For four Thursdays in October (2, 9, 16, 23) Fran Chesleigh, our incredible Firehouse Tango resident instructor, will be teaching one all-level milonga class (from 7 to 8:30 PM) in place of his usual beginner and intermediate classes.  For the best results, please try to come at 7. 

As many of our regulars know, Argentine social dancing includes not only tango, but two other dance forms as well - vals and milonga. Since tango is what we focus on primarily in our weekly classes here at the Firehouse, people are often a bit timid about getting up to dance when a vals or milonga are played.

In October, however, all that changes. Because starting Thursday, October 2nd, and running for four solid weeks, Pat and Fran will be teaching a month-long series of special classes in milonga. Their goal is to bring everyone from beginners to advanced dancers up to speed on this exciting Argentine dance. They will begin with the absolute basics of the dance, and move quickly through as much material as time and your progress will allow. By the end of October, you'll know what milonga is, how it's danced, and how much great fun it is to dance.

A Night to Remember!

Flashing lightning, roaring thunder, pouring rain, flooded highways and darkness were not enough to keep our  friends away from Thursday night tango at Firehouse. 

No electricity - hah!  Out came the flashlights.

Fran taught the lesson.  People brought food and we put it out under the battery operated lights, and they ate. We sang Happy Birthday to Tsipoyra and Sydney and enjoyed the delicious cake baked by Tsipoyra's sister.  Carl brought his boom box in and we danced in the dark. When the battery ran out, someone played tango on an iPhone!  And we danced! 

I don't think there is another milonga in the world to which so many people would come on such a dark and stormy night. Thank you all for a night that I will never forget.  We are, indeed, a very special place.

.

Note from Terri

I want to thank all the well wishers and those who shared my birthday with me.

Thank you Roberto, for starting the birthday dance and all of the milongueros who cut in. Thank you Eva, Elena, Sue and Joe, Elena S. Rifky, Judy and so many others for the beautiful gifts. My biggest surprise was a visit from my son Anthony Mele.   I was honored and so elated. Thank you all my friends present and not for all of your cards, telephone calls and blessings.

In addition I have to commend my dear friend Sue Dallon, for playing my favorite tangos and the tandas that she creatively arranged of my favorite singer, Tony Bennett

Forgetful me (Sue)

In last week's newsletter,  I neglected to list Terri's huge, delicious tray of home-made arroz con pollo.  Not only that, but I forgot to mention the champagne brought by Terri and the beautiful toast given by Roberto.  That's what happens when I try to be creative at 1 AM after a night of dancing and celebration.

From Elena Syrett

Dear Sue and Joe and fellow tangueres & tangueros

From Edna Negron

Hi Sue,

So happy to see that Terri had a lovely celebration for her birthday. She's such a special person. I extended a virtual hug to Terry. I was under the weather yesterday with flu-like symptoms, and couldn't make it to Firehouse, but I hope to extend my well wishes to her personally next week.

Also, just fyi.this is the first time I received the newsletter in a few weeks. Maybe a glitch somewhere. I didn't have spam.

Un abrazo,

Edna

October 9
 

Milonga Month Continues

October 16 -
 

Milonga Month Continues

October 23 -
 

Milonga Month Continues

October 30 -
 

Normal beginner and intermediate tango lesson schedule resumes
 

Firehouse Tango's 12th Annual Halloween Milonga (Details next week)

Summer is gone,  we're barreling through 2014, I am doing well with my resolutions.  We will see what happens after we go to Buenos Aires next month.  I'm a bit apprehensive, but hopefully, I'll stay on track. These were my resolutions for this year.

·

My resolutions for 2014

1.      Keep improving my español and study Spanish every day

2.     Keep visiting Buenos Aires

3.     Shorten this newsletter (or at least try)

4.    Exercise every day when I'm at home and try to continue when I'm on the road

How did I do?

 Buenos Aires

We spent five weeks in Buenos Aires last year.  Our group trip is coming up next month, so that's once in 2014.  Joe and I would have liked to try to squeeze in one more time before that, but that didn't happen. 

Spanish

I've been working very hard on my Spanish, which has improved greatly, but never enough. 

I'm now meeting with my Spanish group once a week until our teacher comes back in January. 

My learning sessions with Hilda and Horatio continue when they are here.  Next month's trip to Argentina will, as always, do temporary wonders for my mastery of the language.

To my Spanish speaking amigos: Please keep "hablando espanol conmigo" no matter how much I might resist.

Newsletter

In an effort to shorten this newsletter, I replaced most of my New York and New Jersey tango listing with a link to Richard Lipkin's web page.  It is comprehensive and up to date.  Check it out.  http://www.newyorktango.com/NJTango.htm

Exercise

I've been exercising 20 minutes every morning, which will most likely continue easily until we leave town. November, with our trips to Argentina and San Francisco, could be a killer in this category.  However, I'm packing my bands and my good intentions.

So sorry to hear the sad news.

He was a very dear person who did an excellent job of keeping people informed

regarding the Tango community.

I shall miss him.

Really miss you guys and getting rusty out here in Europe!  Funny story: I'm at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and decide to take a pedi-cab to Checkpoint Charlie.  The driver asks me where I'm from and I ask her where she's from.  She says Romania.  The only thing I know how to say in Romanian is "Would you like to dance?".  She asked me how I knew that and I told her because I dance.  She said "So do I!  I am going Argentine Tango dancing tonight!"  She told me that Berlin has the largest Argentine Tango group in Europe.  She gave me some info and I was incredibly impressed to find that 6 venues had Argentine Tango dancing last Sunday alone!  There is tango every day of the week here.  Unfortunately because of work and various friends I had to meet I couldn't go, but I thought you should know!

I'll be back October 7th and hopefully be able to come back dancing that Thursday although my new job when I get home might make it difficult for me to arrive before 9pm.

Be well,

Walter Milani

From Veronica

Hope everyone is well.  I am back from my long trip and still trying to settle into life...

I am collaborating with Brainstorm Language and Arts in their recruiting process, at the moment (among other things).  Please see the recruiting flyer below.  We are searching for all types of teachers with different levels of education and commitment (part/full-time), all subjects (particularly, MATH AND SCIENCES, LANGUAGES), all levels (grammar school, high school, college.  Very good pay and benefits.

In addition, Brainstorm also offers SAT/ACT/PRAXIS college prep courses, college application classes and workshops, as well as SPECIAL academic coaching and LIFE coaching.  Also hiring in these areas (Special Ed teacher, specialists, etc).

The positions are for private tutoring and/or in-center (Franklin Lakes, NJ) teaching/tutoring, depending on your level of commitment available.  

If you or anyone you know is interested, please pass this along.  Any questions, please feel free to email me or call 845-661-1275.

Thanks,

Veronica

From Susan Berardini

Hi everybody, Fran here with your Tango Tip of the Week. Let's talk some more about learning to dance Tango. First, we'll take a quick look at the easy way, and then we'll examine what, for the moment, we'll refer to as "the other way."

Okay, here's the easy way. It's pretty important for you to start by being born and raised in Argentina -- Buenos Aires would work nicely. Let's see, you should make sure to kick off your learning process at about 15 or so. These, after all, are the formative years. You can get a lot more done at this age than when you're overworked, overweight, stuck in a rut, and your knees are giving out. Then, of course, you have to be one of the elite 1%. In the good old U.S.A., that means you have lots of money. In Argentina, it means you're one of the very few people who actually choose to dance Tango. That's right! The vast majority of Argentine people do not dance Tango, or any other dance, for that matter. A good many of the die-hard Tango dancers -- they're sometimes called milongueros -- have not only opted to spend their time doing Tango, they've also decided to avoid doing pretty much anything else. "I did not choose Tango," they often reflect with deep conviction, "Tango chose me."

All right, so there goes that full-time job you've been hanging onto to pay the rent.

If you choose the easy way to learn Tango, it's also a very good idea to be innately talented, to have what we'll call a "proclivity" for the physical, mental, and emotional demands of being a dancer. All that helps a lot. Oh yes, and one more item. Tango dancers usually set aside somewhere in the neighborhood of, let's say, 30 to 40 years to get good.

That's a pretty accurate look at the easy way. As it turns out, I, myself, do not meet any of these qualifications. Quite by happenstance I found myself born in Brooklyn -- not too many milongas going on there in the 1940s -- and I started learning how to dance Tango at age 50 instead of 15. Bummer, right? Maybe you're more or less in the same boat.

Yes, we may have had a few good things in our lives -- Twinkies come to mind -- but up to now Tango just hasn't been among them. So what can we do? Well, first of all, quit your bellyaching. People like us just have to bite the bullet and face facts: our only practical option for learning Tango is "the other way."

Can you guess what I mean by "the other way?" No, I'm not talking about YouTube. No, I'm not talking about workshops with hot shots from "out of town." And no, I'm not talking about memorizing a bunch of fancy dance steps, which you think will make you look like you know what you're doing.

"The other way" means facing the fact (oh, no, here it comes!) that you need to do some work. In fact, you need to do several things on a very regular basis:

Find a very good teacher, and take regular lessons with him/her as often as your finances will allow. This is your lifeline to learning Tango.

Take classes as often as you can. This enables you to meet other people who are also trying to learn the dance, and gives you a good idea of how you compare to them in terms of your progress.

Dance everyday. If you can't manage that much, dance as often as you can. If possible, dance with several different partners. (Dancing with only one partner tends to foster bad habits and compromises.)

Recognize that the learning process is ongoing. You can't learn Tango right away, or in two weeks, or in two years. Start enjoying wherever you are in the process rather than constantly focusing on the end result. Remember that even the really great social dancers in Argentina have probably taken 30 to 40 years to learn their craft. And if you were to ask any one of them how they got so good, they'd almost certainly tell you, "I'm still learning."

Besides what I mentioned above as the key components of "the other way," you're also going to need very healthy dollops of courage, perseverance, humility, and an unwavering sense of humor. Try incorporating these elements into your learning process, and you'll be well on your way to success in learning Tango.

I'll bet you just can't wait to start!

Every Saturday, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Dance Manhattan, Fran and Pat host a special beginner/intermediate practice, geared toward helping you bring your skills up to speed. The cost for the practice is $10 per person. (Bringing a partner isn't necessary.) Fran and Pat are always on hand to answer any questions you may have about your dancing, and to help you with material you're working on. If you'd like a private lesson, call Fran directly at 212-662-7692, or email him at franchesleigh@mac.com. For the practice, all you have to do is arrive with $10 and your dance shoes in hand.

 Every day, our dear friend and teacher in Buenos Aires posts a historical tango fact of the day. These interesting and informative tidbits always include English, Spanish and Italian  information and a relevant recording. You can see all of them and listen to the recording by simply joining Monica Paz PractiMilonguero Facebook page. Below is a link to the Facebook page, where you can hear the music:

HÉCTOR MARCÓ dies. Singer and lyricist. Because of an affection to his vocal chords he stopped singing very early. He distinguished himself as a writer of "porteño" portraits. Suffice it to say that he was Carlos Gardel's favorite author. Some examples: BIEN FRAPPÉ, PORTEÑO Y BAILARÍN, EN UN BESO LA VIDA. He wrote also CORAZÓN, the first tango recorded by the maestro. Also, the jewel we are listening to here.

♫ CUANDO EL AMOR MUERE Carlos Di Sarli y Carlos Acuña (1941)

⊙ CD Nº7 Colección Natucci (40 CD)

 https://www.facebook.com/MPTango

And the following one for her latest interview (She regularly posts interviews that she does with surviving old milongueros) : 

MP Tango Interview

MPTango Presents Eduardo "El Nene" Masci at PractiMilonguero

Click on cc underneath the screen for English subtitles.

The following folks helped set up, break down and clean up before and after the milonga. Without them, there would be no Firehouse Tango.

• Tsypoyra Sartan
• Elena Titova
• Elena Syrett
• Steve Maisch
• steve turi
  
• Jesse Barton - (So happy to have him back)
  
• Sydney St. James

And of course, without Terri Lopez, we would have to close up shop.

• How could I have forgotten to mention that last week, Terri made a huge tray of arroz con pollo?  She made more this week, and both times, it went in a flash
  

• Rifky Mackeen
• Bill Krukovsky
• Enrique Zuniga
• Horatio Piccioni
• Francis & Marie
  
• Bob BrilloEdu
• Eduar KrukovskysddfTerri Lopez
• Eduardo Campos
• Camille
• Jack Messing
• Edna
• Tom Rogers
• Mary Pagano
• June Stahl