Friday, December 4, 2009
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
test review 1
Where: Watertown, MA (Boston area)
Phillips Congregational Church - 111 Mt. Auburn ST
When : 2nd Saturday
Who : Hsueh-tze Lee
Web : http://www.bluetango.org/bluemilonga.html
Hours: 9PM - 1AM
Cost : $10 ($8 for students)
My Review (2/8/2007):
The space:
The milonga takes place at the Phillips Congregational Church in Watertown in a large ball room with hardwood floors and high ceilings. The room has great potential, unfortunately it doesn't live up to it. Like with most other multi-function venues that are rented by the hour, it has that "empty room" feeling, no doubt because of the cheap table/chairs, unfortunate choice of lighting and the "standard" white walls (obviously some of these issues are beyond the control of the organizer). The snacks and water are served in another room, which once again has potential, there are sofas and chairs but the "picnic" style table where the treats are setup and the harsh overhead lighting as well as the lack of any coherent design (the furniture looks like it was just randomly scattered through the room) prevents the room to live to it's potential. While the ballroom is large, the tables are setup in such a way that only a quarter of the surface is open for dance, which makes the dance floor crowded at times. Knowing Hsueh-tze, I'm guessing she is trying to reproduce the BsAs feeling, and some people probably like that, but I would prefer to dance without stressing out about bumping into people or being bumped into.
The music:
The music played at this milonga is mostly traditional. Hsueh-tze is DJing so the selection is inspired and nicely put together. The sound system consists in two speakers placed in front of the room on approx 4ft stands. As such, the music is really loud when you are close to them and sometimes difficult to hear in the back of the room. While the speakers are powerful enough, their placement makes it difficult to provide a comfortable sound level throughout the room.
The dancers:
This milonga is well attended, a lot of the "hard-core" locals attend this event but there are a few beginners, mostly Hsueh-tze's students. I'd say the average skill level is "Intermediate". I'd say this is mostly a local event, although when out of town instructors are teaching workshops you often see out-of-town dancers in attendance. The line of dance is followed more or less.
Other considerations:
In the local tango scene you generally don't need a partner to attend tango events (practicas, milongas, festivals). Very few people, if any, just dance with their partners. If you are a woman, be prepared to ask men to dance, especially if you are from out of town or new to the scene, otherwise you might not dance that much. Refusals are rare. Rude refusals are virtually unheard off.
Conclusion:
I attend this milonga from time to time. The music is good and there are good dancers in attendance.
My suggestions to the organizers :
1. Place the speakers high, I'd say the best place would be on the balcony, with the speakers pointed down. This would allow a constant comfortable music level across the room.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
2. Make use of the space in the room by increasing the dance floor.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
3. Some nice, dark table cloths and candles (battery powered fake candles are an option if the fire codes don't allow candles) placed on tables along with some colored strategically placed spotlights would greatly increase the intimate feeling the organizer seems to be shooting for.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
4. In the snack room, turning off the overhead lights and using lamps, placing the snacks on several smaller tables spread across the room instead of the huge one table setup, would greatly improve the feel or the room.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
Phillips Congregational Church - 111 Mt. Auburn ST
When : 2nd Saturday
Who : Hsueh-tze Lee
Web : http://www.bluetango.org/bluemilonga.html
Hours: 9PM - 1AM
Cost : $10 ($8 for students)
My Review (2/8/2007):
The space:
The milonga takes place at the Phillips Congregational Church in Watertown in a large ball room with hardwood floors and high ceilings. The room has great potential, unfortunately it doesn't live up to it. Like with most other multi-function venues that are rented by the hour, it has that "empty room" feeling, no doubt because of the cheap table/chairs, unfortunate choice of lighting and the "standard" white walls (obviously some of these issues are beyond the control of the organizer). The snacks and water are served in another room, which once again has potential, there are sofas and chairs but the "picnic" style table where the treats are setup and the harsh overhead lighting as well as the lack of any coherent design (the furniture looks like it was just randomly scattered through the room) prevents the room to live to it's potential. While the ballroom is large, the tables are setup in such a way that only a quarter of the surface is open for dance, which makes the dance floor crowded at times. Knowing Hsueh-tze, I'm guessing she is trying to reproduce the BsAs feeling, and some people probably like that, but I would prefer to dance without stressing out about bumping into people or being bumped into.
The music:
The music played at this milonga is mostly traditional. Hsueh-tze is DJing so the selection is inspired and nicely put together. The sound system consists in two speakers placed in front of the room on approx 4ft stands. As such, the music is really loud when you are close to them and sometimes difficult to hear in the back of the room. While the speakers are powerful enough, their placement makes it difficult to provide a comfortable sound level throughout the room.
The dancers:
This milonga is well attended, a lot of the "hard-core" locals attend this event but there are a few beginners, mostly Hsueh-tze's students. I'd say the average skill level is "Intermediate". I'd say this is mostly a local event, although when out of town instructors are teaching workshops you often see out-of-town dancers in attendance. The line of dance is followed more or less.
Other considerations:
In the local tango scene you generally don't need a partner to attend tango events (practicas, milongas, festivals). Very few people, if any, just dance with their partners. If you are a woman, be prepared to ask men to dance, especially if you are from out of town or new to the scene, otherwise you might not dance that much. Refusals are rare. Rude refusals are virtually unheard off.
Conclusion:
I attend this milonga from time to time. The music is good and there are good dancers in attendance.
My suggestions to the organizers :
1. Place the speakers high, I'd say the best place would be on the balcony, with the speakers pointed down. This would allow a constant comfortable music level across the room.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
2. Make use of the space in the room by increasing the dance floor.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
3. Some nice, dark table cloths and candles (battery powered fake candles are an option if the fire codes don't allow candles) placed on tables along with some colored strategically placed spotlights would greatly increase the intimate feeling the organizer seems to be shooting for.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
4. In the snack room, turning off the overhead lights and using lamps, placing the snacks on several smaller tables spread across the room instead of the huge one table setup, would greatly improve the feel or the room.
Do you agree with the suggestion?
[Strongly disagree] [Disagree] [Indifferent] [Agree] [Strongly agree] See poll results
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