Re: [Tango-L] Social-ethical behaviors and protocols Why tango? by Artem Maloratsky - Copyright ©2007 (with special permission of the author)
Most tango "addicts" do not ask themselves such a question - they know they love it, and that is why they do it. I myself have had an urge to keep dancing tango for close to 13 years now, and it is not getting any weaker. But, such irrational sentiments aside, I am also interested in understanding the underlying qualities which make this dance so appealing. In my experience, tango has been a positive force in the following three ways: as pleasurable recreation and a comfortable social scene; as a therapeutic activity; as a culturally significant art form, an instrument of conscious evolution of a human being. Taken in the lightest manner, tango, as any other social dance, is a great alternative to leisure activities which center around food and drink. I personally had always been somewhat socially uncomfortable, and did not enjoy spending long hours in bars, restaurants or cocktail parties. The tango scene instantly felt to me like a more natural way to come together with others. It was easier for me to dance with people for hours than to talk with them for 5 minutes. But even talking became easier, for tango also provided an inexhaustible topic of meaningful conversation. To me it also seems more natural to meet people in an environment that involved dancing - one often expresses oneself more eloquently and more inevitably through a dance than through hours of small talk. Before I even began to consciously realize the cultural significance of tango, I felt like I belonged in the milonga, though I was born and grew up in Russia. It made much more sense to me to come together with people on the basis of music and dance which we loved, rather than on the basis of more circumstantial workplace or school acquaintances. Another unique feature of tango is that it is a sensual, yet non-sexual interaction with the opposite sex. It allows one to viscerally experience the other person's psycho-physical being without getting too personal. It is a great way for people to express themselves as men and women without entering into a sexual relationship. Another reason to dance tango is that it can function as a therapeutic activity on many levels. First of all, it is a light aerobic activity, relatively safe and accessible to any age. As such, it can already make one feel better, and it is more fun than many other workouts. Tango is also automatically therapeutic due to the physical connection with another human being that it involves. In modern culture, more and more people feel isolated and lack physical contact, especially if they are single. Being hugged by another person for the duration of a dance can make a big difference in one's mood. But a much greater therapeutic power of tango lies in how metaphorical it is of all our relationships, and especially of the ways we relate to the opposite sex. Tango has been justly called a three-minute love affair. Because the tango embrace is so close and because the dance is improvised, one inevitably expresses one's character and relationship patterns through one's dancing. Such things are not always easy to see from the outside, but they are perceived very clearly by one's partner. With a little effort, one can also begin to notice one's own habitual attitudes and how they affect the experience of both partners. Just becoming more aware of that can teach one a lot about one's relationship patterns in general, and can thus be greatly therapeutic (it has been for me). But even more can be gained by learning how to transform one's patterns creatively. Tango is a model relationship in which one can experiment and learn more safely, for failing to dance a good tango is not as terrifying as failing in a real-life love affair. Another therapeutic value of tango is that it is inevitably a creative act - every dance is a spontaneous, unpremeditated interaction. As such, it develops our creative potential, puts us more in touch with our instincts and intuition. In today's world, where many people do not find enough room for creativity in the workplace, having a more creative hobby, where one expresses oneself more freely, can make a big difference in one's well-being. The greatest reason to dance tango, in my opinion, is that it can be practiced as an evolutionary art form - the concept that I discuss in detail in the Tango and Conscious Evolution section. Tango is an interaction that involves our senses, our motor skills, our instincts, our feelings, our intuition - our whole psycho-physical totality - to such a degree that it can be used as a tool for a general development of a human being (especially if "being" is used as a verb). Tango is a creative interaction which can teach us deeper principles of interacting in general. In this way, like the best of Eastern martial arts, tango can act as an instrument of positive transformation of an individual's mind, body and spirit. When practiced with this goal in mind, tango becomes a culturally significant art form of a rare kind, improving the well-being of individuals and of culture as a whole. But in order for this potential of tango to manifest fully, a correct approach to it is necessary. It started for me with the realization that the biggest key to progress in this dance was improving such fundamental abilities as standing, walking and controlling one's mind. After that I started trying to understand how to practice this art form in such a way that it most directly connected to a general self-improvement. This is, in my opinion, what it means to purify an artistic practice. It is through this approach that I ended up experiencing the biggest improvement in both my dancing and my general well-being. Developing such an approach is the main motivation behind this website. _______________________________________________ Tango-L mailing list Tango-L@mit.edu http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l