Tango in the midst of olive groves

Posted on February 5, 2009 by Wolfgang Sandt

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Tango in the midst of olive groves

Sheep bells from the opposite hill. A cloud of white dots sets in motion, disperses between the olive groves’ silver splotches. Silence. Only the singing of the cicada fills up the flickering air. The monotonous chirping is broken by single new sounds. Yoom, bah, yoom, bah. Pugliese sounds over the terrace, the rose beds, becomes entangled in the treetops, vanishes over the hills into distant spaces. Couples finding each other, steps, turns, pausing and starting again.

Tango-Workshop in Umbria. Although not situated as remote as an Argentine hacienda, it is still far away from any hectic pace and noise. Completely forget your everyday life You will find yourself in a little paradise, once you have driven the bumpy road to La Rogaia to its very end. Two old stone houses embedded in a large garden, surrounded by blooming lavender and rose fields, olive groves and meadows. The guests are welcomed to lovely renovated apartments and rooms. Each apartment has its own characteristic style: simple and modern with marble and glass or playfully nostalgic with arch stucco and old pieces of furniture. You will discover a lot of nice details like paintings, sculptures, fresh flowers from the garden, the bottle of wine on the kitchen table. The well-considered arrangement of apartments within the compound of La Rogaia will make you enjoy lots of privacy. The garden offers numerous hidden terraces and corners. And those of you who want to refresh your feet tired by the tango can do so at the pool, whilst glancing over the rolling hills of Umbria, listening into the silence.

Read more http://www.rogaia.de/en/story_tango.html

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Where to dance Tango in Umbria

Posted on February 5, 2009 by Wolfgang Sandt

When we arrived in Italy we found a lot of beautiful towns but no Tango

When we arrived in Italy we found a lot of beautiful towns but no Tango

Where to dance Tango in Umbria

Eleven years ago when we arrived in Umbria we found a lot of most beautiful medieval hill towns and great food but alas! no Argentine Tango. We had to realise that we had come to a real Tango diaspora. So we decided to change that and organized the first steady milonga Umbria ever had seen in a music pub at the little village of Magione, a quarter of an hour drive from the town center of Perugia. The first few Tango aficionados came there from whole Umbria.

In the meantime things have changed drastically. There are several Tango schools at Perugia and you can go out dancing Tango almost everyday.

Here we will inform you as best we can about the tango nightlife in Perugia and its surroundings. If you need a quick information because by whatever accident you stranded in Umbria and suffer from Tango deprivation you can give us a call 0039 075 845457. We don´t guarantee that we´ll be able to help but we´ll try.

Posted in Tango Argentino at Perugia/Italy and its surroundings | 2 Comments

Is there a foolproof way to avoid a "no", inviting someone to dance?

Posted on February 5, 2009 by Wolfgang Sandt

 

La Mirada the Argentine invitation to dance

La Mirada the Argentine invitation to dance

Is there a foolproof way to avoid a “no”, inviting someone to dance?

You probably know the situation. With your last ounce of courage you have made up your mind to ask the nice lady on the other side of the dancefloor for the next dance.

You cross the dance floor for everybody to see, invite her and the only thing you get to hear is a most embarrassing “sorry, no”. Might happen to the ladies as well and in any case it is poison for your self confidence.

So next time you might try it the Argentinian way with “Mirada y Cabeceo” (to look and to nod) which is more elegant and leaves a lot of possibilities to save your face (If your preferred dance partner does not respond to your burning glance no problem. Pretend to not having noticed and try with someone else).

In a traditional Argentine Milonga ladies and gentlemen likewise try to make eye contact with the desired dance partner.

Once the eye contact is made they agree with a nod or maybe a smile to dance together for the next round of dances, the so called “Tanda”.

The man walks over to the ladies seat renewing the eye contact.

Only then the lady stands up to confirm her approval and the gentleman takes  her to the dance floor.

Of course the real gentleman escorts the lady also back to her seat after the “Tanda”.

The Argentinian way of inviting to dance settles also the vexatious and somewhat shopworn discussion whether women are allowed to invite men to dance. Argentinian ladies (and hombres) do it all the time with meaningful glances and tempting smiles. Wow! So nice…

P.S. of course that´s no guarantee to get a dance partner, but at least you avoid the embarassment of getting a “no”

You might also be interested in this article.

Good old Mirada and good old Cabeceo

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Do Tango dancers attract women

Posted on February 5, 2009 by Wolfgang Sandt
Do tango dancers attract women? Who knows...

Do tango dancers attract women? Who knows…

Do Tango dancers attract women?

 

According to the opinion of many women they do.

That is if they are real good dancers.

Being a good dancer in Argentine Tango yet doesn´t mean to be one who shows off performing all kind of complicated sequences of steps and using the woman he dances with as a mere decoration.

A really good dancer is a sensitive person who feels what his dance partner wants and tries to make her feel good and at her ease.

If you talk to old argentine tango dancers who still have experienced the “Golden Age” of Tango in the fourties of the twentieth century, they will tell you, that all women were considered “queens” of the dance floor and were treated with utmost respect.

Actually that respect was a consequence of the early days of tango. Among the immigrants to Argentina and particularly at the big melting pot Buenos Aires there was a terrible lack of women and only good dancers had a chance to get a dance or maybe more than that.

Indeed it was a common thing that men used to practice together to impress the ladies on the dance floor. The beginners were usually dancing the womens part thus getting an excellent understanding of what women liked and needed (at least at dancing tango).

Dancing in the milongas of course, men took the leading role (though instead of “leading” I prefer rather the term “invitation” which describes better what good tango dancers do while they are dancing). 

Dancers had to be clear with their lead, showing the directions they wanted the women to go and at the same time protecting her and their common dancing space against all the other couples on the dance floor (that of course in a very elegant and civilized manner).

Of course a good tango dancer has to dance to the music and will try to interpret it, which means he has to listen.

Argentine Tango therefore is rather a dance for listeners than for talkers.  That means, a good tango dancer is also a good listener, something most women undoubtedly appreciate.

You could describe a good tango dancer as a soft, sensitive, listening macho. A mixture which obviously appeals to many women on and off the dance floor.

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