VivaTango is ready to CELEBRATE this Thursday. JOIN THE PARTY!
Thursday July 29th Our wonderful dance floor will host the GRAMMY Award winning Pedro Giraudo Tango Quartet for your dancing pleasure. This quartet has a repertoire of tango ranging from its roots in the traditional Orquesta típica, to tango nuevo as epitomized by Astor Piazzolla, and now to a contemporary sound that respects the past and looks to the future. Their 2018 album ‘Vigor Tanguero’ won the Latin GRAMMY award for ‘Best Tango Album’. In 2014 Pedro Girado played bases on Ruben Blades’ CD “Tangos” which won Grammys Awards for Best Tango Album and Best Latin Pop.Kerry Kay will DJ between live sets. Facebook Event InviteThursday August 5th Pablo and Iwona will teach a lesson to refresh your tango skills.
This will be followed by a milonga DJed by DimOnThursday Augus 12th Elenora Kalganova and Tomas Korbalan will be guest instructors and performers.
Safety
All events will recognize the issue of safety. All dancers must have been vaccinated with their final shot at least two weeks before the event. Sanitization stations are provided, the dance floor is large and the ceiling is high, and the ventilation has been upgraded with filters recommended for safety. We will not be providing a common food or beverage table – dancers are urged to bring their own water bottle. Each dancer can decide if they want to wear a mask, who they will dance with, and if they will dance close embrace. Dancers should not come if they are not feeling well, have been exposed to a person with Covid in the past 2 weeks, or are awaiting results for a Covid test. Attendance records are kept for each event so that contact tracing can be done if there is a cause to do so.
Our wonderful dance floor featured a Welcome Back lesson and milonga. The Lesson was led by Meredith Klein and Andres Amarilla. This event was attended by many of VivaTango’s regular dancers and many new ones. Everyone in the building was fully vaccinated. Masks were optional and each dancer could decide if they would wear a mask. The attendance attested to the desire of tango dancers to return to dancing in a vaccinated only environment. The dancers had a great time.
Thursday July 22nd
Meredith and Andres from the Philadelphia Argentine Tango School return. They will teach a lesson with additional tango techniques to refresh your dancing skills. Dancers who came to the Welcome Back event July 15 do not have to show their proof of vaccination again. Others just need to bring their proof of full vaccination and sign a wavier to access the lesson and/or milonga. Lesson is 7 PM, Milonga is 8:30 to 11 PM. Cost is $15 for the lesson, $15 for the milonga, $20 for the lesson plus the milonga.
Coming Events
Events will be held every Thursday. A variety of guest instructors and performers will be featured. We will resume our monthly milonga with live music. Plans are being made for a special milonga Celebration Party.
Safety
All events will recognize the issue of safety. All dancers must have been vaccinated with their final shot at least two weeks before the event. Sanitization stations are provided, the dance floor is large and the ceiling is high, and the ventilation has been upgraded with filters recommended for safety. We will not be providing a common food or beverage table – dancers are urged to bring their own water. Each dancer can decide if they want to wear a mask, who they will dance with, and if they will dance close embrace. Dancers should not come if they are not feeling well, have been exposed to a person with covid in the past 2 weeks, or are awaiting results for a covid test. Attendance records are kept for each event so that contact tracing can be done if there is a cause to do so.
Welcome back to tango events in Princeton. We are back on our wonderful large dance floor in Princeton with onsite parking. We are permitted to use this venue by adhearing to the house safety rules required by our rented dance floor. Dancers who show proof of full vaccination status may choose not to wear a mask or socially distance themselves. All persons will also be reqired to sign a wavier on their first visit.
Meredith Klein and Andres Amarilla, will teach a lesson from 7:00 to 8:30 PM aimed and refreshing tango skills needed to return to dancing. Meredith and Andres are Instructors, performers and event organizers that are well know in the international Tango community.
Lesson: 7:00 to 8:30 followed by milonga 8:30 to 11:00
Location: 45 Stockton Street Princeton, NJ
Lesson $15, Milonga $15, Lesson + Milonga $20 SAFETY is taken very seriously by the PSRC organization that provides our venue and VivaTango. Dancers will be required to sign a wavier releasing both organizations. The only what you will be able to dance in open or close embrace will be to show proof of full vaccination (completed vaccinated series plus 2 weeks). We will not copy your proof document or record the details other than verify the date. Also, for your safety, there will be sanitizer stations, and facilities for wasing hands. VivaTango will not be supplying water or food, so bring your own water bottle.
Please join us July 11-20 for an epic celebration of the centennial of Astor Piazzolla. Originally conceived as a music festival, we have been able to add dance events as the pandemic situation has improved.
All of the festival milongas, concerts, masterclass, and workshops are IN-PERSON EVENTS. Only the lectures are offered through Zoom.
If you’re planning to come to just one event, choose the concert and milonga in the 5,500 sq. ft. ballroom of the Lithuanian Music Hall on Sunday, July 18.
Above all other composers, Astor Piazzolla revolutionized tango music and brought it to the modern world stage. His inspiration and creativity in fusing tango music with elements from classical music, jazz and other genres, forged a new and unique style of music, Nuevo Tango.
Compositions like “The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires”, “Adios Nonino”, “Libertango”, and “Oblivion” have brought the sounds and images of tango to people around the world. This explosion of popularity for tango music has made it easier to build tango dance communities worldwide.
Piazzolla was born in Mar del Plata, Argentina on March 11, 1921. His family moved to New York City in 1925 and he grew up between the U.S. and Argentina. His ability to cross musical boundaries is connected to his growing up between two cultures, a theme that will be explored in the lectures of the festival.
Earlier this year, the Philadelphia Argentine Tango School held a month-long virtual celebration of the Piazzolla Centennial. We are so grateful that the pandemic situation has improved and we can now offer this in-person celebration. Please join us!
Check out the video on the left to hear festival headliners Horacio Romo and Pablo Agri on the stage of the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires in March of this year.read more…
Concerts & Milongas
The festival features two milongas and three concerts.
Sunday, July 11, 7 pm
Concert: An Intimate Evening with Horacio Romo & Pablo Agri
Horacio Romo, bandoneon & Pablo Agri, violin
Location: Greensgrow Farms, 2501 E Cumberland St, Philadelphia, PA 19125 Price: $40. REGISTER
How many times have you heard it said that tango musicians don’t play what is written on the page?
So… what do they play?
In this one-day Masterclass, legendary tango musicians Horacio Romo, bandoneon, and Pablo Agri, violin, will share the tips, tools and secrets that allow you to unlock the sound, feel and emotional immediacy of tango, with a specific focus on Piazzolla’s compositions.
Pianist / host Emiliano Messiez will translate, facilitate, and share some piano-specific secrets.
Specific topics to be covered include:
Styles of interpretation
Phrasing
Unusual instrument effects common in tango
Types of marcato
Other typical accompaniments, including 3-3-2, sincopa, and yumba.
The Masterclass is open to musicians of all styles and levels. You may choose to bring your instrument for specific feedback, or plan to participate by only watching and listening. A Yamaha C3 grand piano is available on site.
Covid Policy: Proof in advance of full vaccination required, or mask.
Location: Philadelphia Argentine Tango School, 2030 Frankford Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19125
Four lectures will be offered via Zoom as part of the Philadelphia Piazzolla Music Festival. We are especially honored to have the participation of Maria Susana Azzi, a cultural anthropologist who wrote the definitive biography of Piazzolla, “Le Grand Tango.”
Monday, July 12, 7:30-9 pm
“Piazzolla’s Music And How It Relates To Traditional Tango,” presented by pianist / composer Emiliano Messiez
Wednesday, July 14, 7:30-9 pm
“Astor Piazzolla and New York City,” presented by cultural anthropologist / author Maria Susana Azzi. Maria has published a number of critically-acclaimed books about Piazzolla. You can find links to purchase here.
Friday, July 16, 8-9:30 pm
“Transnational Astor: The Making of Piazzolla from Argentina to the U.S. (and Back and Forth),” presented by historian Leandro Benmergui
Monday, July 19, 7:30-9 pm
“Astor Piazzolla and his relationship with Italy,” presented by cultural anthropologist / author Maria Susana Azzi.
Scroll down to learn about passes available. If you already have a “tango lecture series” class card, please email Meredith to use it for these lectures.
Tango Workshops: How to Dance Piazzolla
Sunday, July 18
Session 1: 12-1:15 pm Session 2: 1:30-3 pm
For much of the world, Astor Piazzolla is the composer most associated with tango. However, for tango dancers, his music remains challenging, if not impossible, to dance to.
Join Andres Amarilla & Meredith Klein for two workshops, offered at an intermediate-advanced level, exploring:
How to listen to Piazzolla in a way that makes his music more danceable
How to adapt steps, concepts and dynamics from traditional tango to accommodate the greater diversity of rhythm, tempo and mood that we find in Piazzolla
You will leave these workshops with more confidence and tools to enjoy dancing Astor Piazzolla’s music, a great posthumous gift to give the composer on the occasion of his centennial. 🙂
Partners-only. No partner change. Proof of full vaccination required.
Cost: $50 (Registration covers both sessions). REGISTER
Location: Philadelphia Argentine Tango School, 2030 Frankford Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19215
Pricing & Registration
Available Passes
Our current registration system does not “do” passes well. If you would like to buy a pass, please use this form to send the correct amount, along with a note to confirm what you are registering for.
Full Pass inc. dance workshops (all activities): $290 Full pass without dance workshops (all activities except dance workshops): $240 Master Class (both sessions): $150 Concerts, Milongas & Lectures (7 events total): $140
A La Carte
A la carte pricing is as follows.
Single concert (includes milonga, when on the same day): $40 Single zoom lecture: $15 Master class: $150 Two dance workshops (per person): $50
For a la carte purchases, please use our registration system. Click the “workshops” tab.
Meet the Artists
From one of the greatest living bandoneon players, Horacio Romo, to the author of the definitive Piazzolla biography, Maria Susana Azzi, we are overwhelmed at the calibre of artists participating in this festival.Get to know them here…
Complete Festival Schedule
The Philadelphia Piazzolla Music Festival’s activities are organized thematically above, grouped by concerts, master class, workshops and lectures.
To view a complete list of activities, divided into two sections, in-person events and events on Zoom,click here…
MEET THE ORGANIZER OF THE PIAZZOLLA MUSIC FESTIVAL
Meredith Klein
Director, PATS
Meredith Klein has been dancing tango for 22 years, including three years spent living in Buenos Aires. For the past 13 years, she has run the Philadelphia Argentine Tango School. Over the past three years, the school has become one of the most prolific presenters of live tango music in the United States.
With her dance partner, Andres Amarilla, Meredith has taught around the world, from Australia to Europe, and from South America to more than 40 cities in North America.
Meredith organizes the Philadelphia Tango Festival and the Fishtown Salon Concert Series. She is incredibly proud to be one of the producers of the exquisite online concert series, Tango en la Terraza, filmed in Buenos Aires by producers Yael Szmulewicz, Juan Villarreal and Tan Kurttekin. In July 2021, she is organizing a celebration of the Astor Piazzolla Centennial, including milongas, concerts, workshops, lectures and a masterclass. You can learn about the Philadelphia Piazzolla Festival here.
