Posts by tangotango

Although this post is going to be about two performances in which Eugenia Parilla is one of the dancers, it will be about Chicho. It will be about two different aspects about Chicho that are close to diametrically different. When we think about Chicho, we think about one of the great innovators of tango nuevo. We most likely think about him in something like this: Therefore there are many that overlook the fact that all with Chicho is not open embrace. This is also an essential aspect of him: It is hard to comprehend that one and the same dancer is in command of two styles as different as in these two clips. Much of today’s second clip actually borders to a milonguero style, but with some of the repertoire that is characteristic for much more recent styles of...

What is tango? If you ask for what tango is, you will get as many answers as there are dancers. Some say that Canaro is tango but Piazzolla is not. Others say that it is an elaborate variation of the salida. There are those who claim that tango is about two hearts making a connection through movement on the dance floor. Someone else may say that it is the dance that is enjoyed at milongas. In art and life, and by any means in tango, contrary answers may be equally true. Yes, tango is in and of the music (and we believe that Piazzolla’s music is definitely tango music even when Bartók, Stravinsky and Shoenberg are influencing the tunes), and tango is an improvisatory variation of a few basic steps (but we do not believe that the salida is a fruitful point of...

The strangest misunderstanding that numerous tango dancers suffer from is that the arms are not parts of the body. How often have we not heard that you should not lead with the arms, which implies that they are merely ancillary and thus not part of the body per se. Well, is not the point proved when we see how some men try to bend their women into repertoire they are not capable of leading? When women cannot uphold their own balance (and who of us men would not be completely lost in stilettos?) and instead take every possible opportunity to hang on the men’s arms, is that not also yet an argument of the arms’ subordinate role in tango? You do not need an anatomy degree to know that the arms are part of the body. They constitute the upper limbs of what is...

The YouTube clip under scrutiny today is doubtless the one that I have watched the most times. If you know me, you would not be surprised to see my favourites Pablo and Dana in the clip, but you will perhaps be surprised to see them in a very modest dance. Here is no extravaganza, no flying legs, no jumping or any innovative choreography. What you see are two advanced dancers in what looks like social down to earth dance. I must say that the first time I saw the clip, my mind told me that that was all there was to it. Even so, some intuitive part of me was mesmerized. One of the beauties with tango is how you perform the dance from the capacities that your body presents you with. My anatomy teacher from my Pilates education often said that the body is like the...

About the poet Kambiz Iranpour is one of Oslo’s most beloved tango dancers. We are proud to present his love poem on our site. Recommend on Facebook Tweet about it Tell a friend