In Europe in the early 1800's the waltz was considered immoral because of its closed-dance position. Such close contact held over an extended period of time was frowned upon. Men wore gloves and did not touch the woman's waist before the music began. In New England in the late 19th century the female leg was never glimpsed as it was hidden under long ankle-length skirts - even tables, chairs and piano legs were covered up.

The origins of tango are mysterious. Some claim it began as a country dance in England in 1650 and evolved through France, Spain, Cuba to Argentina and Uruguay in 1850. In the 1880's during mass immigration from Europe and Africa into the outskirts of Buenos Aires and Montevideo the small accordion-like bandoneons once played in the churches of Germany found a new audience. The melancholy sounds of the bandoneons resonated with an overabundance of lonely men as they performed the habanera-steps of the tango in the underbelly regions of swelling cities.

In 1910 Ricardo Guiraldes, a well-to-do Argentinian playboy poet who associated with Bohemians in Buenos Aires, wrote a poem entitled "Tango" and performed the dance in Paris, France where it was well received. From there the new movement burgeoned throughout Europe.

In 1913 a Danish couple performed the tango at the Börs Hotel in Helsinki to great success. Finns embraced the German Tango with its heavy march-like beat. During the Second World War, when communication were cut off, the Finnish Tango took on its own distinct identity. The wildly popular Finnish lyrics sung by men tended to concentrate on lost love, loneliness and a yearning for paradise. Popular tango singers were Olavi Virta, Henry Theel and Eino Grön, Reijo Taipale and Toivo Kärki, all of whom propelled the Finnish Tango into legendary status.

In Buenos Aires, Carlos Gardel, a French immigrant, handsome with an appealing tenor voice, against the advice of his friends performed a tango song "Mi noche triste" (My sad night) about a pimp longing for the return of his prostitute. It was the year 1917 and Gardel's first public appearance in a live theatre. He received a rousing standing ovation. By the 1920's he was an international star having recorded many huge hits including "Mi noche triste" thus setting in stone the Argentine Tangos' reputation as a dance of ill repute. While on a promotional tour, leaving Colombia for a radio interview, Gardel's plane crashed. His death brought Buenos Aires to its knees. Everything stopped. Gardel is commemorated every year on Argentina's National Tango Day, December 11th.

On September 30, 2009, UNESCO's Intergovernmental Committee of Intangible Heritage proclaimed tango part of the world's cultural heritage. Tango festivals Tangomarkinnat are held yearly in Seinäjoki, Finland. Tango may breathe innocent in Finland, but in Buenos Aires the sultry dance of passion pants on every corner.

Meelejahutus

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