local or international connection..

Busy busy busy..even our "local" tango scene has revved up over the last year or so. Now it's difficult to plan bigger events such as workshops and milongas for fear of clashing with another group nearby (when I say "local" I mean probably within an hour's drive )...

However.....our last really special tango splurge was a few weeks ago now, with our much awaited for and greatly appreciated Korey Ireland and his partner Adeline Schieferstein, (it took a year of planning to arrange..) and yet its taken me till now to sit down a minute and reflect.

I accept no one wants to read endless waffle, but still I need to remind ourselves of a few points of the weekend we so much enjoyed and benefitted from here in the wilds of Worcestershire, England, not Buenos Aires that is..!!

We read a lot of conflicting comments on the web from tango purists, tango "fascists" ..and then those who really want to be in the spotlight literally- on the stage, legs flashing everywhere, epitomised by TV's "Strictly..."

Our mission here in gentle Worcestershire is to promote salon tango, or social tango, the non aggressive, elegant, subtle form of tango danced more typically in the milongas of Buenos Aires. From the outside this may not look so dramatic as some styles, but then, the feeling runs deeper, so nerve-tinglingly deep in close embrace but perhaps "just walking" that I know which style I prefer to share with someone else..

So looking back on that weekend of workshops we shared with Korey and Adeline, it's the memory of that gentle presence that prevails, discreet, moving and intense...

the focus on the connection, the relationship between each other, and the MUSIC, said it all.

We were treated on the Saturday night to a live and spontaneous musical set with Korey on his bandoneon, Cliff on guitar, Xenia violin and Peter Okell-Walker also guitar...

"Brilliant. "...The floor was filled with joyful dancers..a dream indeed.

We will carry on this mission here in Malvern, to try to develop tango for all people, for enjoyment, spiritually and emotionally, it has to be salon (or social) tango...

Incidentally, our "local do, although primarily intended for the tango regulars from here and nearby, in fact brought visitors from far and wide including, Huddersfield, Southampton, Wales, Bristol, and New Zealand! Great to make these lovely warm tango connections ...

looking forward to continuing with this ..more similar workshops and weekends hopefully coming up ....

Tango Malvern web site is http://www.tangomalvern.com

Summer holiday tango

The summer is usually a time for slowing the tango classes - but this year we simply couldn't resist carrying on, only missing 1 week so far!
The club wanted to carry on and when it came to it, I couldn't bear to stop either.
Our "bumper holiday specials" are just that - an extra dose of fun and games..
yoga for preparing to tango, technique exercises for tightening up on details, and practice sessions to let go (hopefully,) explore the steps again and enjoy, yes most importantly ENJOY the shared experience that is tango.
A young club like ours deserves to be nurtured.





Tango Malvern web site is http://www.tangomalvern.com

Tango and George Bernard Shaw, Malvern

Back home in Malvern, having left behind the frenzy of Buenos Aires, and surrounded now by soft greens of our English countryside, I find a new interesting historic connection. For some inexplicable reason I have always maintained that although Malvern is a small town, tango could still happen , being a place rich in art and culture, music and literature with Edward Elgar and George Bernard Shaw being perhaps two of our most famous associations.

Now we are getting ready for a new phase in our young tango club's development, as we have found a new venue for milongas. A beautiful Victorian gothic mansion in Great Malvern called "The Grove" has presented itself which lends itself perfectly to intimate tango soirées - it has a magical atmosphere within a private house and gardens, and the concert hall itself has known both Elgar and Shaw perform there. Thrilled to find out this romantic history I couldn't believe my eyes this weekend when at Birmingham attending the International Dance Festival at the Gallo Ciego Tango club, where I picked up some flyers and other tango papers by the door which I later read this morning. In " The 400 club" paper, an article titled "Tango and the man" Tom Keenes writes how George Bernard Shaw, author of 63 plays including Pygmalion (1913) actually did learn to tango in his later life and referred to this as "the only discoverable dance" - he apparently took tango lessons while on holiday for 6 weeks in Madeira and attributes his teacher Max Rinder as being "the only man who ever taught me anything!"

Maybe, when we dance tango in the dimly lit Grove concert hall perhaps with a fire crackling in the fireplace should the chilly weather so dictate, we'll be thinking of Sir George hoping he smiles on us too.

Our first milonga and tango workshops in a series of "summer tango soirées" will be next Saturday May 8th at The Grove, Avenue road, Malvern with teachers Loyd Vidal and Sandra Bernard who will also do a performance during the evening. (full details on the website at Tango Malvern.)

Tango Malvern web site is http://www.tangomalvern.com

Milongas in London, Edinbugh and Belfast, oh! and also Cambridge and MAVERN!!

I am always "boring the pants of people" apparently by constantly claiming that tango is much more than a dance, it is obviously good for you physically, but far more interesting really is how good it is for you emotionally. Dancing in close embrace with a partner satisfies a basic human need to connect with others and combined with the powerfully romantic music to fuel and inspire us, it can be a life changing experience, for many of us, fortunately, for the better.
Now, funnily enough, I was actually at the Southampton Boat show with my partner doing something "non-tango" for a change (well, I do this sometimes!) when I was informed very kindly by my sister that there 'd been an interesting article in The Times,(TheTimes2 arts/style/life) entitled "Easy steps to save your marriage " and how not only did the article make references to various scientific research about the diverse health benefits of learning tango, including it could save your marriage and consequently also thousands of pounds of legal fees.......
but also that finding somewhere to tango or go to a milonga now is easier in recent times as these events now happen regularly "in London, Edinburgh, Belfast, as well as provincial towns including Cambridge and MAVERN."
So there you are, you know where to come, and its true, we held 2 lovely milongas back to back recently at Colwall Village Hall near Malvern, and one very special milonga at "The Fold" also near Malvern, which even had the added attractions of a tapas bar...
And we fully agree, tango is excellent for your health, see you soon fellow tangueros and tangueras!!!

Tango Malvern web site is http://www.tangomalvern.com

tango our passion..

So much has been going on I haven't been able to sit down and blog for weeks! I can't stop thinking about tango yet sometimes the actual writing down all the points that filter through my head can seem like a monumental task..there is just so much to say- as tango has to be the subject I talk most about, conversations at parties always seem to come round to tango, even studying the enneagram with a local group (The Enneagram-understanding the 9 personality types ) inevitably appears to subdivide people into tango types or non-tango types! A fascinating debate, perhaps do a workshop sometime on that too..?
Where to start though? Tango Malvern the young tango club in Worcestershire, carries on quietly growing and developing...we near the end of our what would we call it, term perhaps? We need a few weeks to regenerate and refresh ourselves and while a lot of our tangueros are away on their family holidays, doing their gardens, attending Harley Davidson rallies, dressage events, weddings, or whatever....we will be busy refining all our plans and details for our first ever Tango Fiesta in Great Malvern, scheduled for the weekend of August Bank holiday.
But what a wonderful few weeks we've been having here in the heart of the England, or the "New Three Counties Tango society?" perhaps? Another point to discuss?
Last weekend we hosted an impromptu tango event with Aisha and Victor, the charmingly passionate couple from Buenos Aires, at a wonderful venue nearby to Malvern, an "ecoCafe"in a beautiful converted barn, complete with tapas and a bar. The atmosphere was similar to a private party. The numbers seemed about right, almost perfect balance, and even my first shot at "Tango dj" got the thumbs-up, which I was extremely grateful for, thank you! We were delighted to the positive response about Asha and Victor's teaching during the workshops we arranged, they were clear and direct, while reminding both men and women of their vital roles to ensure the essence of tango is not forgotten. We had some laughs which illuminated the serious looks of concentration, "Ladies! choose your favourite chest! and " Men! choose your favourite cleavage!" summed it all up...only someone with such a charming accent as Aisha could say such a thing perhaps, yet really it is so appropriate, so refreshingly non-PC, alarmingly sexist perhaps, so perfectly Tango! We love tango.






Tango Malvern web site is http://www.tangomalvern.com

Edward Elgar and Francisco Canaro..

It is really lovely to see how many people stay to dance in the practica now on "Tango Malvern" evenings. ..Last night I danced with some of our recent beginners who were all doing very well, particularly with interpreting the music..it maybe that our first "Tango Malvern" milonga is not that far away....and how exciting is that! The thought that in Malvern there is a budding tango scene, and a the sounds of Canaro, Pugliese and Di Sarli are drifting through the walls of our Edward Elgar rich architecture ...
The Malvern people seem hungry for this cultural development, and already mutterings are heard from those toying with the idea of planning trips to Buenos Aires ...maybe we could organize a grand tour...a little way off perhaps.. but not impossible by any means..
Certainly this summer we will be holding our first milonga at the very least....Plans are afoot!
And maybe another reason why I'm able to think about such big plans now is that a special Irish Setter is looking much better now, and is allowed out again for some "moderate" walks on the malvern hills, where it's not only the Enigma Variations you can hear these days across the breeze....

Tango Malvern web site is http://www.tangomalvern.com

Tango Malvern's Blog is subject to copyright protection. ©Tango Malvern 2009

We authorises the visitor to this Blog to make one free copy, by downloading to storage media, of any items featured on this site for the purposes of private research, study and reference. Any other copying or use of Tango Malvern copyright materials featured on this Blog, in any form or medium, is subject to the express written permission of Tango Malvern .

Tango Malvern has taken every care in its preparation of the content of this Blog but shall not be liable for any damage or loss, foreseeable or unforeseeable, arising from information featured on this site.

shall we practica or milonga?

Tomorrow is the first day of Spring, and the sun shines, the daffodils sway and birds twitter in anticipation. My Irish setter is thankfully getting better and today we'll take a gentle stroll together to loosen his joints up just a little. If he could tango, I've always thought he'd make a wonderful leader, elegant yet masculine, but never yanking me about on the end of his lead!
There are events on this weekend, Bristol, a milonga with La rosa on Saturday, and also locally at Ross, with their practica at The Courtfield Arms , Lower Lydbrook, Nr Ross on Wye, which brings me to the subject of choice. sometimes how does one make the decision? After all, both possibilities have their attractions, one is really quite near and the other about an hour away down the motorway. Practicas are lovely for simply enjoying dancing with some of your familiar dance partners. It doesn't matter if you make a "mistake," for either the man or the woman, as you are supposed to be there to practise anyway, so you can learn from those experiences for the better hopefully. The practica is also an excellent first social dancing forum for the beginner, as you don't need to worry quite so much about the "Codigos"(codes of behaviour) although its also a good place to start observing the general rules, such as making sure you always dance in the correct direction around the room, in the "line of dance" and avoiding crashing into other dancers around the floor. So in essence, the practica is a brilliant safe place to work on lots of things before you actually try the milonga. There is nothing to stop you also practising on your own, maybe just walking around the dance floor in time to the music, or using the wall as a useful prop for working on particular steps, ochos, pivots etc.. simply make use of the space available, and take every opportunity to dance with as many people as you can. It is still a relaxing social event and you can dress up if you feel so inclined as well, trying out different shoes for comfort as well if you like. Its also quite fun to have a go at practicing your "cabezeo" as well, its easier with people you know! Although quite often, its surprising how direct you have to be with someone, as they may smile back when you catch their eye, unsure about whether you're just smiling or actually trying to attract them to the dance floor! In a practica situation, I feel I can be quite brazen and if I hear a piece of music playing that I can't resist dancing to, I have been known to simply say to someone "this is a beautiful tango, its a shame to waste it!" ...and fortunately usually they agree !
This is all wonderful experience in building up the self-confidence before going to the more formal milongas. I remember when we went to our first milonga, having never been to a practica before. I might have looked the part, but when we saw the crowded dance floor swirling around with those shockingly experienced looking couples, my heart sank. Certainly my partner gulped as we tried to somehow slip in discreetly into the slow lane, while fearfully executing our first awkward little sequence of steps."the basic 8", which is even more tricky for the novice to do at a milonga, as it starts with a back step of course! A few friendly practicas would have been invaluable at this stage, but we didn't know that then. Now, having learnt the hard and painful way, and having read about the history of tango, how the Argentineans learnt it, which was mainly of course through dancing with more experienced dancers at practicas, (not milongas) I recommend to new dancers to go to practicas often, as they really can provide some of the most enjoyable dancing you'll ever have!
So maybe this week, I've decided, a practica at Ross could be the ideal therapy!



Tango Malvern web site is http://www.tangomalvern.com

Tango Malvern's Blog is subject to copyright protection. ©Tango Malvern 2009

We authorises the visitor to this Blog to make one free copy, by downloading to storage media, of any items featured on this site for the purposes of private research, study and reference. Any other copying or use of Tango Malvern copyright materials featured on this Blog, in any form or medium, is subject to the express written permission of Tango Malvern .

Tango Malvern has taken every care in its preparation of the content of this Blog but shall not be liable for any damage or loss, foreseeable or unforeseeable, arising from information featured on this site.

Tango Malvern - Argentine Tango

Something special is just about to happen in the beautiful spa town of Great Malvern, the inspirational setting to a history of art and music, a group of enthusiasts are creating a club devoted entirely to Tango, the authentic Argentine style, where elegance, drama and passion combine to make one of the most addictive dances ever!!

If you already dance Argentine tango we will be pleased to welcome you, just as much as if you are completely new to the dance.

We are meeting every Monday in the middle of Great Malvern for classes for all levels with experienced Tango teachers, and also we will be holding regular practicas, where you can immerse yourself in practising your skills, or simply dance the hours away to your hearts content.

Make lots of new friends, have fun, experience incredible emotions, and, improve your posture and fitness at the same time!
Dance to authentic tango music from Buenos Aires dating from the !920s and 30s, through the golden age of the 1940’s and 50’s right up to contemporary tango music…. Be warned you may become addicted

http://www.Tangomalvern.com

Argentine tango in Malvern Worcestershire UK