Magnani is an artist. He painted murals in the Mansion Dandi Royal in San Telmo and he carved entire walls in the lower studio. His imagination grabbed my heart in 2006, but we would only come home with some paintings and why did I ever think, "Mike, Let's invite him to our apartment and see if we can afford a mural. But we did and he did. 8 days of laughter, tango and watching the progress. 10 tango figures with the "prostituta" in orange looking longingly for the tango. Each face shows a diferent emotion. The day we left- May 1st, when the shutters closed the light out of our apartment- I felt like I had left my family behind. We named them as he painted. Cecilia, Silvina and on and on.
The apartment is now a home to us. All the touches and lots of light with the wonderful city views from the 10th floor make it our special "santuarium."
Magnani introduced us, without English to Podesta, Lydia Borda and his friend Ernesto who promised to dance with me in the fall.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Friendship - More complex than I Understood
Studying at the Schemel Forum at the U of Scranton this February gets mixed in with our tango.
The quote, by C.S Lewis in our ridiculously-expensive-course-book again makes me think of the dance.
Describing the difference between eros and philias:
"Lovers are normally face to face, absorbed in each other.; ARGENTINE TANGO
Friends, side by side, absorbed in some common interest." AMERICAN TANGO
Now which one would you choose?
The quote, by C.S Lewis in our ridiculously-expensive-course-book again makes me think of the dance.
Describing the difference between eros and philias:
"Lovers are normally face to face, absorbed in each other.; ARGENTINE TANGO
Friends, side by side, absorbed in some common interest." AMERICAN TANGO
Now which one would you choose?
Sunday, February 14, 2010
FARLEY's on Heart Day
"Tango Romantica" at Farley's with more than 36 on the floor enjoying the lesson by Donna C and Cathie J. The boleo led to the leg wrap which we had learned before, but found easier and lovelier this time. Mike looks like a sultry Gavito and the evening just felt so Argentine.
Donna C. dragged 6 friends from her ballroom class and a couple wandered in from Tampa. They found our site on the internet and called here last week to confirm the time. They love the Dandi in San Telmo where they stayed on their first trip to BA. Who wouldn't love the Dandi? I find it hard to believe a tango craze is taking hold in Scranton. Matt bought red roses for the women and Mike gave Hershey kisses in pink and red to each table. We are so in love with tango I don't know what to say. Thank you all for the support and for just showing up.
Donna C. dragged 6 friends from her ballroom class and a couple wandered in from Tampa. They found our site on the internet and called here last week to confirm the time. They love the Dandi in San Telmo where they stayed on their first trip to BA. Who wouldn't love the Dandi? I find it hard to believe a tango craze is taking hold in Scranton. Matt bought red roses for the women and Mike gave Hershey kisses in pink and red to each table. We are so in love with tango I don't know what to say. Thank you all for the support and for just showing up.
Friday, January 22, 2010
A Dancer's Ear- GAVITO- Posted by Mike Lucey
Saber escuchar la musica... The legendary dancer Carlos Gavito, recognized milonguero and Zen philosopher of the tango dance said: The secret of tango is in this moment of improvisation that happens between step and step. It is to make the impossible thing possible: to dance silence.
Carlos Gavito: The important thing is to know why we want to dance. We dance a solitude that we have inside us and cannot occupy with anything. This gap, that emptiness to which we put movement is the TANGO.
Carlos Gavito: The important thing is to know why we want to dance. We dance a solitude that we have inside us and cannot occupy with anything. This gap, that emptiness to which we put movement is the TANGO.
Monday, January 11, 2010
New Year- New Apartment DEEP SOUTH
Florida Street? Calle Florida? Why not the outer areas from central city our friends asked. This location is a gem for us. San Martin park is 1 block N. Our favorite dance studio is 1/2 block S in the most gorgeous shopping center in the world. Florida has a parade of 1,000,000 pedestrians every day. We can walk to the movies, the theater and 100's of restaurants and shops are around every corner.
Cool it is. The subway 2 blocks away and a taxi/bus system where there is no waiting-ever. I LOVE Buenos Aires.
About buying an apartment. This was almost impossible. The money had to be paid in cash in US dollars. Getting a bank account so I could wire in the money took many bank visits. Paper after paper and then more papers to sign-"just one more". We had wonderful people- Federico, Susana, Emiliano, Jorge V and Jorge A, Marina, Sara and her husband, Julio, Martin and Luis, Enrique helping us through the process, but not without tears of frustration. People at the police department, AFIP, immigration, HSBC and the Banco Nacion never met us with anything less than courtesy and smiles. Meeting Sara de Anchorena- the owner- was a pleasure. After 4 weeks of running around, it's ours. Tiny, beautiful and it's ours. Mike and I came home with suitcases empty and heads full of ideas for our next visit in the spring. Already packing.
Cool it is. The subway 2 blocks away and a taxi/bus system where there is no waiting-ever. I LOVE Buenos Aires.
About buying an apartment. This was almost impossible. The money had to be paid in cash in US dollars. Getting a bank account so I could wire in the money took many bank visits. Paper after paper and then more papers to sign-"just one more". We had wonderful people- Federico, Susana, Emiliano, Jorge V and Jorge A, Marina, Sara and her husband, Julio, Martin and Luis, Enrique helping us through the process, but not without tears of frustration. People at the police department, AFIP, immigration, HSBC and the Banco Nacion never met us with anything less than courtesy and smiles. Meeting Sara de Anchorena- the owner- was a pleasure. After 4 weeks of running around, it's ours. Tiny, beautiful and it's ours. Mike and I came home with suitcases empty and heads full of ideas for our next visit in the spring. Already packing.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Workshop Weekend in Ithaca
Oliver and Silvina both had birthdays on November 7th so the weekend was special for all of us. Dinner hosts at the farm made our stay even more special. Wolfgang and Susan concocted a carrot soup that was laced with ginger. The rest of the meal was equally delicious. Nice to visit with Joaquin, Vatan, Juan and other tango lovers.
Workshop 1 - rebounds with a slow, quick, slow beat. Most of the guys mastered the step but not the beat.
Workshop 2- interrupting the cross. This was gorgeous but hard to lead. I decided to do the cruzada every time unless the interruption was clear. Worked well for me. The first one we learned was an overturned cruzada. This is my favorite walking step this year or maybe ever. I have to remember to drill into the floor before the forward step.
Anyway I don't know how the Durkins drive the distance in 1 1/2 hours. 2 hours and we were just pulling in - the last 30 minutes seemed like forever in the dark.
The more we organize and get ready for our trip to BsAs the messier it gets.
Bonfire might be good right now. Too many clothes, too much clutter and not enough time to do something about it all.
Workshop 1 - rebounds with a slow, quick, slow beat. Most of the guys mastered the step but not the beat.
Workshop 2- interrupting the cross. This was gorgeous but hard to lead. I decided to do the cruzada every time unless the interruption was clear. Worked well for me. The first one we learned was an overturned cruzada. This is my favorite walking step this year or maybe ever. I have to remember to drill into the floor before the forward step.
Anyway I don't know how the Durkins drive the distance in 1 1/2 hours. 2 hours and we were just pulling in - the last 30 minutes seemed like forever in the dark.
The more we organize and get ready for our trip to BsAs the messier it gets.
Bonfire might be good right now. Too many clothes, too much clutter and not enough time to do something about it all.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Words by Deby Novitz- thoughts by many
Deby has an honest and interesting blog.
She is an expat who in now a resident of BsAs.
Also rents rooms to tourists.
http://blogcritics.org/culture/article/whose-tango-is-it/
In the arms of some old guy I would get a music lesson. In the U.S. you dance the same to every song. People dance tango to vals, a tango variation to milonga, the same steps to everything. Here in Buenos Aires I was told that you dance different to each orchestra. Long back steps to DiSarli, more giros to D’arienzo. It was exciting. There was so much to learn and the milonga was my teacher.
What makes Argentine Tango unique is the abrazo – the embrace. When you take that away, you take away the essence of the dance. The tango is a seduction. It is two people playing with each other. The tango like a seduction is improvisation. It is not the same steps over and over again. When you take away the embrace, you dance the same steps over and over again, and you don’t even dance it to tango music, what are you dancing?
She is an expat who in now a resident of BsAs.
Also rents rooms to tourists.
http://blogcritics.org/culture/article/whose-tango-is-it/
In the arms of some old guy I would get a music lesson. In the U.S. you dance the same to every song. People dance tango to vals, a tango variation to milonga, the same steps to everything. Here in Buenos Aires I was told that you dance different to each orchestra. Long back steps to DiSarli, more giros to D’arienzo. It was exciting. There was so much to learn and the milonga was my teacher.
What makes Argentine Tango unique is the abrazo – the embrace. When you take that away, you take away the essence of the dance. The tango is a seduction. It is two people playing with each other. The tango like a seduction is improvisation. It is not the same steps over and over again. When you take away the embrace, you dance the same steps over and over again, and you don’t even dance it to tango music, what are you dancing?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)