Eva Beno: Tango is art not science.

New Great TangoDJ Interview. From Budapest we meet Eva Beno. She regularly plays at international events, Tangofestivals, Milongas or Marathons. Her goal is play only for dancers, creating  energy to live the most intensive emotions of tango. 

 From the beginning : I suppose that your first approach with tango, like for other dj, was with the dance. What inspired you to get into console and play music? A conscious decision or was the result of chance?

My very first encounter with tango was as dancer. Then after a while I have started to collect tango music and listen more and more… this helped me to improve the quality of dancing ...therefore I gave a totally different value to the music. This was just the beginning - the very beginning- in that time I had no idea that soon I will be addicted of this wonderful „world of tango music”.

What were your early taste of tango? There are significant differences with the current scene?

I am not sure of the reason, but I think most of we started our tango music listening/collection with later or today Orquestra’s such as: Gotan Project, Electrocutango, Ortos Aires etc.; then Pugliese; then Golden Age Orchestras such as: D’arienzo, Di Sarli, Biagi, Fresedo etc.; and then Canaro, Lomuto, Carabelli, Firpo etc. I have never met somebody in tango world who as example listened Carabelli in the very beginning . I still love Pugliese, nevertheless I am play it rarely.

Do you remember your first like tango dj?

Yes, absolutely…it happened in an open air milonga at Budapest, it was very crowded, so I think I was a bit nervous by feeling the whole responsibility of the “night mood” on me… then I saw dancers were dancing and the flow was good, so this helped me to feel comfortable after a while.

The difficulty of the search for songs on cd often burned, the explosion of the Web and the consequent relatively easy to find in the music. Do you think this paradigm shift has changed the way of working of the DJ?

Definitely „the explosion of web” helped/helps a lot in music search, doesn’t mean that everything reachable on the web.

When you build your performance? Long ago, during the journey to the milonga, or sudden moment by moment?

If I don’t know well the audience is difficult to assess what would be the best music energy for a certain moment, so I usually I am taking decision on the moment. Of course I have an order in my music library, so I am prepared to take the best choice. 

Have you ever played in a boring night? Have you you understand too late that perhaps the milonga could not give you the right motivation and you could not wait to finish? Do you accept whatever you offer or try to make a selection preferring location and fascinating evening with friends?

Boring night no.....boring afternoon (less crowded afternoon) yes. It was in a Marathon very early afternoon schedule, so the dance floor was empty in the first two hours. I was playing at the beginning non tango music the alternative music...and only when people started to come, I switched to tango music. It was a new experience but nothing wrong in that.

How would you define your style? It has evolved over time? And in which direction?

My style has changed and is changing... this is a process. At the beginning I was open to play all the Orquestras that in general were recommended in so called „tango music scene”. Today I am selecting more carefully what I play.... beside the most important thing I should never forget that „I play for the dancers” ...I play those Orquestras are close to my heart. If there is music or singer I cannot stand, I am not playing that music. Now if I am looking to my earlier tandas or playlist, I know I would not play it again in the same way.

For me DJ-ing means being immerged in the „energy” of tango music, I don’t see rules, Orquestras, but different energy levels, and I am using mainly my intuition to choose the next incoming tanda. So it might happen that one night I am not playing all the main Orquestras, but some more tandas for others. Tango is art not science.

What can influence you in an evening, the audience, the dancers, the acoustics of the location, the duration of your performance ...

Many „small” things: the location (the arrangement of the dancefloor and the people meeting points), the DJ desk position, connection with the dance floor and with dancers, the quality of „sound system”, acoustics. 

My personal „mood” is also very important this means how can I connect myself with the energies of the dancefloor, therefore to feel what would be the good music for a certain moment. In my personal experience can happen that the DJ is not in his mood, playing good music, but still you have that feeling that something was missing....I think who plays frequently knows what do I mean....

Do you prefer playing alone or sharing the night with a / colleague. Generally prefer to work alone, or with friends who you feeling? Or, you love the thrill of experimenting with a colleague ever heard until then?

If you mean to split the night in two, that depends on how long can be one DJ schedule...I would prefer to do more than 3 hours for sure, for me this is a minimum time to build up an energy line to create something. 

If you mean to play with somebody „duo”, my answer is Yes....I am open for that. I think it is more challenging since you need to pay continuously attention what the other DJ is playing. However I can imagine playing duo with somebody I already know his music taste and is not totally opposite of mine. 

If someone asks you the name of a track you say it to him, perhaps suggesting where the CD is included, or invite him to venture into the trouble of searching?

Yes sure I will say the track name. Sometime I am also helping to fing it. 

The public bother you with absurd requests: what do you do? Are you a jukebox?

I like to listen the public request opinion. In a regular milonga it might be possible to fulfill some of the music requests. In festivals, marathons usually people are not bothering with special request but I think I would not be open to change my mind.

Do you like to dance and listen to your colleagues enjoy the selections and styles of others from your performances?

Yes, I like when I can dance on other DJ’s music and when the music inspiring me .

Do you believe that the art of “musicalizador” is different for geographic areas? 

Argentina, USA, Northern Europe, Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean ... or is it similar in every countries?

I know about Europe and I went once to Buenos Aires. 

YES in Europe definitely. Buenos Aires was a bit different from Europe, they were mostly playing „Golden Age” tango music, while here in Europe we are more open to play from earlier ages or later ones. I was in Buenos Aires in 2010, so today it can different.

The classic point-blank questions you have to answer, you cannot refuse:

Three orchestras that can not miss in one evening.
Di Sarli, Canaro, D’arienzo

Your three favourite orchestras, which may also be different from the previous ones. 

Biagi, Canaro, D’arienzo

Suggest a tanda of tango instrumental, 

Di Sarli, Instrumental from ’50: 9 Puntos, Indio Manso, Una Fija, Cara Sucia,

a tanda of tango singer, 

Biagi with Amor: Tus labios me diran, Adios Pampa Mia, Hoy te quiero mucho mas, Cuando Llora la milonga

one of vals 

Biagi: Amor y vals (Lago), Tu melodia (Ortiz), Paloma (Amor)

and milonga. (candombe)
Candombe: La rumbita candombe (Enrique Rodrigez), San Domingo (Julio Sosa), Siga el Baile (Orq. Osvaldo Requena)

What are the three bands or singers you can not stand? 

Tanturi-Castillo

Demare-Qiuntana

De Angelis-Larroca

What is the band most underrated by the general public and which is the most overrated? 

Troilo, Donato, Pugliese