Tango is not only a fascinating dance but also a fascinating philosophy, culture and lifestyle. The search of tango is the search of connection, love, fellowship, unity, harmony and beauty, i.e., an idealism that is not consistent with the dehumanizing reality of the modern world. The world divides us into individuals, but tango unites us into a team, community and species. In tango we are not individualists, feminists, nationalists, Democrats, Republicans, etc., but interconnected and interdependent members of the human family. Tango calls us to tear down the walls, to build bridges, and to regain humanity through affinity, altruism, cooperation, and accommodation. It is a dance that teaches the world to love.



December 14, 2011

Tango and Romanticism


When people comment that someone's tango is like gymnastics or acrobatics, they are referring to a lack of romanticism in the dance. Gymnastics involves skilled athletic movements, while acrobatics are eye-catching physical stunts aimed at entertaining people. Both of these activities prioritize athletic ability over creating a romantic atmosphere.

Tango, on the other hand, is an art form and social dance that emphasizes artistic and social aspects like music, emotions, feelings, relationship, and aesthetics. Dancers' attention should be placed on the intimate, soulful, comforting, and beautiful nature of tango rather than on physical feats of tricks and complexity. Tango is intended to evoke feelings and facilitate intimacy between partners. It is suggestive of a beautiful romance. In the soul of tango is romanticism, which separates tango from gymnastics and acrobatics.

If we take romanticism away from tango, what's left is a sport or show. Unfortunately, in a culture where games rather than classics, sports rather than art, and technologies rather than humanity are the main emphases, that is what tango increasingly becomes. People, especially young people brought up in this culture, exhibit a lack of depth and lasting quality. They focus too much on the flashy forms rather than the substance, and constantly seek for change and novelty. To retain tango's classic, romantic and elegant beauty, we have work to do. One of which is to reflect more romanticism in our teaching and dancing, for example, using simple and natural steps, focusing on the elegance rather than stunts, showing more emotions and feelings, etc. Fashion will go out of style, but never will romanticism, because it resides in our humanity. We only need to awaken it.



1 comment:

  1. Paul,
    I read everyone of your articles here and I love everything you have to say. It is as though you read my mind. As I read your blog, I find myself thinking "Yes! that's what I mean! that's exactly what the problem is!..". It is as though we are on the same wavelength.

    The problem is I know tango communities where even though they know about these issues, they would ignore it, go on about their business as usual. It is so sad that in our society we are so gravitate toward instant gratification, don't want to cultivate anything that is hard but meaningful.
    Thank so much for sharing your thought.

    With regard,
    ......

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