Café de los Brujos

Having played in a few ensembles I am beginning to understand how important chemistry really is. The way you feel about the people in your group as a person, as a colleague, and as a musician. First and foremost there must be mutual respect. Without it nothing will get done. If you’re lucky and the people in the group genuinely love and care for eachother, then you have a strong foundation to create something really beautiful. The rest is left to talent, hard work, and dedication. I am sure it’s the same in any art where you are constantly working closely with a group of people trying to create something magical. Ultimately, chemistry or lack of chemistry will come through in the performances.

I’ve been playing with an orquesta típica here for a few months now and it has been an interesting experience. This past month we’ve been playing in the streets of San Telmo. A few years back there used to be only one orquesta típica that played there (I think) but nowadays with the resurgence of young orquestas, there are at least four now that plays there. It is great to see new energy being infused into tango here these past few years, but what is more interesting is getting to interact with musicians from different orquestas. Some musicians play in more than one orquestas. Every now and then we walk around and attend eachother’s performances. What was interesting to me was that when you see another orquesta play well, it inspires you to work harder to play better. This whole energy is positive and it constantly pushes everyone to strive to improve. I assume that it was probably similar in the old days when there were so many orquestas playing and everyone knew eachother. Having your peers improve inspires you to improve. It was something I didn’t really anticipate feeling. I’ve come to the conclusion that in any art that you do, you should always encourage and help your peers improve because in the end it will encourage youself to improve.

It’s been a while since I posted. Things have been crazy busy with various musical projects and I’ve been comtemplating how much of myself I wanted to share with the world. It’s a constant debate… Anyways, things have settled down somewhat, and while I am still debating, I’ll continue to share a few thoughts from time to time…  

As more tango communities emerge in the US & existing ones become more mature, there have been a rise of discussions regarding tango DJing. It’s a great thing that people are becoming more aware and talking about music. In passing through different communities I have heard many points of view regarding these discussions. Most seemed to stress that the primary focus of the DJ is to please the dancers (customers). Personally, I think that pleasing the dancers is simply a result of a good job DJing and should not be the primary focus point.

Seldom do DJ discussions take into account the audience in which the advices should apply. Most seemed to be focused on aspiring DJs who are new to tango and either trying to start a community or trying to get more involved in an existing community. For those new to tango who want to DJ, I think the advices from most of these discussions would be useful & helpful.

Having been a part of a more matured tango community I see another group that is often neglected in the DJ discussions. As a tango community matures, sometimes there are those who have been dancing for 10 or 15 years and are interested in becoming more involved with their community by DJing. I’ve also seen musicians who have gotten into tango and after a few years of getting into the music, they have expressed an interest in DJing. For those people who truly love the music and are confident in thier taste of music, I would encourage them (as they become DJs) to also play what they love. Share your love and share what you love!

It would be tragic if every single new DJ plays the same tandas. There seems to be a phenomenon happening where people are sharing more MP3s but most tandas played at milongas are usually the same songs sometimes in different orders. Getting 20 GBs of music from someone, no one has the time to comb through it to see what’s new and what they would like. Instead new DJs seem to be relying on what works and plays the same tandas. I think that this may be fine for new communities, but for the older ones to keep growing and evolving, I think it’s important to have some fresh perspectives and tastes. This is where the DJs who have been involved in tango music for a long time come in. Don’t forget to play what you love. Share your love. You might be surprise how many people out there also love what you love.

Who would have thought that the first time I buy a salad spinner would be in Argentina, land of beef? Ever since I quit my job I’ve been trying to pay more attention to what my body is craving. It’s interesting how if you listen closely enough, your body will tell you what it wants: rest, exercise, food perference, etc. Lately it has been asking me to balance my meals with greens and it has been fun exploring creative ways of assembling salads and trying new vegetables. I got tired of washing lettuce before each meal so I decided to go the salad spinner route… wash a whole bunch, and keep it in the fridge ready to eat  

I’ve just returned to Buenos Aires this morning. It was refreshing to be greeted by the brisk winter air. I still can’t believe it’s -2°C here… my first winter in Buenos Aires… After living out of a suitcase for the past 5+ weeks, it is good to have a sanctuary again. There’s something about coming back to place after being away for a long time that helps strenghten the feeling of home. I suppose it also helped that I cleaned the apartment before I left

The past 5+ weeks were pretty insane and I think every aspect of my life had been affected & changed in some way. It’s good to finally have some time to decompress and reflect on everything that had transpired. I had been really looking forward to cooking my first meal since I left. So, after unpacking, a little cleaning, and a nap, it came time for a little trip to the grocery store. 60 pesos for a week’s worth of food - I am not sure if you can beat that anywhere else. There’s a tango CD that I have been listening to since last year that I feel really breathes & captures the feeling of Buenos Aires presently. After popping in the CD & hopping into the kitchen, I was quickly reminded that a great way to reflect and collect my thoughts is to listen to great music and cook. There is something very tranquil about passing time cooking and allowing your mind to reflect & process. Selecting good music to be the backdrop is of course an essential piece of the puzzle.

Every now and then it is good to refocus our perspectives in life. After arriving in San Francisco a few days ago, I have been crazily immersed in preparing for our upcoming concerts. I’ve learned a lot about myself in terms of how I respond to certain group dynamics and how sensitive I am to certain issues. But the intense rehearsal schedule has also taken a toll on my body as well as my mind. Walking in the Berkeley sun today I am reminded that the most important things in life are your health and the people you love. At the end of the day, if you don’t have these things, I don’t think what you accomplished during the day really matter. It is good to be reminded of this every once in a while (about priorities in life) and put things back in perspective.