Note: this page is just under construction.
Practices at milongas
Milongas in Slovakia are very similar to milongas in other European countries or outside Europe. For your convenience and to make sure you have enough information we state the most common habits that you might encounter at milongas in Slovakia.
Venue and time
Milongas are often held in restaurants´ premises, some are held in the dance halls of schools and special milongas are also organized in bigger dance clubs or traditional dance halls. The majority of milongas are organized on Friday or Saturday, some in other days, too. A typical time of their duration is approximately from 8 p.m. to midnight. Most of the dancers arrive at milongas circa 0,5 – 1 hour after the event officially begins and this can obviously also be a suitable time for your arrival.
Entrance and admission fee
You may come to all common milongas without a prior announcement or registration. An admission fee is usually between 3-5 euros. If some refreshment or a dance performance or live music is part of a milonga, the admission fee is usually higher (around 7-15 euros). Some milongas held in the premises of bars and restaurants are free of charge, they rely on your consumption of at least several drinks during that evening or the amount of admission fee is voluntary. You are not obliged to pay immediately after your arrival, however it is appropriate, if you, shortly after your arrival, look for the organizer or DJ-a and pay the respective fee.
Clothes
Milongas that are held regularly have most of the time an informal character, this also applies to clothes that visitors wear. On special occasions, as for example if there is a bigger milonga with some music or dance performance, it is suitable to wear more formal clothes.
Music
At Slovak milongas, traditional tango music is played the most commonly (a bigger part of the community is the golden age fans), at some milongas tango music is sometimes combined with more modern music. Occasionally there is also a milonga of a different style, for example nuevo (modern, electronic and non-tango music) or of a mixed style. If a milonga has another than the traditional style of music, this fact is usually stated in its Facebook event. There is a DJ at most milongas, and at some milongas music is played according to a firmly given playlist. Tandas and cortinas are kept almost everywhere. Tandas usually have the repetitive sequence Tango-Tango-Vals-Tango-Tango-Milonga and 4 or 3 songs are played in a tanda.
Participants and habits
At common milongas, between 20-50 people usually take part. Men and women sit altogether and there are not fixed sitting rules. Most people at local milongas know each other and the atmosphere there is rather informal. It is common that dancers change their partners after each particular tanda finishes. However, in smaller towns outside Bratislava, partners change little or they do not change at all (this is often the case of married couples). Many people, who dance tango in Slovakia as well as DJs and organizers, usually speak English (few of them can speak Spanish).
Mirada and cabeceo
In many cases mirada and cabeceo work well. Nevertheless, some milongas are so informal or their community is rather closed that one cannot rely on mirada and cabeceo very much. If this is the case, it is advisable to start a conversation with people who sit next to you and following the conversation you may suggest dancing, or if you are rather introverted, ask the milonga organizer or some trustworthy dancer for help with a discreet introduction of your person to the community. Even a woman may initiate mirada (eye contact) in a discreet way.
Dance
People dance at our milongas in a way that is similar to other places in Europe or in the world. You meet here people at different dance levels and most of them keep ronda and dance rules of the milonga etiquette. After a tanda finishes, dancers usually leave a dance floor and change their dancing partners, but they may wait and continue dancing in a following tanda with the same partner.
Recommendations before attending
For you, a visitor – foreigner might be suitable if you contact a milonga organizer in advance – for example via writing a post at the Facebook event, Facebook message or by e-mail. You might express your interest in attending a milonga even indirectly – for example you verify information by asking the question about the time, venue, admission fee or if a registration is needed in advance. It will serve to your benefit, if your attendance is expected.
You may also confirm your attendance at the Facebook event, and if you are a better dancer and have good communication skills, you may write a post at the Facebook event, you may introduce yourself to the local tanguer@s, say hello to them and show your interest in dancing with them. They will certainly respond to your interest in a similar sense and will be interested in talking to you and dancing with you at the milonga.
At the place
After your arrival at the milonga, look for an organizer (sometimes he/she is also its DJ), introduce yourself, tell him/her where you come from, then ask about the duty to pay the admission fee. Depending on your discretion, you may also ask him/her to help you get to know other dancers – in this case, it might be suitable to make him/her familiar with your dancing experience (how many years of experience you already have dancing tango).
Calendars and maps of milongas
There are approximately 7 milongas held on a regular basis in Bratislava and 6 milongas held in other Slovak towns. Most milongas are organized once a month, some are organized more often. Organizers post almost every milonga as an event at Facebook with more detailed information (about the venue, time, entrance fee, DJ, type of music, etc.). More information in:
• milongas calendar in Bratislava and in Slovakia (updated regularly) • set of Facebook invitations to milongas and workshops in Bratislava and in Slovakia • list of milongas and their description (in Slovak) • map of milongas in Bratislava and particularly a map of milongas in other Slovak towns.