2008: DJs
April 27th, 2008 Posted in 2008 Archive, Public NewsGood quality music is at the heart of tango. Tango in the Spring will have excellent tango music at all our milongas and the practica. We have invited tango DJs from around the country, who will create their individual mixes of the tango music you love, to make each event unique. We’re looking forward to seeing where Tim, Jarny, Lisa and Tony will take us! From the sparse rhythms of early Canaro, the odd syncopations of Biagi, the smooth but powerful di Sarli tangos, the driving valses of Laurenz, though to the dramatic orchestrations of Pugliese – everything from the “Golden Age” of tango music – plus some added spice selected from more recent recordings, neo-tango, tango electronica, and non-tango music, they will craft nights to remember.
And at the practica, Josh will select tango music in a good mix of styles to make your practice fun and musical.
Many thanks to all our DJs for being part of Tango in the Spring!
Tony Armocida
Tony is a Melbourne tango DJ.
And some questions:
What first made you interested in Tango DJing? Selfishness. I just wanted to dance to the music I like.
What do you like best about DJing? I get to listen to the music I like, very loudly.
What do you consider when selecting music to play? I try to give all the major orchestras a tanda during the night.
What music won’t you play at a milonga? Chacarera and salsa.
What’s your worst DJing experience? Playing the chacarera and salsa.
How much do you dance when you DJ? It depends, but I’d like to keep it to a minimum.
And finally, do you have a favourite tango? Anything by Troilo with Marino.
Chanop Silpa-Anan (Tim)
Tim started DJing in Canberra six years ago and has significantly contributed to the musical knowledge and appreciation of the Canberra tango community during that time. As one of Canberra’s most popular DJs, Tim regularly DJs for the Tango Social Club of Canberra and is an occasional guest DJ at Club de Tango’s Friday night milonga in Glebe, Sydney. He was also both host and DJ for Canberra’s weekly milonga ‘Tango Tostado’ for five years.
Tim estimates he has 400-500 tango CDs dominated by classic tango including D’Arienzo, Pugliese, Di Sarli, Troilo, D’Agostino, Tanturi and Biagi. He also has some more unusual tango like later Golden Age tango from the 50s, 60s and 70s, Piazolla and music from the modern orchestras. He has a soft spot for Pedro Laurenz, D’Agostino/Vargas even though they are a less frequent visitor to his turntable.
We reckon Tim is also the best dressed tanguero in Australia renown for his impeccable suits, polished shoes and swanky hats. He’s easy to spot!
And some questions:
What first made you interested in tango DJing? Out of necessity (Tim was the first person who started proper DJing in Canberra).
What do you like best about DJing? I like many things about it, but firstly being able to dance to the music I like. Also I enjoy playing with people’s mood and keeping people on the floor despite their fatigue by playing irresistible music.
What do you consider when selecting music to play? To make my friends and people I know get up and dance.
What music won’t you play at a milonga? I don’t play the music I don’t like. Other than that, it all depends on the occasion.
What’s your worst DJing experience? One time at a milonga I was DJing, someone came and asked me “Could you play D’Arienzo for me next?” My answer… “??? I’ve just played D’Arienzo!”. Well, I don’t know it qualifies as the ‘worst’, it was certainly a fairly annoying moment for a DJ!
How much do you dance when you DJ? Depends on the night, I dance from a couple of tandas to half the night.
And finally, do you have a favourite tango? Isla de Capri by Osvaldo Fresedo and Roberto Ray.
Jarny Choi
Jarny started dancing tango a decade ago, and started DJing when he began organising tango events in Melbourne from 2002. Since then his DJ experiences include weekly practicas that he ran for six years, and special events such as the outdoor milongas at the Botanic Garden and the Gala night milonga of 2005 Australian Tango Festival.
As a DJ, his main aim is to build up the energy on the dancefloor so that dancers can experience the emotional connection that tango offers. To this end he focuses a lot on the dynamics and the sequences of the tandas. He mostly uses well known pieces in his tandas.
Jarny has also recently had an addition to his family with a new baby having recently arrived. Yet he still has time for tango!
And some questions:
What first made you interested in tango DJing? By lamenting a lack of properly DJed local milongas years ago and wanting to make a difference.
What do you like best about DJing? Seeing dancers ‘force’ themselves back on the floor despite tiredness.
What do you consider when selecting music to play? The dynamic of the tanda and how it fits into the current mood.
What music won’t you play at a milonga? Poor, difficult-to-dance-to versions of famous pieces.
What’s your worst DJing experience? Perhaps when I accidentally pressed the wrong button during a tanda at a recent milonga so that 50 people dancing had to start again to the same song.
How much do you dance when you DJ? Not very much, as I’m too concerned about the DJing to fully enjoy my dancing.
And finally, do you have a favourite tango? It changes. Currently it may be Biagi’s El Recodo.
Joshua Blackman
Josh has been DJing for two years. He has Dj’d for TengoTango, the Tango Social Club of Canberra and at Tango Tostado. He was DJ for the Tango Synergy/TSCC joint event at Bundanoon in 2007 and for their forthcoming 2008 event.
His CD collection is broad with a focus on the core of Golden Age tango. Josh’s taste in music is diverse, ranging from lyrical Di Sarli, playful Canaro milongas to, occasionally, challenging Piazzolla.
And some questions:
What first made you interested in tango DJing? A desire to learn more about the music I was dancing to, and a frustration at the lack of variety in music that was often played.
What do you like best about DJing? When you get it right, seeing dancers’ experience the emotional rush at the end of the tanda at the peak of the night.
What do you consider when selecting music to play? I try and maintain the connection between the DJ (ie. the music) and the energy of the dancers while upping the ante to a climax. It’s a constant feedback mechanism and involves many factors such as “is the music danceable by most?”, “are the dancers receptive to this music?”, “is the music good?” and “is there enough variety between this tanda and the next?”.
What music won’t you play at a milonga? Anything which is extremely difficult to dance to and/or does not fix with the energy of the room. Other than that, there are no rules. If people are having a good time, then you’ve got them hooked and from there you are free to experiment.
What’s your worst DJing experience? Sometimes you put together a tanda at home and you think it will be just fine, but at the milnoga it doesn’t work and you realise everyone in the room feels the same way. Live and learn!
How much do you dance when you DJ? Here and there, but it depends on how the night is going. If the audience and the DJ are on the same wavelength there is less thought required and you can more often follow your gut instinct. When the audience is not with you, more thought is required and I would probably not dance as much
And finally, do you have a favourite tango? It of course depends which moment you are asking. But ‘Nada’ by Di Sarli and ‘Milonga Tres’ by Piazzolla always work for me.
Lisa de Lazzari
Lisa is a teacher and DJ with Club de Tango from Sydney.
And some questions:
What first made you interested in Tango DJing? When we started tango in 1998, I loved the music as much as dancing, and wanted to learn more about the music which of course helps improve your dancing. And vice-versa.
What do you like best about DJing? Listening to the tango, and watching the dancers enjoy the music I’ve selected. It’s great when you see that the floor is full, and no-one is sitting down, it means that you are choosing the playlist well. I’ve DJ’d about 500 milongas so far, including fango festivals and guest DJ spots, and I’m enjoying it more as time goes on.
What do you consider when selecting music to play? 1. Whether the tango is great for dancing, and the sound quality of the tango recordings. 2. The dynamics of the tanda, the first song has to draw the dancers onto the floor, and the next songs need to keep them there. 3. Who the dancers are going to be. Are they mostly beginner or experienced dancers etc. 4. How many hours the milonga is going for. My playlist for a 2 hour milonga would be different to 3 or 4 hour milonga etc. 5. The acoustics of the milonga venue. 6. During the milonga, I watch for the behaviour and energy of the dancers on the floor, and will play calmer stuff if dancers are getting a bit boistrous for example.
What music won’t you play at a milonga? Anything that I wouldn’t dance to myself. It has to be a great dancable tango, that makes you want to get up on the floor. I avoid playing the style of music from any of the tango shows, and a lot of the electronica tango isn’t for dancing either. I think that we all should know the difference between tango for dancing and tango for listening.
What’s your worst DJing experience? The worst experience was the milonga I DJ’d at a tango festival in 2006 for a few reasons. I wasn’t allowed to use the equipment or adjust the sound, I had to ask the sound tech (sitting closely beside me) to make the adjustments, which they kept refusing to do. The organiser didn’t give me a run sheet (the times/order of events) for the live band, performances and speeches which made it very difficult to keep the music flowing. Then to cap it off, the security staff cut the music off a few minutes before midnight, and ordered me not to touch any of the equipment. They wouldn’t even let me use the microphone to let everyone know what was happening. They were very rude. Some people were complaining and blaming me, but it was out of my control.
How much do you dance when you DJ? Hardly ever. It is my job to keep the energy and flow of the night going, and I prefer to be ready to respond to whatever happens immediately. Also I constantly adjust the equaliser/sound according to the music.
And finally, do you have a favorite tango? That’s not easy because I love so many different tangos. It depends on my mood at the time and changes frequently. It would be more fair to ask me for a favourite song from each orchestra for today. Ask me tomorrow and I might answer differently. But I would say that at the moment, I love the tangos of Carlos Di Sarli with Alberto Podesta.
Federico Mattiuzzi
Unfortunately, Federico Mattiuzzi is no longer able to DJ at Tango in the Spring.
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