2010/05/rencuentro-milonguero-les-cigales.html" target="_blank">Les Cigales</a> and at the <a href="http://mshedgehog.blogspot.com/2010/10/festivalito-con-amgios-saarbrucken.html" target="_blank">FCA</a> when it was still a festivalito. She reviewed all of these and many more events on her <a href="http://mshedgehog.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">blog</a> as Ms.Hedgehog and by that immensely contributed to the popularity of encuentros and festivalitos milongueros in Europe. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Her writing is witty and always to the point, whether it is about tango, film, books, needle work or whatever she deems worthy writing about. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In real life she's a freelance business analyst specialising in difficult business situations. As a tango dancer, you will often see which role she is dancing by her marked clothing: dress and high heels when she's planning on following or trousers and flats when she is leading. That makes her very visible when signing up as a double-role dancer and is one of the many precious tips for tango-dancers on her blog. She has taken up teaching in London, specialising on basics and floorcraft and I am confident that even the most advanced dancers will get useful advice from her how to dance better in a crowded ronda. Eleanor is also an active dj.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0DRwdNTJo4&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Here you can see her dancing</a> with Andreas during the last edition of Abrazos in Devon. The picture below is by Markus Schüller. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A year later - in 2010 - we first met:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Marion Greenwood + David Thomas</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">David told me that they used to watch our videos on Youtube </span>thinking "that looks like it might be interesting to try". Well, they got to try a lot.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Marion and David not only visited numerous of our classes and tango-holidays, but also took part in our first Tango-Teacher-Training in 2013. I will always remember David's enigmatic introduction and Marion's ever encouraging smile, even when the classes took much longer than planned. This first TTT was very exciting and by working with each other, we forged everlasting memories as well as pedagogical concepts and musical ideas. It was on this occasion that David and Marion presented the orchestra of Francisco Lomuto in such a creative way: "Imagine an elephant running through a jungle." After the TTT, David carried on his research, resulting in the book <a href="https://tango-journey.com/the-book/" target="_blank">Getting to know - 20 Tango Orchestras</a>. I recommend it as an excellent resource for every tanguero. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because they are elegant dancers and great in any form of communication, we invited them (and <a href="http://www.milonguero.si/index.php?page=en" target="_blank">Saso + Alja</a> from Slovenia) to participate in the film to our book <a href="https://www.caminarabrazados.com/" target="_blank">Caminar Abrazados</a>. It was David who magically made an apple appear during one of the exercises and thereby initiated a running gag. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4z75PrC7vU&t=44s" target="_blank">Here</a> you can see us all in action.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">David and Marion are not only the most friendly and beautiful couple, but also very active in spreading the word. They <a href="https://tango-journey.com/" target="_blank">teach and organise</a> milongas as well as tango-holidays and David regularly works as a dj in the UK and all over Europe. The only thing that I regret is that we nowadays don't meet so often anymore because we fequent different Encuentros.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Fun fact: Marion and David live in the same village as Matthew and Nikki. How can such a small place turn out so many dedicated dancers?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The photo below by <a href="https://thorstenjanesphotography.myportfolio.com/" target="_blank">Thorsten Janes</a> shows them on the film set. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I first met Dawn in 2010 only three months after she had started dancing. It was on occasion of workshops in Bristol and two months later she already visited our Encuentro in Germany. I have seldom met someone so eager to absorb tango. In our teacher trainings I present her as an example for the ideal student. No wonder she made such great progress in short time. In the beginning she concentrated on the traditional follower's role, but soon asked me, whether I thought that learning the leading role would be a good idea. I encouraged her and never regretted it, because today </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Dawn is one of my favourite leaders for Biagi. I am lucky that this feeling seems to be mutual, because once a tanda starts, our miradas find each other across the biggest rooms. Needless to state that she's an excellent follower as well!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Apropos mirada: Dawn - who is also djing on a regular basis - was the creator of Una Mirada, which was the second Encuentro Milonguero in the UK from 2014-16. In recent years, she has hosted me and my partner Ramona for <a href="https://www.melinasedo.com/workshops-events/" target="_blank">Ladies Only</a> weekends and I hope we'll go on working together after Brexit. I would not want to miss the hours around her kitchen table. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Another thing that comes to mind when I think of Dawn are her t-shirts. Since 2017, I have frequently seen her in EU-blue with stars, but the coolest was her "Made by Tangokombinat" shirt. As she has not only worked intensively with Detlef and me, but also with by Andreas, our Tangokombinat colleague, the inscription made us all proud!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xon4PtQWIiw" target="_blank">Here you can watch her perform with Eleanor</a> at a milonga in London. The video is old but you can already see Dawn's typical dynamic and Eleanor's relaxed footwork. And by the way: the person giggling so audibly is Matthew who made the video. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The photo of Dawn and me dancing was made by the French milonguero Xavier Delalle.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Mike recollects based on his diary entry: "We first met on </span><span class="gmail_default">31st July 2010 at the Milonga del Angel in Nimes. You were running your Mas de Mestre workshops, we were on holiday in the area and visited the milonga. ... We danced... Patricia apparently had <i>two</i> dances with Detlef... The diary records: Memo to self: we should sign up next time they come to a Tangk in Bramshaw. The rest is history.</span><span class="gmail_default">"</span></span></div>
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<span class="gmail_default"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Indeed. In the following years, we would have the pleasure of working and dancing with this interesting couple several times in and outside of the UK. I not only enjoyed the shared tango experiences, but also our vivid discussions about life outside the bubble. Mike is an academic economist, Patricia - originally French - was a school teacher. So far, the two have not ventured into organising or teaching, but given their background I would not be surprised. </span></span></div>
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<span class="gmail_default"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">An interesting fact: Since this year, these smart milongueros both have British <i>and</i> French citizenship. They will therefore be amongst the lucky ones to be able to travel and work freely in both worlds after Brexit. I am very happy for them and hope we'll meet even more often in the future. The most recent encounter was at our <a href="https://www.tangokombinat.de/pequena-festivalito-milonguero" target="_blank">Festivalito Pequeña</a> in June, where Patricia won a ticket to the 2020 edition. So there are good chances to dance with them next year!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The picture below is from an Italian milonguero Christina Campagna.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In my original post, I did not include Jeff and Caro, because they are actually not "Anglais" and new to the milonguero scene. But I have decided to add them, because things are constantly changing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The fist time that Jeff and Caro took classes with us was in Bristol 2012 and 2013, so we know them quite some time, but it took a few years until we bonded. In 2013, I saw them at Abrazos in Devon, but there was not much of a personal contact. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Caro and Jeff are another very European couple. They live in Glasgow, Scotland. He is Scot and she is from France, but has been living in the UK for many years. Both are very much affected by the political situation, but who knows, Scotland might remain in the EU. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A fun fact about Jeff: although coming from another line of work, he is now building violins. I find that very impressive! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Since 2002, Jeff has been <a href="http://www.glasgowtangostudio.co.uk/" target="_blank">teaching with the Finnish dancer Sari</a>, but as you can see from (quite old) pictures on their website, their school does not have a definite milonguero orientation. Jeff has nevertheless changed his personal approach to tango a lot: </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In 2016/17 he registered for our TTT and since then been integrated into the milonguero community. He and Caro have also participated in a few of our tango holidays in France and regularly go to milonguero events in the UK and on the continent. Here you can see them </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87FCZRuytI4&fbclid=IwAR3wX427BGTITE4Kq6Y5Fk0L0McNTUUbxX_sUXqRLWH-6bK39ascLfl078E" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">dancing at an encuentro</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. Jeff has also participated in my dj-seminar and is djing in Glasgow.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Caro has not only started to lead but is now also <a href="http://www.glasgowtangostudio.co.uk/class-monday.html" target="_blank">giving classes</a> with Jeff. They are actively helping to boost social close embrace tango in this rather remote part of the UK. I wish them lots of luck and hope that we'll soon return to Glasgow to support this great development.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The picture below is by <a href="https://thorstenjanesphotography.myportfolio.com/" target="_blank">Thorsten Janes</a> and shows them dancing at our <a href="https://www.tangokombinat.de/pequena-festivalito-milonguero" target="_blank">Pequeña</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Nick + Kr</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">issy King</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">These lovely people are the last to be presented here because we met them relatively late, in 2014 during workshops in Cambridge. But since then we've danced frequently at encuentros all over Europe and many milongas in the UK.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nick is one of my favourite Di Sarli partners and I always try to catch his mirada when I hear the first notes of any song. Krissy is just wonderful and like mine, one of her favourite orchestras is Biagi. Such a warm person and great hugger. Both of them actually. Abrazadores par excellence!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Krissy and Nick <a href="https://bailar.co.uk/" target="_blank">teach and organise</a> milongas in the Hertfordshire area and Krissy offers classes for leading ladies - sometimes with her friend Nicky Mellor. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nick, a TV film editor in real life, is also a committed dj.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There is another thing I particularly like about Nick: his outspokenness when it comes to British politics. After reading his Facebook posts, I feel entirely free to say "Bollocks to Brexit"!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In </span><a href="http://mshedgehog.blogspot.com/2018/12/milonguear-for-women.html" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">this video</a> <span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">on Eleanor's blog, y</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">ou can watch Nick dancing</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, but unfortunately there is no film that shows him with Krissy. That's a shame, because I love watching them move ever so smoothly. Can someone please film them at an event, so that I can post a link?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The photo below is also by Cristina Campagna.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So, it seems that I am done for the moment. I won't apologise for the length of the article, because I already had to restrict myself to not introduce even more British milongueros or continue my love letter to the few I chose. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Let me finish with yet <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXHchHN97HU&fbclid=IwAR2caB2bvt2rcUGeHfUAkTO5zKQxyaXXc6istNTvCIh1BQA-gsrfQMJhuqI" target="_blank">another video by Matthew</a>. It features most protagonists of this article and many more of our friends. I'm also in it, leading the "Git Up" at the FCA. Apart from showing the friendship and love that binds us, this film proves once more that milongueros are first and foremost great fun!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I wish everyone a Happy New Year and a much better 2020. </span></div>
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-56896703596167221502019-12-02T12:51:00.001+01:002019-12-02T17:29:17.482+01:00Tango Traditions<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Tradition.<br /><br />Such a common word in our tango world: traditional milongas, traditional dance, traditional music... The milongueros promote the traditions, the neos break-up with them up, the dancers from Villa Urquiza abide by them and others seem to hate them because they limit their freedom. Ok, I am polarising, but how often was I called a tango-nazi, because I suggest the use certain guidelines at tango events! This post is to demonstrate how fluid the concept of traditions in tango actually is and how careful one has to be with these expressions.<br /><br />What's that?<br /><br />Wikipedia says: "A tradition is a belief or behaviour passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past."<br /><br /> I find traditions quite neat, because they provide guidelines about how to behave and put things into a larger (historical) context. Conservatives have their traditions, as have communists or anarchists. My group of friends has its traditions, e.g. meeting every year for dinner on X-Mas eve. Whenever a couple of people stay connected for a longer period, some form of tradition will appear. <br /><br /> The "codigos" represent an important part of tradition for a large population in tango.<br /><br /> But here's the problem: Tango as a dance had basically disappeared after the 50s. Milongas and dance halls closed or turned to playing new styles of music like Rock’n Roll. Only few people continued dancing tango and this was either in the sheltered environment of their families or as stage dancers. So when tango-dancing had its revival in the late 70s one could not just take up where it had stopped. There was no "unbroken tradition" of the dance and its rules of behaviour. <br /><br />To specify: Over 20 years, the dance had mostly been preserved by the stage dancers who promoted a glamour version, upgraded with elements of classical and ballroom dance. So what the world was presented as tango argentino was far removed from the original social dance. Only in the late 80s and 90s, the "old milongueros" finally felt encouraged to tell their story about “the real” tango. Hurrah! Yes, but... actually most dancers of the golden era had passed and tango-culture had been suppressed in the years of dictatorship. Many of those who now emerged as connoisseurs had still been very young in the golden era and experienced it second-hand via their elders. Yes, there were also older dancers with very specific memories, but we all know the process of retroactive glorification and how little valid information actually is preserved in our minds over a stretch of 20-40 years. Right? So everyone told a different story. A lot of knowledge about how tango was danced and celebrated had been lost. Some of that is being re-discovered by serious research until day. <br /><br /> So, let’s be honest: the reanimation of tango culture was also a very complex re-invention and a lot of what we think we know is pure myth.<br /><br /> I discovered tango in 1995 and started taking it more seriously in 2000. I was lucky because my most influential german teachers (Just + Christel Kuhl) back then visited Buenos Aires on a very regular basis. They were seriously trying to grasp the real thing and felt a strong need to distinct their milongas from the many places where tango escenario or the free forms of tango nuevo were cultivated. “Authentic” milongas were still rare and ours was one of the first in Germany. If one can call it that...<br /><br /> Because every time my teachers visited BA, they came back with new, sometimes wild stories that painted a diverse pictures of tango culture - all of them authentic. You think that invitations in BA were always and everywhere done by mirada + cabeceo? Nope. At some milongas it was totally fine for men to ask a women directly. At others you had to get permission from her mother or husband. In other places they used early variations of mirada and cabeceo. I remember that one story when Christel had rejected a mirada of an elder milonguero and he came to their table, started jerking it up and down until he had intimidated poor Christel into dancing with him. The same goes for musical set-ups. You believe that tango was always presented in tandas and with cortinas? Far from it! One of the most renowned Argentinean djs who toured Europe in the early 2000s was Felix Picherna. As far as I remember, he did not use any cortinas, he changed the amount of tangos, milongas and valses randomly and he sometimes even mixed all three styles in one tanda. So in these years, when the authentic social dance of the porteños was being spread all around the world, it was in no way clear, what authentic actually meant. <br /><br />You notice that I am still not using the term “traditional”, because back then, I did not not hear it that often. It might not even have been used in BA, because it had always been obvious, that in milongas one danced tango de salón, social tango. This differentiation from stage tango seemed to be enough to define the "what and how". The rest of the "rules" varied depending on the milonga or was vague. There was not ONE tango tradition. There were as many as milongas or at least as barrios.<br /><br />This means, that when our tango community organised their first “Milongas como en Buenos Aires” to promote the “authentic tango of the porteños”,we had to make a choice about what this implied. <br /><br />From what I can tell from conversations with Argentinians the same process happened in Buenos Aires, where the big influx of tango tourists and young people created a need for civilisation and specification. Unsaid guidelines had to be transferred into “reglas” and “codigos”. A common denominator had to be defined. And to implement these codigos, it helped to base them (at least virtually) on tradition. This is where the term “traditional” became important: “This is how we always did it, these are our traditions”, helped to make people respect the guidelines. Back then, I was not so much aware of this creative process, but looking back I find it amazing, how everyone helped to actually shape a common set of traditions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /><br /><i>So these are the "traditional" codigos that I have witnessed being implemented over the last 25 years:</i><br /><br /><b>Dancing in an unbroken embrace:</b> The actual form of the embrace (parallel close, v-form, a little open...) always depended on the pre-dominant style of the alpha-dancers in a community. At encuentros milongueros, we now often find a more or less parallel close embrace, but no one will be expelled for loosening the embrace a bit once in a while.<br /><br /><b>Use of “classical” music:</b> Around the turn of the millennium, this would include non-argentine old tangos or contemporary orchestras. In the early years of encuentros (2008-14), contemporary orchestras were pretty much undesirable and musical choices were limited to extended golden era: the late 20s to the late 50s. In recent years, the custom of using newer and contemporary orchestras has made a revival. Some djs now play exclusively 40s-60s + contemporary. This is totally a matter of personal taste and the directions that the organisers of specific events give.<br /><br /><b>Presentation of music in tandas and with cortinas: </b>Tandas seemed to used quite early, at least as far as I can think back. It also makes sense to imagine them in golden age milongas, where the orchestras played shorts sets of similar music, but this is pure speculation. The introduction of short cortinas took definitely longer. See below.<br /><br /><b>Constant movement in the ronda and certain guidelines on how to do so:</b> It took many years to fine tune the system. When I started teaching in 2001, it was e.g, still ok to overtake other couples in the ronda and we practised it in classes. Nowadays you won't see anyone doing it. If it is a good ronda.<br /><br /><b>Invitation by mirada and cabeceo:</b> The concept of mirada and cabeceo itself developed hugely from “guy getting up and instead of asking verbally, just nodding from a short distance” over “guy looking and nodding, but staying seated” to a bidirectional process in which partners choose actively. And to take advantage of this form of invitation you needed a specific set-up of the location. In our home milonga e.g. the dance floor was on one side of the room and everyone was seated at tables on the other facing in all directions. To allow for better m+c, we changed the seating so that a central dance floor with tables around it was created. Now everyone could potentially make eye-contact with everyone else without having to get up or break their necks. As you can see, I don't see this specific seating arrangement as a tradition, more a necessity to allow for one.<br /><br /><b>Leaving the pista after a tanda to be free to dance with another person and to allow for mirada and cabeceo</b>: At some moment, it became more common to change partners frequently and not to stick too long with one partner. This was also when cortinas had to implemented, because the organisers had to make sure, that everyone cleared the floor at the same time. A</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">mongst porteños, a cortina might not have been necessary, because everyone knew the orchestras and therefore knew when to sit down again. That is, when the dj even played tandas. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /><br /><i>Apart from the quite common codigos, other "traditions" where typical for certain sub-groups amongst the social dancers or certain milongas:</i><br /><br /><b>Separate seating:</b> This set-up is used in some milongas in BA, only very few outside of BA and some more - but by far not all - encuentros milongueros. Please note that the first encuentros (Raduno Milonguero in Impruneta, YSM in Crema, Les Cigales, then the FCA) were very social gatherings where no-one would have thought of separating men and women. This developed later, when fans of milongas like the Cachirulo in BA started organising encuentros. It is in now way universal in the "traditional" tango world.<br /><br /><b>Elegant attire:</b> I guess that was always very much depending on where and when you lived. A lot of milongueros in BA will be proud to dress very neatly as do most Italians dancers. But just go to an encuentro or so-called "traditional milonga" anywhere else and you'll find all kinds of clothing styles, including jeans and flat shoes for women. Sometimes there will be one "elegant milonga" during an encuentro, but even then the term will be interpreted very individually. We stopped announcing the gala milonga on Saturday evening of our FCA after several people complained about Detlef's too casual outfit. Yup...<br /><br /><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>There is one other "tradition" that for me actually is a non-tradition, but that I need to discuss here, because it has become relevant in recent discussions on social media:</i><br /><br /><b>Mandatory gender-typical dance roles:</b><br />Myth has it that tango in the olden days was danced among men and you can also find vintage pictures with women dancing together. But as far as I can tell, dancing the non-gender-typical role was never very common, so one could call the dance of men with women a tradition in most couple dances.<br />Yet in my tango-world, this vague tradition never resulted in the declaration of a codigo.<br />My first teacher in 1995 was a leading women as well as the second. It did not strike me in any way weird, because it was obvious that women would be more interested in dancing and become engaged in it. When I discovered “authentic” tango, I for the first time met a few people who opposed the idea of leading women, but even my conservative teachers would not forbid it at their milongas. As long as only a small number of women would lead and almost no men follow, it was never a big deal. I soon started leading a bit - it was the logical thing to do, in particular as I started teaching in 2001. Why would one only want to see one side of the medal? And I was not the only one, wherever I went in the next 19 years - at every festival, milonga (traditional or not) or encuentro milonguero - I met leading ladies and - much more seldom - following men. <br />The same goes for BA. Yes, dancing the unconventional roles seems still to be frowned upon in a majority of the conventional milongas, but it still exists and always did. I remember one special occasion: Detlef and I had given a demo in the conservative “A Puro Tango” milonga in Salon Canning. I think it was in 2007. In spite of the intimidating setting, I decided to lead a young lady. Coming from the dance floor we got stopped by an older women. Instead of criticising, she complimented us and next invited my friend for the a tanda - by the way verbally. I then went on dancing with male milongueros who did not shun me for having lead. I had expected problems - there were none.<br />But that has changed in recent years: A strong need to restrict dancers to the gender-typical roles has developed alongside and because of the fact, that more and more people started changing roles. The increased role-fluidity applies not only to "non-traditional" queer-tango or open-role-events. Many of the "traditional" events like encuentros milongueros invite dancers to register as followers, leaders and double-rolers to create a role- rather than a gender-balance. You can now even see men dancing together at the oldest existing encuentro in Italy. This would not have been imaginable when it started in 2008.<br />But this is starting to bug a part of the community. I think that what we are experiencing is a formerly marginal phenomenon that expands into mainstream and thereby causes a radicalisation of those who had before just mildly rejected it. They become hyper-traditional and react accordingly, e.g. by organising events in which the dance in a gender-a-typical role is not only frowned upon but actually forbidden. I find this regrettable but also understand it as a natural course of human behaviour as we can see in all other fields of society and politics. I hope it will - after a period of friction - dissolve in a new, freer handling of this specific question.<br /><br />So... traditions... a difficult concept in tango!<br /><br />As a dancer, organiser, teacher and even blogger I have not only seen them evolve, put into a logical context and specified, I have actually consciously participated in this process of "traditionalisation". This is why I am also critical towards the over-usage of the word. It could be understood in a broader sense, because there have always been guidelines to bring order into the chaos of our tango world. But they have not been carved in stone by some tango god in the epoca d'oro and were never universal. They always varied in different communities and are constantly being adapted to the needs of each new generation of dancers. Some codigos are very recent developments. <br /><br />I am now using mirada and cabeceo for invitations. But who knows, what the future will bring? Most likely a special app for the phone. I will surely be amongst the first who try it out. <br /><br />Because tango is no anachronistic role-playing game. It is real life. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A more personal note:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">People always assume that we are very old fashioned aka "traditional" because we dance a rather unspectacular social dance in a close embrace and promote the usage of the main codigos at our events. But already from what I've written above, you can see, that you have to be careful with labels. If you then take into consideration, that we use tango nuevo as a teaching method, that I dance both roles, that we teach beginners both roles consequently from the beginning, that we change roles as teachers constantly, that at our events, there is always a large number of double-rolers... well? And there is no separate seating at our events. Won't be before hell freezes over! So... yup traditional... One does not need to do high voleos and open the embrace or cut the ronda to live in the modern world!</span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-63924065310170147342019-08-29T12:21:00.003+02:002019-08-30T06:34:50.229+02:00Reflections of a tango professional<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>Warning: </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>This post contains boring, disenchanting or even disturbing details about the life of a tango professional. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>I have long pondered whether I can actually publish this, because it might be severely misunderstood. This is why I have to prepend the following:</i></span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This article is in no way meant as a complaint about my situation. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I really like my job and find it rewarding to help grow an international tango community, meet lots of interesting people and bring joy by promoting such a wonderful dance. I also cannot deny, that I savour the attention, positive feedback and respect for my work. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Ah... and dancing with a lovely person who has absorbed some of our principles into his or her dance! I get to reap the harvest of our endeavours directly in the milongas or encuentros. I have actively chosen tango over the career as a psychologist and am glad I did.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But as you know, I am a very realistic and rather prosaic person and</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> a lot of my tango friends, students and clients do not seem to know what my profession actually consists of or implies. Their romantic misconceptions often leave me speechless. At first. Then I try to explain and get carried away. That can be quite annoying for the person whom I am talking to because they were just making polite small-talk. This post is so that I can say: read my blog. </span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Here are the facts about my life as a tango teacher, dj and organiser.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">1. Job description</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">My main activity is not dancing or being at milongas. It is not even teaching. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What I do mostly is to sit in my office (or elsewhere) in front of my computer. This is where I spend 80-90% of my work hours with: event-, class- and travel organisation, preparing local team meetings, building and updating several websites, analysing or preparing music for classes or milongas, updating client data, editing videos, preparing class-content, </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">writing and sending out class material,</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">communicating with students, organisers or team members, writing invoices and bills of delivery, advertising in several languages and much more. A huge part of this involves spreadsheets, online forms and lists and is as exciting as the work of an accountant. Luckily I don't mind such tasks. But add some more annoying work like buying provisions for events or teacher-trainings, cleaning the studio or setting up venues and you'll understand my typical work day. Yes, there are the days during which I teach or dance, but even then the overhead work does not go anywhere. It still has to be done. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In general I can say: My most important tools aren't dance shoes but the computer and my most important body parts aren't my legs but my brain. I could very easily do most of my work with a broken leg, but basically nothing without my computer.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When I am at home, I get up early in the morning and spend my day in front of the screen until dinner. I try to make a break around noon for a workout and breakfast. In the evenings, I watch a series or movie with my non-tango-sweetheart and go to bed around 11. I usually read 1/2 hour before I fall asleep. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">On rare days, I retire to my sofa in the afternoon because I started work before 6 in the morning. But as I take my computer with me, I usually end up working again. Like now. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I do not take holidays and I will answer your e-mails within a day (usually within the hour) even on X-Mas or my birthday. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">2. Business travels</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">How come that everyone wishes me "have fun" when I am travelling to someplace for workshops? Would you say the same to an executive or engineer going to a business conference? Apart from the very few times per year that I go to an encuentro just to dance, travelling stands for a series of very challenging days with only few hours of sleep. Apart from classes, demos and dj-gigs, I squeeze in all the duties described above in the hours free of the payed work. Again, I love my work, but it is still work and I'd rather hear "I wish you lots of energy or success" than "have fun" as if I were going on a holiday. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">On business trips, I don't have time for sightseeing. Although I travel to many exciting places, I seldom see anything apart the tango venues, hotels, airports, train-stations and restaurants. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And no, it does usually not make sense to stay a few days longer. I just spent some time in Austria with friends prior to an engagement in Slovenia. It was lovely, but the two extra days of group activities meant that I arrived less well rested than usual for work and overhead tasks piled up. I cannot allow myself to do this very often.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">On days of traveling from A to B, I have some more time to read a book, because working whilst driving a car or sitting in a plane does not function well for me. If a train is not too full, I sometimes manage a few tasks on my computer, but I usually do not get a lot done because of the iffy internet. Traveling itself can take up two entire days per week. Judging by the actual work-output, you could call these holidays, but considering the amount of fatigue and stress, I am not sure if I can agree with this interpretation. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In the past, we traveled up to 46 week(ends) per year. Now we are at home more often because of two encuentros, a 4-module tango-teacher-training, as well as workshops and classes in our studio. Less travel reduces my general stress level but increases the overhead-workload. How so? Well, when we give workshops at a festival or local school, the organisers will manage the client-bookings and payments, a huge part of the advertising and all local logistics. When we offer a workshop in our hometown, all of this is my job. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">3. Financial aspects of tango dj-ing</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To dj does not generate an income to speak of, but is rather a very expensive and time-consuming hobby. A well known tango-dj can earn between 100€ and 250€ per gig plus expenses. (A local non-tango-dj in a disco earns a minimum of 500€.) Taking into consideration that you will have to buy lots of music and expensive equipment, the profit will be around zero, if not a loss. Some popular djs who live in an area with many regular milongas might be able to make a modest income, but usually even they have day jobs to pay the rent. When I am invited to dj at an encuentro, I see it as a great opportunity to play music for nice dancers, to get into an event for free and have my travel-expenses covered. My salary will most likely be spent on meals during the weekend. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">4. Financial aspects of organising events</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Organising events or milongas will usually not be profitable. Sure, if you've got a regular milonga with more than 100 visitors in your own studio and you don't pay an external dj... But most local milongas just cover the expenses or make a loss. Our local milongas often are within the deficit range, but we see them as important service for our students and the community. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Events like encuentros can generate a profit. But please note that the biggest part of the income will still go into the venue, djs, other staff, equipment, catering, insurances and taxes. Sure, if the organisers are smart, an event with 200 visitors can make an income of 1000-5000€. Sounds a lot? Not if you consider the work hours that go into organising it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please be aware that the only ways of making an appropriate income with events would be:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Reducing the expenses and therefore the quality and/or exploiting djs and helpers. Which would be evil and stupid!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Raising prices. That would be the sensible thing to do, but tangueros will complain when the event costs 120€ instead of 85€. Considering that the entrance fee is the smallest expense over a weekend... well... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">5. Financial aspects of teaching</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The only activity that can generate a decent income in tango is teaching. But even then, I do not know any tango teacher who could be considered as wealthy by normal standards. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I live from tango since 2006 and cannot complain. A</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">ctually I think that we are better off than many other tango teachers (see note below *):</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">We have (a little) above average per hour prices and therefore generate an appropriate income. Our lifestyle is acceptable: we never had to hunger, we rent nice apartments and I can afford to buy a new Macbook and iPhone every 5 years. Or books and videos. Or invite a friend for dinner in a restaurant and give money to family needy members. But I do not own a house, our car is old and I do not have a pension plan. Why is that?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Because of the disadvantageous proportion of classes (payed work) to overhead (not payed work). I will usually not teach more than 6-10 hours per week, sometimes less, because we do not travel all the time. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But teaching is my only income to speak of. So why don't we teach more? Well, even if there were more engagements, I would not have the time to actually take on more classes because of the overhead workload and the traveling from A to B. When we started traveling for workshop weekends, we decided to give up our regular classes in three cities. It would have been just too much.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The ratio of payed/not-payed work is better during tango-holidays (14-20 teaching hours per week) and teacher trainings (25-30). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- We do only seldom take on privates during workshop weekends or festivals, because we have to preserve our energy for group classes for which the organiser carries the financial risk. We also do not charge for demos - unless it is during a festival where the other teachers also get payed for their shows.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Because </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">in spite of a good turnover, work-related expenses are quite high and w</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">e spend a considerable part of our income in tango again: travel to encuentros as paying customers, buy tango music, software, online services, ads in tango magazines, studio rent, equipment, paying staff, inviting clients for dinner... yes, I also buy shoes and dresses - but from what I can tell, much less than most dancers.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- We often give substantial reductions to people with a low income, in rare cases up to 100%. Sometimes, I even offer free classes or seminars for entire groups because I want the tango community to develop. I</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">n tango, one cannot just take, one has to give as well to keep the system running. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Had I pursued my career as a psychologist, things would look very different.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">6. Expiration date of tango careers</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Unless you are an "old Argentine maestro or milonguero", who will still be invited for classes abroad and highly respected in Buenos Aires, please do not expect to make a great living from tango once that you've passed a certain age. Younger, better dancers are constantly popping up and the memories of customers are surprisingly short. No matter how impressive your résumé as a teacher or how much you have perfected pedagogical skills, you will eventually be discharged. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And even if not: can you imagine how the above described workload will feel when you're 75? Would you really want to travel that much, live out of your suitcase, often staying at tango people's homes without any privacy at an advanced age? I actually pity the "old ones" who still have to go on tour. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Successful local teachers in big cities will have better prospects, but only if they play their cards well and integrate young talent. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Rigorose diet and exercise (or just good genes) as well as plastic surgery might also help, but Detlef and I have now both passed the 50s-demarcation and I stopped colouring my hair recently. We're not young anymore and one can see it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This last consideration may sound particularly harsh and bitter, but I am just being realistic. I have been teaching tango and expanding my business for 18 years. I do not regret having chosen this path, but</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> I'd better start working on a backup plan. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Conclusion:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The life of a tango teacher, organiser and dj is not in the least bit as glamorous as you imagine. Sure, there might be the few top-notch "maestros" who do not prepare their classes, are so famous that they do not need to take care of publicity, will answer mails with a delay of weeks and can spend their retirement on the beach. But I guess that these are rare exceptions. And even then: these artists might spend hours per day practising or preparing choreographies. That's maybe a little bit more exciting than managing the pizza-list for our encuentro, but it is also hard work. I guess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please consider all this:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- when you see me or another professional being tired or not dancing a lot during a workshop weekend,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- before you complain about the costs for a class or an event,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- before you plan on taking up one of these activities professionally.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">... in particular if your partner is not a tanguero. You need a very, very understanding sweetheart. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Luckily, I do.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">* This is just a guess, because I know of so many tango stars living in tiny flats or even entirely out of their suitcases. But maybe they are just smarter and saving money for the future. It is true that I do not see a lot of professional teachers at tango events unless they are there for work. As mentioned above: we still go to encuentros a couple of times per year and everyone knows how expensive these trips can be. I guess we could save a lot of money by not going or by participating for free and staying with local dancers. But we don't feel comfortable with such practises and we love dancing. So: spending money for tango is indispensable. Also: what would be the point of teaching a social dance and not dance yourself? Right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">P.S. <a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2011/01/its-job-for-gos-sake.html" target="_blank">Here is a link to a post</a> from 2011. As you can see, my general perspective has not changed over the years. </span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-75579506911716599462019-04-28T15:26:00.001+02:002019-04-29T22:43:23.554+02:00The Tango Zone<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Remember a few years ago? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In 2010, the first year of this blog, I wrote about how our own hometown had become a </span><a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2010/12/tango-free-zone.html" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">tango free zone</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> for us. And this was true for so many years:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">We were traveling all over Europe and to the USA, sometimes for 46 out of 52 weeks. It was interesting and rewarding, but also exhausting and it estranged us more and more from the city in which we lived and still live. Dancers from all over the world often assumed, that we were teaching in our hometown, when in fact, </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">the local dancers did not even know our names.</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> There were years when our annual Encuentro with 200 participants hosted not more than 4 dancers from Saarbrücken.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Although this was normality for such a long time, it never felt quite right: having to travel far just to dance one tanda; knowing that tango here was so different from what we loved... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But things started to change little by little: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Once in a while, we would organise a workshop weekend in our small Tangokombinat studio and I started to offer <a href="https://www.melinasedo.com/workshops-events/" target="_blank">Ladies Only</a> seminars. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sure, most participants would come from afar, but there were always 1 or 2 locals.</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And sometimes, dancers from Saarbrücken would visit a workshop with us in some other town. So - although we still did not dance or teach regularly in Saarbrücken, some local dancers got to know us and our philosophy. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But it was our <a href="https://www.tangodesalon.de/tango-teacher-training-ttt" target="_blank">teacher training</a> that re-connected us with tango in our hometown. In order to offer an evening activity for our teacher-trainees we would organise a milonga during each module. This is where the local tangueros got to interact with so many nice dancers that had traveled from far to work with us. They (most likely) heard positive feedback about our classes and noticed that there was no kicking and jumping at our milongas.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In 2016, we then organised the first edition of Pequeña with the aim to bring together the (still) few close embrace dancers from our home region with friends from all over Europe. It was an instant success and many new bonds were forged.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But the real change happened when in 2018 all of a sudden four dancers from Saarbrücken asked to participate in our TTT. Wow! We would never have anticipated this!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">All of a sudden we spent a lot more time with local dancers, exchanged views, ideas and sorrows. We actually got to know each other.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And there was one other thing: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">During the TTT, I got increasingly envious of our graduates who were giving classes in their hometowns. Regular tango classes. Teaching beginners. We had not done that for many years. Our workshop participants, even the teacher-trainees, even those who followed us around the globe were never really <i>our</i> students - they had discovered tango elsewhere. Sure, I am happy with what we achieved and how many dancers we could reach with our ideas. But it is still different than having your <i>own</i> students whom you can teach from the beginning. In the years 2002-2007, when we were giving weekly classes in Metz, Landau and St. Wendel (never in our hometown!), our pedagogical, musical and technical skills had been much less developed. Now, after so many years of teaching, learning, researching, discussing, I was eager to work with beginners from a new and improved perspective.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So I thought: It's now or never!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I wrote a mail to our local tango-friends, asking them, if they'd be interested in making tango in our hometown nicer - all of them responded positively. And with such great enthusiasm and dedication. All of a sudden, it was not only me, but Detlef, I and 9 friends! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Everyone is helping to promote our activities, eager to participate, to develop as dancers, as djs and as hosts at milongas. S</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">ince our first meeting, we've started a bunch of activities:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.tangokombinat.de/index.htm" target="_blank">Monthly milongas</a> in the Tangokombinat studio,</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.tangodesalon.de/classes-saarbruecken" target="_blank">Weekly classes</a> for beginners and for those who want to improve their dance quality, </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A practica and milongas organised by our friends Armin and Elena, </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A simple <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1EDdtr0ydKV_rmv44upfQ7Ueh7jTY9h6xH0-GIub_Mg8/edit#gid=0" target="_blank">couch-surfing platform</a> for our events in Saarbrücken,</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Outdoor dancing and much more...</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yesterday, at our monthly Minilonga - for the first time - we could integrate beginners into the fold. In their first four classes, they have learned to move in the ronda, to invite by mirada and cabeceo and to change roles! Yes, we're teaching both roles from the beginning and I think it is already showing great results. Although there was (as usual) a huge female majority at yesterday's milonga, no-one sat and moped. Everyone had fun. And I even saw a few men following. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Not bad, eh? </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Guess the tango free zone is not tango free anymore!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The only downside: much more work. Building up something takes a lot of time and energy. What little was left for leisure activities and quality time with my sweetheart is now gone. Apart from my usual work organising and actually holding our international teaching-activities and events, I've now got classes during the week, meetings, fixing up the studio, workshops to form new djs for the community. Plus my new leading-practise twice a week ... sigh... anyone a youth potion? Should I by now not be preparing for retirement? But then, there's no retirement on a tango-teacher's wage anyway. So: on we go.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-77782739356458117912019-03-29T12:29:00.002+01:002019-03-30T09:11:37.031+01:00Incompatibilities<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 12px;">
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In this very nerdy tango-related post, I want to point out, how some common follower’s techniques or habits can make improvisation and navigation difficult and a comfortable embrace or good connection hard to achieve. </span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know that this post might antagonise female dancers - as much as my last blog was popular amongst women. Please be assured, that I do not write to insult or criticise, but to help create more awareness about the outcome of specific tango techniques.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am here not speaking about beginners who are struggling with their posture and actually might not yet have a technique. This is why I will not comment on issues that are considered as "mistakes", no matter what approach you follow: bad posture, a general lack of control over tension and relaxation, not carrying the weight of your arms, hanging on your leader or pushing too hard against him/her, stepping away from your partner, not knowing the music, not actively taking spaces...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Let’s assume that a dancer with some experience has sorted out most of those issues or is as least aware of them.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am explicitly addressing "advanced" followers. You will dance at Milongas, Encuentros and Marathons. You look super elegant and do the most complex moves with ease. You might even be a successful teacher or performer. But that does not mean that your techniques are universal or helpful in all situations or with all partners. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Don’t get me wrong: I do not think, that followers should have to adapt to every technique of any leader. On the contrary, that is the leaders job as well. I will, e.g. not pivot when not being given the space to build up my top-to-down spiral. But I will usually find a way to make the movement happen without having to compromise my ideas. Or I will not do so, being aware that this leader might not want to dance with me again. It is my choice. But I assume, that very few followers consciously want to hurt their partners or block movements. This is why I will describe advantages and disadvantages of techniques and habits.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am aware that how I useful I find a technique, is defined by my priorities. Let me point them out:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As I have written before: for me as a social dancer, it is about how it feels from the inside and not how it looks from the outside. Elegance is a plus, but no top priority. And my priorities determine the techniques and concepts that I use and teach.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Other teachers or dancers have different priorities and will therefore use differing concepts and techniques. So when I am disappointed by someone’s technique, another leader might be perfectly happy dancing with the same person.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Before shrugging off my blog as the quirky ideas of a mediocre dancer, please remember that I have been teaching for 18 years all over Europe and the USA. Therefore: If a follower’s techniques are incompatible with mine, they might be incompatible with others as well. Not least with the ones of my teaching partner. How often do you think that Detlef is disappointed by how uncomfortable a dance was and by how little he could improvise? I still remember when he came back from a milonga in Rome, almost having cried on the dance floor, because none of the women was willing to do a shift of weight to their right foot.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In this blog, I am mainly writing from the perspective of a leader. Let me comment on that as well:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As a teacher, it was alway my standard to understand whatever we do in class from the perspective of both roles and be capable of leading it. This is why all of the following observations have been confirmed in the class context as well as on the social dance floor. In a crowded ronda, in a close embrace, I usually stick to simpler movements than in class: variations of the walk, milonguero ochos, simple turns… The more disappointing it is, when some of these very basic moves will absolutely not function.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sure, I (like any other leader, also Detlef) make mistakes, but please be assured, that after so many years of in-detail analysis, I will always be able to tell, why a movement did not function in a given moment. So when I could not step out to the right lane, I might not have prepared this properly by turning my leg in the hip and by this opening a space. But it might also have been the follower’s doing, because she did not open her left side due to her asymmetric embrace. In this complex dance and communication, both partners contribute to the successes and failures. </span></span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This post is about the follower’s part in the interaction.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">My dear friend Ms Hedgehog has recently written a <a href="http://mshedgehog.blogspot.com/2018/12/milonguear-for-women.html" target="_blank">great blog</a> on what it takes to be a good social dancer. She focusses on the positive aspects and I agree with everything she writes. </span></span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But because of being my usual critical self, I will rather present a list of techniques and habits that can make the dance less agreeable or even limit improvisation significantly.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The order below is coincidental.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>1. Projection of the free leg</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is commonly taught by teachers with the idea of "making space for the leader’s front step". With the tiniest invitation, the follower will project her free leg to an extended position using a significant amount of muscular control in this leg. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Advantages of this technique:</span></span></div>
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<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Lazy leaders get super results. They just hint at something and the follower will terminate the whole move on her own.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Looks very elegant because the legs are nicely extended.</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Disadvantages of this technique: </span></span></div>
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<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The leg is not really free and lead-able. Changing the length or speed of a step, as well as re-directing or stoping the movement is much harder, because the leg is already on a trajectory towards an anticipated direction. Therefore improvisation and musicality will be limited. </span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Often, this technique inhibits small steps altogether, because the leg will be extended into a long step on principle. This will endanger navigation on the social dance floor. It is not always the fault of the leader when a follower runs into other dancers and hurts them by stepping down with a lot of energy. </span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Loss of connection. When dancing with a follower who uses this technique, I will only feel connected in the initial moment of the movement, but during the transfer the connection is lost because her leg moves independently from her gravity centre. I would like to feel connected on every inch of the transfer.</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: We concentrate on pushing from the supporting leg and letting the free leg move with the gravity centre like a pendulum. It is relaxed and has roots in the floor. Thanks to this approach, we also never have to think where to put this leg. Agreed: It looks less elegant.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>2. Closing the position as quickly as possible</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This technique is often connected to the projection of the leg and has the same advantages and disadvantages. In particular traspiés (or rock-steps) are difficult to communicate because they happen in the open position and leaders often have to stop those followers with their arms in order to prevent an automatic closing.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: a closing will eventually happen by a complete transfer of axis onto the new supporting leg and coming back (up) to a straight leg.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>3. Overactive rotation of the hips and automatic pivoting</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A lot of teachers stress that the hips most be rotated as quickly as possible in order to allow for speedy pivots with a big angle. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Advantages:</span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Leaders, who don’t want to dissociate get super results.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Pivots and ochos remain a follower’s movement and nothing in the leader’s body will distract from it. (Or this is what a famous teacher once told me.)</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Disadvantages:</span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Basically the same as in 1, because improvisation and connection are inhibited. Ever tried to lead a milonguero ocho (without pivots) with such a follower? Or just change the angle of rotation in a pivot? Impossible, because she will automatically rotate her hips to a maximum. Or try rotating your upper body towards your partner to compensate for an offset of feet: she will most likely pivot a little and therefore the next step might go into a different direction than intended. Walking in crossed system is often impossible and unintended crosses happen. </span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: Lazy hips. A rotation will only happen when it is communicated by an opening of space around the axis of the follower, so that she can create a spiral in her body from top to down. No opening equals no pivot.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>4. Step on one line</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A lot of teachers ask followers to walk on a virtual line, therefore they will position one leg behind the other when walking backwards or forwards. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Advantages:</span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is elegant because the position will always look closed. Leaders who change direction with almost every step, might never notice the disadvantages of this technique.</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Disadvantages: </span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Try walking front-to-front with such a follower’s technique for more than 2 steps. It feels very weird, because she will aways position her free leg directly where you want to go with your next step. You constantly have to compensate by opening your position laterally. Later have her walk on two lines and follow her free leg. That will feel completely different.</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: Step on two neighboured lines.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>5. Have musical automatisms</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A lot of followers will automatically double the speed in a number of movements: the Ocho Cortado, the cross, the back and side step of the molinette structure… This comes from teaching steps linked to fixed rhythmical patterns and I cannot find any advantages in this approach.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Just imagine: I want to lead a turn in normal speed to slow music, starting with the back step of the follower - I invite her to pivot and - whooosh - she’s already finished the turn. ARGH!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Also the contrary is a problem: you might want to speed up for a longer time because the melody says 12341234 (think D’Arienzo), but she slows down after the second step (123_), because she is used to quick-quick-slow patterns. It will be impossible to interpret the melodic rhythm.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: Adapt the movement to the music. Don’t ever memorise a rhythmical pattern with a figure. Learn any step/figure in a default variation (normal of half speed). Then practise changing speed in every possible position.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>6. Have movement automatisms</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The result of traditional step learning is that followers (and leaders) will develop very strong preferences for certain movements and are often incapable of dancing variations. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I mentioned above how Detlef often does not succeed in inviting followers to do a simple shift of weight to the right foot because they block the movement. No problems changing to the left.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sorry, but I cannot think of any advantage in creating these strong habits, so I am just going to point out some of the typical habits:</span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Dancing a cross only on the usual side and expecting to be "forced" into a cross with the right left in front of the left leg instead of just reacting to the same leading mechanism on the other side.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Being used to stepping forward with the left food in the "8-count-basic", but blocking any front-to-front forward movement with the right foot. Walking forward with the right leg on the outer lane in an ocho cortado might still work, but stepping forward into the space of the leader just will not function. Trying to prepare this step forward, I had followers change leg, turn their hips or even fall onto me, because they rather do a volcada than stepping forward with their right leg. Ask Detlef to tell you his story of that very tall and heavy follower doing a volcada instead of a front step. His back was hurting for days!</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Cross or uncross automatically. Do you know, how many variations there might be around the traditional cross - apart from doing it on the other side as mentioned above? And did you know that you might prevent a leader to walk on the outside lane for a longer period, because you cross automatically after 2 steps? Are you expecting him to "block" the crossing?</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Automatically projecting your leg into a back step after a pivot because you expect an ocho to happen. What if the leader takes the pivot back?</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Automatically rotating the hip to a neutral position after a back or front step in a turned movement, because you expect a side step to happen. This result of lifelong molinette practise will prevent any variation in turns.</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The list is endless. Unfortunately, these automatisms prevent everything that goes away from the traditional patterns as well as any real improvisation without fixed patterns, based on freely linking the smallest elements.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sure, if you dance with a leader who repeats patterns without actually communicating them, it helps to know them in order to make the dance work. But do you really want to be so unflexibel?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: Be prepared for any movement in any given moment. Also: Relax the free leg and let it fall towards the floor with its own weight, so that your body is also physically prepared to react naturally to unusual and/or subtle movements. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A note: Yes, dancing with leaders who really improvise can be challenging and might feel stressful. Even I sometimes enjoy dancing with someone more predictable, in particular when I am tired. But I would not always want to dance that way.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A second note: Dancing with very creative leaders requires much more focus on the communication, so there won’t be much capacity left for decorations. You either have to ask more actively for the time/space to decorate or skip decorations altogether. Which is what I do. And you won’t see a lot of followers who are dancing with Detlef do a lot of firuletes either.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A third note: Yes, even Detlef has these automatisms because he learned tango based on steps before we started teaching and breaking up these patterns. In the first years, we also taught more figures but nowadays, we seldom teach steps anymore. And if we do so, we will vary them in manifold ways to prevent automatisms. This is why some of our students dance much more freely than we do. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>7. Push with the head</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I don’t think that any teacher consciously instructs followers to drop their head or to push their forehead against the leaders right cheek or forehead. But a lot of advanced dancers do so because of misunderstood cuddling or the wish to imitate the aesthetics of famous dancers. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Advantages:</span></span></div>
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<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Looks feminine?</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Disadvantages: </span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Starts hurting after a while because of increased tension of neck-muscles. </span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Leaders move their head into a left-bent position to get out of the way. (I once watched Detlef tilt his head more and more to the side because of the follower invading his space with her head. He looked really stupid.)</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Inhibits movements to the so-called closed side. (See 7.)</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Often has a negative effect on stability of axis, even without the pushing.</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: Hold the head upright and in line with your spine. Search for head contact only if it is anatomically possible.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>8. Push with the right arm and/or asymmetrical embrace</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A high tension in the right arm of the follower is very often taught in combination with a stable v-frame. Often followers are told to give resistance so that force (or at least tension) can be applied to communicate pivots. In the v-embrace, the other side is often closed and the two shoulders will usually be much nearer than the ones on the so-called open side. I know that v-hold does not necessarily imply a pushing arm, but the problems created are comparable.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The positive effects of this technique:</span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am not sure, but one obviously does not need dissociation. A follower can remain more passive and let herself be pushed or pulled into pivots. The strong frame might also increase stability when doing automatic pivots with a spiral starting below (see above). It is certainly easier than doing pivots actively by creating a spiral from top-to-down. </span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The negative effects of the technique:</span></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Any pushing or tension in the arms just feels less comfortable and starts hurting after a while. Even Detlef (who works out on a regular basis) can sometimes barely stand the pain a fragile follower causes with her strong right arm. You don’t believe me? Ask him.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">With a right rigid arm, the follower pushes herself into an asymmetrical position. So even if a v-shape is not intended, an open and closed side are created. You can see that with many "milonguero" dancers who are starting out with a parallel chest-to-chest position, but then open to a v-hold in ochos or turns.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A general v-hold or pushing arm results in movements feeling uncomfortable or even being impossible into one direction. Try to walk on the right outside lane in parallel system with a follower who pushes with her right arm or brings her left shoulder so much forward that she cannot dissociate to the left anymore. You won’t succeed. Most likely it won’t even be possible to walk straight without her pulling you to the right side, because she not only opens her right side but also turns her hips with her as a result. This makes navigation really hard. And please examine your back-ocho technique: there will often a nice opening for an organic pivot on the follower’s right leg, but the pivot on her left leg is initiated by the leader pulling her with his right arm. Or she will pivot automatically. I find it illogical to use different techniques on the two sides.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In general v-shape will also affect all musicality as it inhibits free change of speed and step length on both sides. (This is a huge topic!)</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: Have soft arms. We want to embrace, not to have a stable "frame". We connect and exchange information in the centre. The leader opens spaces that the follower takes actively. We are therefore searching for a parallel position of the upper bodies and want to be free to execute all movements comfortably to both sides.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Note: When dancing with a leader who uses either active pushing/pulling with the arms or at least relies on the stable frame for building up a tension for a pivot, I will not compromise my priorities and start pushing, but rather find other ways to make the movement work: Either create a counter-spiral in the body or not pivot and reach the end position by doing a milonguero-ocho. My arms remain soft.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>9. Dropping, lifting or swinging the hips</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sometimes this comes from the wish to look sexy and might result in a slight difficulty of taking steps back speedily. But very often such a hip movement comes from consciously or inadvertently wanting to pull the free leg to the axis in the end phase of movements. In dynamic steps the phenomenon might not occur, because the initial push is enough to transport the axis fully to the new leg, but try a very slow transport of axis in a back step of the follower. In the last moment it might feel, as if the follower is breaking away and her axis gets wobbly.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What we teach: The hips remain calm and parallel to the floor. The transfer of axis is done by the former supporting leg that pushes until the axis is above the new leg in particular in slow motion.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A lot of advanced followers seem to think, that they constantly have to do something in order to dance interestingly or musically. They will decorate, insert double steps, change weight without invitation, move, move, move. They never stand still. Being calm equals being boring. Right?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is very handy for leaders who do not have a clear leading technique or who are un-inspired, but I think that constant activity makes it impossible to build up a more intimate connection. Sure, feel free to fill spaces, to add to the dance, to give input to the leader. But please: don’t move all the time. Can we not just stand for a second. Slow down? Enjoy the embrace? Just listen to this tiny piano fill? Just honour the end of the phrase? Does tango have to be so nervous?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When I dance with a guy who expects me to act all the time without inviting me properly, I might do so. For a short while. But then I usually get bored, because of the lack of interaction and communication. So I might just stand and embrace. You’d be surprised at what can happen then! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So. This is it. Sorry to be a know-it-all. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am aware, that every dancer will make her personal choices. I always assure our students, that our techniques are just options amongst many. But I am </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">strongly </span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">doubting that everyone actually makes conscious choices. I so wish that advanced dancers were more aware of their techniques and possible outcomes. Not only for the sake of the leaders, but for your own comfort and clarity. </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So that you can make better informed choices!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">P.S.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Some might think, that they now understand our entire technical concepts. Nothing I can do about it, apart from saying: buy our <a href="https://www.caminarabrazados.com/" target="_blank">Book + DVD Caminar Abrazados</a> and you'll how much more there is to it. Or visit one of our <a href="https://www.tangodesalon.de/" target="_blank">classes</a>. You might be surprised. And no, I am not ashamed of self-advertising. ;-)</span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-13035315747703448532019-03-07T11:19:00.000+01:002019-12-28T15:23:32.920+01:00Long due post on gender and roles in tango<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>This post is written from the perspective of a female tango dancer, teacher and organiser and primarily addresses women. But it is my belief that the thoughts expressed herein are of great importance for everyone: men, women, straight and gay people, consumers, organisers and teachers. Because something is not going so well in our little tango world.</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I have finished the registrations for one of our annual Encuentros. Pequeña is obviously not big, but we have received almost 4 follower bookings for every single leader who signed up. As usual all followers are female and all but two leaders are male. Additionally there is a small number of double-role dancers, only one of them being male. Even after my usual efforts to find more leaders, there is zero chance to get even half of the followers in. I know how disappointed or vexed most will be after after yesterday’s waiting list note. And this makes me sad and furious at the same time. Increasingly so. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As you all know, this is a very common problem: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When registering for gender- or role-balanced events, many single women try to find partners to better their chances of being accepted, but only few are lucky and the process itself is often humiliating. Apart from the fact, that there aren’t so many single leaders to ask, their reactions can be very degrading. They range from not answering to the lady’s mail, over the assumption that she will pay their entrance fee, to outright sexual propositions. This is super frustrating. So women sign up alone and risk being refused. Which is - when it occurs - another frustrating experience.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And this it where the frustrations comes from: gender and role imbalances. Which in tango is basically the same, because dance roles are still strongly tied to the gender of a person. Which makes me think: Is this rather not a problem of role stereotypes? But why?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yes, I know that real equality is still not implemented in our societies, but at least there are laws against discrimination and efforts are being made. So many women aspire for equality or leading positions in real life. They invest time, energy and money to achieve their goals. Strong women everywhere.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yet in tango, a huge number of educated and emancipated women do not ever question their position. They automatically accept being assigned the follower’s role or happily choose it - often stating that they are glad to give over responsibility as they already carry so much in real life. I know that, because this is what I said as well. But does it make them happy? Often not.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The reason for this dissatisfaction is usually not the dance qualities but the quantity of leaders. There are just not enough men who dance Tango. If a lady is lucky, she has a partner to start with or her teachers will provide for experienced leaders to join the beginner’s classes. But in the milongas, most women will soon learn that waiting for dances is their lot. Yes, an active mirada and cabeceo can help, but there is nothing you can do, if you’re in a local milonga with 20 leaders and 30 followers. 10 followers will always sit - even if the leaders danced all the time. In case you’ve got a regular partner, you might get to dance more often, but we all know how good it goes when we pressure our partners into dancing with us: not good at all. The situation gets even worse if women split up with their partners who will of course find another great tango dancer. The chances of finding a new male partner in tango are not that super. Still: the ladies accept their lot, keep on dancing and sitting and and suffering. Sometimes silently, sometimes loudly.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know what I am talking about: I started out with my husband as dance partner and because I was fairly young, pretty and talented, I got to dance all the time. But after I had taken up teaching this changed radically. Many men were intimidated and I spent a couple of years sitting at milongas and festivals, watching Detlef dance all night and being super frustrated. So you don’t even have to be a single follower to feel the pain. And although I had taken classes as a leader and was leading in class, it never occurred to me, that I had it in me to change my situation. Maybe it was just too early? Also, after a few years of teaching, developing more defined musical tastes and quality standards, I actually did not want to dance that much anymore. So: problem solved for me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Then, 12-14 years ago, the first encuentros came into existence. In the beginning, these events were not gender-balanced. The first French Encuentro had a surplus of more than 40 followers and it took years until gender-balance was the standard at pretty much all of these events. In these early years, I thought that we had found the solution for the gender-imbalance-problem by creating zones in which ladies get to dance as much as men and go home happy. I too was glad, because this is where I found leaders with whom I really liked dancing. In particular, because we encouraged many of our students to join the community.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But in the long run, Encuentros (and Marathons) created another problem: because of their specific features, most female dancers wanted (and still want) to join such events. But guess what: many male dancers do not feel that urge, because they are much more satisfied with their local milongas - where they find lovely dancers to choose from in abundance! The result is an even bigger gender-imbalance in the booking process and the dreaded follower’s waiting list.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So, how to solve this problem? Is there any chance of bringing more men to tango? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yeah… forget about it: as long as young boys are encouraged to play soccer, whilst their sisters are carted to ballet classes, this will never, ever happen. As long as these role stereotypes exist, there will always be more women than men interested in dancing, no matter how appealing you make it look on posters and flyers. Couple-dancing is still considered as being unmanly in many societies. Fact. </span></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And in any case: does it really make sense to always base one’s happiness on other people’s decisions and actions? <b>After 20 years of dealing with this specific situation from different perspectives, I think that there is no other solution than to finally and seriously uncouple dance-role and gender in tango. </b>I am dreaming of a tango community in which everybody learns both roles from the beginning and in which we do not have to bother gender- or even role-balancing events, because people are free to choose how and with whom they want to dance at any given moment.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know that my utopia may stay a dream, because as long as dancers are exposed to the traditional and often hugely exaggerated clichés in tango ads and shows, as long as there are not more role models who go different ways, a change may never happen. Or it’ll take decades.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But until then:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">You are a woman and just want to dance tango? You want to be accepted to the nice events, even if you do not have a partner? So, please, please, please stop being passive, stop complaining, stop crying and do something about it. Learn to lead.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Does this sound appealing or logical? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It might and maybe you have already started the process. Or have been working on your leading role for ages. But still many of you do not dare to register as a double role dancer - even if the organisers give you the chance to do so. There seem to be just too many fears, prejudices and obstacles. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please let me discuss the most common ones:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">1. Leading is so much harder than following.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Is this not what we have heard from our first tango class on? The leader carries all the responsibility, has to be creative, musical, navigate and on top of that learn lots of challenging moves. The follower just has to be there. She cannot even make mistakes. Right?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">NOT RIGHT! Apart from the fact, that we are nowadays searching a tango where both partners actively participate in the creation process and share responsibilities, even the "just being there, just following" can be as challenging or even more challenging than leading. Why?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Just stop and think: Sure, in the beginning, leaders really struggle with all the skills that they have to integrate. But even in their early stages, leaders will always know what will happen in advance and will rarely be surprised. Sure, they too have to adapt to the follower’s skills and habits, but the system allows for them to stay in their comfort zones. So in a milonga, they will usually apply the techniques that they have grown accustomed to, step when they choose to and repeat patterns that they feel comfortable with. Some of these patterns might be challenging, but depending on in which tango sub-culture you live, leaders know that most women are happy with musical walking in a nice embrace. Only few dancers actually "need" the complex moves. So this is what a lot of leaders do: stay in their comfort zone - year in, year out. Only few bother taking classes once they have reached the level of moving stress-free in a milonga.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Whereas many followers see tango as a lifelong learning process, go to classes and practise tango-technique or bodywork in order to be flexible, toned and in a good shape, One reason for this being: they need a much larger technical and step-based repertoire than any leader. In one single Milonga, a follower might be confronted with 5 different leading styles, 10 different ways to interpret the music and 20 different step-repertoires. Do you know how challenging this is? Yes, you do, if you are an experienced follower. But do the leaders know?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Two years ago, my boyfriend - who is no tanguero - participated in one of our basic role-change seminars. His verdict after 5 days was clear: following is more challenging than leading - in particular when you are dancing with inexperienced or unclear leaders. He found leading relatively easy, although we ask leaders to listen very carefully to what the followers do and to improvise with basic elements rather than to produce patterns. (Ok, the last may actually make leading easier.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">My view as a teacher and dancer: I don't wanna insult the guys, but leading is no rocket science. In the very beginning and depending on your personal skill set, it sometimes seems to be more challenging than following. No, you ladies should not just up and lead without instruction and serious practise. But an experienced follower can bring her leading skills up to an acceptable level within a year. Another year and you can be awesome! I have seen it happen often enough. Again: you will have to take classes and practise on a regular basis, but you can do it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Even I have taken up weekly practice in order to be able to apply everything that I lead in class also in the ronda. At the last Minilonga in our studio, I lead six tandas and followed one. My goal is to lead 50% at Pequeña in June.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">2. Women are not made for leading.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">They are too weak and small, a big guy recently suggested.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Ok, this is just wrong. Apart from the fact that there are lots of tall women: has being short ever bothered any male Argentinian dancer? Everyone has to adapt to different partners and there will always be people whom you can lead comfortably - provided they have a proper technique and posture. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sure, followers without an axis who hang on their partners and expect to be moved, will be hard to dance with, if you are only 1.60 metres and of slender build. So don’t dance with them or give feedback! Even strong men often feel uncomfortable dancing with such passive followers, why should you put up with that?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I will not even honour the argument that women are mentally not equipped for leading with a response other than: do you think that men automatically come with the right skill set?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">3. Women do not want to dance with female leaders.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Sure, some don’t. But many do. I do very much. Just recently in the UK, my nicest tandas were with female leaders and followers - although most of my male favourites were there as well. Dancing with another woman has long developed from a weak substitute into a privilege. It may be different from dancing with a guy, but can be equally beautiful. Guess whom I am searching in a room full of great leaders when Biagi is played: Yup. Dawn. Because she is the right leader to dance Biagi with. So, just look around and you’ll find a great number of fantastic women and even some men who like following a good female leader. A good female leader! So practise!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And by the way: those who worry, that they might just not be visible as a leader when unknown in a community, ask the organisers to introduce you to some potential partners. At our events, we e.g. introduce all double-role-dancers to the rest and they get pins with flowers. This works really nicely.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">4. Guys will not invite female leaders.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yes, some men might not dance with you anymore. But are these really the guys you want to interact with? Actually, when I think of the events that I prefer, quite the opposite is true: The ladies who lead occasionally or on a regular basis are amongst the most sought-after followers. All the best leaders want to dance with them. Why? See 5.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">5. Leading will have a negative impact on the followers skills.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Who told you this? On the contrary: Dancing both roles will broaden your horizon and enhance your skills in both roles. And those who lead and follow from the beginning are more often than not super dancers. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">6. Female leaders are not appreciated by organisers.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Indeed, there are still milongas, in which non-gender-conform-dancing is not appreciated. Just recently a milonga organiser in Russia expelled two ladies who were dancing together. This outrage was widely answered by Facebook postings with the hashtag #tango4all and many organisers showed support. In general, I think that such incidents and the mindsets on which they are based are exceptions and certainly on the decline. Even in the more traditional Italian Encuentros you will nowadays find leading ladies or even following guys. This was not imaginable 10 years ago.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Things change and many organisers have replaced the old gender-balanced setup with a role-balanced registration-system. This is a good first step into the right direction.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It is true, that some organisers are still worried about the visuals. They fear that the event will look gender-imbalanced if they accept more than a few female leaders. Yes, it bloody will. This is an inevitable result of accepting female leaders or double-role dancers. We cannot on the one hand accept them to balance the single followers, but then try to "hide" them by keeping their numbers down. This is absurd.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">7. There are not enough opportunities to learn and practise the leading role.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Now this is just lame. There are practicas everywhere and an increasing number of instructors teach both roles from the beginning. We encourage all of our teacher trainees to do so. Even Detlef and I will - after 18 years of teaching internationally - finally start giving beginner’s classes in our hometown (that’s another post) and we will of course change roles from day one.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In addition to that, there are many courses and workshops for experienced dancers in which learning the other role gets centre stage. Either amongst women or in mixed groups. We offer a role-change seminar in the South of France and there are still places left. (Yes, I am totally fine with self-promotion. Find all info <a href="https://www.tangodesalon.de/tango-holidays" target="_blank">here</a>.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So, here is my plea: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To all women, wo do not yet lead:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Learn to lead. It is challenging in a fun way, will improve your skills as an active dancer, bring interesting new experiences and make you happier.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To all women, who have been seriously practising leading for longer than 1 or 2 years:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please check, if you cannot sign up as double-role dancer next time. Why have you invested all the money and hours of practise? You have to start some day! Cut the excuses!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To all men:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Learn to follow. It will hugely improve your leading skills and make you more aware of what so many women actually have to deal with. Plus: it’ll turn out to be nicer than you expected.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To all teachers: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Teach both roles from the beginning and encourage role change in all of your classes. This may require some more time, so just stop showing long sequences and you’ll compensate for it - no problem.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To all organisers:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Encourage non-gender-role-conform dancing at your events whilst holding all participants to the same high standards. If it is an event for which people need to sign up in advance: go role-balanced instead of gender-balanced and please forget about the optics. Rather think of how good everyone will feel once they get to dance with each other.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I want to add one last wish:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There are still many dancers who believe that tango is a unique experience between a woman and a man that can or should not be replaced by any other form of connection. Well, this is your opinion and totally fine. No one forces a guy to dance with that other hairy bloke. No one forces a woman to dance with a slender female leader, if they prefer the handsome tall man. No one forces you to dance the other role. You don’t even have to go to events in which role-change will occur.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But please do not complain or stand in the way of a necessary and beautiful development by discriminating others who just want to enjoy the dance. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because this is what tango should be: a pleasant encounter between two open, caring and active partners. Not a historic role playing game. Not a dating event. Not an activity where a majority (women and all who want to dance in a non-gender-conform manner) don’t get what they deserve:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Many lovely dances. </span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>Post Scriptum (after 3 days on the net):</i></span></span><br />
<i><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This post got a lot of attention. Many positive comments by numerous women and some men. There are of course also critical remarks, some of them constructive, very few not so much. But this was to be expected. </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I just wanted to add a few explanations for those who are not following the Facebook discussions:</span></i><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>- The comments on my blog are not disabled because of fear of opposition, but because of GPDR issues. I have posted about this last year. <a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.com/2018/04/gdpr-compliance.html" target="_blank">Here</a>.</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>- I am a straight woman, but still believe that dancing with the same sex can be beautiful. The reason why I can find pleasure in leading or being led by women is: Today, tango for me is all about the connection to the music, the quality of movement and the comfort in the embrace. These factors are independent from gender. </i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>- I am living in Germany, but have been traveling as a teacher, dancer and dj all over Europe and the USA. (And of course also to BA.) My observations are based on conversations with women and men all over the world. The issues/problems/prejudices described in this blog post will not apply to every tango community or person to the same extent, but are still somewhat universal. </i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>- Please remember that I am not an organiser/teacher/dancer in the context of queer tango events, festivals or tango marathons. I belong to the Encuentro crowd - often called the tango taliban, because of our compliance to certain guidelines on how to interact with others, because of us favouring close embrace and dancing to classical tango music. When mentioning my friends who like changing roles or accept leading women, these are dancers who prefer dancing at Encuentros too. So: my seemingly provocative thoughts are actually shared by many people who are often called traditionalists. Go figure. ;-)</i></span></span><br />
<i><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">-</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> I believe the time that everyone needs to become a leader suited for an encuentro or marathon is based on his/her general skills, the teaching that he/she is exposed to and the time/dedication that he or she invests. There are dancers who fit perfectly into such an event after 1 year, others won't be ready after 20 years. I have danced with members of both groups. In this article, I mention that talented and experienced followers who dedicate 1-2 years of classes and earnest practise could be ready after 1-2 years. This does of course not implicate that every woman will be a super leader or does not need instruction. I never wrote that. But no-one can deny that an experienced and talented female follower has an advantage over a male beginner. </span></i><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>- I know that my wish for a more open definition of the roles might not come true, but I also believe that voicing utopian views can help bring about change. And if - someday in the nearer future - more women lead (well) and organisers accept them as equal leaders at events and abandon the thoughts of gender balance, then we have already won something. </i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>- I find it not logical that one should feel threatened or disturbed by the fact of there being more women than men at events because of role-balance:</i></span></span><br />
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<li><i style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">Men who believe that women like dancing with men better, might be less numerous at an event. So: good for them, because more women will want to dance with you. Or not?</i></li>
<li><i style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">Single women will certainly have better chances being accepted to events when dancing both roles. Even if they prefer following to leading, they will then have the chance to follow for half of the time at a nice event. Is this not better than not being accepted? And by the way: this is not about strict 50%. No one counts the tandas that you lead at an event. If you partially lead, you'll have better chances. </i></li>
<li><i style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">The only ones who might not get out of it so much at first glance are women with partners, who prefer dancing with male leaders. They easily get into the desired events, but now there might be some more female leaders instead of the male ones to dance with. There is not so much that I can say to you, apart from: If a leading lady is accepted by a responsible encuentro or marathon organiser with high standards, this person will have qualities that define her as a good dancer. Give her a chance. Dance with her. It might be beautiful. And if it is not that great yet: try again next year. Have you not seen men evolve into nice dancers given some time and practise? Why should women not have the same chances? </i></li>
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-47080710654189151732019-01-05T10:24:00.001+01:002019-12-28T15:38:38.803+01:00Je déteste les démos - and why I still do them!It is Saturday evening and you are visiting a tango festival or a workshop weekend. You know what is going to happen around midnight: the teacher's performance!<br />
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What will you do?</div>
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Secure a good seat, because you are looking forward to it? </div>
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Do you even prepare your camera or phone to video the demo?</div>
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Or do you start making preparations for leaving the event because you hate performances?</div>
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Maybe you'll just go to the bar or have a smoke or use the opportunity to go to the bathroom.<br />
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In Buenos Aires performances are an important part of tango culture. Foreign teachers, local heroes and heroines, stars, birthday celebrants and most honoured seniors perform at all milongas. There are actually few milongas without demos and the performers usually get loud cheers during and compliments after the shows. Everyone wants to show, that they liked the dance.<br />
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But in Europe, this is often very different. Apart from cultural differences (e.g. Germans and Finns e.g. not being overly extrovert and therefore not cheering a lot), one can detect a general lack of interest in watching performances. Wanting to avoid shows are after all one of the main reasons why Encuentros and Marathons have developed. There you can dance without interruptions.</div>
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Where does this aversion come from?</div>
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Is the tango community still traumatised from the festivals of the 90's with 4 performing couples that forced you to sit and watch for an hour? I don't think so, because many people now dancing tango started much later. And weren't these the exceptions anyway? Most demos usually last 3-4 songs - the length of a tanda. And honestly: do you dance all tandas? What is the big deal of sitting one out and watching someone else dance? Don't you do that during the milonga, don't you even like watching your fellow dancers? Why is it different, when there is only one couple on the dance-floor? Do you assume that this is a fake show, even if they are "performing" social tango? Is it "evil" because it is about promotion and making money? Does it pollute the purity of social tango?</div>
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I don't have the answers, but I do have my personal experiences with this facet of tango life.</div>
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Let me tell you a story from 2007:</div>
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It was one of our first engagements outside our home region. We were giving classes in Lyon, France and the workshops were nicely filled with dancers from near and far. After this weekend, word of mouth caused a multitude of invitations from other French tango clubs. This weekend was a game-changer in our "career".<br />
But still I think of it with very mixed feelings. Because of the demo. (See video below.)<br />
It was a couple of minutes before the performance and I was speaking to a dancer, with whom we had dined just a few hours earlier. He seemed friendly enough, but now he was sitting outside the hall and pulling a face. Willingly, he told me why: "Je déteste les démos." I hate demos. </div>
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Thanks a lot. I was about to step onto the empty floor and have 150 strangers watch me dance and this was really not helping.</div>
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Before this evening, I could not even imagine, that tango dancers would have such strong aversions against tango demos. Sure, one would not like a particular performance because of the style, execution or other specific reasons. I myself was quite critical, but up until then most of my tango friends also liked tango demos. And why not? Sure, we were nervous when we had to perform, but not devastatingly so and even our first performances in Buenos Aires and New York had been a very positive experiences.</div>
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So this one sentence from a french milonguero shattered my fragile self-confidence for the evening and changed my perception of performances for ever. Where others thinking the same? As I later discovered: yes, I have heard many similar comments ever since - usually in a more general context and not directed to me personally. But still, if you are a teacher, performing is part of your job and such words will affect you - in particular when they come from friends and/or clients. (And amongst my students/friends/clients there is a high probability to encounter this aversion against demos, because so many of them are regular Encuentro visitors.)<br />
So even now, when I perform, I often first notice the people who don't like demos. In order to get into a better place, I consciously have to concentrate on a benevolent person or group. Sometimes a very welcoming audience will make me forget my doubts. (See 2 videos below.) But often not.</div>
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And this fear of annoying people is boosted by who we are and what we do.<br />
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Please understand:</div>
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We (my partner Detlef and I) are no artists. We are social dancers, teachers, organisers, book authors, djs and whatnot. We don't do choreographies. We don't practise figures or poses. My absolute focus is on maintaining a high quality of teaching and events. Therefore 80-90% of my work takes place at my desk preparing the content of classes and teacher-trainings, organising events and tango-holidays, communicating with clients, making publicity, managing spread sheets and lots of other things.<br />
How would I find the time to prepare demos and choreographies and practise many hours? We don't even choose the music for demos together, because it used to take up much-needed rest-time between classes and the milonga and usually led to arguments. So nowadays, I do that on my own and Detlef will be surprised by my choice. Like in any tanda.<br />
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But even without the "unwilling spectators" or our special priorities, I find it difficult to make <i>social tango</i>* look interesting for others. Our focus is not on how tango looks from the outside, but how it feels in the couple. Can you make this visible without actually affecting the feeling and therefore having to fake it? This is why for us, our demos will always feel like a compromise between authenticity and wanting to show something appealing. This does not create an ideal mind-set and is particularly disturbing, when you perform at a festival with everyone else showing the big moves. (See video below.)<br />
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The result of these inhibitors: we will only rarely dance as nicely as we'd do in a milonga. Our demos will usually be less musical, less connected, less varied and not half as elegant as in the ronda. Therefore, we are seldom pleased with the videos. Also: The more experienced we get as teachers, the more we become aware of our own weaknesses. In the years, 2016-17, we only uploaded very few videos, because we were not content with the majority of our performances. In 2018, we did a bunch of fine demos, but who knows how long this lucky stretch will hold? It remains scary!<br />
So honestly: for me, performing is often more tedious than managing the pizza-oder-list for our encuentro and only a little less upsetting than doing the tax returns.<br />
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But, if it is that difficult, why do we still perform or invite others to do demos at our events?</div>
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There are at least three good reasons.</div>
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Let me start with the obvious one: attracting students</div>
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Although our demos are not as good as our dancing in milongas, they are still publicity. Hundreds of dancers have visited our classes or have invited us for workshops because they have seen our videos on Youtube. Sure, word of mouth (about quality of teaching) or us going to events and dancing with people are as important, but: a tango teacher has to be visible as a dancer.</div>
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And by my last sentences you will understand: The target audience of a demo is usually not the one in the room, but the ones watching on the internet. We were amongst the very first teachers to post dance-videos on our site - many years before Youtube. Back then, other teachers still feared that a video on the internet might allow dancers to copy their steps and therefore make classes obsolete. That was a wee bit short-sighted. For us, videos were an important trigger for our early popularity. </div>
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And also: attracting the right students<br />
Our initial reason to upload videos to our site in 2002 was not publicity, but to prevent people from coming with wrong expectations. Back then, social tango was still rare and most teachers were focussing on the big moves - in particular in their shows. We did not teach jumps and poses and wanted to attract only the people who were looking for what we could actually offer. Also, as beginning teachers we were not so confident in our own dancing and wanted to avoid disappointing more advanced dancers.<br />
Today I am much more self confident and believe that even people who dance better than us can still profit from our classes, but the principle is still valid: a demo will give prospective customers an idea of what you are doing and will therefore sort out the ones, who don't like your idea of tango. Those who show up, will share some general philosophy with you and this creates good conditions for the learning/teaching process.</div>
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Last not least: Inspiration</div>
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Performances can inspire people to take up dancing, to change something in their dance, to develop, to dance better. And this applies not only to choreographed shows, but also to demos of social tango. As there are dancers who want to imitate the kicks and jumps of a show, there are others who strive to walk nicely, because they have seen it in a demo. I strongly believe that the rise of tango de salon / tango milonguero in the new millennium is very much due to showing how social tango can look like: how nice, musical, elegant it can be. Without that, we might still live in a tango world were everyone wears black and red and where it is dangerous to come near another couple on the dance-floor. And there might not be any Encuentros and Marathons today. Without demos of social tango, tango might still be very different. And let us not to forget that the tango shows in the late 70's - 90's caused a tango-renaissance all over the world. So, without performances, there might not be any tango today. </div>
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So, here is my appeal for all the "advanced" dancers being bored by demos:<br />
Before you criticise or yawn openly or pull a face, please think of your favourite dance-partner with the nicest embrace and musicality. She or he might not be dancing that way without being attracted by a video to a particular class. Her or his local organisers might not even have invited the teachers, because they might never have become aware of them. And the teachers whose classes influenced you in the past, might not be able to do their jobs, because no one would even notice them and therefore would not work at influencing more people to dance nicely. So: if you still want new people to be attracted by social tango or to learn important skills in classes, please be aware that this won't work without demos. Performances are part of the package and won't go away.<br />
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Deal with it.</div>
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Part of the demo in Lyon (2007) after the negative comment. Back then still with Ganchos and Voleos. I think one cannot see the nervousness, but I felt super bad.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/S6gDARHPSHw/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S6gDARHPSHw?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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A demo at a festival in Portland (2010). We were totally intimidated by all the other teachers impressing the audience with jumps, kicks, speed of lightning and complex moves. Because of being so nervous our repertoire was even more limited than usual. Nevertheless, no-one seemed to notice and the demo was very much complimented on because of its purism:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Gdjrg0gn5tc/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Gdjrg0gn5tc?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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Performing the same song as in the previous video (Bajo el cono azul, OTV), this time for an audience, that made us feel welcome from the moment, we stepped onto the dance floor. On this evening, we even gave two encores and it was one of the performances that we uploaded (almost completely) to Youtube in 2016.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/SPbV9nCGR_w/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SPbV9nCGR_w?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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A more recent demo from Firenze, just to make the point that we always perform nicely there, because the audience is so welcoming. We have uploaded videos each year that we have worked there:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/qU6Nk5rXfNA/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qU6Nk5rXfNA?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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<i>* The words social tango for me describe any tango, that could be danced in a (moderately) crowded ronda. High voleos and certain forms of ganchos are therefore tabu. Also any reliance on memorised figures, as well as followers projecting their legs into huge steps and decorating every movement will make navigation difficult and the dance less social. So please be aware, that not every teacher couple dancing in a close embrace will show social tango. Or teach it in class. </i></div>
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-25422287530507805292018-10-17T12:14:00.000+02:002019-07-09T09:43:08.926+02:00Encuentros & Festivalitos Milongueros 2019<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Here I am again.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A lot of friends have asked me to post another list of event-recommendations for milongueros. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I have hesitated for quite some time, as I still find it difficult to offer that nowadays. Why?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- The numbers of so-called milonguero-events have risen even more and I can only visit a fraction of them, as I am working most of the weekends. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- A few events have developed in a way, that I really cannot recommend them anymore to Milongueros. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- Some events have been stopped. One of my favourite events (Abrazos in the UK) will e.g. not take place in 2019 because of Brexit issues. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- In general, the "milonguero" events are changing along with it's population. There is a tendency to not visit all milongas of an event - which changes the atmosphere a lot.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">- The borders between marathons and encuentros are getting more and more blurry. I myself will visit a marathon in Vienna this November. Let's see how that goes.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">All in all, there are many reasons to not post any recommendations.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But of course I still love going to encuentros or festivalitos milongueros, because this is where tango is danced in a way that I can relate to. I always try to keep a few weekends per year free to dance with my friends. And sometimes I am lucky to be invited to dj or teach at such an event. Then I am even happier, because I can combine the pleasure of working and dancing in the ronda! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I have therefore decided to post another choice of events that:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">1. ask participants to pre-register for the whole event,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">2. use role- or gender-balance to ensure that everyone gets to dance,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">3. will take at least 3 days and have separate Milongas,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">4. use traditional music in tandas & with cortinas,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">5. encourage cabeceo & mirada, in particular by placing seats consequently around the dance floor and installing enough light to actually be able to see across the room,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">6. encourage dancers to leave the dance-floor after one tanda to find a new partner,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">7. are meant to attract people who want to dance in a close embrace in a civilised ronda.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Events, that have these features are in general called Encuentros or Festivalitos Milongueros (see note below). Festivalitos might include a short demo as well as some classes that focus on social tango. There will </span><span style="font-family: "\22 trebuchet ms\22 " , sans-serif;">nevertheless </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">be no</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">live-music</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> or </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">extended shows</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> at these events. The Milongas are reserved for dancing. So they could be called Encuentros+. Please note that separate seating is no necessary condition of a milonguero-event. In fact, I do better in a mixed-seating environment.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So, here goes:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">EVENTS, that I organise or where I dj or/and give classes in 2019:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.anem.dk/lacolmena/" target="_blank">La Colmena</a>, Copenhagen, Denmark - April 19-21</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.tangokombinat.de/pequena.htm" target="_blank">Pequeña</a> (Tangokombinat), Saarbrücken, Germany, June 21-23 (Festivalito)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.embracenorway.com/" target="_blank">Embrace Norway</a>, Lillehammer, Norway - July 5-7 (Festivalito)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.milonguero.si/index.php?page=en" target="_blank">Festivalito Rural</a>, Verzej, Slovenia, August 23-25 (Festivalito) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">FCA (Tangokombinat), Saarbrücken, Germany, Oktober 12-14 (private event) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">EVENTS that I have visited in the past:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://pasionaria-milonguera2017.blogspot.de/" target="_blank">Pasionaria Milonguera</a>, Nice, France (Date uncertain)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.tangocrema.it/ysm" target="_blank">Yo soy Milonguero</a>, Crema, Italy, April 19-22 </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Rendez-Vous Milonguero, near Lyon (formerly SJMM), France, May 3-5 (private event)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">*<a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" target="_blank">Les Cigales</a>, France, May 30 - June 2</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.ensuenos.pt/2018/" target="_blank">Ensueños</a>, Porto, Lisbon, October (Date to be announced)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">*<a href="http://www.nocitango.it/" target="_blank">TangoAGoGo</a>, Lago di maggiore, Italy, October (Date to be announced)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.tres-besos.ch/" target="_blank">Tres Besos</a>, Basel, Switzerland, November 1-3</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">*<a href="http://milongueandolisboa.wixsite.com/te-quiero-lisboa" target="_blank">Te quiero Lisboa</a>, Lisbon. Portugal, November, November 22-24</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.abrazamebarcelona.com/" target="_blank">Abrazame</a>, Barcelona, Spain, December 6-8 (marathon-encuentro mixer)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>(I will try to go to 1-2 of them in 2019. But some do not meet to my personal preferences, so I would not visit all of them again. The events with * use separate seating of leaders/followers.)</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">EVENTS that I have not yet been to, but that get good feedback by many milongueros, depending on their preferences: </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nochesdeinvierno.com/" target="_blank">Noches de Invierno</a>, Reichenau an der Rax, Austria, January 4-5</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" target="_blank">Juntos</a>, France, February 1-3</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://milonga-a-promotora.pt/eng/em18en.html" target="_blank">A Promotora</a>, Portugal, March 1-4</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Ronda de primavera, Kehl, Germany, April 8-14 (privat event)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Bomboncito, Basel, Switzerland, springtime (private event)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://encuentroporteno.com/" target="_blank">Encuentro Porteño</a>, Amsterdam, Netherlands, May 2-5</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://encuentrodebrujas.be/" target="_blank">Encuentro de Brujas</a>, Bruges, Belgium, May 16-19</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nochesdeprimavera.com/de/" target="_blank">Noches de Primavera</a>, </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Reichenau an der Rax, Austria, May 10-12</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nocitango.it/" target="_blank">Avventura Milonguera Peace & Love</a>, Nocy, Italy (around June)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nochesdeverano.at/de/index.html" target="_blank">Noches de Verano</a>, Reichenau an der Rax, Austria, August 9-11</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" target="_blank">La Franteña</a>, France, August 15-18</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://laparadamilonguera.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">La Parada Milonguera</a>, Treviso, Italy, October</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.milongueandofrance.com/" target="_blank">Yupie</a>, France, October 18-20</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Paquita, Sarrebourg, France, around New Year (private event)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>(Many of the events on this part of the list use separate seating. Please check in advance, if this is of any importance for you.)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And last, not least - the UK EVENTS:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">These are events of which the future is uncertain, mostly because of Brexit. If they do take place again, I will certainly go there. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Abrazos (Tangokombinat)</b>, Dartington, Devon (May): Took place from 2011-17 and then went on hold for one year. But then came Brexit, so our colleagues suspended it again. Might come back, if there is no hard Brexit or if the situation in the UK will not deteriorate completely. I am not holding my breath though. Very sadly.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Sueño de Escocia</b>, Linlithgow, Scotland: one of my absolute favourites 2018, but who knows what happens next year. Even without Brexit - it was a first-timer and it is uncertain, whether the lovely organisers will do it again. But the pressure on them is definitely high. Everyone loved it! (Edit: Will take place again in 2020.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">That's it for the moment. I might update the list as soon as I get more info. Please also write to me, if you discover a mistake. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please note again: </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is a very personal list of recommendations. It is subjective, but all the events on my list are suited for dancers with a milonguero philosophy. There are many more Encuentros, that I either don't know or know to be fakes. And there are many small, more local events as well. I am here sticking to events that are well-established and that aim to attract an international crowd. For a complete listing, please visit this <a href="http://milonga-a-promotora.pt/eng/page38.html" target="_blank">site</a>. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">General note on Encuentros and Marathons:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nowadays, some Marathons seem to have the same or most of the features as described in my 7-point list above. But as I have not been to any of them, I cannot vouch for that. Things are constantly on the move in the tango community and these two terms might not exist in 10 years anymore. But in this article, I am speaking from my perspective for the year 2019. </span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-57652964453899720202018-05-05T15:20:00.003+02:002018-05-05T17:39:04.694+02:00Photos and Films at Tango Events - how it affects all of us!<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">From May 25 on, the GDPR (general data protection rule) will come into direct effect in all EU countries. The law is meant to prevent the misuse of personal data - in particular by the big firms who make money by processing and/or selling data.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But the law will also affect every single person living or working in the EU and it will have a huge impact on the tango community - that has become very dependant on the exchange of digital data via e-mails, online forms, websites, youtube and social media. A lot of tools and commodities that we have been using or enjoying on a daily basis will have to be re-structured or even abandoned. And although the law certainly is of noble intent, a lot of its outcomes might be quite devastating.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The law is applied a differently in the EU countries, but in Germany, there is no extra regulation, so the GDPR regulations will have to be interpreted by model lawsuits. Depending on which country you live or work in, that might be the same or comparable because of a very strict interpretation in the country affected. Everyone will have to check whether and how exactly the regulation apply to him or her.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because of this, my life as a tango teacher and organiser has again become more complex, costly and work-intensive. In the last few weeks, I have spent many hours and quite a few Euros to update five websites and several online forms as well as restructure my general way of data collection and processing. One of the sad outcomes is, that there won't be anymore comments on this blog. I have disabled all further comments in every single blog post - separately, because there is no option to do that for the entire blog in general. ARGH! All that work to in order to make the business GDPR compliant. Not being a lawyer or even interested in that kind of stuff made it even harder for me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Ok. That does sound so bad and so far, the extra work and costs just affected us (and every other European organiser and teachers who takes his or her job seriously). Obviously it of no big interest to the consumers, the event- and class-participants. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately, affected tango organisers and teachers will have to - sooner or later - adapt their fees for classes or events in order to compensate for huge amount of extra work and costs. That’s already quite inconvenient, isn’t it?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But, money aside, there will be other (more immediate and sad) effects on our tango experience.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It concerns all tango photography as well as videos taken during events.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is the law:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The GDPR says that every collection of data has to be agreed upon by the person whose data is collected. Digital photos and videos as well as their processing is considered as processing data after Article 2, Paragraph 1, GDPR.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Therefore every photographer, film-maker or event organiser will have to ask for permission after Article 6, Paragraph 1 GDPR before any photos or videos are taken. The object has the right to withhold this permission or to withdraw consent after Article 7, Paragraph 3 GDPR at any moment.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">How is this different from the previous practise?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Although you had to ask for consent to take a photo before GDPR, there were quite a few exceptions that allowed tango photographers to take nice pictures and post them on facebook or exhibit them in another form: </span></span></div>
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<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Declaring the photos/films as art,</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Only asking the person in focus for permission. People not in the focus (e.g. seen from behind or taking a only a small space in the picture) could be declared as accessories and therefore did not have to consent.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Define the event as private and posting it only to those who have attended.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Defining the event as public.</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And let’s be honest: most people love tango photos or did not care so much, as long as the photographer did his/her job in a discreet manner and was willing to take down photos which one did not like after publishing them.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Now the law requires, that everyone who will recognisable in a picture (also if it is just by a haircut, tattoo or figure) has to consent before any film or photo is made at all forms of events - e.g. weddings. Also the form of storing and publishing of the material has to be informed about and agreed with. The photographers or organisers have to be prepared to produce this written permission upon request of the subject or of a regulatory authority. They will have to face potentially huge fines, if not complying to the law.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What does this practically mean?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It will be almost impossible to spontaneously take a nice photo or film the ronda or crowd. In any case, you will have to get permission before. That might create more or less difficulties. Check out some different cases:</span></span></div>
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<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As long as it is a very small crowd - like our Tangokombinat Minilonga with 30 people or so - all that might not be such a huge effort - just annoying, because everyone has to sign a paper form at the entrance of the milonga. This means that you actually have to have someone sitting at an entrance desk, not just a desk with a money-box. Why: because the filled-out form itself is an information about somebody - data that has to be protected from misuse. The cashier has to make sure that no-one else reads it. One person more to pay or compensate for or "bye-bye" dancing for the organiser!</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">At an encuentro or marathon, you can ask people to agree upon registration, but they can revoke their permission at any given moment. So it is already a lot more work beforehand. And then imagine, you’ve got 200 participants, 20 of them not agreeing and the photographer or film maker might not know everyone personally - in particular if he/she is not a dancer. He/she will have to check before every photo or film, if anyone within sight did not comply. Most likely with the help of a list and someone actually knowing all participants by name. This will be the organiser, who is already busy with lots of other things or who might want to dance as well. Sure, there is the possibility to give the non-compliant participants badges to wear, but checking for them in a crowd will also take time and honestly - who wants to wear a stupid badge? Or force someone to wear it? For me, that opens up quite another box of Pandora.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">An open Milonga or a Tango Festival, where people show up spontaneously at the door is even more complicated. You will have to make them sign paper forms (see above). Just imagine how long a check-in might then take. And then let's hope that you can actually spot the non-compliants in the crowd.</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A last example: taking a video of a demo or a class summary. Apart from the potentially huge effort of asking permission, the camera will be moving, so it even harder to control who you are filming at any given moment. You can of course invite everyone who did not comply to move out of the camera angle. And then you just have to hope that no-one stays seated in a visible spot and complains or even sues later. Who will risk filming under such circumstances? Sure, in some countries making such clips just for personal usage might still be allowed - but how many of them end up on Youtube?</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Imagine what all of this does to the artistic spontaneity or expression of a photographer or film-maker. It kills it. Plus the additional work! Apart from the preparation by getting people to consent, the complete raw-material has to be carefully checked before further processing and deleted in case it shows someone who was filmed by accident or someone who revoked consent after the event.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So from now on every photographer/film-maker/organiser will think about if having a few nice photos is still worth the effort. And every serious professional will have to increase prics. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What is the outcome?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The best outcome: Having pictures or films made at tango events will become more expensive and these extra costs will be payed by the consumer's fees. </span></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The worst-case scenario: There won’t be any pictures or videos. Knowing the community and its mechanisms, I predict that many event organisers will just save on the expense or effort.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And would this not be incredibly sad? Don’t you all love the (moving) pictures of dancers in a nice embrace or of your favourite performers during their spectacular demo? And now think of what kind of damage this does to the artists or teachers who depend on videos or photos for promotion.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">No problem for Tango Escenario by the way, if it is exhibited on a stage without showing the audience.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">All of this might have a huge impact of how tango is perceived from the outside or what kind of tango will be popular in the future. Tango as a world heritage, in particular the social tango we love could become much poorer and ultimately might face a decline because of this reduced exposure.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">You think that I am exaggerating? Let’s hope so, but let’s not count on it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">How does this affect us?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">By us, I mean Melina Sedó & Detlef Engel as well as the Tangokombinat-headquarter. Our UK section might not have these problems after the Brexit - maybe the one reason to looking forward to it. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">We love to have pictures taken during ours events. What would an encuentro be without the photos of happy people in lovely embraces to remember it by? We would like to preserve this!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Also there are a lot of people who enjoy watching videos of our demos - which have been crucial in our advertising for the last 17 years. We were amongst the first tango dancers to upload dance-videos onto the web - long before Youtube or Facebook! A lot of people invited us or came to our classes because of a video they had seen. Without the videos - we would not be were we are now.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What will we do?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">1. We will ask every visitor of our events to allow us to take pictures or videos of him/her. We will do so upon registration or with the help of an extra form or with a paper form to sign upon entering a milonga. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">2. If there are too many (more than 10% of all visitors) not consenting, then there will simply not be any pictures or films of this event. The efforts and risks involved are just too high.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">3. Because of the ambiguity of the law - we are not yet sure who will be liable, if a law is broken - we cannot officially authorise third parties to film or take photos. You will have to do so on your own risk.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">4. We will ask for consent before videotaping any of our demos or class summaries - no matter who the organiser of the event is. </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">5. In cases of filming outside of the EU or when filming in dark light settings, this might not always be necessary and we might additionally blur the film around the edges to make extra sure. Also some EU countries (e.g. Sweden) have taken extra measures to create own regulations that overrule the GDPR and might ease the situation. Therefore we might sometimes be able to film a demo without the written consent of the spectators at a local event. But what happens at a Festival in Sweden, with visitors from all over the EU? Do I need a written consent of a German or Greek dancer? Or do I need the consent in general because the laws of my home-country applies when posting a video on the internet via a german server? So many people give different answers. This is quite confusing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am not a lawyer and I seriously hope that some of the regulations might turn out to be interpreted more liberally as I now have to assume. But m</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">any of the questions have yet to be answered in courtrooms. This might take years and until then, a lot of lawsuits will cost a lot of money. We definitely won't take any risks.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know that this was a really boring post, but one that I hope many tango organisers, teachers and dancers will read. You seriously have to form an opinion and take care of stuff ...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">... before someone gets hurt! Or cries because of a huge fine. </span></span></div>
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-69362159317274770352018-04-27T11:53:00.003+02:002018-05-05T17:51:56.460+02:00GDPR complianceHello everybody.<br />
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In order to make my blog secure, I have taken the following measures:<br />
- I have activated SSL.<br />
- I have disabled the "followers" field. My followers will not be visible to others anymore.<br />
- I have added a site with legal details and my data privacy policy.<br />
- I will from now on disable comments on new posts. (This is really unfortunate, but as long as I don't find a possibility to add an opt-in box to the comment function, I cannot take this risk. You can discuss my posts with me on my Facebook profile.)<br />
- I disabled commenting in all past posts. Single-handedly for every one of them. Phew!<br />
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I am still researching, if I have to take additional measures, so if you can think of anything, <a href="https://www.melinasedo.com/contact/" target="_blank">let me know</a>.<br />
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Have a good day,<br />
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Melina<br />
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<br />Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-30546692291390542082017-12-20T10:48:00.000+01:002018-04-27T18:49:58.598+02:00Confusing Kisses and EmbracesMany years ago, when I started dancing tango for a second time, I felt quite uncomfortable in the tango community.<br />
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This had nothing to do with the dance or the music - I liked all that from the start.<br />
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But the many mannerisms in the tango world did not fit my rather plain and outspoken manners. This applied in particular to the typical greeting customs. The kisses between almost-strangers, two or three, sometimes even four on the cheek, often combined with loud exclamations of joy, as if you were greeting a long-lost family member! I am - after all - mostly German, and have not imbibed such habits culturally. The only people I would kiss were lovers and close gay friends, not even family. By the way, my Catalan relatives were quite reserved as well - you'd have to search hard for a more effusive Mediterranean element in my upbringing. Hence the instinctive rejection of everything over the top. Detlef - who did not know me personally yet - apparently used to call me "the woman who never smiles".<br />
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Naturally over time, I came to terms with the besitos, bisoux and baci. Most of you will know, what I mean: you suddenly find it normal to kiss 50 strangers at a milonga and have to pay attention to not greet your postman the same way. You don't even have to like it - but the sheer force of habit! In the first years, I completely freaked out my friends, who were either used to a very brief hug or just a nod and hello. For them, the kissing felt totally phoney. Luckily they told me so and we got back to our normal forms of greeting.<br />
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But kissing is not the only issue. If you teach tango professionally and do not have a normal "work life" anymore, the informal ways of communication in the tango community will influence other fields as well. Apart from my sweetheart and a few old friends or family-members, my contacts to non-tangueros are limited to the odd salesperson and - once in a while - a doctor, accountant or bureaucrat. This is why I am not used to displaying "grown-up", formal behaviour any more., like e.g. shaking hands with someone. And: In tango, you will mostly use first names. In real life, you only address friends and family by their first names and in Germany you will furthermore use the formal "Sie" when talking to anyone else. But after so many years, this now feels un-natural for me. And as most of my written communication is with tango organisers and clients as well, this even affects my letters to non-tangueros. I think my landlord is constantly shocked by my overly casual mails.<br />
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But there has been a further development in more recent years:<br />
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When dancing and teaching with such a constant focus on the close embrace and intimate connection, you get used to a very physical contact with other people. There is quite a risk of loosing the feeling for other people's personal space. More so, as I have many good friends in the Encuentro community, where constant hugging outside of the dance floor feels so natural, not only to greet someone. Some say, that these friendships are superficial and that you do not really know most of the people; that all is fake. But does this matter in the moment? I remember e.g. a wonderful hug with a female friend during a Di Sarli tanda. We stood silently outside the dance floor, not talking, not moving, only embracing. I felt safe, loved and very much at peace. It does not really matter, if I don't know your parents or your profession. We can still feel close and one can get addicted to that form of nearness.<br />
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So whilst I once perceived the kissing as an invasion of my personal space, I now sometimes feel rejected when someone greets me in that manner. I ask myself: why is that person so distant? Does he or she not like me? Have I done something wrong? And then I remember that not all tango people are used to the intense greeting with a heartfelt hug, in particular not newcomers, whom I don't want to affront.<br />
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This is why I now constantly have to run a mental programme when interacting with all kinds of people, tangueros and non-tangueros alike: How do I address this person? Is a kiss (or two or three or four) appropriate? How near can I stand to someone, how appropriate is it to touch this person, can I hug him or her, and if so: how long and intensely? It is a little irritating and gets even more confusing, if you take into consideration the various forms of interaction in different cultures.<br />
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But apart from that slight disturbance in my behavioural patterns: Am I not lucky to work in an environment that allows for such close connections? With there being so many lonely people in the world who are longing for the slightest physical contact, I've got embraces in abundance!<br />
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For this I thank you, my tango friends.<br />
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Disclaimer:<br />
Do not misunderstand me. I still don't wanna hug or even kiss anyone anytime. There are still people I don't like or moments when I need my personal space. Sometimes, you'll just get a nod and hello or "Mahlzeit". But you'll know how I feel, because I will never I never be "touchy-feely Melina" who embraces the whole world in-distinctively. Neither studying psychology, nor doing Yoga could turn me into that person. Tango won't either. I still believe that a smack on the head would do some people a lot of good and - as you know - there are quite a few tango-habits that I will never get used to. So, no need to fear that "nasty Melina" has been replaced by some lovey alien. I am still me. The strong need to write this last paragraph proves it.<br />
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<br />Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-90565225914896241852017-11-17T11:29:00.001+01:002018-04-27T18:50:18.817+02:00Making better choices - wasting less time, energy and money<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Tango is an art, it is a social dance and it is a business. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Understanding these different aspects of tango is crucial when it comes to making informed decisions about what events you go to, what teachers you choose and how you want your dance to develop. So this post is about priorities and money well spent.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When it comes to choosing tango events, many people make conscious and well-informed decisions. Since the turn of the century, the tango community has grown and diversified and there are now events for all tastes. (Check out this <a href="http://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.de/2016/03/abc-of-tango-events.html" target="_blank">post</a> from last year.) </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There are of course dancers who love all sorts of events, but most of us have preferences. I think that’s a good thing, because knowing what you like and where to find it will minimise the risk of being disappointed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But are tangueros and tangueras as careful when it comes to making general decisions about their dance and with whom they want to study. I am not so sure.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">We are regularly teaching in Basel (Switzerland) in the form of consecutive intensive seminars - 4 hours on a Sunday over the course of 3-4 months, 1 class each month. People will book the entire seminar, that are accompanied by a guided practica. The groups are limited to 10 couples and we drive from and back to our hometown on the same day. Six hours of driving and 4 hours of teaching on one day ist quite exhausting and we ask for an appropriate salary. So these classes are not cheap and if someone commits to such a course format and is willing to pay a considerate sum of money, you’d think that they inform themselves in advance about what to expect. But this is not always the case. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Last Sunday was the first module of the new series - a Milonga seminar. As announced in the class description, we started with an half-hour-session of bodywork on yoga-mats. I immediately noticed a gentleman, who did not take a mat and preferred standing in the back without doing the exercises. I did of course not insist that he participate. For all I knew, he might have a health issue. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The rest of the seminar contained - as announced - lots of musical work in the group, enough time to apply the musical concepts in the parallel walk and two simple movements, that we varied on several levels to not have the participants memorise a step. There was a lot of interaction in form of games, short discussions…</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">During the entire class, our special participant was obviously not willing to really commit to the class objectives. His facial and corporeal expression was defensive, if not hostile. As he was also struggling with the execution of the exercises, we of course offered feedback and help as we did with everyone else. He did not even show a positive reaction when being addressed personally in a friendly manner. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">After class he told the organiser, that he would not come back for the rest of the seminar. He did not feel cared for and would have preferred that we showed more steps which he then could have repeated, like the argentine couples do. (His words, not mine.) In addition to that, the organiser hinted that the gentleman may not be used to receiving an honest feedback as most teachers in that region usually praise without offering alternatives.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So our guy was upset and quit. This is sad and I wonder, if we could have done anything else to improve the situation. Maybe. I will certainly analyse it in-depth to do better another time.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But I feel strongly, that there was not much that we could have done. I think we were not the right teachers for him and that he was looking for something that we would not provide. This is why I reckon, he cannot have read the class description or checked our website in advance. A purely frontal classes with step learning was not what we promise - on the contrary. So is he to blame for his disappointment?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Not entirely.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">How many teachers will claim that they teach social tango and don’t show steps but rather focus on connection or musicality? Workshop description are often exciting reads. But when you visit the class, leaders and followers will have to stand on opposite sides of the room and practise complex moves independently from each other. So how can clients rely on anything that is published or even be bothered with reading it? After all, any written material ist of a promotional nature and professional teachers are trying to attract and not to put off dancers. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Actually, believe it or not, I have to exclude ourselves. Already our first videos in 2003 were uploaded to avoid clients coming with false expectations. After all there are lots of things that we won't teach and the ones we teach, we will present in-depth. Our classes are (albeit Detlef's inclination to jokes) not geared towards entertainment, but towards serious study. This is why everything we write (and do) is meant to encourage the right clientele and discourage dancers who are looking for a different kind of tango or learning experience. Of course we do not always live up to our expectations and might even disappoint the people whom we want to attract. But having participants who are not open for our philosophy and/or methods are luckily a rare exception. This is why the recent incident made me ask:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">How can we avoid such situations? How can future clients really inform themselves about the product they buy and therefore improve the chances that both students and teacher are content with the work.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">From the teacher’s side, I find that quite simple: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please live what you teach. Don’t advertise falsely. If you want to teach a social dance, please dance socially! If you want to teach complex and acrobatic moves, take dance classes, practise every day and make them look as perfect as possible! If you claim to be good teachers, please prepare your classes properly and constantly work on your teaching methods or skills! In any case: if you take money for a product, please take what you are doing seriously! <a href="http://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.de/2011/01/its-job-for-gos-sake.html" target="_blank">It’s a job - for god’s sake.</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">My advise to all students: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Do not rely solely on what any teacher writes. Look at what he or she does and examine the results of their work. Then make a decision based on what you want to achieve in tango. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So this post is ultimately about defining one's priorities and then choosing appropriate products. </span></span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The following is a description of the steps of such a decision-making process.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>A Checking your general motivation</b></span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Ask yourself whether you really want to work on your dance and are willing to learn, maybe even change? Or are you happy with where you stand? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">If the answer to this question is:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am happy with what I know and do; I don’t need to develop any more - this is perfectly fine. Don’t force yourself to take classes, because everyone else does or if you go, comprehend them as an entertaining activity. But do not visit any classes in which your abilities might be put into question. If you are not willing to receive an honest feedback, the result can only be frustration for both you and the teachers. Also: please do not expect to dance with all the top dancers. Unless you are already perfect (which is unlikely, because no one is ever), they might want to develop and could be looking for something different in the dance.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Although I am a teacher, I don’t think, that one has to learn and improve constantly. If you are happy with your abilities and the resulting situation then why should you? Spend your money on a nice pair of shoes! I mean it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But if your answer is:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yes, I am curious and there are things that I want to improve or change - then you should try to define your priorities and goals. Without knowing what you want to achieve, the hole learning process will take much longer and you are going to spend a lot of money on trial and error.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">B Defining your priorities </span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is about defining how you want to dance, so please ask yourself the following questions: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Do I want to dance elegantly or is this not my priority? Do I want to decorate my steps? Do I want to be challenged with complex movements or am I happy with simple variations of the walk? Do I want to dance tango shows, do I want to become an artist or do I want to dance socially only? Do I want to feel comfortable and want to be invited for my nice embrace? What kind of music do I like and how do I want to interpret it? What is important for me at this stage of my tango life?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Why don’t you make a list of priorities in a ranking order?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Just to give you an example, these are my priorities as a dancer: </span></span></div>
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<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: normal;"></span><span style="font-kerning: none;">an interesting musicality</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: normal;"></span><span style="font-kerning: none;">harmonious, comfortable movements that feel "technically" right for me</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: normal;"></span><span style="font-kerning: none;">improvisation</span></span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: normal;"></span><span style="font-kerning: none;">an intellectual challenge (understanding how movement and music function in order to become a better teacher and dancer)</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">You can see, that elegance e.g. is not one of my priorities. If elegance develops from a harmonious movement and a good technique, then I am happy. But I would not compromise general relaxation and comfort for looks. This is my personal choice. You have to make yours. If elegance is top priority for you, you will need an appropriate technical approach, e.g. working with projections to make your legs look extra long and straight. Every technique comes with advantages and disadvantages and you should choose them according to your priorities.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So, let us say that you have defined your personal priorities and goals. Most likely taking classes will (apart from serious practise) be one instrument to achieve your goals. This means choosing appropriate teachers. The next paragraph will therefore deal with sources of information and with questions to examine.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">C Choosing teachers</span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>1. Read what they write.</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please read what teachers have to say about their methods, class-contents and their general philosophy. Do you agree? Do you share the same ideas? Good. Please proceed with the next paragraphs. If not, find other another teachers to look into. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But be aware: there is the issue of language. We all use it differently. For someone, improvisation will mean putting together different steps, for someone else it is deciding each moment, which single element to use. "Technique" can be understood as general bodywork, posture, communication and execution of very basic elements (e.g. a pivot) or it can be understood as steps. Also: the teacher's native language may be another than your own and a third language (often english) will be used to communicate. So there is a huge potential for misunderstandings.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Additionally - as discussed above - whatever you read (class descriptions, flyers, websites, blogs - yes, also this one) is ultimately promotional material. I don’t want to imply, that all texts lie. Many teachers will surely advertise with the best intentions of describing their product and motivations properly. But even the most honest text will still not be conclusive, because it does not tell you everything you need to know. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So written material might be helpful to exclude teachers, but you will need information from other sources to decide whether you really want to work with a particular person or not.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>2. Watch dance videos.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Please ask yourself: Do I like what I see? Do these teachers dance complex steps or do they focus on seemingly simple moves? Do they dance musically? Do I perceive them as being elegant? How does their embrace and posture look, comfortable or stiff? Do I see anything at all that I would want to study?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A few hints: If you see a dancer decorating her every move and making lots of high boleos as a result to the most subtle invitation, but you currently want to focus on the embrace, better don’t go to the boleos class. If you see a couple mostly walking to the music and not executing any giros with enrosques in an open embrace, please do not expect them to teach these movements. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>3. Check out the teacher’s activities and behaviour at milongas.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Inform yourself: What is their background? Do they dance in a tango show and understand themselves as artists? Do they visit local milongas or other social tango events? Do they dance with each other or professionals only? Do they dance with "normal" dancers? How do they behave on the dance floor? Do they show off or adapt to the ronda?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A few hints: If the couple in question does not visit social dance events or will only dance with each other - don’t take their class on adapting your embrace to different partners. If they disturb the ronda with their fancy moves, don’t expect them to teach a tango that is fit for the social dance floor. But: The skilled artists might nevertheless be the perfect teachers for you to develop a complex repertoire if you are planning on performing in a theatre or if you are looking for a practise challenge.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I am no artist, so please do not expect me to teach you a lot of things that will impress an audience. But by watching me dance at a Milonga, you could come to think, that I might help you to enjoy a tanda of Biagi or Di Sarli! </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A note: many teachers (including myself) will be tired after a day of workshops and may not dance a lot during workshop engagements. So you might not want to base your decisions on the observations of one or two workshop-weekends only. And of course there are brilliant artists who are social dancers at the same time!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>4. Interview other consumers.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">If a couple is either teaching locally or is travelling internationally, there is the chance, that others have already taken their classes. Ask about their experiences. Did they like the class? Was it well prepared? What are the pedagogical methods of the couple in question? Do they teach frontally or do they interact? Do they show many steps or do they work on the basics? Is there additional class material? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A hint to the decision making process: Please do not take a class of teachers that might engage you in group interaction, when you just want to receive input. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>5. Look for class summaries on the internet.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Class summaries do not only provide information about class-contents, but might </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">also give an impression about general methods. There are e.g. no typical „end-of-workshop-dance-demos“ from Detlef and me on the internet. Why? Because we rarely show steps and will in any case rather make an extensive summary with explications in which we explain the basic concepts and then additionally send written material by e-mail. As we do not want dancers to memorise steps, we cannot just have them film the moves at the end of a class. In order to show what we do, we have uploaded two excerpts of class summaries on Youtube. They are quite old, but still give a good impression. One is in </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p69C1f4pPdw" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', sans-serif;" target="_blank">German</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, one is in </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_z6fTYD1Xts" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', sans-serif;" target="_blank">French</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Other teachers will have similar videos on the internet. Watch one or two of them before signing up for a class. If the class summary shows a long sequence of acrobatic moves, please be prepared for that kind of work in future classes. If they focus on small technical details, don’t complain if the they ask you to pay attention to those details in class.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>6. Dance with the teachers and/or their students:</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is actually the most important criterion. If you don’t like what you experience, then don’t take that class. If you like their embrace, musicality, movements, navigation skills - go for it!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But, as I mentioned in section 3: You cannot base such a decision on one or two samples only. Every dancer - including a professional teacher - will have a bad moment and not every student is a key to judging the teacher’s abilities and methods. You will need a little time to get a valid impression. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Also: you cannot expect a professional teacher to dance with every potential student, so dancing with the students will be a more likely option. And ultimately, they are even more important, as they show the results of the teaching. Even the best teachers are not always super dancers and some of them will not even use their own principles. There are e.g. teachers who promote counter-body-movement in the parallel walk, but cannot apply it in their own dance. Others oppose to it officially, but still use it unconsciously. So dancing with students who apply these teacher's principles, will tell you much more about the content and quality of their teaching.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">With this, I come to one last observation:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It takes</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">some effort to make informed decisions, but I think it is worth it in order to avoid mis-spending your hard-earned money - in particular if you plan on doing intensive seminars or</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">tango holidays.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Nevertheless, you might not always have the capacity or motivation to go through such a decision-making process. It is totally fine to take a chance and sign up for workshop spontaneously. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But if you do, please do not show up with strong preconceptions. If you are openminded and prepared for surprises you might learn something valuable in an unexpected context or during an exercise that you cannot see the point in at first. Sure, you may also learn that you do not agree with these teacher's ideas or that you are looking for something completely different. But this is positive too, because it helps you define (or re-define) your priorities. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So don’t be mad but rather try to make a better choice next time.</span></span></div>
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-52175915369357927252017-11-11T11:04:00.003+01:002018-04-27T18:50:43.649+02:00Encuentros & Festivalitos Milongueros 2018<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Towards each end of a year, I have been posting my list of recommendations for next year's „milonguero“ events. For the last few weeks, people have been asking me when to expect my list for 2018, but I will have to disappoint.</span></span><br />
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Those who are following me on Facebook know why: there are far too many new encuentros for me to keep track of as my time to visit events „just for fun“ is limited by my work-schedule. So I cannot „try out“ lots of new events or check, if the others are still recommendable. Even more: I find there is a real inflation with effects on the general quality. Every week, I hear of some new encuentro being created. Apart from the fact, that many of them just use the label without being „the real thing“, the sheer amount of events creates a huge competition amongst organisers and makes it impossible to find reasonable dates. At least not without forcing the dancers to making (sometimes quite painful) choices. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because of this, one of our Tangokombinat events - Abrazos in the UK - has been cancelled for 2018 after running successfully since 2011. There was just no way to find a free weekend in which there wasn’t at least one other event targeting the same audience in the desired period. So Andreas and Lynn decided to step back. Let’s hope they will find a solution for 2019.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Also other established events have cancelled, like Carole and Bernard’s cosy encuentro in St. Julien Molin Molette - although the reasons for that might be different ones.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As for the bigger choice of encuentros:</span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know that one might argue that it makes it easier to get into these events and that most of them still fill up nicely - although not as quickly as in recent years. Yes, that is true. But: in order to fill them, organisers will now admit many more dancers who do not actually share the „milonguero“ philosophy. I am not arguing for a pre-selection by dance level or creating „closed circle“ events only. Nevertheless, encuentros used to be events in which the huge majority knew how to behave in a crowded ronda, invite respectfully by mirada + cabeceo and dance in an unbroken comfortable embrace. A follower could dance with every leader without risking being lead into fellow dancers or risky movements. </span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is not anymore the case. Most encuentros are now populated by a very divers crowd, which usually creates more chaos on the dance floor and more uncertainty when it comes to choosing your dance partners. And honestly: we’ve already got the big festivals for that kind of ambiance.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I could give many more reasons why I am not happy with this development, but let me just add: I am wholeheartedly for the integration of new dancers into the milonguero fold and there need to be opportunities to do so. There is the perfect format for that: the festivalito milonguero - an event with the ambiance and general organisation of an encuentro, but adding workshops, discussions and lectures that further social dancing and interaction. Unfortunately most of them have disappeared or been turned into pure encuentros. Embrace Norway is gone, so is Viento Norte and Abrazos had been transformed into an encuentro many years ago. Sure, many experienced milongueros now prefer to concentrate on either dancing or learning on a given weekend, but there were always enough newcomers who were eager to take this as an opportunity to immerse fully into the „milonguero spirit“. Only few festivalitos are left. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Disclaimer: no, that is not me complaining about loosing job opportunities, I am still very busy. (Although I always loved these events, because they posed for me the perfect opportunity to work and dance a lot at the same time, which is not the case on normal workshop weekends.) </span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I think, that there need to be many more of these events to integrate new milongueros and to therefore assure the quality of future encuentros. There are quite some capable teachers who would be happy to join a new nice encuentro. (And yes: including me, whatever my workload is.)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">As for my plans: I have not yet finished the scheduling of 2018, so I am not yet sure, which events I will be able to visit. My work-schedule for the first half of the year is pretty full with our USA tour, the teacher-training and lots of workshops, but I will surely be found here:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.tangocrema.it/ysm" target="_blank">Yo soy Milonguero</a>, Cremona, Italy, March 30 - April 2</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #551a8b; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://www.tangokombinat.de/pequena.htm">Pequeña</a></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"> (Tangokombinat), Saarbrücken, Germany, June 22-24 (info soon)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0000ee; text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://www.milonguero.si/index.php?page=en">Festivalito Rural</a></span><span style="font-kerning: none;">, Verzej, Slovenia, August 24-26</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In the second half of the year, I would like to go to some more dance-only events like <a href="http://milongueandolisboa.wixsite.com/te-quiero-lisboa"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 238); line-height: normal;">Te Quiero Lisboa</span></a> in Lisbon and maybe again Basel, Barcelona or an event in eastern Europe. </span></span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I definitely have to keep some more weekends free of work, because you cannot teach a social dance, if you don’t dance at social events. But that’s another topic for another blog. </span></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Oh... for everyone who still find the list of last year's events useful, just click <a href="https://melinas-two-cent.blogspot.de/2016/10/encuentros-festivalitos-milongueros-2017.html" target="_blank">here</a>. </span></span><br />
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9183577605666117106.post-41398540554307579102017-05-15T12:27:00.002+02:002018-05-05T17:11:32.619+02:00Of Dragons and Bad Hair<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>"Dragons! Ever since he was two years old he had been captivated by the pictures of the fiery beasts in The Octarine Fairy Book. His sister had told him that they didn’t really exist, and he recalled the bitter disappointment. If the world didn’t contain those beautiful creatures, he’d decided, it wasn’t half the world it ought to be."</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">(The Color of Magic - A novel of Discworld by Terry Pratchett)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This is exactly how I always felt. And I was not only missing the dragons. What about vampires, werewolves, witches and wizards? Where were the shining queens, kings and knights? No monsters, no gods, no goblins to be seen. No resurrection, no epic battles, no magic. No magic!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Instead of Galadriel, we get a boring politician with a bad haircut, instead of Sauron a stupid liar with even worse hair. So disappointing.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But there have always existed magicians! They are the ones who take words and create worlds out of them with the pure power of their imagination. The story-tellers, authors, writers of the past and present.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I love music, dance and the fine arts. And movies! But literature for me is the highest form of art. (Please excuse my bias, my dear artist friends and even my beloved.) This is why I have been reading my whole life, why I started to study literature, why I did roleplaying-games, why I always wanted to write a novel - until a friend told me that I’d be crappy at it. Now I might be too old to complete my studies and too discouraged to write, but I can still read. So everything is fine.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But is it?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Where have all the magicians gone? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Don’t get me wrong, I always cherished the approach of describing our world and its inhabitants in realistic or sometimes idealistic forms as done by many important authors of the 19th century: Zola, Dickens, Jane Austin, the Brontes, Mrs. Gaskell, Henry James … Today there are great writers who follow in their footsteps and there are lots of good reads lying ahead. But I was from an early age very much attracted by Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley and those others who created worlds full of mystery, monsters and magic. My true heroes are the fantastic authors of the 20th century: J.R.R. Tolkien, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Umberto Eco, Terry Pratchett.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">(I am aware that most critics would not include Pratchett in such an illustrious list, but I believe he was a master.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The problem is: now they are all dead and I’m seriously running out of fantastic novels to read. Most newer publications have rather disenthralled me. Sure, Steven King ist still living, but after having produced masterpieces like <i>It</i> or <i>The Stand</i> he has long failed to write another comparably compelling story. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">(Again with the alliterations! I guess this is why I should not write!)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There is one magician left: Neil Gaiman. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>Neverwhere</i>, <i>American Gods</i>, <i>The Ocean at the End of the Lane</i>… Those are books that open windows to other worlds and by this make the most poignant observations about our so-called reality, our lives and our fears. I think he’s great. Also quite cute - in spite of the funny hair. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But I am beginning to fear that his fame might keep him from writing great books in the future. He</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> is getting a little too popular and busy posting about his talented wife, his book signings and the TV-adaptation of <i>American Gods</i>. Yes, I am going to watch and like it. And yes, his latest work <i>Norse Mythology</i> was as illuminating as it was amusing, but dear Mr. Gaiman: I need a new world to discover.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because the one in which we are living is getting more dreadful and boring by the hour. Someone has to help me get off the internet and read more about Brexit, Trump and the other evils in my work-free hours.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So please write another outstanding novel into which I can escape. Now?</span></span></div>
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Melina Sedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08727388535288424558noreply@blogger.com5