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San Francisco’s TangoFix for Everyone

August 4, 2013

One of the best things about dancing Tango is the opportunity to meet and become friends with people from all over the world.

Tango gives you a way of communicating with someone that crosses all language barriers. And because of the intimate nature of this dance, a sense of closeness and connection is developed a lot quicker than ordinary. Thus, a lot of close friendships develop, even among people who live thousands of miles away from each other. And one of the few opportunities of seeing each other is through Tango Festivals.

So imagine this. A diverse mix of Tango friends in San Francisco are meeting over lunch, and of course, the conversation turns to Tango. And by the time the day turned into night, this group of friends had put in place the plans to create a brand new San Francisco Tango Festival. In order to get the real story about what happened this fateful afternoon, I asked one of the organizers of SF TangoFix, Abhi, for the lowdown. This is what he shared with me:

SF Loves Tango: Could you tell me how the idea for TangoFix came about? Wasn’t it over lunch? How did the topic come up?

Mario & Annabella
Mario & Annabella

Abhi: It was a strange coincidence that brought all of us together that particular day. I think it was something like 10 people and all of us had a really good afternoon practica at Bissap (Bollyhood) and were feeling really good. The strange thing is that we all regularly run into each other individually or together at other events but never at Bissap. So, in a way, it was a fated afternoon.

After dancing we decided to have a late lunch/early dinner at Udupi Palace and we started talking about tango events and how SF has some great dancers and apart from SFTM in November and last year’s Antipanico in August, we did not have any other events that could attract a nice mix of out of town dancers that we all knew.

We started talking about how it would be great to bring all of our far flung tango friends home for a relaxed and interesting festival. Not a BIG festival necessarily like Antipanico, or not necessarily SFTM, but something in the middle. As the afternoon wore into evening and then into the night a few of us were still hanging out and we continued to talk about how we would do it and what we would do and by late evening, we just decided this needed to be done. We also decided to inquire about venues, teachers and DJ availability as soon as possible.

We all got together a week later and the broad strokes were finished! It was amazing. At that point I knew I was dealing with good people and this was going to be fun.

SF Loves Tango: And who should we thank for organizing this festival?

Abhi: A bunch of us had been talking about it at lunch, but it finally ended up being Eugene Kim, Mark Dean, Renata Szabelski, Alexei Barski, Mayumi Fujio and yours truly. Among the six of us we felt we had enough to start to put together something interesting.

Lucas & Paola
Lucas & Paola

SF Loves Tango: Putting together a Tango Festival is a big task.  How did you all delegate responsibilities?

Abhi: Since we’ve all known each other for quite a while now and have all danced and spent time with each other, it was really easy. Everybody was motivated and capable. We met regularly right at the beginning just to get the feel for what we wanted to achieve.  As the concept evolved each of us picked our own little sphere that we felt comfortable with. Invariably one of us would know someone or something outside the group that could help us get something done, and that person ended up owning that part of the organization.

But we also needed someone to sort of keep an eye on the overall pieces and Mayumi naturally took some of that responsibility due to her years of experience. It’s almost like a startup atmosphere. Everybody picks up the ball and runs with it. Since there is a lot of trust on each other to hold up their end,  delegating responsibilities was never an issue.

SF Loves Tango: I love this! When a great idea happens, all the pieces naturally fall into place.

Abhi: It’s been a lot of fun meeting everybody and promoting the event so far and I’m really excited and looking forward to the festival. This was something that we wanted to do as a fun gift back to the SF tango community. I really hope the local tangueros/tangueras show up in full force and welcome all of our out-of-town guests and make this fun event.

SF Loves Tango:  Thank you Abhi! We are all very excited for this festival and very thankful a great group of friends came together to share San Francisco Tango with everyone.

Here are the details for SF TangoFix:

SF_TangoFix_banner_900

What:  Four days of Summer Festival in San Francisco with great teachers from Argentina, all night milongas and afternoon alternative Milongas

When: August 8th -12th

Where: Mission, San Francisco
Main Ballroom & Cafe Florida, Mission Language & Vocational School, 2929 19th St., San Francisco (Map) and a.Muse Art Gallery, 614 Alabama St., San Francisco

Milongas:
8/8 Thursday – 9:00pm to 2:00am,
 DJ: Glenn Corteza  ($10 at door)
8/9 Friday – 9:00am to 5:00am, 
DJs: Jay Abling & Alex Plakantonakis ($30 at door)
8/10 Saturday afternoon alternative –  
3:00pm to 7:00pm, DJ: Emily Pierce ($15 at door)
8/10 Saturday evening – 
9:00pm  to 5:00am, 
DJs: Shorey Myers & Vincent Wong  ($30 at door)
8/11 Sunday afternoon alternative – 3:00pm to 7:00pm, DJ: Vincent Wong ($15 at door)
8/11 Sunday evening – 
9:00pm to 3:00am, 
DJs: Alex Plakantonakis & Jay Abling ($20 at door)

Classes for all levels with Mario & Anabella and Lucas & Paula run Friday through Sunday.  CLASSES – $30/class a la carte

Who: Mario & Anabella and Lucas & Paula (teaching and performing), DJs: Shorey Myers, Glen Corteza, Jay Abling (San Diego), Vincent Wong (LA), Alex Plakantonakis (NY), Emily Pierce

Purchase tickets here:  sftangofix-efbevent.eventbrite.com

For more information visit the Website:  www.sftangofix.com and Facebook page: www.facebook.com/sftangofix

Filed Under: SF Festivals, Special Events Tagged With: Argentine Tango, Bay Area Tango, Lucas & Paula, Mario & Anabella, SF Tango festivals, SF TangoFix, Tango dancing, Tango San Francisco

Comments

  1. Kristin says

    August 7, 2013 at 7:33 pm

    Hi! I live in Anchorage and am interested in coming down for the festival, but I haven’t been able to find a place to stay in the area. From what I’ve found, there aren’t many hotels in the area, and the few I found are booked. I also checked Craig’s list for rooms, but didn’t get any responses to the e-mails I sent. The B & Bs in the area are also booked. I could stay farther away, but I don’t know which areas would be close enough or have good transportation. Air tickets are very reasonable, so it seems too bad to miss the event just because I can’t find a place to stay. The website doesn’t offer any hotel suggestions, though it does have a couch surfing link. I posted there, but haven’t received any responses. Do you have any suggestions for lodging options for out-of-towners? Thanks!!

    • maika says

      August 7, 2013 at 9:03 pm

      Check out this post about Tips for Tango Visitors: http://sflovestango.com/tips-for-sf-tango-visitors/
      Also Yelp has a great list of inexpensive hotels here. Good luck! Hope you can make it!

Tango scenes in SF

sflovestango

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

sflovestango
As the year-end approaches, many SF local tango ev As the year-end approaches, many SF local tango events have had or will have their last event of 2022 to wrap things up. This year's last Milonga Rubia al Sur happened this past Sunday, Dec 18 with DJ @ayano.yoneda.tango and special performance with visiting artist, @martinalmironartist, and milonga host, Lisette @passion4tango. 

With the holidays coming up and Argentina winning the world cup, dancing tango all night long around Lisette's very own flower arrangements was just the appropriate celebration people needed.

Hosted by Lisette Perelle, Milonga Rubia is held every 1st & 3rd Sunday of the month, with current location at Just Dance Ballroom (2500 Embarcadero) in Oakland and a different DJ for each event.

✨ Fun fact - how Milonga Rubia got its name... ✨

Lisette's Argentine friends have always been calling her 'Rubia' because of her blonde hair. One day about 6 years ago, when she was discussing naming this new milonga with @julian_tangosf, he said, “Why not just call it Milonga Rubia?" That's how Milonga Rubia got its name! The event once was in a venue in Emeryville/Richmond. Once Lisette changed venues to a more southern location (Just Dance Ballroom in Oakland), the event's name was changed to 'Milonga Rubia al Sur' accordingly.
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#tango #tangoargentino #argentinetango #tangoevent #sundayfunday #milonga #milonganight #socialdancing #bailemos #embrace #tangodancers #bayareatango #oakland #keepdancing #dancingislife #weekendrecap
Last Saturday, Saturday Dec 17, @abrazoqueertango Last Saturday, Saturday Dec 17, @abrazoqueertango hosted their Holiday Bash with performances by @mirabtango and Miranda at @tangodome, a cool art gallery and dance space at 951 62nd St in Oakland.

🏳️‍🌈 Abrazo Queer Tangois a volunteer-run organization, and after expenses, all funds are used to pay for their events and offer discounts to students and folks short on cash. To help the org break even in 2022 and fund its 2023 programs, last Saturday's event was positioned as a fundraiser with a sliding scale $20-$40 for folks to choose how they'd like to show their support, offering a sweet night of performance, community and great music in a magical location. 

Missed the event yet still would like to support Queer Tango? Donations always totally work! Please write *donation* in the comment via your favorite method:
Venmo ➡️ abrazo-tango (Karen Curtis)
Paypal ➡️ abrazoqueertango@gmail.com
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#tango #tangoargentino #argentinetango #tangoevent #specialevents #milonga #saturdayvibe #socialdancing #bailemos #embrace #tangodancers #bayareatango #queertango #oakland #keepdancing #dancingislife #weekendrecap
💫 #motivationmonday is not over yet so here is 💫 #motivationmonday is not over yet so here is a quick recap of the International Day of Tango at @greatnorthernsf last night! 💫 Milonga hosted by @julian_tangosf with DJ @loco_chung. 
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#diadeltango #tango #tangoargentino #argentinetango #tangoevent #specialevents #milonga #sundayfunday #socialdancing #bailemos #embrace #tangodancers #bayareatango #sanfrancisco #keepdancing #dancingislife #weekendrecap
This Friday night in the heart of San Francisco, t This Friday night in the heart of San Francisco, tango dancers and the public who are curious art lovers had a unique experience with live music performed by local tango musicians and the strategic mix of TANGO • VALS • MILONGA • ALTERNATIVE music by DJ @jonas.aqui of @jxtango at @drawingroomsf_annex, an art • gallery • studio in the Mission district – a free event by the collaboration of @chetangosf, @drawingroomsf and @artistmigration. 

Artists featured:
Sumi Lee (piano) @sfsumi
J Ramada (bass)
Basma Edrees (violin) @basmaedreesviolin
Verónica Freidkes (vocal) @veroverofreidkes

Check out our stories and story highlights for snippets of the performances and tango dancing around art pieces!
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❣️ about Che! Tango SF❣️

All events created by Ramada Salieri and Elaine Chiu are dedicated to providing an inclusive and friendly dancing and learning environment in San Francisco and the Bay Area regardless of gender, age, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, or any other characteristic or trait.

ONGOING EVENTS
Che! Milonga: Every 1st and 2nd Saturday of the month 
Che! Música + Milonga: Once every quarter on a 2nd Saturday
Milonga Uno: 3rd Saturday of every other month
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❣️ about The Drawing Room SF ❣️

MISSION
The Drawing Room connects community through art to help improve the overall human condition by making art accessible and part of the daily fabric of our lives. 
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❣️about Artist Migration❣️

ANTI CAPITALIST ART
Artist-led curatorial project providing performance and exhibition opportunities to international artists.
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#tango #tangoargentino #argentinetango #concert #milonga #specialevent #onenightonly #livemusic #fridaynights #art #tangomusic #contemporarymusic #contemporarytango #womenintango #womeninmusic #artislife  #tangomusicians #musiciansofinstagram #sanfrancisco #california #bayareatango #sflovestango #jxtango
Those who came out to @tangolabruja last night had Those who came out to @tangolabruja last night had an epic evening of dancing and live music with three highly skillful tango musicians’ improvised music – Trio Tangazo, a dynamite tango trio made up of Sascha Jacobsen (bass), Seth Asarnow (piano), and Adrian Jost (bandoneon). 

~~Fun fact~~
Sascha, Seth and Adrian all performed at La Bruja previously - either with other tango ensembles or in duo - but it was the first time all three of them taking the stage together!

📍 @berkeleycityclub 
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#tango #concert #milonga #milonganight #specialevent #onenightonly #tangomusic #improvisation #travelingmusician #musiciansofinstagram #california #berkeley #bayareatango #tangomusicians #tangodancers #socialdance #dancingislife #sflovestango
🥧 Tomorrow is Thanksgiving so @milongamalevaje 🥧 Tomorrow is Thanksgiving so @milongamalevaje is closed for that matter, but here is something different & fun from last Thursday 😉 with DJ @jonas.aqui, courtesy of hosts @tanguera_e, Ramada Salieri and Adolfo Caszarry.

Have a wonderful holiday everyone!
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#tango #tangoargentino #argentinetango #milonga #milonganight #tangoevent #tangoalternativo #alternativetango #tangonuevo #embrace #bailar #bailemos #socialdance #partnerdance #tangodancers #dancingislife #bayareatango #sanfrancisco #sflovestango
✨ FRIDAY NIGHT TANGO ✨ It’s been awhile sin ✨ FRIDAY NIGHT TANGO ✨

It’s been awhile since Milonga La Genesis (hosted by @julian_tangosf) has live tango music. Last night LEO TANGASSO QUARTET was in the house, featuring @leogassomusic from Montevideo, Uruguay on bandoneon,  @smurfetteshum on piano, Stella Bonilla on violin,  @digsmahler on double bass.

(🎥 @tangonnection, edited by @sflovestango)
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#tango #argentinetango #tangoargentino #specialevent #bayareatango #tangomusic #livemusic #tangomusicians #bandoneon #piano #doublebass #violin #quartet #onenightonly #milonganight #sanfrancisco #sflovestango
👏 The all-female tango ensemble, 𝙇𝙖𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙨, wrapped up their 2022 concert tour at @alameda_elks1015, playing for a full house of guests at the @housetango Community Milonga.

𝙇𝙖𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙨 is a collaboration between powerhouse female tango musicians @sfsumi (piano), @heynisolera (bandoneon), and @teagbby (violin). Their concert on Sunday featured guest bassist @fabricanfabricant and vocalist @teresatam.sing.

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The mission of 𝙇𝙖𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙨 is to present contemporary Argentine tango through virtuosic artistic performance and educational events.  Sumi, Heyni, and Teagan originally bonded in Buenos Aires, drawn by a mutual love of tango music, as well as by a realization of the inequality of professional opportunity for women in the tango genre. They studied under the same maestros and performed with prestigious tango orchestras in Buenos Aires.  They now frequently perform around the world, including in their respective adopted cities of San Francisco (Sumi), Washington, DC (Heyni), and NYC (Teagan). All of the musicians also produce their own music. 
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#tango #concert #milonga #specialevent #onenightonly #tangomusic #contemporarymusic #contemporarytango #womenintango #womeninmusic #travelingmusician #heynibando #tour #beautifulwomen #musiciansofinstagram #sanfrancisco #california #berkeley #oakland #bayareatango #tangomusicians
🎉 Saturday, October 22 marked the grand re-open 🎉 Saturday, October 22 marked the grand re-opening of Vecher Tango at the Russian Center of SF!

After a long pause of two and a half year, the magnificent grand ballroom was filled with tango energy again. What made the occasion extra special was the incredible performances by another visiting master couple @javierchikk & @moiracastellano. To top it off, @virginiaychristian "Los Totis" joined Javier & Moira on the floor for a mixed maestros dance!

Shout-out to our dearest friend Davood Yazdani, Julia Schiptsova of Tango Element, and all the local organizers for making this weekend feel like a mini tango festival in San Francisco!
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#tango #argentinetango #argentinetango♥️ #tangoargentino #milonganight #tangoperformance #bailar #bailemos #bailando #tangoshow #tangoevent #tangodancer #tangocouple #specialevent #onenightonly #tangophoto
✨It's a star-struck tango week in SF!!✨ @vir ✨It's a star-struck tango week in SF!!✨ 

@virginiaychristian "Los Totis" have been teaching in San Francisco (brought to you by our very own Davood Yazdani who's in collaboration with Julia Schiptsova of Tango Element!) And we were mesmerized by their fantastic performances last night at the special edition of @milongamalevaje at @verdiclubsf ! 🤩👏
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#tango #argentinetango #argentinetango♥️ #tangoargentino  #tangoperformance #bailar 
#bailemos #bailando #tangoshow  #tangoevent #tangoperformance #tangodancer #tangocouple #specialevent #onenightonly #tangophoto
💫 Exactly a year later, 𝙇𝙖𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙨, an all-female tango musician collaboration, has returned to the SF Bay Area!! 

Last night they took the audience on a magical journey to Buenos Aires with a concert-milonga at @tangolabruja in Berkeley. Check out our stories to see more snippets of their performance!

𝙇𝙖𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙨 is a collaboration between powerhouse female tango musicians @sfsumi (piano), @heynisolera (bandoneon), and @teagbby (violin). The concert last night featured guest singer @veroverofreidkes.

The mission of 𝙇𝙖𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙨 is to present contemporary Argentine tango through virtuosic artistic performance and educational events. Sumi Lee, Heyni Solera, and Teagan Faran originally bonded in Buenos Aires, drawn by a mutual love of tango music, as well as by a realization of the inequality of professional opportunity for women in the tango genre. They studied under the same maestros and performed with prestigious tango orchestras in Buenos Aires.  They now frequently perform around the world, including in their respective adopted cities of San Francisco (Sumi), Washington, DC (Heyni), and NYC (Teagan). All of the musicians also produce their own music. 

Catch them for the rest of their tour!
🔸10/20 (Thur) 10pm, World Folk Jam concert w/ ten other world music groups, Oakland
🔸10/21 (Fri) 7pm, Sebastopol Center for the Arts
🔸10/22 (Sat) 7:30pm, Sunset Music and Arts, San Francisco
🔸10/23 (Sun) 3:30pm, houseTango Community Milonga @ Alameda Elks Lodge, Alameda
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#tango #concert #milonga #specialevent #onenightonly #tangomusic #contemporarymusic #contemporarytango #womenintango #womeninmusic #travelingmusician #heynibando #tour #beautifulwomen #musiciansofinstagram #sanfrancisco #california #berkeley #oakland #bayareatango
🤩 𝓜𝓲𝓵𝓸𝓷𝓰𝓪 𝓕𝓲𝓪𝓽 🤩 𝓜𝓲𝓵𝓸𝓷𝓰𝓪 𝓕𝓲𝓪𝓽 𝓛𝓾𝔁 by the @berkeleytangoclub (ATCB) returned to the #ucberkeley campus earlier today, with DJ Prashant! 🎶

The ATCB is a Registered Student Organization of the Associated Students of the University of California (ASUC), comprised of University of California Berkeley students, staff, alumni, and members of the local community who love tango. Their mission is to develop a student tango community at UC Berkeley fit to carry the flag of this generation and the generations to come.

They currently hold classes and práctica every Sunday and a milonga (Milonga Fiat Lux!) about once a month. Whether you are just beginning tango, or have been dancing for some time, you are welcome to join. They aim to hold high-quality events to prepare students to become active members of the Bay Area tango community, and to provide a safe and welcoming social dancing environment.

📌 Mark your calendar for the next Milonga Fiat Lux, a winter edition🎄
𝟮–𝟱𝗽𝗺 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟰
See you in 𝟮𝟰𝟬 𝗘𝘀𝗵𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗛𝗮𝗹𝗹 of UC Berkeley!
https://m.facebook.com/events/1713049302422431

For more updates:
Email: ucbtango@gmail.com
Facebook: @ArgentineTangoClubBerkeley
Instagram: @berkeleytangoclub 
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#tango #argentinetango #tangoargentino #tangoargentino♥️ #tangoevent #milonga #socialdance #partnerdance #bailemos #bailar #bailando #dancing #tangodancers #berkeleytangoclub #bayareatango #sflovestango
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