Intangible Heritage in Global Space: Tradition and the Quest for the Authentic Dance Experience in the International World of Tango

Abstract

The ‘Tango of Argentina and Uruguay’ was inscribed in the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of the UNESCO in 2009 to be safeguarded as one of humanity’s outstanding cultural achievements. Controversies and shortcomings related with the inscription have been pointed out by several scholars working on tango as a social phenomenon. Criticism about the nomination document and the decision about the inscription targeted two principal focus areas and were expressed from two different standpoints both of which miss the inclusion of living grassroots tango communities and what they stand for from the heritage definition of tango. This paper intends to connect academic and community reactions given to its heritagization with personal observations of recent trends in the international, and especially in the European world of tango; particularly with the increasing presence of two-three-day international tango dance occasions commonly referred to as tango marathons or encuentro milongueros. In the complex, multi-layered and multi-vocal global tango world these events have been associated with essential, authentic milonga experiences, a sense of prolonged intimacy and community through shared dances and shared dance space.