Until recently, Firehouse Tango organized wildly successful yearly trips to Buenos Aires. Many participants said that it was the best trip of their life. Some continued to come every year. Everyone loved it.
Last year, we took a group, and exceeded
all expectations. We're thinking about doing it again at the beginning of November, 2015. If you think you might want to join us, just send me an e mail at firehousetango@gmail.com, call us at 201-825-1570, or grab me at the Thursday milonga. This is just a preliminary survey, and there is absolutely no obligation, so don't hesitate. We just want to see if there is enough interest to pursue it further.
To
give you an idea of what it would be like, here is what we included in our previous trips (May be different this time):
What's included?
- 8 nights/ 9 days in Buenos Aires with the friendliest group around
- Stay at the excellent, centrally located Bauen Suites
Hotel
- Full breakfast every day
- Transfers to and from hotel (included if traveling with group on American # 255 and #256)
- Private group lessons with excellent local teachers
- Milongas with local hosts (male and female) who are there just to dance with us
- City
Tour
- Full day at gaucho ranch with barbeque and show
- Popular Tango show with dinner
- Day at San Telmo Flea Market & enough free time for shopping, exploring the city, visiting museums, taking private lessons, visiting milongas on your own or resting (heaven forbid)
- You most certainly will want to visit a shoe
store (shoes cost about 1/3 of price here) Prices in Buenos Aires are amazingly low & additional costs are minimal
- Excellent & inexpensive local teachers highly recommended
We haven't worked up the numbers yet, but the cost would probably be about $3,000 per person, including airfare. Last Thursday March 19 - Maribel Soto and Fred Rueck birthdays and St. Patrick's celebration
Maribel Soto
Maribel started coming to
Firehouse recently, but nobody loves it as much as she does. Even though she's a terrific dancer, naturally, she's a little nervous about doing it, so Carl started the birthday dance and all of you Firehouse tangueros came through and made her feel really comfortable.
Fred Rueck
Fred comes to us by way of Tango under the Tent. He adores tango,
reads my newsletter and sends contributions for it regularly (see Reader's Corner below,) loves Fran's Tango Tips, sends me lots of contributions for this bulletin, and recommends us to many of his friends. Even though Fred has only been to Firehouse a few times, he feels like an old friend, and we are delighted to celebrate with him. I started the birthday tango and the rest of the Firehouse Tangueras treated him to a fabulous birthday dance, proving once again that old friends and
new are always welcomed.
St. Patrick's Celebration
To celebrate St. Patrick's Day, I made corned beef and cabbage with potatoes, carrots and parsnips last Thursday, March 19th. I also found some Irish cortinas for that night's playlist to keep us in the mood. It worked splendidly. Bill, Terri and I each brought
Irish soda bread and only crumbs were left from the three loaves. Flo brought green trifle and Sydney brought home made pickles.
Next Thursday, March 26th
No celebrations, just great socializing and wonderful dancing.
If heaven is anything like celebrating one's birthday at Firehouse Tango, it has a lot to recommend it. Frankly, I'd rather be at Firehouse. Thank you lovely tangueras, for a birthday memory I shall cherish. Con
mucho amore,
Steve Turi
I keep saying I do not want to celebrate any more birthdays, but how many men will line up to dance with me, if not for the traditional tributes on birthdays.....oh well, you know that is not really true because our tanqueros dance with all of the ladies...
Terri Lopez
Parking at Firehouse Tango - do not park within 50 feet of a stop sign
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There is plenty of close, legal parking on the local streets right around the Knights' Hall. Please do not block anyone in the parking lot; do not park in the four car private driveway across from the Knights Hall; don't park within 50 feet of a stop sign (a ticket was issued for this just last week),
and don't block any of our neighbors' driveways.
Most importantly, do not block the side door. It is a fire exit and must be left vacant for access to the outside in case of fire. People have been ticketed for illegal parking, so please be careful.
We welcome readers' contributions about Argentine Tango in general and Firehouse Tango in particular. Send your thoughts to firehousetango@gmail.com We welcome readers' contributions about Argentine Tango in general and Firehouse Tango in particular. Send your thoughts to firehousetango@gmail.com
From Fred Rueck (I'm happy to celebrate his birthday at Firehouse and thrilled to receive his contributions to this newsletter.)
Hi Susanne,
Long time, no see!
I came across this and thought that you might be able to use it in your newsletter... if you haven't already.
Signs you are a tango addict- Ability to dance tango becomes a strong plus in looking for a partner
- You stopped apologizing upon mistakes, and just tango out of them
- You agonize for weeks over the colour and style of your next tango shoes
- The
word 'ocho' makes your body pivot involuntarily
- People at work know you dance tango, and you don't care
- The world is divided into two types of people: those who tango... and those who don't have a clue
- You have more tango shoes than 'real-life' shoes
- The worst type of injury isn't heart failure, but twisting your
ankle
- You have a strong position on Tango Nuevo
- You suddenly realize all the people you know are at the milonga
- The close embrace with absolute strangers doesn't make you panic
- You arrange dinners with friends so they don't clash with lessons, practicas and milongas
- You
choose your next house based on the amount of polished wooden boards
- You're depressed because the milonga was cancelled
- You're elated because you've finally cracked 'that move'
- You actually know who Carlos Gardel is
- You've had a number of very heated 'tango arguments' with your partner
- You've given up on taking notes... and you can't understand your previous notes anyway
- Your next holiday (defined as a 'pilgrimage') is to Buenos Aires
- You're at a cafe, a new tune comes on, and you tell everyone around you (as if they care) that it's 'tango music'
- You permanently keep mints and a pair of tango dance shoes in your car...
'just in case'
- You wish you'd started tango when you were 10
- Your life is divided into 'pre-tango' and 'post-tango'
- You web search the tango venues of any area you are traveling to, in advance
- You find the reply to asking someone for a dance, and being told they are 'resting', is offensive
- You have started to form new tango moves without lessons - and think you are a genius for it
- You think dancing with a martyr's smile on your face is acceptable
- You've started teaching tango to family and friends
- You think that ability to dance is more important than looks
- The word 'connection'
takes on a mystical tone
- The word 'sacada' does not mean an 'unbearably loud insect'
- You've experienced more intimacy in a dance than your long term relationships
- You practice the 'tango walk' on the street
- You truly believe that a man and a woman can touch chest to breast in an 'innocent' manner
- You've had 'the tango fight' with your partner on the dance floor
- Your computer screensaver is tango related
- You define good clothes as 'those that you can dance tango in'
- Most of your Google searches include the word 'tango'
- You wish you knew Spanish
- Your answer to 'what do you do?' is invariably linked with tango
- Your view someone who can play the bandoneon not as a nerd who learned an accordion-like instrument, but as a musical genius
- You scoff at 'fake' tango shown in movies
- A 'sandwich' has transitioned from being an item of food to a dance move
- You create a tango web site (true story!)
- You know that a credenza is not a tango move.
Los Pitucos Milonga - Franklin Lakes, This Sat. March 21
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A little bit of Buenos Aires in Franklin Lakes, NJ
Next Milonga - Saturday, March 21st, 2015 Special guest instructor - Alicia Cruzado Alicia Cruzado is an authentic master of salon
tango, experienced as a dancer, teacher, choreographer and artistic director. More information on her site - http://www.aliciatango.com/ Alicia's lesson at 7:00pm Social starting at 8:00pm Couples, singles and beginners welcome! Admission $15, including home cooked "delight" Location: VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) 725 Franklin Avenue (corner of Pulis Avenue) Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417 For directions click here Hi everyone, Fran here with your Tango Tip of the Week. There's an old saying that's been rolling around in my mind for the last few weeks. Maybe you've heard it: All good things come to him who waits. All good things come to him who waits. I think the reason I've been musing about these words lately is that I'm convinced they're
talking about -- you guessed it -- Tango. If you know the saying, you may have thought it was about money, or a happy life, or maybe good health ... things like that. But I'm dead certain that whoever invented this very wise maxim was definitely giving us the serious lowdown on Tango. Let's delve into the hidden meaning of this deceptively simple sentence for a minute. What does the phrase "all good things" really mean? Well, of course, it means becoming a good Tango dancer,
right! What could possibly be gooder -- I mean, better -- than that? We'll skip over the word "come" for a second, and cut to the pronoun. The word "him" – maybe it would be better if it said “him/her” to be a bit more politically correct -- refers to none other than you, my friend. Not just you, personally, but everybody who wants to get good at Tango. Okay, let's tackle the "who waits" thing. If you're a follower who's taken Tango lessons
even once in a blue moon, you've heard over and over that your job after every step is to bring yourself into balance and wait. So there's a literal reference for you right there. But I'm going to go out on a limb, and suggest a slightly more global meaning. I think "who waits" really means "who is willing to work their butt off." Don't get me wrong. If you're a follower, waiting is definitely the right thing to do. But there's much more to getting good at Tango than
that. Okay, now we'll take a look at the verb "come." The implication of this word choice is that all you have to do is sit around contemplating your navel, and Tango will just fall into your lap ... or feet. By this time, of course, you're well aware that nothing could be further from the truth. In this particular iteration, the word "come" means -- get ready for this -- "slowly assimilate itself into your muscle memory over a lengthy period of time as long as you (here it comes
again) work your butt off." So, there it is. All good things come to him who waits. Or to put it in a way that makes sense to us, becoming a good Tango dancer means s-l-o-w-l-y integrating the fundamentals (particularly, the fundamentals) of this unique art form into your muscle memory, not by hanging around waiting, but by making an unwavering commitment to the learning process, and doing whatever it takes to make it happen. Ready? Tango is ready. Let's get to
it.
Saturdays with Fran and Pat at Dardo Galletto Studios
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Please join Fran and Pat for our Saturday Practica at Dardo Galletto Studios, 151 West 46th Street (between 6th and 7th Avenues; 2-4pm, $10 per person. (Bringing a partner isn't necessary.) Fran and
Pat will be 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.
View Monica Paz' terrific tango Facebook posts - my pick from
this week is below |
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: Calendario Milonguero
Birth of HÉCTOR
MAURÉ (Vicente José Falivane). Singer with a powerful voice between baritone and tenor. In the roaring 40’s a famous brand of dish soap of those times (Puloil) organized a competition to choose the best radio voice. Applicants appeared by the thousands. Mauré was chosen in 1938. Two years later he was hired by Juan D’Arienzo. He recorded 50 themes. Here’s the last one. ♫ AMARRAS Juan D’Arienzo y Héctor Mauré
(1944)
⊙ CD Nº05 Colección Natucci (40 CDs) +info
Here is the Facebook link to see Monica's tango calendar: https://www.facebook.com/MPTango And the following one for her latest interview (She regularly posts interviews that she does with surviving old milongueros)
: New MP Tango Interview MPTango Presents Carlos Horacio Funes at PractiMilonguero Click on cc underneath the screen for English
subtitles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6X8BC1MX1s&feature=youtu.be
Our cancellation policy - We STILL rarely cancel |
Even though we had to cancel once this year, we still rarely cancel!
We want to remind everyone that if the weather looks really bad, we will leave messages on our web site www.firehousetango.com and phone 201-825-1570. You can also reach
us on my cell phone 201-826-6602. Feel free to leave a message on either of these lines.
We cancel only when absolutely necessary (only about eight or nine times in all these years - including, unfortunately, the first scheduled milonga of March, 2015), but please check whenever you're not sure. If there isn't any message, we're on.
During Hurricane Sandy, when we had only cell phone service, I was able to leave a message on my cell, so I guess that the best number to call is 201-826-6602.
The following folks helped set up, break down and clean up before and after the milonga. Without them, there would be no Firehouse Tango.
- Elena Titova
- Tsipoyra Sartan
- Jesse B.
- Sydney St.
James
- Lynn Gross
- Ferd Ritz
- Punky M.
And of course, without Terri Lopez and steve turi we would have to close up shop.
A reminder
that Firehouse Tango does not supply wine - Your fellow tangueros bring it. Therefore, if you drink it, please make sure to bring a bottle every so often.The folks below brought food and wine this week - See above - Barbara Lombardi - Popcorn
- Sydney St.James -
Pickles
- Erica Alberto - Soda
- Pat Flaherty - Chocolate Chip Cookies
-
Bill Krukovsky - Irish Soda Bread & Butter
- Fred Ritz - Deviled Eggs
And these people brought wine-
Erica Alberto
- Fred Meyer
- Bill
Krukovsky
-
Dan & Georgina
- Horatio
Piccioni
-
Francis &
Marie
-
Eduardo
Campus
Tango in New Jersey and New York
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