The Dartmouth Wind Symphony and the Dartmouth Argentine Tango Society host the Dartmouth Tango Festival from February 18 through 20 at the Hopkins Center. The festival features performances and workshops by New York-based professional tango duo Adriana Salgado and Orlando Reyes, as well as bandoneon artist Juan Pablo Jofre.
The Dartmouth Wind Symphony presents Tango Nuevo in performance as part of the Dartmouth Tango Festival at the Hopkins Center. (photo by Gary Dutton)
The idea for the festival stemmed from the Dartmouth Wind Symphony’s upcoming performance Tango Nuevo, which is focused on tango music in the style of Astor Piazzolla. It will feature Michael Gandolfi’s Vientos y Tangos (2003), John Mackey’s Redline Tango (2005), and Luis Serrano Alarcon’s Concertango, as well as performances by the festival’s featured guests. In researching the performance pieces, Matthew Marsit, the wind symphony’s conductor and event organizer, discovered the vibrant tango community on campus. He created the festival as a greater exploration of tango to supplement the symphony’s performance.
“I love the idea of cross-campus collaboration, and I really enjoyed working on a joint project with the Dartmouth Argentine Tango Society,” says Marsit. “It is exciting for an ensemble to work with live dance.”
Elizabeth Gillaspy, a PhD candidate in mathematics, avid musician, and co-founder of the graduate student branch of the Dartmouth Argentine Tango Society, mirrors Marsit’s enthusiasm for the interdisciplinary collaboration, saying, “It’s rare for a tango festival to incorporate live music, so this is a huge treat! I’m especially looking forward to seeing the bandoneon and working with our guest teachers, who are world famous as performers and teachers.”
The weekend features private dance lessons with Salgado and Reyes on Friday, February 18 from 4 to 7 p.m.; Saturday, February 19 from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.; and Sunday, February 20 from 9 a.m. to noon and 4:30 to 8 p.m., as well as group classes for various experience levels on Saturday, February 19 from 2 to 6:15 p.m. All classes will be held in the Hopkins Center. Information about registration and class fees is available online.
New York-based professional tango duo Adriana Salgado and Orlando Reyes headline the Dartmouth Tango Festival. (photo courtesy of the Hopkins Center)
The festival will also include Milonga: An Evening of Tango Dancing with Boston-based tango DJ Tom Wisniewski on Saturday, February 19 from 9 p.m to 1 a.m. in Alumni Hall at the Hopkins Center. Tickets are available online.
On Sunday, February 20, Jofre presents a lecture and demonstration entitled “The Tango and the Bandoneon,” from noon to 1 p.m. Salgado and Reyes will present a demonstration and workshop on “The First Steps of Tango” from 1 to 2 p.m. in Alumni Hall. These events are free and open to the public.
The weekend will conclude with Tango Nuevo: A Concert by the Dartmouth Wind Symphony at 2 p.m. in the Hopkins Center’s Spaulding Auditorium. Tickets for this event, as well as a full schedule of events, are available online.
