I understand, most of the tango world is not quite inspired by videos of old milongueros. There are many things people don’t like about them… they have no good technique, their dancing is not shiny and fancy and for some people it’s boring to watch because they can’t even recognize familiar patterns they see on videos of exhibition dances.
Unfortunately, I must add, ageism plays a significant part in this repulsion – it’s not cool to be old. On top of that, most of those videos of old milongueros were really recorded when they were beyond their prime years, when the decline of their physical abilities started and their skill level slowly started to fade away.
Having all this in mind, you might ask, “what’s the point of watching videos of old milongueros?” This article is all about it – spoiler: there is a point and you can get huge value from those videos.
Authenticity in a Superficial World
Let’s face it, we live in a world of superficiality! Packaging is often considered more valuable than the content. Lately, this tendency is even more reinforced by social media like TikTok and Instagram where people are creating an illusion of happiness and success, without actually living it. It all seems to me like some expensive PR stunt or advertisement.
I remember a scene from the 2001 movie “Kate & Leopold” where nobility from the 18th century time travels to today’s world… Long story short, they see him as a perfect actor for a butter commercial…
When I see how superficial this world is, I’m often reminded of this scene. This is also my reaction when I see performance videos from festival.
The same goes for tango: self-promotion is valued more than deep meaning. Grabbing attention is meant to be a substitution for being authentic. I often see people dancing to advertise themselves, rather than enjoying the authentic connection that tango creates with another human being.
That often makes me sad – what have we done to tango? What have we done to everything? What happened to this wonderful world?
Lessons from Old Milongueros
“But Ivica, how come you consider old milongueros better dancers than the young athletic guys who practice for hours? They barely move,” you might ask.
Well, it’s all about what you consider better. As I already mentioned, if you expect technical perfection or speed, you won’t find it in the videos of the milongueros from the Golden Age. What you can find is a deep understanding of the music and the dance itself. I’m sure this sounds like empty words to many dancers, especially those less experienced, so let me unpack it.
When I say deep understanding of the music and its connection with the dance, I can’t think of a better example than that given by Cacho Dante in this interview with Monica Paz:
“I used to go to ‘La Argentina’ first on Thursdays and later on Fridays because we were fans of Pugliese,” says Cacho, and then he explains that their dancing was different from that of the older generation.
“The dance didn’t change because someone said, ‘We’re going to dance that way.’ No! When the music changed, people noticed and adapted. Having more time and respecting the pauses, one dances better, in the sense that they were dancing more elegantly. They were showcasing the woman more, giving her more space for her dance. It’s another type of dance”, and he explains how before that, Biagi, D’Arienzo, and even Di Sarli had staccato tangos, and afterwards they all stretched their music.
In my opinion, this demonstrates how the dancing and the music played in milongas are tightly connected. Not understanding this connection results in poor musicality.
We often see people dancing with superficial musicality, interpreting only the parts of the music that they can hear. I talked about this in more details in my article “Defining Tango Milonguero Is Harder Than You Think”.
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Ivica
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I believe that someone who understands the music and the dancing knows that you can dance to what you hear only if you have pre-choreographed moves that fit into that style of dancing. Now, as we know choreography doesn’t work at crowded milongas where you must adapt.
On the other hand, I notice that many of the old milongueros dance the same flexible patterns repeatedly, adapting them to the space they have and to the music that plays. Just look at how Carlos Velino uses the same pattern, how it fits perfectly with the music, and also how he flexes it to fit the available space.
Old milonguero videos may not showcase the technical perfection or flashy moves that many dancers aspire to, but I believe they offer something far more valuable: a deep understanding of the essence of tango. By watching these videos, you can learn a lot about musicality, connection, and floorcraft. You can also learn that authenticity and personality are far more important than technique.
So, next time you come across an old milonguero video, don’t just scroll past it – take a moment to watch and learn from these hidden gems of tango history.
La Musique est tout…lorsque vs aimez les vieux tangos vs aimez les veux milongueros
You’re in the ballpark.
In my Podcast I make the point that you learn when you understand, and that understanding requires context.
From this point of view, what you’re looking at is not the milongueros but the milonga. You’re missing the forest for the trees.
As far as the movement of the milogueros is concerned, whether old or not (which is irrelevant imo) as I point out in my book, the basic movement of tango milonguero is not walking but turning, or rather walking-as-turning, which is clearly evidenced in the video you link.
While this milonga is not packed, a milonga like Parakultural or El Beso is often packed to the brim, in which case you’d spend 90% of your dancing turning in place, but using the same technique as these old guys.
Nailed it. It’s authenticity, in connection to the music and in connection to your partner. Tango is a dance of the heart, not of the body. We dance to share, not to show.