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Milonga Spotlight: CMC Mission Milonga

October 12, 2017

The CMC Milonga is a wonderful intimate milonga in the heart of the Mission.

It’s held in a beautiful Victorian concert hall with smooth wooden floor and outdoor patio. This monthly Milonga, held every 2nd Saturday of the month, often includes live music and dance performances by local and international Tango guests. Plus, all ages are welcome to come dance or just watch.

If you are not familiar with CMC — it’s the Community Music Center on Capp and 20th Streets in San Francisco’s Mission district. Founded in 1921, Community Music Center is one of the oldest and largest community arts organizations on the West Coast. Their mission is to make high quality music accessible to all people, regardless of their financial means. Classes are offered on a sliding scale and some are completely tuition-free.

The CMC Milonga is hosted by SFCMC and dance faculty Sonja Riket. Sonja Riket, a native Belgian, has 30 plus years of dance experience. She is also a Registered Somatic Movement Therapist®, Guild Certified Feldenkrais® Practitioner, Certified Teacher in Body-Mind Centering®, Aquatic Therapist, Dance Educator and Social Change Artist. Quite impressive!

Sonja has studied many forms of ethnic dance, such as Flamenco, Indian, Balkan and African dances along with a world wide career in modern dance. While studying Argentine Tango as a social dance in Buenos Aires, Europe and the USA, her heart found a home in this sensual and subtle art form.

In 1999, Sonja co-founded Intimate Embrace Tango, which envisions tango as a medium for relationship to ourselves, each other and our world. It has since inspired hundreds of novice tango dancers throughout the Bay Area to learn the subtle movements of the dance while getting in touch with their own creative expression. Sonja believes Tango is about listening and moving as one, a communication through subtle movements of two bodies joined in breath and energy.

Since 2005, Sonja hosted “Tango Revolution” Milonga, held at Café Revolution in the Mission District, then found a home at Café Trieste Downtown San Francisco from 2007-2012 (with the Tango Revolution Orchestra) and then later at Berkeley’s Café Mediterraneum from 2012-2016. In 2017, Sonja will be hosting a new milonga with a slight change of name to Tango Revelation.

Tango Revelation Milonga will be held the second Sunday of every other month (with some exceptions) at Ashkenaz Music and Dance Community Center in Berkeley.

Tango Revelation Milonga Opening Night Gala is this Sunday October 15, 2017 from 8pm-12am

There will be Live Music by Grammy nominated Emilio Solla TribuTango plus Class and Dance Performance by 2017 USA Tango Champions Michael and Ana Thomas. Check out the Facebook Event page to learn more.

This coming Saturday, the CMC Mission Milonga is celebrating its 1st anniversary!

The celebration includes traditional live Tango music by Grammy-nominated Emilio Solla TribuTango plus dance class and performance by 2017 USA Tango champions Michael and Ana Thomas!

More about the musicians: 

EMILIO SOLLA is a Grammy Nominated Argentina born and NY based pianist and composer. Emilio has a degree in Classical Piano at the National Conservatory of Music in Buenos Aires and a MA in Jazz Composition at Queens College in New York. He continued to study composition, arranging, counterpoint, improvisation and conducting in Buenos Aires, Barcelona and New York. His first band, Apertura, was praised by Astor Piazzolla himself as one of the most interesting new sounds in the Buenos Aires scene in 1986.

Watch on Youtube

PABLO ASLAN – Argentine-born Pablo Aslan is in demand for his skills as a producer, bassist, and educator, and for his knowledge of traditional and contemporary tango. His most recent album as a leader is Piazzolla in Brooklyn, a tribute to the late Nuevo Tango master. His previous CD, Tango Grill,  was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award for Best Tango Album and a Grammy for Best Latin Jazz Album. Currently he is a member of the GlassHouse Orchestra, a multinational ensemble that performs in Europe and North America, and the Astoria Tango Orchestra. He plays regularly with small ensembles in the New York City area, including a three year ongoing residence at Zinc Bar with Grammy nominee Emilio Solla.

JAVIER SANCHEZ – Bandoneonist Javier Sanchez has toured the world with Orquesta Típica, Tango Pasión, Tango Viaje al Sentimiento, Pedro Chemes Group, Tango Emotión, Tanguera and Quinteto Típico Buenos Aires. He has been a member of Latin Grammy Awards nominee, Rodolfo Mederos’ Orchestra ‘Tipica’ between 2005 and 2016, Javier has performed in Buenos Aires tango shows including Café Tortoni, Chiquin Buenos Aires, Pigmalión Tango, El Viejo Almacén, Esquina de Carlos Gardel, Tango Porteño, Piazzolla Tango.

Workshop and Dance performances by MICHAEL AND ANA THOMAS – 2017 USA OFFICIAL ARGENTINE TANGO SALON CHAMPIONS!

Michael and Anna are siblings and Tango dance partners. They started their study of Tango at a very young age. They studied with their father Edmundo Thomas and many renowned masters of Tango who were part of the old milongueros school in Buenos Aires.

Since 2006 Michael taught and performed in Buenos Aires at several well-known venues and since 2010 also in the USA. Ana studied ballet, contemporary dance and jazz at the National Arts University and graduated from the prestigious “Contemporary Dance workshop of the San Martin Theatre” in Buenos Aires. For the last 6 years she studied Tango with many maestros.

Ana and Michael’s victory dance video:

Saturday October 14th – Anniversary Milonga Schedule:
8:00-9:00pm: All level class with guest teachers Michael and Ana Thomas

9:00pm-12:00am: Milonga with dance-able traditional Tango live music by Emilio Solla TribuTango and DJ Ashvin

9:30pm & 10:45pm: Live music sets by Emilio Solla TribuTango (Emilio Solla, piano; Pablo Aslan, bass; Javier Sanchez, bandoneon)

10:30pm: Dance performance by Michael and Ana Thomas

Tickets/info:

Location: Community Music Center Concert Hall, 544 Capp Street, San Francisco, CA (You should be able to hear the music through the street, enter through the garden.)

Tickets at door: $25 general/$20 seniors/students
Advance tickets: $20 general/$17 seniors/students

I love these words by Sonja: “We offer the beautiful connection between human beings in the Tango Embrace as a common language and antidote against the isolation, separation and fearful existence we are led to believe is necessary.  To complement our screen-oriented lives, we need to slow down, rediscover the joy of body-based expressions and create live gathering places among ourselves in a spirit of harmony and well-being!”

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Filed Under: Live Tango Music, Milonga Spotlight, Musings Tagged With: Argentine Tango, Bay Area Tango, CMC Mission Milonga, Intimate Embrace Tango, Live Tango Music, Sonja Riket

Tango scenes in SF

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Celebrate #bayareatango community, support everyone involved & share ♥️ of #tango with San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.

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🦃 Thanksgiving is only one week away!! If you a 🦃 Thanksgiving is only one week away!! If you are in town and up for a weekend of post-turkey (ham/steak/veggies/stuffing or whatever dishes you're having) embraces, 𝐓𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐨 𝐂𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐮𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐚 ~ 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐬𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐨 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨 at @verdiclubsf is ready for you!!

🍁 Brought to you by @tanguera_e, @jesram_sf, and Adolfo C.
🔗 event link in our bio!👆
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✨TANGO THIS SATURDAY Oct 28✨ 𝕆𝕡𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 𝟛 for Tango Aficionados in SF Bay Area… 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐚, October Edition at @thebeatberk in Berkeley!! Longest running All-nighter in the North America since 2000~ Share your warmest embrace with out of towners and welcome new dancers from @stanfordtango and @berkeleytangoclub ~

Hosted by @tangonnection and @ayano.yoneda.tango
9:00p - 10:00p Special Chacarera Class with guest teacher Helene Eriksen
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Chacarera break around 1:00am

event details link in bio👆
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#tango #argentinetango #tangoargentino #allnighter #milonga #tangoevent #socialdancing #bayareatango #sflovestango
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🍁The last weekend of October is quickly approac 🍁The last weekend of October is quickly approaching and it’s popping!🥳 

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🎵ABOUT DJ DAN🎵
The music is what first drew Dan to tango in 2000, and he still loves the music deeply. His DJ journey began with college dances using vinyl in the late 80s, continuing on to DJ for several kinds of social dances through the 90s, and he has been DJing tango events throughout North America since 2001, including an epic all-nighter at the Beat in Berkeley CA in 2003 that lasted 9 1/2 hours, ending around 7:30am! He enjoys studying the crowd and selecting songs in the moment, with seamless transitions between tandas, taking the dancers on a dynamic journey with the music.
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✨Not to be missed this week✨ learning from one ✨Not to be missed this week✨ learning from one of the best tango artists and teachers, Moira Castellano❣️ event details link in bio👆
October is a busy month for Tango in San Francisco October is a busy month for Tango in San Francisco!🍁 Starting off… Charles Gorczynski returned to the Bay Area and WEST COAST TANGO ENSEMBLE world premiere at @thetangodome last Saturday, October 14, 2023!!🎶❤️‍🔥 hosted by @macaronifinearts & @voulkosfoundation 

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On October 10th, 1902, one of the greatest bandone On October 10th, 1902, one of the greatest bandoneon virtuoso was born in La Boca, PEDRO LAURENZ (10/10/1902-7/7/1972). His birthday was celebrated at @el_valenciano1153 with an interactive lecture by @ayano.yoneda.tango so many of us got to know what makes his music special, how he became who he was, and the stories of his career told by his rivals and colleagues. Of course, the usual Tuesday night social dancing at El V was only complete when plenty of Laurenz’ music were danced to throughout the night!

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Las Chicas del Tango @thetangodome Oakland, Califo Las Chicas del Tango
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Violín @basmaedreesviolin
Contrabajo @hannahmacgilv
Bandoneones @sinai_rim y @clarastern_bandoneon
Cello Vicky Ehrlich

#repost 📸 @clarastern_bandoneon 
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It's been a while since we do a spotlight on any t It's been a while since we do a spotlight on any teacher. But someone like @lucianavallel who has been a regular visiting teacher for over 20 years, we are very glad to welcome her back to San Francisco for the first time post-pandemic! (link in bio!👆)

Starting with pre-Milonga class this Thursday Aug 10 at @milongamalevaje, Friday Aug 11 at Milonga Genesis (hosted by @tangosabor) and two weekends of Intensive Tango Workshops at Monte Cristo Social Club (event link in bio👆)!
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❤️‍🔥 @tango_with_winnie and @hugosatorre ❤️‍🔥 @tango_with_winnie and @hugosatorre continued their SF Tour with a weekend of Adventures in Tango Land at @tangodome !

They first blew us away with Saturday Tango Nightclub joining forces with The Dome's house band, Orquesta Tipica Domo, including a special guest artist Aude Bresson.👏 Then they kept the adventures going with a Sunday afternoon Live Music Practica for Dancers! 🎶❣️🎵🎹

If you miss out The Dome events completely, check out our stories for a few highlights!👆 Want to feel the magic of their music in person? Don't miss the rest of their SF tour!👇
~Tuesday 6/27 at El Valenciano (hosted by @tangosabor w/ Julian)
~Saturday 7/1 at @tangamente.sf (hosted by @tanguera_e and @jesram_sf)

☝️Links in bio!
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#tango #tangoargentino #argentinetango #tangoevent #specialevent #livemusic #tangomusic #contemporarytango #tangodancers #bailemostango
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