About
Argentine Tango
History
Tango originated in
Buenos Aires in the late 19th century (about 1870). It is
a dance—and also the music for the dance—resulting
from the convergence of various musical styles brought to
Argentina by African slaves and European immigrants. The word
“tango,” some say, is derived from the Latin word
“tangere,” which means “to touch.”
In its infancy, tango was the cultural expression of lonely
immigrants and societal outcasts in slums and the bordellos
of Buenos Aires, but by the turn of the new century, tango
became a staple of the city’s larger society—moving
to the barrios or middle class neighborhoods, and then to
the Argentine upper class. From 1900-1920, tango took Paris
by storm. And in no time, the dance—and the music—developed
a worldwide following.
Today, in the Twin Cities alone, tango is danced somewhere
nearly every night of the week.
Style
Argentine tango is an improvisational
dance that can be romantic (gentle, sweet, and relaxing) or
loud (fast, sharp, and highly animated). The music is what
gives Argentine tango this wide range of expression.
Argentine tango, which is different from ballroom tango in
posture, embrace, movement, and music, has evolved into three
main styles: “salon,” a very close-hold dance
with tight turns and swivels; “stage tango,” in
which couples are physically further apart and steps are larger
and more complex; and “nuevo tango” or “neo
tango,” a combination of the salon and stage tangos
that’s popular among younger dancers. No matter the
style, Argentine tango is danced counterclockwise around the
floor.
Music-related
If you are fluent in Spanish but still find
it difficult to decipher some lyrics in tango, especially
tango from the early days, the reason could be “lunfardo.”
Lunfardo is a slang of the Spanish language developed in the
19th century and it is frequently used in tangos—sometimes
in small doses, other times in massive amounts—to supply
the nuances and double-entendres. Word play is a characteristic
of lunfardo, for example, reversing the syllables: “tango”
becomes “gotán” or “café con
leche” becomes “feca con chele.”
The bandoneon is the most emblematic instrument of the Argentine
tango. It was invented in Germany by Heinrich Band and arrived
in Buenos Aires in 1865. Before the arrival of the bandoneon,
tango was played with a guitar, harp, flute, and sometimes
accordion. The bandoneon looks like an accordion, but instead
of piano-like keys, the bandoneon has buttons resembling those
on an old typewriter. The sound from a bandoneon
is produced as air flows past a vibrating reed in a frame.
Sources:
AR
Tourism Argentina
Argentine
Tango: A Brief History by Susan August Brown
history-of-tango.com
Secretary
of Culture of the Government of the City of Buenos Aires
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