What Is a Tango and Is The Argentine Interpretation Better?

The Tango. A romantic Latin dance style performed by a man and women using synchronized dance steps. Personally, I love watching people dancing the Tango. They way the partners move together in harmony as you see the passion between them as they tell a story. The passion in the Tango is so important. Without passion there literally is no dance. A Latin dance is always oozing with passion and romance. 

       The Tango was originated in South America in the early twentieth century. At the beginning, the Tango was only performed by women, but as it became more popular in Argentina the Tango became a couple dance. In the19th century, Buenos Aires was filled with immigrants from Europe and Africa, many of them were  lonely and looking for companionship in their new home. These people found their way to the salons, looking for drinks to cover their sorrows, temporary friendship, and any entertainment to help ease their depression. The mix of cultures combined to bring about a new style of music, formed from African beats, Indian rhythms, Latin influences, and the popular music of the pampas (flatlands) in Argentina. This new music was now called The Tango. Then, around the 1910s the Tango began to spread around America eventually reaching New York continuously gaining popularity. Not really following its article name, "Learn to Dance Tango with Ballroomdancers",  gave the best information out of the sources that I have sited below. This website passed the CRAP test giving not only me, but the world wonderful information. The Tango involves very repetitive dance steps with motions going from strong to soft. In this dance the man must hold the lady in the crook of his arm with her other arm around his waist. The man must allow the lady to rest in this position as he leads her across the dance floor with a curving pattern. The dancers goal is to make a strong connection to the music, the audience, and of course, each other.

       With this dances come several different styles and interpretations. One of the most popular forms of the Tango is the Argentine Tango. It does not get any more hot or steamy than the Argentine Tango. The Argentine Tango is much more intimate and passionate compared to your average Tango. In the Argentine Tango the bodies are pressed very closely together. The Argentine Tango is an evolving dance and music form everyday on the social floor in Argentina. 





"The Basics That You Need to Know About the Tango." About.com Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2016
http://dance.about.com/od/typesofdance/p/Tango.htm

"Learn to Dance Tango with Ballroomdancers.com!" Learn to Dance Tango with Ballroomdancers.com! N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2016. 

http://www.ballroomdancers.com/Dances/dance_overview.asp?Dance=ATA
Tango History." Trio Garufa. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2016.
http://www.triogarufa.com/tango-history.html


TANGO:

ARGENTINE TANGO:

Waltz? Current and Poppin or Just Too Old?

The Waltz is a type of dance style that is not normally seen unless of course you are watching ballroom dance competitions. The Waltz is a type of dance style that is very graceful, elegant, and on the slower side. The Waltz evolved from folk dances in Austria and Germany in the mid 18th century.

The German "Lander", a folk dance, is supposed to be the beginning point of the Waltz. During this time period a dance developed which was called the "Walzer", a word owing its origin to the Latin word Volvere, which means a rotating motion. Napoleon's invading soldiers spread the waltz from Germany to Paris; then the dance began the spread across the channel to England and finally to the United States. When the Waltz was first introduced into the ballrooms of the world in the early years of the Nineteenth Century, it was met with outraged indignation, because it was the first dance where couples danced in a modified Closed Position - with the man's hand around the ladies waist. At the beginning of the 1830s, the waltz was given huge support by two Austrian composers Lanner and Strauss. They set the standard for the Viennese Waltz, a very fast version at about 55 - 60 measures per minute. The fast tempo did created problems leading to the enjoyment of the new dance to disperse because keeping up with the music was a struggle. It is unknown when the waltz was introduced to the United States. It was probably brought to New York and Philadelphia at about the same time, and by the middle of the Nineteenth Century was firmly established in United States society. During the later part of the Nineteenth Century, Waltzes were being written to a slower tempo than the original Viennese rhythm. Around the close of the Nineteenth Century, two modifications of the waltz developed in the United States. The first was the "Boston", a slower waltz with long gliding steps; there were fewer and slower turns and more forward and backward movement than in the Viennese Waltz. This version eventually stimulated the development of the English or International Style which continues today. The American Style Waltz is similar to the International Style except the American Style has open dance positions and the dancers legs pass instead of close. The second modification was the "Hesitation Waltz", which involves taking one step to three beats of the measure. Although the "Hesitation Waltz" is no longer danced, some of it's step patterns are still in use today. In Germany,with Ballroom dances having long traditions, the Waltz is still seen. They relax to Classical Music so for them, they would much rather go to a Ballroom dancing place than go to the club. In America Ballroom dancing has defiantly drawn away for the younger generations eye. For all this information I looked at multiple websites and I can't even count on my fingers for how many I looked at. The website that was the most reliable and that helped me the most was "WALTZ HISTORY | Dancelovers Dance History." Waltz is too slow and too "old" as they say. Teens are leaning towards jazz, hip hop, and even ballet. The only time I truly see the Waltz is on TV with Ballroom Dance competitions, but even these competitions are ever so gradually leaning away from traditional Waltz and modernizing it with pop music and fusion steps. The Waltz will never be the same as it used to be. 


Traditional Waltz:

Modern Waltz: 

Links: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/music/music_dance/paired_dance1.shtml

"WALTZ HISTORY | Dancelovers Dance History." Waltz_history. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2016.

http://www.dancelovers.com/waltz_history.html

"Why You Should (and Can) Learn to Waltz | Lifestyle | DW.COM | 13.01.2016." DW.COM. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2016.

http://www.dw.com/en/why-you-should-and-can-learn-to-waltz/a-18975242

"Departments." Ballroom Dancing Makes a Comeback « Northwest Quarterly. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2016.

http://oldnorthwestterritory.northwestquarterly.com/2014/12/ballroom-dancing-makes-a-comeback/

What is the Jive and Where Do You See It?

The Jive is a happy energetic dance that has plenty of kneel lifting, bending, and rocking of the hips. The Jive can be danced to Swing music and jump blues with tempo ranges of 200 beats per minute. The Jive first became popular in the 1940s being known as the Europeans calmer version of the jitterbug. The term Jive became associated with the style of sing dancing through Cab Calloways "Hepster Jive Talk". According to the website, http://www.streetswing.com/his
tmain/z3jive.htm, the Jive was used by Europeans in WWII when the Jitterbug was called the Jitterbug-Jive.  Once the war was over, the term Jitterbug-Jive stopped in the states but was continued in Europe as the Jive. So, the Jive is a European dance that transferred over to the States. Today in America the Jive is taught in ballroom classes. You also see the Jive on Dancing With the Stars which is my favorite show of all time (video down below).  Now a days when you watch performances and television you will see a Jive fusion. Normally, it is the Jive incorporated with other styles of Ballroom dancing, but my favorite

dances are when they mix the Jive with Hip Hop and Jazz(down below). With this they still keep the fast pace and hitting every beat but it has more content. Although you continue to see The Jive in dance competitions and entertainment performances, it is not performed as much as it used to be. People are leaning away from ballroom dances and are performing more Hip Hop, Contemporary, and Jazz dances.

~ Maya Bahl

"The Characteristics and Steps of the Jive." About.com Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2016. 

http://dance.about.com/od/partnerdancestyles/qt/Jive.htm
http://www.streetswing.com/histmain/z3jive.htm,

Modern Jive:

                             










Classic Jive: