Toronto Tango
Alberto Dassieu, a true Maestro
Having had the pleasure of watching Alberto Dassieu for years in the milongas in Buenos Aires and dancing with him upon hearing he was doing a North American tour in 2011 with a stop in Toronto the idea of taking a private class with him struck home. What would we talk about, dance, what did I want the legend to share with me?
Upon reflection the easiest course that came to mind for me was hoping he would share a little bit of his insights into the orchestra Carlos di Sarli. Of course he would have some interesting views on the topic and want to include me in on them with his long experience.
The class was very interesting and right after we danced one beautiful tango Alberto honoured me with the invitation to do some demonstations with him in Toronto.
Even though we didn’t have the opportunity to ever practise together; when our chance came to share a beautiful tango at a milonga, Alberto was utterly clear with the vision that we should dance the Tango “Llueve otra vez”.
Thank you for sharing a little with me Alberto Dassieu, a true Maestro.
About the music:
Llueve otra vez
Tango 1944
Música: Juan José Guichandut
Letra: Juan José Guichandut
Escucha corazón
el eco de su voz…
Escucha, corazón, está lloviendo
y la lluvia va tejiendo
los recuerdos de su amor.
¡Qué pena, corazón!
No es ella, ni es su voz.
Tan sólo es la obsesión que me domina,
el recuerdo que castiga
desde su adiós.
Llueve…
y un látigo de luz me azota,
relámpago de fiebre loca.
La lluvia, sin cesar,
golpeando en el cristal,
renueva la emoción perdida.
Y entre la bruma creo ver su imagen,
igual que entonces, diciendo adiós.
Llueve…
y el cielo se llenó de sombras,
lo mismo que mi corazón.
Tristeza que dejó
el eco de su voz.
Tristeza de esperar inútilmente
y creer que nuevamente
con la lluvia volverá.
¡No esperes, corazón!
¡No penes por su amor!
Mañana cuando el sol radiante asome
al calor de otros amores,
olvidarás.
step~swish~swirl…
As the music introduction unfolds, within the dreamy embrace of my partner, my eyes close and mind travels to a place where music and movement reigns.
I step, swirl, pivot, turn and glide in a trance like state.
We breathe together and allow our bodies to melt into the music and absorb the vocal and instrumental lines.
Together we unite as collaborative partners in this realm and dance our beloved tango.
Dancing from the heart
Do you ever wonder how musicians create a piece of music like the tango “Margo” and make it so haunting and beautiful?
The mood within this piece simply begs to be danced slowly and with heart.
Each time I listen to the alluring orchestral introduction which quickly runs into the wonderful vocal melody, my mood becomes melancholy, wistful, and somehow this even slows me down.
The introduction prepares one for the story that is about to unfold musically and in the lyrics.
The musicians that created these gems, loved music. They also loved tango. From this base they chose each music note with great care and respect.
The 1940’s must of been a thrilling time for tango musicians.
If we listen very carefully to the music we can almost imagine our friends from so long ago dancing with us.
Welcoming Claudio to Canada this February…
Join us on Wednesday February 19th at WE Tango to welcome Claudio Strang to Toronto and take part in a special class that will focus on dancing milonga. (How appropriate at a milonga hosted by John Needham!)
A series of classes & workshops will be held throughout February. Please join Isabella and Claudio and take advantage of this unique opportunity to learn their beloved ‘close embrace’ Tango.”
Claudio and Isabella dance the beautiful close embrace style of Tango that reflects the intimacy of the downtown milongas in Buenos Aires. Their simplicity, elegance and passion can be seen in this recent demonstration that was filmed in Cachirulo, El Beso as a ‘despedida’ for Isabella.”
WE Tango
Dear friends,
Pam and John … founders of We Tango … are taking some time off and luckily a few friends of mine gently suggested that I should offer to help them out. To my surprise the ever gracious couple have taken me up on my offer and here I go again … back at Swansea Town Hall.
Please join me on Wednesday nights, from 8p.m. to 10:45p.m. to share some beautiful music, friends and “charla”.
See you there!
Calentito!
“Papas Caliente” by Donato seemed the perfect milonga to dance last week in Buenos Aires since there seemed to be no milongas available with titles like….’Cool breezes’ or ‘Milonga de Patagonia’…. as it happened to be the warmest day ever on record for September.
Still winter but at 29 degrees Celsius who would believe that?
The dancing became much more ‘quiet and still’ reminiscent of how the older milongueros do it… with great reserve and many years of practise of pacing themselves for the long hours spent at the milongas. (Recently a new place to dance at in Buenos Aires opened up with the hours from 17:00 to 03:00! I wonder if there are participants that stay for the full ten hours? And let’s not even talk about the complexities of DJ’ing such an event on a regular basis.)
The weather, mood, provided a lovely chance to dance simply, elegantly and within the embrace of a beautiful dancer…Claudio Strang.
Tango in tiny spaces…
Wood floor, lovely music, nice partner….but oops!
How do I adjust my dance to this tiny little floor space?
Well, nothing beats an embrace that gets a little closer, steps a little smaller and of course more contra-body movement. Connect in a way that is even more intimate.
Breathe and flow with the music and dance creating small spirals as a group.
The milongas in Buenos Aires have this down to a science practically. Everyone dances in a counter-clockwise motion and ‘lanes’ are formed. The group breathes and moves together and an honour of a milonguero is to make sure his partner “never” touches anyone. Passing happens rarely and if it ever does it is from the left.
To see this mass moving together really is something beautiful and special.
Please join us Sunday June 2 at El Almacen and enjoy the beautiful tango music and embrace your own ‘small space dancing’ skills!
Monday Night Practica…
Practica El Beso is pleased to announce a new weekly Argentine Tango practise on Monday evenings from 8-10 p.m. starting on October 1st in the Teiaiagon Room at Swansea Town Hall, 95 Lavinia Avenue, Toronto.
Your hosts will be Isabella and Nicolai.
This informal practise will feature Argentine Tango music from the Golden Age.
The Teiaiagon Room is on the second floor at Swansea Town Hall and features a beautiful wood floor and mirrors.\
Price $8 each participant.
We encourage you to bring a partner to practise with.
Free Parking behind the building and street parking available. We are close to Runnymede subway.
This article has been translated in articulos en espagnol.
Join us for two weeks in May…
gracias y adiós El Beso
…the street Riobamba, an emblemic red door, stairs leading to music, friends, the brief hush of the group at the beginning of the tanda, quick cabeceo’s across the floor and off we go with an embrace that brings us into another space, time, reality…
Practica El Beso 