Qtango Sets The Music Free

               Words are not a sufficient medium with which to express my appreciation for the tango band known as Qtango. How can I possibly convey to you, the reader, what I feel without using my hands, without yelling at the top of my lungs or jumping up and down or spinning in circles?

               I will try.

               On Sunday, I came to Albuquerque with a specific purpose in mind: to expose my girlfriend to something very wonderful. For months we have been attending tango workshops and practicas but I knew full well such endeavors, while worthy, do not capture the emotion or the transformational experience of tango.

               Two people simply moving to the rhythm of tango music are dancing tango but tango is something much more than that. I racked my brain to find a way to convey my perceptions of this dance to my partner until I arrived at the answer: Qtango.

                At the milonga a DJ warmed up the crowd before the band performed. I took the opportunity to try a new step with my partner. My attempts were nearly successful and I felt confident I could succeed if properly inspired.

               Suitable motivation arrived as if on cue, or should I say ‘Q’, as in Qtango? With Erskine Maytorena on bandoneon, Jeremy Sment on double bass and Olga Home on violin, the band took the stage and began to play.

               The sharp notes of Olga's violin moved me to reach for the stars.  As we joined in the tango embrace I looked into my partner’s eyes and was drawn into her. I could feel her confidence in me as she met my gaze. I was now more than a man, I was ‘us’. We were joined together as one entity and something more. We were part of the music, an extension of it. I willed the follower to move her left foot backward and it moved. Time slowed down to the speed of surreal. I waited for the next note to strike before moving my right foot forward and we repeated this pattern until the illusion was complete.

               It was a new movement for me, for us. We were cohorts in the creation of something original.

               My elation shot towards the ceiling accompanied by my copilot as we flew along the notes and moved around the dance floor in total harmony. I was happy. She took my joy and returned it with interest. We were one with each other and with the melody. The musicians played and we reacted. We moved without choreography, not knowing the next step until the chord had been released from the violin, bandoneon or bass. We were lost in the song until it ended and found ourselves unable to believe the euphoria, our minds reeling as the bond between us dissipated.

               For such a union to occur between my girlfriend and I could be a testament to our relationship and our particular chemistry. Dancing that night with other tangueras I made equally incredible connections and succeeded bravely in many movements I had previously executed with apprehension. 

               The only explanation for this is Qtango.

               To merely say they are good musicians is an insult in my humble opinion. They are the best tango band ever….period! Never has a violin touched me as Olga’s did. To hear Erskine sing familiar tango ballads made me realize how offensive were similar attempts by other balladeers.

               Thank you, Qtango, for helping me to find the tango experience I had been missing since I arrived in New Mexico, ten months ago. The true meaning of tango had escaped me. Now I remember what that is: to make an intimate connection with your partner, to become one with a song, to be an extension of the music and the footsteps of the melody so that it can move across the dance floor.

               Qtango does much more than play tango music with sublime perfection, it sets the music free!

For more info on this band go to their website: www.qtango.com


Note: Check out my new book on Amazon: Fear of Intimacy and the Tango Cure.

Note: For an in-depth look into the mind of the Kayak Hombre, read his book, available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/River-Tango-perri-iezzoni/dp/1453865527/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1369366756&sr=1-1&keywords=River+tango