TangoSouth
Well, here we are on the 1st September. Where did the Summer go? (what Summer?)
During the break (what break?) we have been very busy getting ready for the Autumn season and beyond, and we’re very pleased about a number of exciting new goodies coming up in Tango South in the coming weeks. Here are the details in the following Posts . . .
The Autumn season starts with our usual Monthly Milonga. Enjoy an elegant evening out dancing and socialising with Peter DJ-ing as usual, offering an enticing choice of gorgeous music (with our unique Tanda information), excellent sound system and atmospheric lighting. This beautiful new hall has a sprung dance floor and good ventilation. Light refreshments are available; feel free to bring your own drinks. Dancing from 7.45 to 11.15pm.
Less than half a mile from the A31 Farnham By-pass and 200 yards from Farnham Station, St Joan’s is at 19 Tilford Road, Farnham, Surrey, GU9 8DJ. There’s a large on-site car park. Entry is £8 per person. Our selection of Werner Kern shoes will be on display.
Memorial Hall, Farnham
We’re all in for a treat – during the break the hall has been completely redecorated from the ceiling down. It looks lovely, and makes the Memorial Hall one of the best venues around.
STOP PRESS
Our Monthly Milongas are growing in popularity, so from January 2011 we will be moving them to the Memorial Hall, giving us more dancing space.
New Venue - The Ascension Hall, Aldershot
As promised, we have found another venue for an evening of Foundation, Progressive and Integration classes. These will be every Wednesday, starting in January 2011.
In the meantime, we have taken advantage of the vacant Wednesday evenings for the rest of this year, and arranged some new one-off events – an intensive four evening programme of Milonga & Vals, and a six week condensed Tango Foundation Course to get newcomers dancing by Christmas. More details below.
The Ascension Church Hall is only 10 minutes from the centre of Farnham. Lots of off-road parking. There’s a kitchen for the usual complimentary teas, coffee and biscuits and a wooden dance floor.
The full address is:
Church of the Ascension
Ayling Hill
Aldershot
Hampshire
GU11 3LL
Directions will be posted on our Venues page shortly.
As ever, we have taken a fresh look at all our classes and the way we teach, to offer you different perspectives, a deeper understanding and enjoyment of your dance, and perhaps unlock some new aspect of Tango you have previously found elusive.
Existing dancers: please remember to come to the class preceding your own, to warm up, refine your technique and learn any moves not previously covered.
New Dancers: it’s not too late to register – contact us to discuss the most appropriate classes for you.
Here is our weekly schedule in detail:
Sundays at the Memorial Hall, Farnham (starting Sunday 12th)
5.00 – 5.15pm Registration / Warm Up
5.15 – 6.15pm Foundation Class
6.30 – 7.30pm Progressive Class
7.45 – 8.45pm Integration Class
9.00 -10.00pm Advanced Class
Thursdays at St Joan’s, Centre, Farnham (starting Thursday 16th)
7.15 – 7.30pm Registration/ Warm Up
7.30 – 8.30pm Foundation Class
8.30 -10.30pm Practice Evening
In addition to our regular programme, we have some interesting “extras” for you in the coming weeks.
See details below:
An intensive programme on Wednesday evenings at the Ascension Church Hall, Aldershot (29th September, 6th, 13th & 20th October), 8.00 to 10.30pm.
If you want to improve your Milonga and Vals skills or simply to get to grips with the different rhythms, now is your chance to immerse yourself and concentrate solely on these dances.
Each evening will follow its own structure for developing your dance, so you can come to any or all of them. We expect to do about 70% Milonga and 30% Vals each evening. As everyone will be at a different level, we will aim to spend time with you as a couple or individually on specific areas of improvement.
You need to have been dancing Tango regularly for at least 3 months or completed our 3-month Foundation Programme, but you don’t need to have danced Milonga or Vals before. You do, however, need someone to dance with! If you are a single dancer, let us know as soon as possible. We don’t match you up with a permanent partner, but we do need to ensure a reasonable balance of numbers. Better still, please network between yourselves to find a suitable dancer partner and come together. We will be offering dancers to change partners during the classes.
Cost per evening will be the £10 pp, for two classes plus Practice time including the usual teas, coffee and biscuits Just turn up.
The full address of the venue is:
Church of the Ascension
Ayling Hill
Aldershot
Hampshire
GU11 3LL
It doesn’t matter which order you do these Workshops, both are designed for anyone interested in Tango music and would like to know more - you don’t need a partner.
There will be no formal Tango dance teaching during both afternoons, although we will play Tango music during the break times so you can have a dance if you wish.
Please book as soon as possible. The cost of each Workshop is £20 per person, or £35 for a couple booking together, payable in advance. Payment can be made on our website via Paypal (cards or PayPal account accepted) or by cash / cheque at your next Tango South event.
‘Getting Inside the Music’ – Saturday 2nd October
This workshop will focus on the music itself in more detail - its structures, rhythms and phrasing, and the contrasting styles of different bands and eras. We’ll also consider the implications of all these musical riches for your dancing. There will be (literally) hands-on exploration of rhythm using Peter’s extensive collection of drums and percussion instruments, so you can feel the rhythms in your body as well as just hearing it in your head.
‘Appreciating and Understanding Tango Music’ – Saturday 30th October
Following the success of this Workshop earlier in the year, we have been asked to repeat it for those who missed it the first time. The afternoon will give you an overview of:
The history of Tango music, illustrated with musical examples
Key Tango musicians, their styles and implications for dancing to them.
The relationship between Tango, Milonga and Vals.
The evolution the Tango band – the “orquesta típica”
An introduction to the Bandoneon, with two typical instruments (an Alfred Arnold and an Ela) on display.
Wednesday evenings, 7.30 – 10.30.
27th October – 1st December inclusive.
Ascension Church Hall, Aldershot
This Intensive Course will cover our usual 12-week programme in just 6 weeks! There will be 2 x one hour classes each evening with a break for tea and practice. Ideal if you:
- couldn’t make our regular programme this term
- have a spouse or partner who would like to fast-track through the normal Foundation Programme
- want to improve your core technique, balance and musical awareness
- started Tango before and gave up
- learnt Tango in choreographed sequences and would like to explore Leading / Following & Improvisation
- want to be dancing Tango by Christmas
- want to join in the fun of dancing socially as soon as possible
- want to be able to join our Progressive Classes starting from January 2011
Numbers are limited. We manage the balance of Leaders / Followers. If you have a dance partner, please book together. For single dancers, we don’t match you up with a permanent partner, but please let us know as soon as possible if you are interested as you need to have someone to learn and dance with.
The Full Course fee is £60 per person, payable in advance.
Payment can be made via Paypal on our Website or by cash or cheque.
The full address of the venue is:
Church of the Ascension
Ayling Hill
Aldershot
Hampshire
GU11 3LL
If any Tango South regular class dancers would like to be a Volunteer Partner on this Course, please let us know.
Di Sarli, Carlos [1903 - 1960]
Carlos Di Sarli was born on 7th January, 1903, in Bahía Blanca, a seaside town some 300 miles south of Buenos Aires. His parents were Michelle Di Sarli, an Italian, and Serafina Russomano from Uruguay. The family ran a gunsmith business and at the age of thirteen, the young Carlos was accidentally shot in the head by an employee, damaging the optic nerve. This is the reason behind the characteristic dark glasses which he invariably wore for the rest of his life.
Di Sarli is renowned for elegant, expressive tangos and very beautiful melodies. Initially his musical style was much influenced by Fresedo. The first tango he composed was Meditación in about 1919, but he never recorded it. Bahia Blanca, named after his home town is one of his finest and best loved numbers. Other key compositions include Corazon, Milonguero viejo, Nido gaucho, Porteño y bailarin, Whisky, Verdemar and Otra vez carnaval, whilst his recordings of Tangos such as El ingeniero, Germaine, Nueve puntos, Siete palabras, Tristeza marina, Vamos and Viviani are typical of his style and a delight to dance to. He is less well know for Valses, whilst, in my opinion, his Milongas lack the rhythmic bite and clarity of, say, D’Arienzo, an inevitable by-product of his emphasis on melody and phrasing.
He studied classical piano as a child at the local Conservatory, but at the age of 13 he started touring with a Spanish musical comedy company, visiting several Argentine provinces, playing popular music and tangos, much to the disgust of his teacher and his father. Shortly after he debuted as soloist at a biógrafo (cinema) and at a tearoom in the city of Santa Rosa.
In 1919 he assembled his first orchestra to play at a tearoom in Bahia Blanca, marking the real beginning of a long and celebrated career as a band leader. In 1923 he arrived in Buenos Aires with his brother Roque, where he joined the band of bandoneonist Anselmo Aieta.
After playing with a number of other bands, he formed his first sextet in 1927, performing at different tearooms and the following year he signed his first contract with RCA-Victor. In a career spanning several decades his peak as a composer and leader was probably in the 1940s, although El Señor del Tango (The Lord of Tango) as he was known, received wide acclaim until the end of his life. He made his last record for Phillips in 1958, two years before his death.
Laurenz, Pedro [1902 – 1972]
Pedro Laurenz started learning the violin as a child, but at the age of fifteen he was introduced to the bandoneon and went on to become one of the greatest bandoneon players of all time, playing with other Greats including Donato and De Caro. In De Caro’s orchestra, he sat alongside the other great bandoneon player of the period, Pedro Maffia, with whom he colaborated extensively as performer and composer.
As a bandleader his output was amazingly small, but he certainly made up in quality for any lack of quantity. He only recorded some sixty-odd tracks, but many consider that his first recording, Arrabal, in 1937, heralded the beginning of the Golden Age of Tango. Listening to it today, it is amazingly ahead of its time compared to many of its contemporaries, and wonderfully fresh. Other Laurenz compositions (sometimes in conjunction with others, especially De Caro and Maffia) include Amurado, Berretín, Mala junta, Mal de amores, Milonga de mis amores and Orgullo criollo.
Overall, it is the pure musicality of Laurenz that is so delightful, with every musical element – melody, harmony, rhythm, phrasing and orchestration – equally valued. To me, he sounds like a more modern version of De Caro.