Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Calling all Tangueros and all Salseros!

5 weeks of milonga starts tomorrow!

NOVEMBER MILONGA MADNESS
Due to popular demand I am running another milonga course over five weeks on a Wednesday night at the YMCA in Victory. For new people it will introduce you to the fun 2/4 dance called milonga.  If you are a salsa dancer - you will love milonga!  It is joyful, fast and precise.   It is widely believed to be the dance that was the precursor to tango.  We will start with Milong Lisa  for the first few classes and then progress to Milonga Traspie for the more adventurous! (descriptions below)
"Milonga uses the same basic elements as Tango and requires a greater relaxation of legs and body. Movement is normally faster, and pauses are not made. It is rather a kind of rhythmic walking without complicated figures, with a much more "rustic" style than Tango.
There are different styles of Milonga: "Milonga Lisa" (Simple Milonga), in which the dancer steps on every beat of the music; and "Milonga con Traspié", in which the dancer uses Traspiés or contrapasos (changes of weight from one foot to the other and back again in double time or three steps in two beats) to interpret the music. Thus, dynamics may be danced without having to run fast or without the use of much space." Wikipedia.
This is a pretty good definition of the milonga dance - come and give it a try tomorrow and then join the practica  ($5) for another couple of hours - what a great way to spend a Wednesday night in Nelson!
5 week course starts 31 October - 28 November (every Wednesday)
6pm - 7.30pm
YMCA, 156 Toi Toi St, Victory
$75 for the whole course or $20 a class as a casual

I couldn't decide  who to show you dancing milonga - there are so many  great dancers and amazing interpretations of the milonga dance - so here you have a selection in one video!  See you tomorrow night!

Thursday, October 18, 2012

CLASS REMINDER

Hello everyone,

Just a little reminder that I am going away and there will be no classes on the following days:

Sunday 21 October
Monday 22 October
Sunday 28 October

Classes will resume on Monday 29 October and the 5 week Milonga Course starts Wednesday 31 October so make sure you put all those dates in your diary.

Tell all your friends about the Milonga course - it is going to be a lot of fun!

Have a wonderful week and see you on Monday the 29th.

Hee's an exquisite salon performance to live music from Sebastian Archeval and Roxana Suarez... and keep watching till the end of the video and take a look at the milonga!


Wednesday, October 17, 2012

The Spirit of Tango


News coming shortly!
In the meantime a beautiful tango to while away an afternoon.

Friday, October 12, 2012

Class and Milonguita this Sunday Oct 14

Just a little reminder that this Sunday the 14 October we have a Class at 5pm at St John's Hall

This class will go over the split weight pivots to refresh your memory and then revise a couple for nuevo boleos.

Will be a fun class and I hope you can all make it.  After class we will head down to the Boathouse for a .......

MILONGUITA (a little milonga/social night)
6.45pm at the Boathouse.
BYO food for the BBQ or fingerfood to share.
BYO glasses and drinks!

All welcome!

See you Sunday!

Here's a little video - enjoy the nuevo boleos!


Friday, October 5, 2012

Outline for October and Milonga Course

October is already underway and I thought it timely to thank all those new beginners who this week have just competed their first 8 week course on a Wednesday night.  Congratulations and welcome to the world of Tango!  It was a smaller class than usual and luckily for these beginners as they got extra tuition from myself and the "helpers" - Jon and Dave in particular!  Thanks guys.

There are a few changes to the program for this month so here it is clearly spelt out so there will be no-one turning up for class when they shouldn't be!!

OCTOBER CLASSES

Sunday 7 Oct - 5pm class, St John's Hall

Monday 8 Oct  - 6pm class, 7.15 class, St John's Hall

Sunday 14 Oct -  5pm class, St John's Hall,  followed by free milonguita at The Boathouse 6.45 - 8.30pm, bring a plate to share

Monday 15 Oct - 6pm class, 7.15 class, St John's Hall

Sunday 21 Oct - NO CLASS

Monday 22 Oct - NO CLASS

Sunday 28 Oct - NO CLASS

Monday 29 Oct - 5pm class, St John's Hall

Wednesday 31 Oct - 6pm, YMCA Toi Toi St, 5 week Milonga Course starts

MILONGUITA @ THE BOATHOUSE
On Sunday 14th October after class we will head down to The Boathouse and have a wee dance.  Please bring a plate to share and drinks, glasses.  Let's watch the sun set over Tasman Bay as we have a turn around the dance floor.  I hope everyone can make it!

NOVEMBER MILONGA MADNESS
Due to popular demand I am running another milonga course over five weeks on a Wednesday night at teh YMCA in Victory. For new people it will introduce you to the fun 2/4 dance called milonga.  If you are a salsa dancer - you will love milonga!  It is joyful, fast and precise.   It is widely believed to be the dance that was the precursor to tango.  We will start with Milong Lisa  for eh first few classes and then then progress to Milonga Traspie for the more adventurous! (descriptions below)
"Milonga uses the same basic elements as Tango and requires a greater relaxation of legs and body. Movement is normally faster, and pauses are not made. It is rather a kind of rhythmic walking without complicated figures, with a much more "rustic" style than Tango.
There are different styles of Milonga: "Milonga Lisa" (Simple Milonga), in which the dancer steps on every beat of the music; and "Milonga con Traspié", in which the dancer uses Traspiés or contrapasos (changes of weight from one foot to the other and back again in double time or three steps in two beats) to interpret the music. Thus, dynamics may be danced without having to run fast or without the use of much space." Wikipedia.
5 week course starts 31 October - 28 November
6pm - 7.30pm
YMCA, 156 Toi Toi St, Victory
$75 for the whole course or $20 a class as a casual

CLASSES
Sunday Classes are Technique classes - all levels welcome heading up to Xmas
All classes are $15 a class per person.
Monday Night classes are $15 for one class, $20 for two classes

Monday Night Classes
Improvers
This class is for those who have completed the initial beginners class and are new to tango and been dancing for less than a year.  It is a great class to brush up on basic technique for those who are "old feet" at tango.

Intermediate 
This class requires you to be able to get around the dance floor easily and we work on fine tuning technique and introduce you to new concepts and moves.  Sometimes the class focuses on nuevo tango techniques as well - just for a change!  

LA CATEDRAL MILONGA
La Catedral milonga is my once a month milonga normally held on the 3rd Friday of the month.  
It has had a shaky start!  The first one was a lot of fun and was held at the Phat Club, the 2nd one cancelled, the 3rd one replaced with the Sunday 14 October  milonguita - HOWEVER the dates of the next two are finalised and nothing will stop them happening!

Please put in your diaries Friday16 November and Friday 21 December for the Xmas Milonga.
Both these events will be held at the Masonic Hall in Nile St - what a fabulous floor this venue has - you will love dancing on it!

I have updated the Summer Tango in Nelson website and am getting really excited about hosting it again next year.  Make sure you reserve the dates in your diaries, 8-10 March so we can show all our out-of-towners all the Nelson hospitality we can muster.    If anyone thinks they may have a room spare that time of the year to accommodate someone visiting let me know!  If you have any ideas on how I can make the festival bigger and better - let me know - I am always keep to brainstorm ideas of making Nelson the tango hub of NZ  ;-))

Ok so there is lots coming up and next year is going to be huge as well... Summer Tango in March, Quique Miller and Fabian Rodriguez coming to Nelson again to teach and sing in April, a trip to Sydney to teach workshops with Quique Miller (you are welcome to join me), Golden Bay Weekend in Spring, the NZ Tango Festival in June... where will you be?

Here's a fabulous milonga dance by Sebastian Arce and Mariana Montes to get you all excited about our upcoming course!

Have a great weekend and see you Sunday for split weight pivots.