Milonga Party for Newbies

This Friday 5/sep come to the History Museum with the new Pergo laminate floor for the first Milonga party there. What's that you say? You don't know the difference between a milonga and a regular practica?

Since this is a question that many beginners ask, here are some answers.

A "practica" is a dance practice, usually in studios where you learn your tango. The main reason to go to a practica is to brush up your skills, by dancing on your own or with other learners present, and no provision is made for seating or food and drinks.

A "milonga" is a social mixer event in which tango music is either played by a live band or mixed by a deejay. It is almost always held at a place where you can sit down, have some drinks and food, chit chat, and dance. (Not to be confused with milonga music which is a quick 2/4 rhythm).

People go to a milonga primarily to socialize. They do not necessary dance every song -- in fact, only when they have the right combination of mood, music and partner. When they invite someone to dance, it is customary to dance three songs with the same person before leaving the floor.

Ambience is of course an important element for a perfect social evening. This is why milongas are held in ballrooms and people wear their dress-to-impress clothes. You may think of milongas as the equivalence of "clubbing".

A lone visitor in town almost always hit the milongas first, because that is how you meet the best dancers and get plugged into the local scene. Not having a partner is not a problem since everyone is expected to invite strangers to dance.

Most big cities with active tango population have a few milongas every night of the week, so milonga-hopping can become an addictive lifestyle for the man-about-town. In Argentina they call such people "milongueros".

There are many "codes" observed by milonguers -- respecting the line of the dancing, avoiding collisions, inviting a partner with your eyes, not talking on the dance floor, and so on. I will leave you to discover the codes yourself when you come to milonga on Friday.

 Milonga Party
 Singapore History Museum
 Level 3 Riverside Point
 Fri 5/sep 9pm-12am
 Tickets $20 at the door

Note: This event helps to defray the costs of installing the new floor. The menu consists of eclairs, tacos, tarts and freshly brewed coffee and tea. Please help us to reduce wastage by letting us know you are coming, by dropping me a mail at info@tangoeast.com or sms me on 96373512.

Gladys and Ricardo Workshop

Gladys Fernandez and Ricardo Gallo's workshop this weekend is devoted to new material:

• Intermediate level will focus on close-embrace style


• Advanced level will mainly be Tango Nuevo figures

Beginner 1      - Fri 5/sep 7-9pm           $40*
Beginner 2      - Sat 6/sep 6-8pm           $45  
Beginner 3      - Sun 7/sep 6-8pm           $45  
Intermediate 1  - Sat 6/sep 8-10pm          $45  
Intermediate 2  - Sun 7/sep 8-10pm          $45  
Nuevo 1         - Sun 7/sep 11.30am-1.30pm  $45  
Nuevo 2         - Mon 8/sep 9-11pm          $45  
* at Singapore History Museum;
all other at Jitterbugs

If you miss their workshop this time, you will either have to travel to Kuala Lumpur next week, or wait for them to pass through again next year.

For those who do not know, Gladys sells a range of tango shoes commissioned from master craftsmen in Argentina. These sexy shoes can be tailored to your dimension. Place order with her directly (see Catalog)

Deepavali Dance Retreat in Sentosa

Thankfully the next public holiday Deepavali falls on a Friday 24/oct, so with the help of our friends from Sentosa we have put together a program for a nice 2-day weekend retreat on the island:

• Party at night on Siloso beach on Deepavali's eve


• Overnight stay at the NTUC resort


• Full day dance workshop with guest instructors

Although the core events are devoted to dance, non-dancers will have ample time to explore the island's attractions and beaches, and indulge in swimming, cycling, volleyball etc. What else would you like to experience in Sentosa? Performing at the Musical Fountain? A trip to the spa? Foam parties? Let us know!

Breaking World Records

A few weeks ago, on Jul 31, 41 swing dancers in the US broke the Guinness world record for longest dance party by dancing 52 hours non-stop. The record was previously held by MTV India with 50 hours.

For all you trivia hunters, here are some more recent world records related to dancing:

• On Feb 20 this year, Singapore broke the Guinness world record for the largest country line dance, with a turnout of 11967 dancers at the Singapore Expo.


• The longest salsa music dancing event happened in Havana, Cuba, in Mar 1997, with 2000 musicians playing for 100 continuous hours for 1000 couples.


• On Mar 4 this year, three dancers in Washington broke the Guinness world record for longest dancing on a stage machine with 36 hours on a Dance Dance Revolution game. The previous record was 13 hours.

One common problem with all these records is that, while you can certainly measure how much and how long, you can never actually know for sure how well, or if the movements could even be classified as dancing at all...

Blind Man Dancing

An article on tango is the last thing you expect to read on a website with a name like BetterBaking.com, but that is what you do find here.

In this article, author Marcy Goldman analyses her experience dancing with a blind man: "In the end, in tango, as it turns out, you do not always have to see to lead. You just have to know what you are about. You do not have to even have to be blessed with sight to know where you are going. I mean in the end, tango, much like life, is about a hunch about direction. You give it a shot. Then you put one step in front of the other. From a distance, it looks like dancing."