Humans of Tango

“Somos nada y somos todo. Somos personas.” / We’re nothing and we’re everything. We’re people." ~Pepa Palazón Pepa Palazón describe su forma de vivir la vida y el tango - con errores, éxitos y mucho aprendizaje. / Pepa Palazón describes her approach to life and tango - with mistakes, successes, and much learning. Creadora/Producer: Liz Sabatiuk | Música/Music: " Sinfonía de Arrabal " grabado por E...

After 13 years organizing the renowned and beloved International Queer Tango Festival in Berlin, Astrid Weiske reflects on why she started the festival, how queer tango has evolved since she started dancing, and what’s next on her tango path. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: " Gipsy Vals " by El Cachivache Quinteto Tango | Image Credit: Ksusha Ivanova, © QTFestival Berlin Show Notes Visit Astr...

Argentino y lector (así se auto-describe) Emmanuel Trifilio habla de su experiencia tocando bandoneón, componiendo música y viviendo como inmigrante y artista en Washington, DC. --- Argentine and reader (as he describes himself) Emmanuel Trifilio talks about his experience playing bandoneon, composing music, and living as an immigrant and artist in Washington, DC. [In Spanish with an English trans...

“I change because I can.” German tango pioneer Brigitta Winkler shares what she's most passionate about 40 years into her tango journey and why she believes in tango's ability to unite. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “ Margo ,” by Armando Pontier with lyrics by Homero Expósito | Image Credit: Unknown SHOW NOTES Visit Brigitta's website or watch her dance with Rebecca Shulman , Tomás Howlin ,...

Almost 4 years after making the case for why we should all be dancing tango, Simona Ciampi is back to share her experiences with healing through art and how she's using skills learned through tango to improve her daily life. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: " El Carillon de la Merced " by Enrique S. Discepolo, performed by Carlos Molina y Su Orquesta | Image Credit: Alejandra Rúa Álvarez Show...

"...through, just, love and committing to your own journey within a culture and within a craft and within a practice, you can embody whatever you want to." Co-founder of Oxygen Tango School and Awaken Tango Mitra Martin talks about her Persian heritage and the value of research, innovation, acceptance, and attention in tango. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “Zorzal”, arranged and recorded by...

In summer of 2021, Scott Boddye said goodbye to all but two-suitcases worth of worldly possessions and became a digital nomad. Since then, he's traveled on 4 continents and counting, learned to dance in heels, and created a social media platform for tango dancers. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: "Loca" composed by Manuel Jovés, arranged and recorded by Tango Bardo | Image Credit: Kappu Chino...

FIRST BILINGUAL EPISODE! / ¡PRIMER EPISODIO BILINGÜE!  After a youthful stint in a rock band, Matías Mauricio turned his artistic inclinations to tango. Today he teaches and writes essays, books, and lyrics, and generally lives and breathes tango in his hometown of Buenos Aires. --- Luego de un paso juvenil por una banda de rock, Matías Mauricio volcó sus inclinaciones artísticas al tango. Hoy ens...

Aja Fenn on the value of committing to our teachers, the significance of the yin-yang symbol to tango, how performance culture has evolved since she started, her philosophy on social dancing, and what's inspiring her 24 years into her tango journey. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: " Duo de Amor " written by Astor Piazzolla, performed by Tango Bardo | Image Credit: Maurice Kaplan Show Notes Le...

Singer. Producer. DJ. Argentine woman on a mission. Camila Arriva is working in multiple ways to bring women's voices to modern tango. (And yes, she also dances.) Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: "Cantando" by Mercedes Simone; short clips of "Soñando," by Paquita Bernardo with lyrics by Eugenio Cárdenas, and “Ni una Menos” by Verónica Bellini, all performed by Camila Arriva Grupo as part of th...

"Listen with your bodies, listen with your feet, listen with your heart. Listen with every cell of your body. Listen with your spirit." ~Tango Stories: Musical Secrets Michael Lavocah danced tango for 20 years before writing his first book. He hasn't stopped since... Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “ Adiós, Pueblo ,” written by Agustín Bardi and performed by Orquesta Típica Ricardo Tanturi, c...

What does environmental psychology have to do with tango? Quite a lot, it turns out. Tango DJ, teacher, organizer, and social dancer Avik Basu lays it out for us. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “ Sin Palabras ” by Mariano Mores, with lyrics by Enrique Santos Discépolo and performed by Aníbal Troilo y Su Orquesta Típica with Alberto Marino | Image Credit: Steven Thull Show Notes Learn more ab...

"When I was twenty, this was NOT possible..." A lot has changed in the 25+ years since Sol Orozco started dancing tango in Buenos Aires. Luckily, Sol is a big believer in change - in her own life and in the world around her. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “Ilusión de Mi Vida” by Feliciano Brunelli, arranged and recorded by Asato-Pais Duo | Image Credit: Oscar Chang Photography Show Notes The...

“...so many people in this world, within their own cultural frames, are not able to do everything with their body they could do. And that's a pity.” Austrian dancer and academic Arno Plass shares what he's learned while talking and dancing his way around Europe and South America for a PhD project on the transformative power of queer tango.  Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “Flor de Montserrat,...

Yolanda Romero Hume gives new meaning to the aphorism YOLO (a.k.a. carpe diem). Find out how she makes the most of every day - in her local DC tango community and around the world. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “El Adiós” composed by Maruja Pacheco Huergo with lyrics by Virgilio San Clemente and arranged and recorded by Sexteto Cristal with Guillermo Rozenthuler | Image Credit: Unknown Show...

South Korean honorary New Yorker London Hong thought he was too old to become a professional dancer. Then he fell in love with tango. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “Yunta de Oro” composed by Osvaldo Ruggiero and performed and recorded by Tango Bardo | Image Credit: Irina Novak Show Notes Watch the Forever Tango performance featuring Carlos Gavito and Marcela Durán that first inspired London...

"The tango dancing is going to happen, and you don't need to push that hard." Aníbal Dominguez was on the verge of quitting tango when he discovered contact improv. Since then, dancing has only gotten better... Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “En un Bondi Color Humo” performed by Daniel Melingo with lyrics by Luis Alposta | Image Credit: Alejandro Persichetti Show Notes Listen to the radio st...

When Ayano Yoneda moved from her native Japan to San Francisco for a job in finance, she never imagined that a chance encounter with a Halloween "Cinderella's ball" would change her life forever... Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “

“...I feel like if tango was more diverse, it would just be richer and more interesting.” Anthea Okereke’s tango journey has had plenty of highs and lows - but her passion keeps her making a heart with her hands, even when she has to roll her eyes through it. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “Viento Norte” written by Juan Carlos Suncho and performed by Sexteto Cristal | Image Credit: John Conn...

Nel Mastrodomenico fell in love with tango music in the tango bars of his native Colombia - but it took an international move in pursuit of the Australian dream to get him dancing and DJing. Today, Nel lives his own Argentinian dream in Buenos Aires. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “ Toda mi Vida ” written by José María Contursi y Aníbal Troilo and performed by Aníbal Troilo y su Orquesta Típ...

Queer tango teacher and change maker Alex Pacheco Castillo talks about why inclusion is not the same as belonging and what she's doing to foster community in her hometown of Mexico City. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “ Bailemos ” written by Cholo Mamona and Reinaldo Yiso and performed by Susanita Peña | Image Credit: Tango Queer Uruguay Show Notes UPDATE! Alex came to visit and we danced in...

Classical guitarist and recording artist Craig Einhorn on the joys and struggles of life and music-making and how a song first intended as "filler" for a CD became a modern tango classic. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “ Milonguea del Ayer ” composed by Abel Fleury and arranged and recorded by Craig Einhorn; “ Spetsai Tango ” composed by Georges Moustaki and arranged and recorded by Craig Ei...

Spain-born, San-Francisco-based teacher, DJ, and organizer Felipe Martinez explains why he believes art is for everyone and how tradition can nurture the evolution of tango. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: “

Bandoneonist Heyni Solera shares how her immigration experience shaped her artistic journey and why she thinks the secret to better dancing is to sit down. Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: "Flores Negras" by Francisco de Caro, arranged by Astor Piazzolla and performed by Heyni Solera | Image Credit: Nikos Zacharakis   Show Notes Visit Heyni's website to listen to more of Heyni’s music and see...

"Effectively, in martial arts you learn that 101 is a lifetime.” Hear from DC social dancer and beloved community photographer Jaime Montemayor about why he started taking pictures, how tango is similar to (and different from!) Judo, and what brought him back to tango after a long hiatus.   Producer/Host: Liz Sabatiuk | Music: "Patético" by Jorge Caldera, performed by Solo Tango Orquesta  | Image...