TANGO DEL CIELO (Tango of Heaven), leads you through the tight turns, dips and smoky cafes of Argentina, the bull fights of Spain, and the jungles of South America. Harp, Strings, Percussion and Dance perform the dramatic and fiery Spanish compositions of De Falla, Albeniz, and Rodrigo as well as the sensuous and passionate tangos of Astor Piazzolla with special arrangements by recent Grammy Award winner Pablo Ziegler. The program features a tribute to the Silent Films and is full of delightful surprises and appropriate for all ages. With tango and flamenco dance, film and effects, we invite you to experience this captivating music in a way never before presented!
Enjoy an immersive evening of music, dance, film and theatrical spectacle. The ensemble of instrumentalists and dancers celebrates the cultural heritage of Latin America and Spain, with a program that traverses Argentine Tango, Spanish Flamenco and Classical music, Brazilian Bossa Nova, and Latin Jazz. The concert evolves as a multi-media presentation, with sets, stage props, lighting effects, glamorous costumes, film, and projections that evoke the Golden Age of Hollywood and the era of silent film, when tango was first popularized in the United States.
Tango Del Cielo, the brainchild of acclaimed harpist Anna Maria Mendieta, was founded 10 years ago to explore the rich cross-cultural tapestry from which tango first emerged in Buenos Aires, in the late 1800s. She innovates within the genre by adding harp to the classic tango instrumentation, replacing the bandonéon or guitar and adding bright flourishes, driving dance rhythms, and evocative melodies on her instrument.
The ensemble includes Anna Maria Mendieta on harp, violinist Matthew Szemela (Berkeley Symphony, San Jose Opera), cellist Joseph Hébert (Oakland Symphony, Skywalker Symphony), and Seattle percussionist Antonio Gómez (Trio Guadalevín, the Eurasia Consort). The dancers are two-time national Argentine Tango Champion Marcelo Molina from Buenos Aires; flamenco dancer Suzanne Mendieta, who was a featured dancer at the World EXPO in Seville, Spain; and special guests, Maxi Copello & Raquel Makow from Argentina, are world renowned tango dancers featured in many of the most popular tango shows & movies.
TANGO DEL CIELO is a national touring company of award winning performers. While a few members are from the SF Bay Area, the full show is rarely performed in San Francisco.