When you say tango, two images pop up competing for my attention. One of them has dancers clothed to impress drinking the Argentine tea and dancing elegantly in a ballroom. Moving with utmost precision and always trying to wow the onlookers. Another captures people in everyday clothes drinking wine and dancing with joyful abandon. Nobody is posing for a shot by the present photographer. The goal is simply to have fun.

A fresh new record arrived to my collection of American-made tango music, the "Guapeando" album by Cuarteto Tanguero out of Indiana. Conveniently, it comes with three tandas of music: one in a brisk Troilo instrumental style, another with a lot heavier Pugliese / late Troilo charm, and one with swift and crispy milongas.

Your humble DJ set out to mix vals tandas out of different orchestras, and you won't believe what happened next 😉

The regular Monday milonga in Prague, Klub Joe, has solid attendance and a good mix of beginning and experienced dancers. As one of two resident DJs, I cater to their dancing pleasure about twice a month. Here's a playlist from a recent evening with a few comments.

Tango is alive in Germany, and more importantly, great new tango records are being made there, too. The album "Viento norte" by Sexteto Cristal is a gem. The band resides in Hamburg, and if I needed one more reason to visit the city, hearing them live would certainly fit!