In 2006 I was tricked into going to a tango class as a single chap. The music was spiky and like nothing I had heard before and then we walked. Tango is just walking really. You put your feet on the floor one at a time and to do this well, musically, took me years. It's both simple and difficult to find the beat and move together with your partner. Tango is a partner dance but in this class everyone danced with everyone and than that special atmosphere developed. Fun but really hard.
What came next ? Well in 2016 , after lots of wonderful tango experiences, my wife bought me a concertina; an instrument similar to, but more basic than, the bandoneon. The bandoneon is the iconic tango instrument with a sound that captures melancholy and a driving rhythm in one compact squeeze box. I wanted to play tango music.
Now for the technical bit. Tango has many musical elements but which are the important ones ? Is it the 'syncopa' or the dominant of the dominant or maybe the bass line, or the articulation or the 'tiempo' or... It turns out that a steady beat is important together with an assertive attitude. Not loud, but clear and very crisp. The aim was to play for dancers and very fortunately for me a little orchestra was formed in 2018. We played first in the theatre bar; maybe you were there ?
But, I hear you say, real tango is only found in La Boca, Buenos Aires. How can ordinary folk in south Leicestershire create the tango sound ? The answer is by trial and error, and with help from friends in Germany, gradually a more authentic sound emerged. Germany has a very active live tango scene - check out, as an example, Sexteto Cristal on Youtube. Anyway tango dancers found our sound close enough to real tango and seemed to enjoy dancing to it. We played in bars and at a refurbished St John's Ambulance building by adapting classic tunes, like El Choclo, to suit the instruments available to us.
Now in 2025 we plan to play for dancers at the King's Hall in Market Harborough's historic town centre on Bank Holiday Monday 5th May. This will be a 2pm afternoon session which is traditionally called a 'practica' or practice, and since the venue is close to the the former Angel Hotel the name 'Práctica del ángel' seemed apt. All with an interest in listening to or dancing tango are welcome. If you play an instrument get in touch as Orquesta Atipica Eco-Tango are a community tango orchestra and welcome all with an interest in tango. Contact Simon 07977 266643