I didn't use to like cortinas. Maybe because I wasn't properly educated in that sense but when some external DJ came to Edinburgh I always found myself dancing to cortinas and making a fool of myself. But I realised why I didn't like them - because most people play really crap cortinas. Cortinas should not be danceable, they should be a short stretch of music that you don't feel like dancing to. This way you also lose the rhythm from the previous tanda. And for DJs is great. You can alternate between Firpo and Bajofondo - nobody will mind the drastic music style change!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
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4 comments:
I really like cortinas, but the only DJ I know who does them uses a blast of completely undanceable jazz. The general sound and instrumentation isn't so different as to be disturbing, but no one is likely to try to dance to it.
I totally agree about it making a space between different styles of music, but I also like it because it gives everybody a really clear signal that now's the polite time to change partners, or make the decision to go on. So I don't have to keep count, and I don't get stuck with people, and I have a better chance of dancing with everyone I want to because everyone's in sync and they'll probably come free at the same time.
Hi ms Hedgehog. In the beginning I did not like cortinas because people would put some daft music thinking that it could not be danceable to tango. But it was and people danced daftly to daft music. I found that Capoeira music is really efficient (maybe the Argentinian's anti-Brazilian feeling extends to tango). The sweet and mysterious beginnings of Arabic or some Electronica music are also quite efficient!
Since I used cortinas for the first time I got hooked to them. I can't envisage DJing tango without them now!
Cortinas are important transitions. They serve as necessary rest stops, conversation breaks or when one or both dancers can politely move on to other partners without insult to either party.
In BA, no one would dream of dancing to a cortina. I can't say that I see that much in SF, either.
Just to insert an antithesis, here it goes (stirring it up... hehehe):
*I agree that cortina helps with DJ-ing.
BUT, I normally don't like it, because:
1) When you've been dancing & connecting really well with someone, and you're in this lovely bubble, you want to carry on without a "back-to-reality" or "must-talk-but-a-bit-awkward" interference. A cortina can be a mood-breaker.
2) When you don't like dancing with someone, and you want to end it before the 3rd dance, you END it, regardless of whether there is an interference (cortina) or not.
3) I personally prefer to have a number of tandas, then have one big break so that I can actually have a substantial conversation with someone (or dance salsa or whatever, if you like). Rather than a few seconds of cortina, where you can't really converse properly.
4) I like the continuous influx and efflux of people on the dance floor. It seems more natural.
5) Why should my breaks be dictated by the DJ? Sometimes it takes 4 or 5 dances to get me going. Why should I be stopped?
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