Tango Music
By: Paige Nicholas
Type of Music
* Tango music was mostly played and danced to by couples at theaters and street barrel organs.
* The people associated with this music were the Payada were the Milongo from Argentine and Uruguay Pampas, and Uruguayan Candombe.
Characteristics of the Music
* One characteristic of tango music is that there is no drums involved in the music.
* Instead of using drums, the orchestra keeps the beat on either a bass or the lower keys of a piano.
* There are usually feature violins playing the melody line and instruments such as the piano.
* There are always four beats to a bar.
* They are always in a minor key and generally feature layers of repeated patterns.
* Astor Piazzolla, was a famous tango artist, who reinvented the tango over time.
Connection to Dance
* Tango dancing consists of walking with a partner to the beat of the music.
* Dancing to the emotion and speed of a tango is extremely important to dancing tango.
* Tango dancers generally keep their feet close to the floor as they walk, the ankles and knees brushing as one leg passes the other.
The Music Today
* Tango music is said to be making a complete come back and this type of music will soon play a major part in our music industry again.
* This music from generations past is now being reinvented to fit modern times.
* This music and dance was once done in a very fancy manner and is now being reinvented into a much causal dance.