What is Argentine Tango. Tango musical instruments

Tango- one of the most mysterious dances in the world. After all, restraint of characters, severity of lines and unbridled undisguised passion coexist in it at the same time. Modern tango has many varieties. Among them are a strict ballroom direction, and a passionate Argentinean and unusual Finnish. But they all differ from other types of dances in their special unique character. After all, only in tango it is possible to combine such anatomical features as restraint and passion, strictness and frivolity, tenderness and aggression. Maybe that's why, despite its complexity, both in performance and in understanding, this dance has great amount fans around the world.

History of Tango

Tango is a unique fusion of traditions, folklore, feelings and experiences of many peoples, which has more than a century of history. It appeared in late XIX centuries in the poor emigrant neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, where emigrants gathered in search of happiness, met here cultural traditions countries around the world. Happiness was not enough for everyone, it was replaced by a dance accessible to everyone. It has Argentine milonga, Havana habanera, Spanish flamenco, ritual dances Indians, Polish mazurka, German waltz merged into a dance of longing for the abandoned homeland, unhappy love, passion and loneliness. At first, tango was a dance of a man. It was a confrontation, a duel, mostly of course over a woman. They say that a lady could choose from 10-15 men. Later, the tango became the dance of a man and a woman. In many ways, to this day, tango has retained its opposing force and rules of the game: the man leads, the lady follows him. Tango turned out to be so viable that it quickly escaped not only from the ports and streets of the poor quarters of Buenos Aires, but also beyond the borders of Argentina. At the beginning of the 20th century, tango and its music came into life European countries. It was the golden age of tango, the period of tangomania. Paris at the beginning of the century fell in love with tango at first sight. This illegitimate child of African rhythms, Italian songs and mazurkas came to Paris thanks to a few dancers from Argentina. A new word has emerged tangomania, the fashion for tango dancing and everything connected with it: tango parties, tango drinks, cigarettes, tango clothes and shoes. From Paris, the tango spread all over the world, to London, New York, Germany and Russia, although not without hindrance. Pope Pius X himself spoke out against the new dance, and the Austrian emperor forbade soldiers to dance it in military uniform. And the Queen of England said she refuses to dance "this". But in 1914, a couple of Romanians, students of the Argentine Casimir Ain, danced "it" in the Vatican, and the Pope lifted his ban. We also had our own tango in Russia. Tango became very popular in St. Petersburg at the beginning of the 20th century, although its dancing was officially banned. So in 1914, a decree of the Minister of Public Education appeared, prohibiting educational institutions In Russia, the very mention of "a dance called tango that has become widespread." And if you remember, the waltz, the mazurka, and the polka shared the fate of the tango at one time... And in the 20-30s it was also banned as a dance of bourgeois culture. They banned it, but tango became more and more loved. Played gramophone records with "Cumparsita" by Rodriguez, "Champagne Splashes", "Burnt Sun" were passed from hand to hand. There were sweet melodies by Oscar Strok, soulful tango performed by Vadim Kozin, Petr Leshchenko, Konstantin Sokolsky, Alexander Vertinsky... And then wartime tango and tango from Russian films. It was our native Russian tango.
More recently, tango has been treated as a retro dance, culture and style that has long since outlived its golden age. But today tango returns to us at the beginning of the new century in the original style, as it was danced and danced in Argentina. This is a new wave of tangomania. This is a new direction of neo-romanticism, when a man and a woman rediscover the charm and pleasure of dancing together. Argentine tango is danced all over the world.
History of Argentine Tango
This story began in Argentina. They say that in the beginning the tango was danced by blacks, former slaves who lived in Argentina. This dance was accompanied by the rhythms of drums. At the end of the 19th century, the Argentine port city of Buenos Aires became extremely popular among emigrants. From different countries Europe people came here in search of a better life. These people brought with them various musical instruments from their native countries: violins, guitars, flutes, and of course they carried musical traditions their countries. And here in Buenos Aires, like a mix different cultures and directions in music, a previously unknown dance - tango - is being formed and developed. At first he was cheerful, light, at times even vulgar. For a long time it remained the music and dance of the lower strata of society. The middle and upper classes did not recognize him. In those days, tango was danced in taverns, barrack yards, brothels and just on the streets in the poorest quarters of the city. At the beginning of the 20th century, the bandoneon appeared among the tango instruments, an instrument resembling an organ in its sound. He added a touch of drama to tango music. With his appearance, Tango became slower, new tones of intimacy appeared for him. In the 1920s, an economic crisis began in Argentina. A huge number of people lost their jobs and the people of Buenos Aires became very sad people. It should be noted that at that time most The population of Buenos Aires was made up of men. And so the men of Buenos Aires were very lonely. The lyrics of tango will always be a woman, sadness and longing for her. For a male porteño, there were only brief moments of rapprochement with a woman. This happened when he held her in his arms, dancing the tango. At these moments, the man was embraced by love, and this feeling somehow reconciled him with life. In 1955, a military regime began in Argentina. Tango is still not pleasing to the upper and middle strata of society, since tango is a dance of the poor, a dance of the people, a dance of free feelings. When you dance the Tango, don't get carried away with the steps, because the steps are the less important part of the dance. The most important part of Tango is the music and your feelings.

Reflections on the origin of tango
Tango is primarily a dance genre that has its own rhythm and structure that distinguishes it from other genres. The origin of tango was strongly influenced by the socio-cultural context of the late 19th century. The conditions that shaped tango between 1890 and 1920 were unique. They will be gone when new ones begin to appear. musical genres to fight for the right to be popular.
The social conditions in which tango was born are Buenos Aires in the 1880s with an indigenous population of 210,000 and then a large influx of emigrants from Europe. In 1910, the population reaches 1,200,000 people and that is when the tango flourishes. These historical events are very important for our analysis. It was this mixture of European bloodlines with Spanish and native Latin American populations that gave impetus to a new way of expressing oneself through music. This unprecedented event of fusion of different nations gives tango the character of a universal dance. Buenos Aires in 1880 was like a big village where you could only dance or watch dancers in dance halls or theaters. These academies hired only women who had a special work permit. As a rule, there were dance halls on the outskirts of the city or in the suburbs. The dance parties mixed the rhythms of habanera (Havanese dance), polka, corrido, waltz, Scottish song and other genres. From all these rhythms, tango was born, quickly becoming popular in the growing Buenos Aires. At that time, it was common practice for actors to sing and dance on stage in comedies, operettas, and other small genre plays. Even before the beginning of the 20th century, tango music began to sound at these shows. Street musicians spread the tango melody to all corners and quarters, and very often you could see people dancing tango on the street, especially men dancing with each other. At that time, women were rare, as emigrants, as a rule, left their wives and girlfriends at home and rushed alone in search of their fortune. Another misconception about tango is that it has been rejected and forbidden in high society. Beginning in 1902, the Teatro Opera held balls where the tango, along with other dances, was included in the repertoire. And ordinary workers or people from the provinces hardly went there. With development wealthy people who have at home, in addition to a record player, a piano to play from the notes. average salary a policeman at that time was 60 pesos. Between 1903 and 1910
technologies and

With the advent of gramophone records and players, tango began to take root more and more in the life of the city. The price of one plate then varied between 2 pesos and 50 cents 5 pesos. A gramophone then cost between 150-300 pesos. One sheet of music cost from 1 to 3 pesos. Who could buy these things at such prices? Of course, wealthy people who have at home, in addition to a record player, a piano to play from the notes. The average salary of a police officer at that time was 60 pesos. Between 1903 and 1910, more than a thousand records were released, 350 of which were devoted to tango, and a huge number of sheet music. In the next decade, the volume of records increased to 5,500, of which half were tango recordings. Doesn't that mean there's a lot of demand? How could poor people buy a gramophone? Who could buy records?
In conclusion: the culture of tango was born from a mixture of Spanish and Latin American culture with what European immigrants brought with them. Its origin was influenced on the one hand by milonga, habanera, Scottish dance, and on the other hand by operetta and pop song. Tango was born on the outskirts of the city and in the provinces. Then, it became popular in dance halls, which were then called academies. Street musicians spread the tango throughout the neighborhoods, and theaters included it in their productions. He had to get along with other dances, but in the end it firmly won its place in the city center. The tango was adopted, to a greater or lesser extent lesser degree, by all sectors of society and was recognized first in Europe, later in the United States, and then in the rest of America.

Roots of tango - dance and music
The most fantastic theories, stretching all the way to the land of the rising sun, argue about the origin of dance, music and the very word "tango". Eduardo S. Castillo believes that the word "tango" is Japanese, since the dance itself was allegedly invented by the Japanese living in Cuba. Even though we understand that this theory is too far from being real, and not so distant stories of the origin of tango cannot be considered more reliable and remain until today the subject of fierce debate. There is already a debate about where the word "tango" comes from. Some believe that it is based on the Latin verb "tangere" - to touch, others consider it to be derived from the Spanish word "tambor" - drum - through an intermediate stage - "tambo" or "tango" to "tango". More likely is the theory published by Vincente Rossi in 1926 in his book "Cosas de negros" (The Cases of the Blacks). Rossi was the first to point out that the word "tango" may come from one of the African dialects.
His suggestion seems all the more likely since Buenos Aires and Montevideo were for many years important staging posts for the slave trade. Ricardo Rodriguez Molas, another tango researcher, confirmed Rossi's thesis in his etymological studies, proving the African origin of the word "tango". The dispute is actually about what served as the basis: the Congolese dance "lango", the god of the Nigerian Yoruba tribe "shango" or the word of the Bantu people "tamgu", meaning dance in general. According to Molas, "tango" comes from the Kongo, where it means "closed place", "circle". Later, this word began to refer to the places where slaves were collected before being loaded onto a ship. When comparing tango with candombe, the music of the black population of Buenos Aires, it is already clear from the instruments used that these musical styles have little in common.
None of the many percussion instruments that form the basis of candombe has ever been used in tango. The tango and candombe are united by a rhythmic formula that basically underlies all African-influenced Latin American music, from Uruguay to Cuba. This rhythmic formula also influenced three musical style considered the immediate predecessors of the tango: the Afro-Cuban habanera, the Andalusian tango and the milonga.
Habanera, which originated around 1825 in the suburbs of Havana, is both a pair dance and a form of song. From a musical point of view, it is a mixture of Spanish song traditions with the rhythmic heritage of black slaves. As a result of constant contact between the colony and the metropolis, the habanera penetrated the Spanish kingdom and, around the 1850s, became popular throughout the country, mainly through folk theaters. In the port taverns of Buenos Aires and Montevideo, the habanera was distributed by Cuban sailors. She instantly became competitive with the most fashionable dances of that era, with the mazurka, polka, waltz. She was also very popular in folk theater in the form of songs. The rhythmic basic structure of the habanera consists of a two-quarter measure, which in turn is composed of one percussion eighth, one sixteenth, and two further eighths. Tango Andaluz, which originated around 1850 in Cadiz, belongs to the classical forms of flamenco and is performed accompanied by a guitar. This is both a song form and a dance, which was performed at first only by a woman, later by one or more couples, and the partners did not touch each other. However, the Andalusian tango did not come to Argentina as a dance. Here it was used only as a song or folk theater verses.
Milonga, the Creole predecessor of the tango, is in itself "part of cultural history", and there is also no consensus on the original meaning of this word. Dieter Reichardt believes that this word is plural the words mulonga ("word") of the Kimbundu language. While the Negro population of Brazil retained the original meaning of the word milonga - "words", "conversation", in Uruguay "milonga" meant "city singing" (payada pueblera) in contrast to songs rural population, just payada. In Buenos Aires and its environs, milonga in the 1870s meant "festival" or "dances" and the place where they were held, and at the same time "a messy mix". In this sense, this word is used in the epic of Martin Fierro. Shortly thereafter, this word began to be used to refer to a special dance and song

forms, to which were added milonguera - a dancer in entertainment establishments and milonguita - a woman working in a cabaret, with a penchant for alcohol and drugs. "At this time, the milonga was interesting as a dance and song form. The rural milonga was very slow and served as musical accompaniment to songs "The urban version was much faster, more mobile, it was played and, accordingly, danced more rhythmically. If we talk about rhythmic elements, then only elements of African candombe are most noticeable in the milonga. The relationship with music is more obvious folk singers pampas. While the tango is a more stylized urban music that left behind its folklore legacy no later than the 1920s, the milonga has numerous features. folk music Argentina.

The milonga, the habanera and the Andalusian tango were a significant part of the repertoire of the trios that toured the Buenos Aires area in the 1880s. These musicians were almost entirely self-taught, playing flutes, violins, and harp at dances in working-class neighborhoods, suburban eateries, and brothels. The harp was often replaced by a mandolin, an accordion, or simply a comb, and was subsequently completely replaced by the guitar, which since the time of the Conquista has played an important role primarily in the countryside as the national instrument of the gauchos and payadores. Soon the guitarist began to determine the harmonic basis on which the violinist and flutist improvised. Few of the then musicians could read music. Everyone played by ear and invented new tunes every evening. What they liked was often repeated until a peculiar musical composition. But since these melodies were not recorded, today it is not known how they sounded exactly. The repertoire of such groups was more than colorful. They played waltzes, mazurkas, milongas, habaneras, andalusian tango and at some point the first Argentine tango. Today it is impossible to say which trio played the first purest tango in which diner in the city. The transitions between habanera, milonga and Andalusian tango were so subtle that they were often confused. The rise of tango can be more or less accurately traced back to the time when musicians playing for dancers could read the notes and thus record the music they played. These were primarily pianists who played in elegant salons, where there was a piano. Pianists played here mostly alone. They usually had musical education unlike their anonymous trio counterparts playing in the suburbs. They exchanged notes, created their own style and - most importantly - recorded their compositions.
One of the most famous establishments of that time was cafe Restaurant, opened by the German Juan Hansen in 1877 in the city district of Palermo "Lo de Hansen" ("At Hansen's") - a kind of hybrid of a restaurant and a brothel. Here one could taste delicacies in the open air overlooking the Rio de la Plata and then dance in secluded places hidden from prying eyes.

Tango played in a variety of places, on the streets, in the courtyards of the workers' quarters and in many institutions, from " dance halls to brothels: "romerias", "karpas", "baylongs", "tringets", "academies", etc. It is difficult to single out the places where tango was played more precisely - at best, they differed from each other in their proximity to a brothel. José Gobello quotes a description of a certain "academy" in 1910: "The academy was just a cafe where women served and where a hurdy-gurdy played. There you could drink and dance between two glasses with serving women." The women in this establishment, as a contemporary writes further, were not prostitutes, but in general it was only a matter of time and - in more difficult cases - greater amount money - if the client had such a desire. The hurdy-gurdy was at that time one of the most important instruments for spreading young tango music. The Italians walked with her through the streets of the city center and the courtyards of the workers' quarters. Families of immigrants danced on Sundays of their holidays between waltz and mazurka once or twice and tango, albeit without the complex figures adopted by "decent people". The Italian hurdy-gurdy is mentioned in the Argentinean national epic "Martin Fierro". The tangos "El ultimo organito" and "Organito de la tarde" are referred to as the "Voice of the Outskirts".
In all these places at that time you could hear the tango. A classic early tango was, for example, "El entrerriano" written by Rosendo Mendizabal in 1897. Unfortunately, there are no records of how Rosendo Mendizabal and his colleagues interpreted "Tangos para piano". However, the published scores give an idea of ​​how joyful and energetic this music must have sounded. At the beginning of the 20th century, the sounds of the guitar, flute and violin were added to the unique husky sound of the bandoneon. There were orchestras that performed tango

In the 40s of the XX century, tango was very popular.

At the beginning of the 20th century, tango appeared in Europe. His debut in Paris was a real sensation.

Tango is one of the most sensual dances on earth, it teaches sincerity, makes men remember gallantry, women about tenderness.

Tango in the old districts of Buenos Aires, late 19th century

Tango appeared at the end of the 19th century in the poor emigrant neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, where emigrants came in search of happiness...

Tango is a unique fusion of traditions, folklore, feelings and experiences of many peoples, which has more than a century of history.

Only in tango it is possible to combine such anatomical features as restraint and passion, strictness and frivolity, tenderness and aggression.

Tango is a dance of passion...

Among the varieties of tango are strict ballroom, passionate Argentinean and unusual Finnish...

Modern tango has many varieties.

In tango, restraint of characters, strictness of lines and unbridled undisguised passion coexist at the same time.

Tango is one of the most mysterious dances in the world...

Tango is passion, drive, magic that happens between a man and a woman during an old and very beautiful dance. But where did it come from and why did it get such a name?

To plunge into the enchanting world of secrets and emotions, as well as to understand in detail the origin and meaning of the word "tango", this article will help.

Meaning of the word

Sergei Ivanovich Ozhegov in his dictionary claims that tango is, firstly, special kind paired ballroom dance, and, secondly, the music that accompanies his “pas” and movements. AT encyclopedic dictionary the word "tango" is defined as a modern sliding dance that has various types.

The stress in the word "tango" falls on the first syllable, and therefore the word should be pronounced like "tango", and in no case "tango"! Remember this so as not to appear illiterate or ignorant.

Its origin

This word appeared much earlier than the well-known and popular dance today. However, historians and linguists cannot really say for sure where it came from, they only suggest the history of the origin of amazing movements and their names.

It is only known that the term "tango" in Argentina in XVIII-XIX centuries gatherings were called, which were often arranged by visiting migrants from Africa (by the way, the word, most likely, also comes from the Nigerian language), in which they danced and played drums that had a name similar to the dance.

Tango - he or it?

This word is clearly not Russian, and therefore it is impossible for Russians at first glance to determine how to speak competently and correctly about this direction: “he” or “it”.

Of course, in the Russian language there are many foreign words, the gender of which is beyond doubt. For example, words « devaluation» or "tolerance": nouns in nominative case, singular, feminine. Or « entourage», « experiment, renaissance: also initial form noun, mentioning which, you should use the pronoun "he", since the word refers to

The word "tango" in this regard is covered with secrets and mysteries. After all, even knowing its meaning, it is difficult to say to which genus it belongs.

Of course, it is quite difficult to determine the generic feature of the word "tango". After all, in this sense it is very similar to the morning invigorating drink, known to almost everyone. Savvy people have probably already guessed that we are talking about coffee now. And also about how many difficulties with the correct pronunciation of this word arise for the majority of Russians.

Imagine the situation: you have brewed a wonderful drink and offer it to your loved ones, what do you say when inviting them to the table? « Join us, the coffee turned out to be insanely delicious!” or " Join us, the coffee turned out to be insanely delicious!

Neutral or masculine? "My" or "mine" is correct? Pronoun "he" or "it"? So you can't tell right away. Yes, and linguists are constantly confusing, without finally deciding what gender the word “coffee” belongs to. It used to be average, now, it seems, they agreed that it was masculine. But what will happen tomorrow remains a mystery.

How not to get into trouble when talking about tango?

With this word, the story is exactly the same as with "coffee". However, many people, when they use the word "coffee", "tango" and the like, say: “Tango is a dance... Since 2009 it has been protected by UNESCO...” or “Tango is a direction of ballroom dancing... It speaks the language of love and passion.”

The tricksters resort to an interesting trick, constructing a sentence with the word "tango" in such a way as to replace it with another word or definition, the gender of which is not in doubt.

This simple method can also be applied to the word "coffee", replacing it, for example, with the word "drink" or some other.

What kind of word is "tango"?

In order to determine the gender of the selected word, conduct its morphological analysis.

This term is probably familiar to you from school. At the Russian language lessons, when it was required to parse a word relative to what part of speech it belongs to and what features it has, the teacher offered to conduct a morphological analysis. Which just made it possible to reveal the features of a particular word.

Morphological analysis of the word:

"What? Tango".

A noun that refers to an inanimate object.

"What? What? What? What? How? — Tango. About what? About tango.

It does not decline in cases and does not change its form.

"Whose tango? It's mine!"

Neuter gender.

Based on the morphological analysis carried out above, as well as from the definition given in explanatory dictionary Russian language, this word should be used exclusively in the form of the middle gender, saying "it".

How did the dance direction begin?

Tango is a mysterious and slightly mystical dance. The movements of partners in it are so rich, bright. And the rhythms are so exciting, passionate that one can endlessly admire the beauty of this dance. After all, he is like a volcano, hot and unrestrained. Watching the movements of partners every time you discover something new.

Tango is a struggle, but romantic and passionate. Mastering the movements of this dance is now quite simple, you just need to have the desire to master the skill of tango to perfection.

But at the moment when dance direction only the beginning of its development, this art was not only not taught, but on the contrary, they tried by all means to suppress it. Tango "bloomed" on the streets, in the poor neighborhoods of Argentina.

Refugees from Italy, Spain, Andalusia, Buenos Aires, the lower strata of Argentines and representatives of other countries took an active part in the "yard" festivities. Therefore, tango is an emotional, sensual dance of people who are at the very bottom and have nothing more to lose. Life is disappointment, bitterness and pain, and love hopes are shattered. But they continue to live and strive with all their might to get maximum pleasure, even if they are in the most disgusting position.

Tango - dance of brothels

A passionate and rather sexy dance among representatives of the nobility of a rather puritanical nineteenth century was considered impudent, overly frank, and, therefore, indecent. High society did not approve of it, called it shameful, giving only one definition for the word "tango" - the dance of fallen, degraded people.

Nevertheless, this absolutely did not prevent very many representatives of the “white-handed women” from going to the so-called hot places every evening. Where they could admire the eroticism of the magical movements of this dance.

High society made every effort to at least limit, if not completely eradicate the dance, which is so fond of the lower classes of society and intelligent visitors to visiting houses. Only all attempts were in vain, and tango, having significantly moderated its sexuality and frankness, nevertheless reached the “decent” quarters.

Tango is a visiting card of Argentina

The Argentine intelligentsia was never able to accept this dance direction as a "worthy" dance. She continued to hinder its development in every possible way, to despise and humiliate the people who perform it. But fans of tango, meanwhile, did not give up their positions either. This continued until the First World War.

Just the day before, the “dance of passion” burst into Europe with lightning speed. London, Madrid, Rome... The inhabitants of these cities, unlike the Argentines, were not so prone to prejudice. And they not only watched the tango performers with great enthusiasm, but also strove to master a new direction, to become professionals, virtuosos.

And when the dance reached Paris, whose inhabitants exalted it to the highest level with their admiring exclamations, the Argentines gave up. And, replaying everything in a new way, they made the dance their highlight, fetish and special feature.

If you were looking for an answer in which country did the tango dance originate, you should know that this is beautiful Argentina. And in the 30-50s of the twentieth century, it became as popular as possible. Some experts even argue that it is during this period of time that the “golden” age of this dance direction falls.

No matter how the representatives of the intelligentsia tried to stop the spread of this enchanting dance, they did not succeed. And it's wonderful! Indeed, otherwise it would be impossible now to admire the amazing direction of the paired ballroom dance called tango. Modern people they simply would not know what it is, and therefore would not line up for training courses.

It is difficult to say how all the inhabitants of the planet would react to this, but for sure, for many, life would become less bright and sensual if this dance suddenly disappeared somewhere. The fact is that it is human nature to strive for beauty. And in Hard times he just needs some way to express his emotions.

This is how masterpieces of painting, poetry, and music are born. Thus was born the dance of crazy, tragic and passionate love.

When about a year had passed since the beginning of my tango lessons, I became interested in where, in fact, the word “ tango", what the hidden meaning does it carry, or is there no intrigue in it at all? Searches in various dictionaries, encyclopedias, the Internet gave a lot of food for thought. From time to time, friends and acquaintances are also interested in the subject of my hobbies. So the idea of ​​​​an article was gradually born, in which I wanted to put together all the information that I managed to find on this issue. Everything that you read in this text is by no means the ultimate truth and does not at all claim to be the truth. It's just short list existing hypotheses, myths, legends, conjectures mixed with historical facts and references.

One thing is for sure: the word "tango" appeared much earlier than the dance under this name appeared. The word is not of Argentine origin at all. As it turns out, traces of it can be found in African dialects. In one pronunciation or another, it was used in the Congo, Nigeria, Tanzania, Sudan, as well as in the Canary Islands and in various parts America. So, Vincente Rossi pointed out the possibility of the origin of the word "tango" from any of the African dialects. This theory is presented in his book Cosas de negros (Deeds of the Blacks), published in 1926.

Another tango scholar, Ricardo Rodriguez Molas, agrees with Rossi and gives a number of words that could become the progenitors of "tango". For example, the Nigerian Yoruba tribe worships the god "shango". In the Congo there is a dance "lango". The Bantu people use the word "tamgu" to designate a dance as such.

José Gobelo, an authority on the subject of tango, adds that Tanzania has a "tanga" area and Lake Tanganyika. African-South Americans perform ritual tang dances to drums called tango or tambo (perhaps from the Spanish word tambor, drum).

Molas points out that in the Congo the word "tango" means "circle", "closed place", "private space, the entrance to which must be asked." Gobelo adds that this word can be interpreted as a "meeting place" and "special place".

Slave traders under the word " tango" meant the places where slaves were collected before being loaded onto the ship. It also denoted the places of detention and sale of slaves in America. Perhaps in this way the word "tango" appeared and took root in the port cities of Buenos Aires and Montevideo, which for a long time were transit points for the slave trade.

Many researchers agree that the original meaning of the word "tango" is still a closed space where Africans were going to dance, and later this dance itself.

Some researchers have traced the interpretation of the word "tango" in different editions of the Dictionary of the Spanish Royal Academy of Letters. The results are very curious. For example, the 1899 edition defines "tango" as "the fun and dance of the negroes or the underclass in America". The second meaning of the word is "music for this dance." In this case, America should be understood as the Spanish part of the whole continent without Canada and the USA. The 1914 edition finds the origin of "tango" in Latin and tries to connect it with the verb "tangir" ("to play instruments"). For example, the expression "ego tango" has the meaning "I play." There you can also find the mention of the word "tangere" in the meaning of "touch". Later, these references were removed from the dictionary, perhaps their correctness was doubted. In the 1925 edition of the Dictionary, the following interpretation of the word "tango" was added: "dance high society imported from America at the beginning of the century. This is how, on the pages of one book, "tango" went from the "lower" to the "higher" strata of society. And only in the 1984 edition did the term "tango" acquire its current meaning - an Argentine dance.

And here are some more curious versions of the origin of the word "tango". AT different time in kinship with him were "suspected" the Chinese Tang dynasty, french verb tangier (to touch), some Mexican song “ancient tango” (a link to it was found in the archives of the Holy Inquisition in Mexico), unrestrained dances of Negro colonists called “tango” (with an emphasis on “o”), and even the Japanese who lived in Cuba (according to Eduardo S. Castillo).

It probably does not make sense to argue which of the versions mentioned is closer to the truth. Most likely, there are other explanations, meanings and meanings of this word. Moreover, the dance itself, which is now denoted by the word " tango” has undergone strong changes and was called differently in different periods time. But that is another topic. If you know any other information related to the issue raised, share it in the comments, it's interesting.

Modern tango has many varieties. Among them are a strict ballroom direction, and a passionate Argentinean and unusual Finnish. But they all differ from other types of dances in their special unique character. After all, only in tango it is possible to combine such anatomical features as restraint and passion, strictness and frivolity, tenderness and aggression. Maybe that's why, despite its complexity, both in performance and in understanding, this dance has a huge number of fans around the world.

The history of the origin of the dance

It is generally accepted that the Argentine pair dance, which was first danced in South America, became the prototype for all areas of tango. However, some sources, in particular French scientists, claim that the tango first appeared in Spain, and it was danced by the Spanish aborigines (Spanish Moors, Arabs). It happened at the beginning of the fifteenth century. And only in the 16th century, during the colonization South America Spain, the dance came to Argentina.

It should also be noted that in Spain, tango in its original form was only one of the many variations of pairs. folk dances. And the direction has already gained immense popularity in Argentina and other countries of South America. In the same place, tango developed and gradually separated into a separate dance direction. Initially, the tango was danced to the rhythms of drums and looked like a rather primitive dance, but over time, the Argentine tango turned into a rather complex dance, which was an absolutely unique musical and dance direction based on the rhythms and melodies "borrowed" in Europe, Africa and America (milonga , habanera, etc.).

For a long time, tango was considered the dance of ordinary people. It was only at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries that tango was introduced in Europe as another official dance direction. The most popular version is that the first choreographer who showed tango to London experts, choreographers and impresario was Camille de Rinal. However, there are other sources that claim that tango has been seen in Europe before. And it was presented to the public by dancing corpses from Buenos Aires and Montevideo performing in Europe. According to this version, the first show took place in Paris, and only then the dance "went" to conquer London, Berlin and other European capitals.

Be that as it may, but at the beginning of the twentieth century, tango began to rapidly gain its popularity as a fashionable and "high society" dance in Europe. And in 1913-1915, the tango craze also captured the United States. As its popularity grows in secular circles, the tango becomes less and less authentic. The choreographers “cleanse” it of frankly Argentinean features and greatly simplify it in order to facilitate learning. New varieties of tango appear (French, English, etc.), and in the USA, in general, almost all dances in the rhythm of 2/4 or 4/4 "one step" begin to be called the fashionable word "tango".

Tango today

Today, tango is a popular dance that is danced not only by amateurs, but also by professionals. Ballroom tango participates in the programs of international competitions along with foxtrot, waltz and other dances.

There are many varieties of tango in the world, which have their own characteristics and features. But no matter what direction of tango is discussed, only this dance can be applied to the quote "love story in one dance" or "love in a few steps." After all, it is difficult to find a more “full” and emotional dance. In each small production, the dancers live a love story that is full of feelings and their expression - passion, tenderness, anger, love, etc., which, being put on public display, nevertheless amazes with its intimacy.

Tango is considered one of the most difficult ballroom dances. And the point is not even in the peculiarities of the choreography, which is far from simple, but in the fact that it is not enough to learn how to dance tango. This dance must be felt, understood, felt.

Kinds

There are many variations, types and directions of tango, which differ greatly in choreography and musical accompaniment. So, starting to look for the direction of tango that you would like to study, you will surely come across a list of such types of tango as tango waltz, milonga, cangengue, etc. All these variations involve the use of different music (elements of waltz or Cuban dances, for example). There is even a direction of alternative tango, when music of completely different, dissimilar dance styles is used and adapted for tango dance.

If we consider the classical classification of tango, based on differences in choreography, then we can distinguish the following styles:

Argentine tango

This style is the closest to the authentic tango dance, which is performed in Argentina and Uruguay. This direction is a mixture of styles, trends and varieties of national folk Latin American dances with an admixture of rhythms from European and even African directions.

The main types of Argentine tango include:

• Cangengue
• Salon
• Orillero
• milonguero
• Nuevo
• Fantasy

Each of these types has its own technical features, steps, positions, etc. But almost all types of Argentine tango are based on the principles of improvisation in dance.

Finnish tango

This direction originated in Finland in the middle of the twentieth century. The direction very quickly became popular not only in its homeland, but throughout the world.

Finnish tango is a kind of middle option between passionate Argentinean and seasoned sports ballroom dance. In Finnish tango, there is already tight contact at the hips and following clear lines, but there are no characteristic sharp head movements.

ballroom tango

Ballroom tango - sports dance participating in the programs of international competitions. The main difference between this style and Argentine tango is the complete absence of improvisation. There are clear norms and rules of dance - the position of the body and head, following the lines, fulfilling a strictly designated list of elements, etc. Ballroom tango requires precision in both movement and music. This style is less melodic and smooth than its "brothers".

Special Features tango

Time signature - 2/4 or 4/4

The pace is slow

Music - depends on the style.

Choreography - depends on the style.

Tango is one of the most incendiary, romantic dances. Irrepressible energy, clarity of lines and rhythm, all this perfectly characterizes tango. To date, tango has many types. Among them there are both classical, ballroom trends, and ardent, passionate Argentinean. Perhaps the most unusual is Finnish. How can you characterize this dance in general? Passion and severity, ardent aggression and extraordinary tenderness, lightness of feelings and heaviness of lines are ideally combined here. Tango is a dance of contrasts, feelings that are conveyed through movement. Perhaps that is why tango has won millions of fans around the world.

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Photo gallery: Types of tango

Argentine tango and styles

The brightest tango to date is performed under different music. At its core, the dance differs in basic movements and tempo. Nowadays, many dancers do not give preference to any one type, but use different ideas, often adding new ones. The main criterion for any kind of tango is a hug. It is from its distance (open or closed, in other words - close) that is the key factor. For the open - a characteristic wide range of movements, and close - a partial touch of the partners' shoulders. Most popular species tangotoday:

Tango Milonguero

It starts from 40-50 years. It is characterized by execution in an inclined position and the connection of the partners' shoulders. Milonguero - very intimate style, here the woman is located very close to the partner, usually so that her left hand located far behind the man's neck. This type of tango is characterized by strong hugs and constant top contact for good turns or ochos. The main step, the so-called "ocho cortado". This style is very well suited for couples in love. Everything here is built on inner harmony and respect. The partner, as it were, listens to the other with the help of dance movements. Milonguero opens up many possibilities for those who are not afraid of experiments.

Tango Salon

It is characterized by a certain vertical position of the dancers. Hugs are close or open, but still offset (from the center of the partner). In position V, the same trend: the woman's left shoulder is closer to the man's right shoulder than her right to his left. With a close dance, it is customary to relax the hug, so that the dancers could perform certain movements.

Club style tango

It is a striking example of the combination of two styles, namely salon and milonguero. It is characterized by close hugs during turns.

New Tango or Tango Nuevo

It is a kind of analytical approach for a detailed study of the structure of dance. He is characterized by a number of new movements, combinations of steps. Nuevo - tango with open arms, here great importance assigned to each partner. The dancers keep their own axis.

Tango Orillero

A very maneuverable form of tango, the dancers are characterized by maintaining a large distance between themselves and stepping out of the embrace. For this style some playful notes are characteristic, as well as a chic appearance. Tango Orillero can be danced both in open and close embraces.

Kazenge

Historical form of tango. It is characterized by shifting to the V position, close hugs, bending the knees when moving. Particular attention is paid to the steps.

Tango Liso

From the side it seems the simplest. A series of certain steps and something like a walk, which is called a kaminada. There is nothing complicated here. This style favors simplicity and clarity. Its basis is the basic steps and figures. The fox is devoid of complex turns and figures.

Tango show "Fantasy"

This is the style of tango most often used on stage. Bright combination various styles, additions with interesting elements, open arms, that's what is characteristic of Fantasia. Tango Fantasia requires a lot of energy, high mastery of technique, excellent flexibility and a good feeling for your partner.

One of the most interesting and unusual is finnish tango.

It originated in Finland after the Second World War. Toivo Kyarky is rightfully considered to be its creator. This style is characterized by its slowness and rhythm. It is almost always in a minor. What is most interesting, Finnish tango in the vast country of the same name is considered an art for men. The peak of popularity of this style in the vastness of Finland falls on the 60s, when Rejo Taipale recorded a tango called "Fairytaleland".

Then another rebirth of Finnish tango in the 90s gave rise to new wave admiration for this dance. Tango began to appear everywhere in films, TV programs, articles, etc. It is worth noting that every year a gathering of Finnish tango fans takes place in the small town of Seinäjoki.

What is characteristic of this style? First of all, it is a ball character. In Finnish tango there is a tight contact in the hips, following the clarity of the lines and the absence of characteristic sharp head movements.

ballroom tango

Perhaps one of the most recognizable styles. This is a sports dance that has become mandatory in the program of international competitions and competitions. Ballroom tango is essentially a strictly sustained dance. There is no improvisation here, as in Argentinean. There is a set of certain norms and rules: following certain lines, the position of the body and head of the dancers, the strict implementation of the necessary elements, and the like. Musical accompaniment for this dance the same - concise and clear. This tango cannot be called melodic and smooth, compared to the other styles mentioned above.