Tango

Tango is a partner dance that originated in the 1880s along the River Plate, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay, and soon spread to the rest of the world.

Early tango was known as tango criollo (Creole tango). Today, there are many forms of tango extant. Popularly and among tango dancing circles, the authentic tango is considered to be the one closest to the form originally danced in Argentina and Uruguay.

On August 31, 2009, UNESCO approved a joint proposal by Argentina and Uruguay to include the tango in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.

History

Tango is a dance that has influences from European and African culture. Dances from the candombe ceremonies of former slave peoples helped shape the modern day Tango. The dance originated in lower-class districts of Buenos Aires and Montevideo. The music derived from the fusion of various forms of music from Europe. The word "tango" seems to have first been used in connection with the dance in the 1880s, possibly related to the Latin word "tangere" but more likely related to the African slave word "tango" (drum or dance place).

¡Tango!

¡Tango! is a 1933 Argentine musical romance film, the first film to be made in Argentina using optical sound technology (but not the first sound film.) Many existing stars of the Argentine stage and radio appeared in the film, but its success was limited due to poor sound quality and weak acting. ¡Tango! established a formula that would be used by many subsequent tango films.

Synopsis

¡Tango! follows a formula established by Carlos Gardel with films such as Luces de Buenos Aires (The Lights of Buenos Aires, 1931) in which a melodramatic story is interspersed with tango songs. However, the film had less dialog and more music, making it more like a musical revue. This format would be copied by many subsequent films.

The plot is derived from tango songs. Many of these songs tell of the seduction of an innocent slum girl by a rich man who promises her a glamorous life, but who abandons her when her looks fade. The stylized and sentimental plot of ¡Tango! revolves around a young man who is abandoned by his girlfriend for an older rich man and is heartbroken. The film follows his misfortunes. The final scene has the hero, dressed as a typical compadrito, singing Milonga del 900. The song, by Carlos Gardel, ends:

Tango (Stravinsky)

Tango is a 1940 piece originally composed for piano by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. Due to its simplicity, it is one of Stravinsky's most recorded works for piano.

Composition

After settling in Hollywood, Stravinsky was unable to bring the money he earned from his royalties of his works in Europe to America, due to copyright issues and ambiguities. When he found himself with financial difficulties, he decided to write new compositions entirely in America in order to exploit them, with the exclusive intention of making money. Tango, which was the first work entirely written in America, is one of those works.

Analysis

Largely one of the most rhythmically regular works by Stravinsky, the Tango consists of 4/4 bars in four-bar phrase structures. However, this Tango does not follow the rhythmical logic used in Argentinian Tangos: syncopation is almost never used on the last beat of every bar, but it is used on the second instead. This provides the work with a distinctive atmosphere. Unlike some of Stravinsky's post-European works, the Tango is a tonal work. Its tonality is D minor, even though it modulates to G minor in the central trio-like section.