Musicality_A Musical Journey to the past — BauTanz
We took a musical journey to the past last Wednesday!
It was part of of our Mid-week tango practice and this week’s theme was of course musicality.
But instead on the beat or the tempo or the rhythm we used the music to explore the history of Argentina and to draw some connecting lines to the Tango we dance today.
Of course there is the element of the beat, and being able to recognize and count it; but at the same time we need to look at the music holistically and isolating one element or the other
Quick disclaimer here: No I am not saying the beat is not important and you can ignore it, to express yourself..!hahaha
What could being “musical” mean?
What I would like to encourage you, especially if you are having trouble with finding the beat, when you will be practicing with this video at home, is to refrain from jumping right into dancing. Listen to the different music pieces and try to listen to the historical connection, try to listen to the connecting thread.
The next step would be to visualize. For example one of the videos on the playlist (it is attached below) is from a live candombe performance; there you will notice that the posture of those dancers is very similar to the canyenge posture; leaning slightly forward with the knees bent. But with crisp clear movements. And that perfectly matches the music in both dances.
Then dancing, movement can come into play…not copying but embodying the necessary posture and quality of movement.
So to continue with the canyenge example from above, that posture that makes the couple melt in each others arms and towards the ground, it is matched with an earthiness in the music. Something like gravity pulling you to the earth compared to the milonga where you are ready to hop and play and fly.
So the music and the posture and the steps are all coordinated to create a unison. You have a network, instead of separate choices that you need to make under the different Tango umbrellas
So I hope this helps and I hope I didn’t complicate things instead of explaining..!haha
But we have chats like this every week here at Bautanz, just subscribe to be part of the communnity
And if you want to get dancing right away click here: https://bautanz.com/argentine-tango-technique/musicality/
🙂
Chrisa
P.S: Link to the playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uQh5RfE2XA&list=PLllIglFQNLn_UZwZghekc0v9XqF6yEu0_
Originally published at https://bautanz.com on May 22, 2020.