argentango

Zürich, September 2013

Dear organisers of Argentine , recently an interested organiser said that he is quite enthusiastic about Argentangos weekend on the Gran Orquestas of the Epoca de Oro, but has organised Joaquin Amenábar already. He could not imagine that it would make sense to schedule Argentango as well as Amenábar. Besides, since autumn 2012 there has been a book from Michael Lavocah on the market about the Gran Orquestas. We are sure that in short time we will hear that Argentangos lecture weekend does not make sense anymore, because now one can read Michael Lavocah’s book.

This view of the topic is too one dimensional for Argentango. The workshop GOs of the EdO has as its key element dancing with the music instead of against it for 90% of dances. This is something that few can achieve in one or two weekend events and/or a book. Once introduced, this topic keeps dancers occupied for years, on different levels of knowledge – and in our opinion for the rest of the dancing life. It is not a coincidence that in Europe there now exists a chance on three different paths to introduce concepts which in most common classes are missed out. For two or three years now Europe has finally been ready for this central topic in Argentine tango, this catalyst in the development of dance. The different concepts and exercises, pictures and words from the three complementary paths will increase the prospects of dancers which use these offers together.

That is why we from Argentango recommend warmly to organisers in every local scene, not to decide between Amenábar or Argentango, but to realise both offers and in parallel to recommend the book of Lavocah over and over again to their dancers and to have it always on stock for selling.

Kind regards

Christian Tobler + Monika Diaz

Verein Argentango · Monika Diaz + Christian Tobler · Switzerland – 8044 Zürich · Hofstrasse 117 am Bircher-Benner-Platz · www.argentango.ch · [email protected] · +41 442 525 625 · Bankverbindung: Raiffeisenbank Zürich – Inhaber: M. Diaz / Argentango – IBAN: CH31 8148 7000 0072 3012 0 Introdueion to xe musical diversity and artiwic perfeeion of xe Época de Oro: Music leeure about Tango Argentino wix Chriwian Tobler + Monika Diaz

Pedro Maffia conducts a 25 man orchestra in the end of the 20s

Sat. Oct. 11th + Sun. Oct.12th 2013: d’Arienzo – di Sarli – Pugliese: these Gran Orquestas every- Bertazzo-Rudel-Schmidt body knows. But what about the approximately two dozen present in La Yumba – Hamburg further ensembles that can be heard at every good ?

Introdueion to xe Gran Orquewas of xe Argentango’s musical lecture, specially devised for dancers, Época de Oro for Tango-de-Salón-dancers presents more than twenty Gran Orquestas with musical xat cannot stay seated: examples and shows correlations, without becoming boring Época-de-Oro-cycle part one or getting lost in anecdotes. In addition, background wix Chriwian Tobler + Monika Diaz information is delivered about the Epoca de Oro. Further- more, Monika Diaz and Christian Tobler give a short introduction to dancing Argentine Tango in the frame of musical phrases, the actual key to having fun while dancing.

After the weekend dancers can start to handle musical Saturday Milonga tradicional: interpretation in the fascinating musical diversity of the six hours of pure Epoca de Oro with greater differentiation, especially the Gran Orquewas of xe Época de Oro vocal treasures of this ultimate repertoire.

www.argentango.ch Program + Details please register early, number of places is limited, dance partner is an advantage, but no requirement and don’t forget your dance shoes

1st Day: 1st Part Rodolfo Biagi Francini-Pontier Gran Orquestas 1 uncompromisingly arranged for dancers, sophisticated + virtuoso up to the fingertips, Juan d’Arienzo nervous, but just almost monotone two outstanding musicians the retrovolution from 1935, Osvaldo Fresedo Alfredo Gobbi jr. four Gran Orquestas in one no, the first iconoclast the balancing of tradition and modernity Enrique Rodríguez was not de Caro continues continues to the present an Orquesta Characteristica, Hermanos de Caro Roberto Firpo which was a damned good Típica more modernity than everything, that is everything is rhythm is everything, Francisco Lomuto musically wriggling + flapping todday an evolutionist becomes a traditionalist the Gran Orquesta of the establishment Pedro Laurenz Lucio Demare and his addicion to Jazz the energy of a hyperventilating perfectionist with a classy repertoire, Edgardo Donato bulldozer tames itself a picture-perfect career pure Italianita in the midst of Buenos Aires 2nd Day: 4th Part Francisco Canaro Gran Orquestas 3 the king of the genre milonga Aníbal Troilo has created a tango empire the king of creative diversity was the favourite of all musicians 1st Day: 2nd Part Ángel d’Agostino background information the favorite of many Porteños . play technical skills a master in understatement enlightened listening as a key Ricardo Tanturi to the Época de Oro the orchestra with two singers the era of the Gran Orquestas that could not be more different Christian Tobler and Monika Diaz about the musical-economical situation OTV + Carabelli in the golden 1940s the commercial-artistic tightrope walk Place the technical avantgarde der 1930s of a record label Tanzstudio La Yumba about the level of the recording technique then, Alfredo de Angelis D – 20 359 Hamburg · Kastanienallee 9 the playback technique today in the shadow of Pugliese, highway 7km · rail station 4km · airport 11km Mix 1930s-, 1940s- and 1950s the second dramatic orchestra and it’s singers about the approprirate balance Lecture/workshop in every great milonga 2nd Day: 5th Part Oct. 11th + 12th 2013 · 12:00 –17:30 a key for dancing ÉdO music with 2 breaks 15 min each · consumption in room dancing in the frame of musical phrases admission 11:30 · start 12:00 sharp short introduction into the technique Milonga that lets Tango-de Salón dancers fly Oct. 11th 2013 · 20:00 – 02:00 Costs 2nd Day: 6th Part price for early birds untill June 30th: € 95

Linares, Bermudez and Laurenz in Radio Belgrano Gran Orquestas 4 regular price from July 01st: € 110 Osvaldo Pugliese students up to 25 with ID: € 85 1st Day: 3rd Part compositional complexity and milonga Saturday without lecture: € 7 Gran Orquestas 2 a challenge for dancers Registation email · info telephone Carlos di Sarli Miguel Caló [email protected] · +49 40 721 2119 for 20 years simply the most elegant the best musicians in town set standards Organizer Gran Orquesta wide and far in playing techniques Tanzstudio La Yumba OHG · Hamburg

Organizer Blog post Pictures Points of view Speakers + TJ Badground Information to xe Event – for Organizers

The question cannot be answered in two or three sentences wild overhead loudspeaker construction suggested that so- of what an organiser and a local TA-Scene in a region can mebody had given thought to what he did. This thing would expect from Argentangos workshop about the music of the be hard to top concerning imaginativeness, and the ques- Gran Orquestas of the Epoca de Oro, the golden age. In tion arose in me of whether this effort of a rope team be - our experience, the reactions of the visitors are too hetero - tween ceiling, active loudspeakers, passive loudspeakers geneous. Naturally the flyer provides information about the and other equipment does pay back somehow and is worth it? multimedia-based content delivered in diverse ways during Punctuality was set a high value on and so the weekend the weekend. But as important are all the insights and hear- for all senses started. Monika Diaz and Christian Tobler sights that participants gain, between the lines and notes, lead skilfully through the different Gran Orquestras of the that provoke thought processes and development that con - Epoca de Oro, amusing, fascinating, very interesting desig- tinue to have an effect. ned with pictures of long ago days, background knowledge To reduce it to a common denominator we dare to say that of different constellations of the then artists and naturally more than three quarters of the participants go home enri- with many many musical examples. This was the moment ched. Furthermore the weekend has a long lasting effect on when it became clear to me what genius construction hung the hearts, ears, heads and feet of the participants. Up to over our heads. What a benefit for my ears, completely nearly a year after such an event we receive individual feed- stress free and relaxed there came a sound-quality that I back, because the workshop is a boost stimulation for the had never heard before. It was like a glance into a clear dancing journey towards its core. lake. On the bottom I saw the musicians play and their tones But we do not want to hide that 10 to 20 percent of the came to me unadulterated. participants cannot (yet, hope dies last) comprehend or re- Did I ever notice a straw violin? Or the gentle sound of a fuse completely at least parts of Argentango’s point of view. harp? Was I aware how sensuous a piano can sound? Or It is in the nature of things that someone who takes a firm how demanding a bandoneon? Did I ever realise how fan- stand instead of beating around the bush provokes contra- tastic, versatile and deep the music of the Epoca de Oro diction, too. We do have a message which for some parti - was? For most of the readers this is most likely old news. cipants is uncommon/unfamiliar. Anything else though would For me the whole weekend was an expedition in a land of be quite boring for a whole weekend. which I thought I would know it, but I was disabused. In Cassiel’s tango blog – the most influential German A few words to our tour guides: Monika and Christian speaking tango blog with valuable content – a participant were, during the whole weekend, always present and ever published a feedback we reproduce here unedited. Yes, it is reachable for any question, and this was very important to a very flattering feedback for Argentango. But we believe me after my doubts in the beginning; they wanted to create that many participants felt the same, although we do not a connection and not a segregation. The connection bet- want to go to such length as to name this feedback repre - ween all the dancers is the music, and the more differentiated sentative. However, it is not given to everybody to express a dancer hears the music the more subtle is the connection. his experience so coherently.Thank you for that, Avetango: Therefore the message for me was definitely a shake-up and a call to get out of the rut to be able to realise the A review to the lecture in Linz/Austria on September 2012: countless intricacies of the music and it became clear to me After having held his lecture about the music of the EdO in that that this music was made for me, for me as a dancer. Biel/Switzerland, Christian Tobler attracted harsh criticism. And sorry – but I realise the enormous demand the music Rough tones, some comments clearly under the belt made puts on me. I am still far from that, but after this weekend me doubt . Would it be right to subscribe for his event in I know exactly where I want to go, and this Monika and Linz? I have to incur a long trip in my limited spare time, Christian achieved within me. and what will await me? Provocation? Separation? De- Once again back to the black monster in the middle of structive discussions? On the other hand I want to experi- the room above the heads of the attendees: On Saturday ence the event myself to get a picture of it myself, so I evening the milonga took place and I was astonished about decided on the trip to Linz/Austria. the amicability I encountered. A hello here, a smile there, First of all I was received cordially by the local organiser, somehow the dancers were touched and relaxed. I stood in the atmosphere was quiet and full of anticipation, and the the corner of the room and started to monitor the event, and in my eyes the ease was caused by the musicality of TJ Nearly twelve years ago we became acquainted for the Christian, but too, and this was obvious, from the sound qua- first time with through the film Tango Lesson. lity in the room. Fortunately, the cinema had a good PA system. Somehow I The sound was pure, unaltered and clear and obviously had the feeling that I had heard the structure of the tango reached the ears of the dancers stress-free. Amazingly the music somewhere. And that is where it stayed until the work- sound quality had nothing to do with loudness, because shop in Linz. Like most of the TA learners, we too learned those people not dancing could chat together easily without basic techniques, then components and components and… having to shout. Once again, maybe for most people it is But this we knew already from other dances and started to clear, for me it was a wonderful and uplifting new experi- work with the tango music. Very seldom we felt the flow of a ence. song while dancing it at a milonga but why this happened A compliment to the tango scene Linz for their dance floor we could not figure out and so the original enthusiasm arou- culture with cabeceos, a wonderful ronda and emptying the sed by Tango Lesson flattened steady. dance floor with each . This compliment is not for me In Linz, Christian and Monika succeeded in giving a har- of course. monious picture of Argentine tango and tango music On the whole the weekend was the trip more than worthw- through listening examples, historical pictures and back- hile, the new information and the impressions need to be as- ground information. similated, but one thing I took with me, without having to The workshop partially reminded me of lectures at univer- think about it: a deep feeling – the music of the Epoca de sity that could not be survived without good preparation Oro deeply touched me. and strong coffee. But by hindsight we are deeply grateful (translated into English from the original) for the professional structure and the depth in content of the workshop, for the contrasting juxtaposition of tango orches- Below is a second statement, this time an extract, which the tras with the recording of contemporary musicians – inclu- organiser forwarded to us via email. Once again we cons- ding explanatory statement. ciously choose a detailed statement. Why? Because both And now the sound equipment! Karajan once at a rehear- statements do not just praise in general. Both writers report sal worked tireless with the musicians to be able to hear in detail what they experienced on the weekend and what every single tone of every single instrument. How often at a the event means for their development in dance in the future. milonga is it that XYZ and I hear diffuse soundclouds even We consider this aspect a central element of the event. This though the CDs bear enough instrumental nuances, playing was precisely the goal when developing the contents. For techniques of the musicians and coloraturas of the singers. privacy reasons we anonymised the second statement: It needs much love and enthusiasm for music in general and especially tango music from the golden age to invest in …When XYZ and I heard of the lecture we prepared oursel- a sound equipment of that high quality as we experienced ves with background information about the speakers Chris- at the milonga of the event. That night I had the impression tian Tobler and Monika Diaz. That is how I finally came to of being present in a concert hall and I was able to dance the blog of Cassiel. My first impression from the postings in in the music! Thanks to the short practical exercise on how the blog was this being more a philosophic chat. But after to play out the phrases in the tango music and the clear many hours of reading I understood what it’s all about in playback of the golden age music during the workshop we that blog and what is the message. now can try to catch authentically, everyone with his set of XYZ and I are predisposed with more than 20 years of steps and ornaments, the individual atmosphere/spirit of classic music, traditional jazz and dance (standard and the song… latin). Two to four hours listening classical music via the swiss (translated into English from the original) radio station Swiss Classic is quite common and about twice a month classic music in the Vienna concert hall cleans the The flyer describing the content plus the two very personal ears. And when we sat opposite of Ralph Sutton and Wyn- statements provide a rounded picture of what interested or- ton Marsalis in Jazzland years ago we bowed our thoughts ganisers can expect of this multi media event for themselves respectfully in front of all the musicians, conductors and com- and their dancers - this lecture that is a workshop for dancers posers who gifted us with deep musical expressiveness and that cannot stay seated, too. tonal symbolism. Christian Tobler + Monika Diaz