Casimiro Aín
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
4 March 1882
Casimiro Aín | |
|---|---|
 Casimiro Aín with unidentified partner | |
| Born | Casimiro Agustín Aín 4 March 1882 Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Died | 17 October 1940 (aged 58) Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Other names | El Vasco, El Lecherito |
| Occupations | Tango dancer, promoter |
| Years active | 1896–1939 |
Casimiro Agustín Aín (4 March 1882 – 17 October 1940),[1] nicknamed “El Vasco” (“The Basque”) or “El Lecherito” (“The Little Milkman”), was an Argentinian dancer and promoter of Argentine tango. He is recognized as one of the first performers to spread and establish this Buenos Aires dance in Europe and the United States, as well as for achieving the official acceptance of tango before Pope Pius XI at the Vatican.[2]
Casimiro Aín was born on March 4, 1882 in Buenos Aires. He was the first son of Juan Aín (a well-known milkman nicknamed “El Vasco”) and the Genoese Rosa Rataro.[3]
During his childhood, he accompanied his father on milk delivery rounds, which earned him the nickname "El Lecherito" ("The Little Milkman"). From a very young age, he showed an interest in the music of street barrel organs and began dancing corridos, pasodobles, and especially the emerging tango criollo.[3]
At the age of fourteen, he joined the circus troupe of the clown Frank Brown, touring various venues in the interior of the country. There, he perfected his dance technique and learned the "corte y quebrada" moves characteristic of early tango.[3]
In 1901, feeling that Buenos Aires had become "too small" for him, he travelled to Europe, arriving first in England, then in Paris, and later in Spain, where, accompanied by two musicians, he introduced tango criollo in bars and cabarets to audiences unfamiliar with the dance.[3]
In 1904, he returned to Buenos Aires and, encouraged by the reception he had received in the Old World, performed at the Teatro Ópera alongside his wife Marta. He also took part in the celebrations commemorating the Centennial of the May Revolution. During these years, he continued to refine his style with the goal of once again presenting himself as a tango ambassador in Europe.[3]
