One could say that tango is mostly a genre of sad music. Not that there are no happy and funny tangos but most of the tangos are talking about lost loves, immigrants and their roots, deaths, the nostalgia of their homeland, etc. Most of them feel sad. In greek, there is a saying that I believe exists in English as well (but I don’t really know). The essence of it is that when you share your happiness and joy, this doubles up but when you share your sadness and sorrow they are halved. So maybe that is why this dance needs two… maybe this is why it is danced heart to heart… maybe this is why the essence of the dance is the embrace. To help us to share our sadness and sorrow and make it easier for us to bear it. Isn’t it ironic that in times like this, full of sadness and sorrow, we can’t share it in each others’ embrace?
Today, on the international day of Argentine tango, let us at least share the music of Julio de Caro with the voice of Carlos Gardel whose birthdays we commemorate.
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