December at Firehouse Tango - Holiday Party Details |
December 22nd Anniversary of Marie and Francis and Holiday Party
Holiday Party - December 22
Both Hannukah and
Christmas fall on December 24th this year. Firehouse Tango will celebrate the holidays on Thursday, December 22nd.
As always, expect wonderful friends, door prizes, food, and dancing; but dress for a party. Holiday cortinas and the decorated hall will set the mood, and we'll give you an extra half hour to celebrate. Keep your eyes open for the yearly visit from Santa on the 22nd.
As always, our $15
admission charge will also include beginner (7 - 7:30) and intermediate (7:30 - 8:30) lessons taught by Fran Chesleigh and buffet dinner.
Bring a dish to the Holiday Milonga on December 22
Here are the contributions so far for our holiday milonga. Please let us know if you would like to bring something:
If you would like to make something for the Christmas/Hanukah/New Years milonga, please let me know. It doesn't even have to be home
made.
Anniversary of Marie and Francis - December 22
We are always lucky to be able to host any Gregoire celebration, and next week's anniversary is no different. Francis will start the dance with Marie, and then all the tangueros and tangueras will cut in to tango with
this awesome couple. As always, we look forward to this Gregoire celebration with many delicious goodies brought by Francis and Marie.
December 29
Sue out - A Team takes over
Sue off to Mexico - Please support our A Team |
I'm off to Cabo San Lucas Our family
is celebrating my daughter's big birthday with a week in Mexico. Fortunately, I can leave my baby (That would be Firehouse Tango) worry free because I have incredible friends who are more than willing and able to keep the Firehouse fires burning brightly. Please support our wonderful back-up team.
The logistics - The A Team
Terri Lopez (Wonder(ful) Woman) and Steve Turi (aka
Superman) have generously offered to head up our milonga logistics team in addition to their normal invaluable weekly help. The tasks involved in running Firehouse are monumental, and we are incredibly fortunate to have so many fabulous friends willing to step in whenever needed.
But What about the Music? Johnny Tablada DJ's
Not to worry. While we are away, your tangos, milongas and valses will be spun
by fabulous guest DJ, Johnny Tablada. Many of our tangueras have had the pleasure of dancing with Johnny, who comes to Firehouse every Thursday. Now, you can have to pleasure of listening to his incredible music, as well. I promise you will not be disappointed. Johnny has an amazing and extensive knowledge of Argentine Tango.
How about the newsletter?
This Firehouse Tango newsletter has been
published nearly every week since March, 2002 and thanks to Fran and Pat, the next two weeks will be no exception.
Among his countless talents, our remarkable instructor, Fran Chesleigh, is a professional writer. As always when I am out, he and his equally extraordinary assistant, Pat Altman, flawlessly and with a style of their own, take over the task of writing the Firehouse Tango newsletter. I will send his handiwork out when I
return.
This awesome duo is usually found at “Fran’s Table” in the alcove closest to the DJ table. They are always happy to answer your Tango questions or show you how to do something you might have missed, so make sure to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to learn from the best.
December 1, 8,
15
No special celebrations, only wonderful dancing, eating, socializing and having a fabulous time. 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 This week's cortinas were Bob Dylan. Thanks to Mike Porro for the suggestion and for the music. Next week, I will start playing holiday music for cortinas.
Any other suggestions? Just send me a note with your
request, or better yet, give me a CD (which I'll return) with the music. Remember, cortinas are non-tango music. I always love feedback. Let me know if you love or hate my selections or anything in between. Same for my playlists. Remember, I do this for you, and I really aim to please.
A cortina (curtain) is a short piece
(20–60 seconds) of non-dance music that is played between tandas at a milonga (tango dance event). The cortina lets the dancers know that the tanda has ended. The partners can then
without insult thank each other and return to their own tables, to find a new dance partner at the next tanda. Cortinas are used at many of the milongas in Argentina and Uruguay but are
increasingly common elsewhere. - Wikipedia
Let us know if you are celebrating an occasion and would like to request special music for that night’s cortinas. We will try very hard to accommodate you.
Parking at Firehouse Tango |
There is lots of parking on the street in front of the Knights' Hall. However, people have been parking in a manner that uses two or three spaces. Please try not to take up more spaces than you need. Thank you!
New Year's Eve Milonga in Midland Park |
Tango Loco VIII
Join your friends this New Years Eve at our 3rd Tango Loco New Years Celebration at the
beautiful Grand Ballroom in Midland Park, NJ
We start at 8PM and continue to 1AM
Hosted by Al & Lillian Ko, Debbie Kim & Michael Porro.
We'll serve light eats throughout the evening and champagne at midnight.
Tickets are $30 per person before December 15th, $35 after the 15th through Dec 31st and then $40 at the
door.
Flyers are available at the Firehouse Milonga on Thursdays. You may send your ticket purchase to Michael Porro at 180 Old Tappan Rd. Old Tappan, NJ 07675 Checks should be made out to "Tango Loco" email me at porro@erols.com or call 201-768-0218 for additional information.
TANGO: Un "nuevo" idioma (A "new" language)
A film by Marta N.
Bautis |
Artistas del tango en Buenos Aires usan esta musica ara crear conciencia social. (Tango artists in Buenos Aires use this music to create social awareness.) - Film Screening - A film by Firehouse friend Marta Bautis
- Musicians
- Dance Performance
- and Milonguita
Contact - Marta Bautis tiazul@yahoo.com
Friday, December 9 at 9:30 PM Saint Peter's Church - 619 Lexington Avenue, NYC 10022 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 Elena Syrett
My dear Sue You have created a community called FH tangeros et al and not everyone can do so... it has taken time and determination too on yr part and it is wonderful to witness it. Hugs,
lots Elena
Hi everybody, Fran here with your Tango Tip of the Week. If your first question in learning Tango is "What are the steps?", or "What is the basic step?", you have implicitly accepted what I call the "Ninth Commandment of Ballroom Dance":
To
create a performance (the not-so-secret epitome of teacher-driven dancing), we employ the (ever-so-much-more-desirable) principle of choreography.
Students routinely encounter this principle whenever they take a dance lesson of any kind here in this country -- whether that lesson is in Tango or any other type of ballroom dance. Memorization is what we feel comfortable with. Lead/follow is
alien to our acceptable way of learning. However, the result is that when students tell me, "Tango is the hardest dance I've ever tried to learn," the idea of performance/choreography is exactly what prevents them from actually learning how to dance.
Argentine master teachers would strongly contend that social Tango is not a "performance" of any kind, and that it is in no way based on the
principle of choreography. In fact, most clearly assert that "there are no steps at all in Tango."
There seems to be an unbridgeable gap between those who firmly believe that social dance is based on the accumulation of memorized figures on the one hand, and those who believe that it is, in fact, based on the skill of lead/follow. To us (Americans), the idea of basing our dance on an
organic collaboration between partners in the moment (the principle of lead/follow) is quite radical.
Instead, the powerful predisposition toward step accumulation is regarded as the only path to learning how to dance. It forms the bedrock of our social ballroom dance tradition. The overwhelming majority of USA-born students have no idea whatever that there might be another way to learn how to
dance. Furthermore, most dance teachers currently focus almost exclusively on teaching steps and patterns during classes, private lessons, and workshops rather than lead/follow. Why? Because they know that this is what students want (and are willing to pay for).
The unfortunately result of this behavior on the part of teachers is that students are exposed to lots of complex choreography, but because they
lack any real foundation for even the most basic collaborative movement, they just can't dance.
Ultimately, the only realistic solution to this dilemma would be for Tango teachers to insist that their students build a solid foundation of lead/follow skills -- rather than continuing to race down the rabbit hole of fantasy-world choreography. However, such a major change in pedagogy would only have a chance
of working, if both teachers and students alike could be convinced that this is the right path for the future of social dance.
Will this happen? I think it has a chance only when teachers stop feeding their students a bunch of unrealistic -- but money-making -- YouTube choreography. And only when students wake up, and recognize the true value of lead/follow skill as the real window into social dance
expertise.
What's your opinion?
View Monica Paz' terrific tango Facebook posts -
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I hope that this link to Monica's Facebook page works for everyone. Her tango and vals with Daniel Arias in Los Angeles is a joy
to watch. https://www.facebook.com/monica.paz.127?fref=ts
Here is a link to
Monica's tango calendar:
ALBERTO CASTILLO (Alberto Salvador De Lucca) is born. A very sophisticated and very “porteño” singer. Even if he gained his reputation with
Ricardo Tanturi, as a soloist he gained an uncommon degree of popularity. He took part in eleven movies. Soon he left his profession as a gynecologist. Here we are listening to one of the three milongas that he recorded in his best years. ♫ MOZO GUAPO. Ricardo Tanturi and Alberto Castillo (1941)
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
Our cancelation policy - We STILL rarely cancel
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We 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 on my cell phone 201-826-6602. Feel free to leave a message
if I don't answer.
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.
I forgot to mention last week that Francis and Marie brought champagne, and we all toasted Terri for her birthday.
These are the folks who helped this week:
Steve Maisch (We are so glad to have him back) Steve Turi Herb
Kahn Elena Syrett Bob Brillo Hilda and RafaeTsipoyra Sartan
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 - - Henry Kim - Cookie Rolls
- George Ngo - Rugelach, Cheese, Bread Sticks, Hummus, Grapes
- Eva Roth - Hearts of Palm Salad
And these people brought wine
- Barbara
Lombardi
- George Ngo
- Giuseppe
- Dan & Georgina
- Bob Brillo
- Eduardo
Campos
Tango in New Jersey and New York |
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