MEET THE TANGUEROS

Emma, violin

Emma is a composer, performer, naturalist and dancer based in Sydney, Australia. Ideas of natural beauty, complex gestural patterns, and interdisciplinary relationships are ongoing visions in her art. For her, tango represents these visions, featuring raw and primitive sounds that passionately circle around each other. 

She has been playing violin for over 15 years and graduated from the B. Mus (Composition) degree at the Sydney Conservatorium at the end of 2019. In 2016, Emma toured to Buenos Aires with TangoOz under the guidance of Maggie Ferguson. She attended masterclasses with musicians of the Orquesta Escuela de Tango Emilio Balcarce, learning all the wonderful techniques specific to tango: arrastre, chicharra, tambor… 

Emma has performed in and written works for numerous international festivals and residencies. In 2019, she participated in the ‘Composing in The Wilderness’ residency, where she spent a week field recording the natural landscape of Prince William Sound, Alaska. Her piece Suddenly a sound…  an exhalation was premiered by the CORVUS ensemble at Federal Hall in New York City, as part of the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival. Other festivals Emma has participated in, include the ‘Montreal Contemporary Music Lab’ and the ‘Chigiana Summer Festival’ in Siena, where she studied under the renowned Salvatore Sciarrino.

Emma’s tango anthems: Lunfardo (Astor Piazzolla) & Si Sos Brujo (Alfredo Gobbi)

Eloise, violin

Eloise is an urban planner, visual artist, and violinist. She brings over a decade of experience performing orchestral and chamber music in Sydney, with highlights including workshops with members of the Australian Chamber Orchestra and a European tour with the Sydney Youth Orchestra in 2017.

In pursuit of a music style that maintained the heaviness and grit of modern classical, yet welcomed experimentation (and the odd glissando), Eloise found her calling in the world of tango. She attributes her most valuable learnings in music to her time in Buenos Aires, and understands tango as a poetic reflection of its culture, place, and people.

To Eloise, tango is an extension of the soul – one that embraces and breathes life into the full spectrum of our condition – joy, yearning, melancholy, and amelioration. She envisions Adelante as an opportunity to share this magic with new audiences. As a proud uruguaya, Eloise loves a good mate, yumba, and anything redolent of the South.

Eloise’s tango anthems: Pompeya (Julián Peralta, Astillero) & Chin Chin (Astor Piazzolla)

Paula, bandoneón

Paula is a computer science teacher and programmer by day, but a musician of many instruments by night! In addition to bandoneón, you will usually find her eager to join various other ensembles surrounding lower brass playing, wind bands and choirs.

Although playing bandoneón started as more of a technical challenge derived from a love of puzzles and maths, it has since turned into a way of connecting with others and enjoying one of her favourite genres of music. (And nothing beats watching a full house of dancers when performing at a milonga!). 

You might find Paula enjoying her various other creative outlets such as cooking, ceramics, dance or being a maximalist, but ultimately she spends the remainder of her free time fitting in far too many movies into one night.

Paula’s tango anthems: Decarísimo & Allegro Tangabile (Astor Piazzolla)

Liz, flutes

Liz is a multi-disciplinary performer, composer, and songwriter who loves to explore the sounds your teacher tells you not to make during lessons. Playing tango flutes since 2014, they have studied under Maggie Ferguson with TangoOz and tango flute extraordinaire Paulina Fain, touring to Buenos Aires and Uruguay with the student orquesta in 2016. Liz also plays with the Sydney Conservatorium of Music’s Chinese Music Ensemble on the Erhu and Zhonghu (traditional 2-string fiddles), Rorschach Climax Ensemble on improvised low flutes, and Dreambox Collective, where they create both visual and musical song.

When not making music, Liz can be found drawing, knitting, learning languages, patting animals, and practising activism. They would like to acknowledge and pay respects to the Cadigal people of the Eora Nation, whose traditional land they make art on.

Liz is excited to be a part of Adelante, pushing musical and stylistic boundaries, and bringing a woodwind spin to the colourful tango scene.

Liz’s tango anthems: Villeguita (Astor Piazzolla) & Tongo 4 (Diego Schissi Quinteto)

Emily, double bass

Born in Sydney, it was upon being accepted into the Conservatorium of Music High School that Emily realised her passion for the double bass. 

During Emily’s school years she performed with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Australian Youth Orchestra and Sydney Youth Orchestra. She has a Bachelor of Music Performance First-class honours degree from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music with Kees Boersma, where she has been the recipient of the Michael Bannigan Scholarship for the Double Bass, Kenneth W Tribe Fellowship Fund, QuinQuin Foundation Scholarship and Patricia Long Scholarship. She will start a Masters of Arts at the Royal Academy of Music London in September 2022. Professional engagements include playing in the Opera Australia Orchestra, Bach Band @ St James, the Carols in the Domain, and chamber performances working with Madeleine Easton, Christina Leonard and Michelle Leonard. 

As a member of the Australian Youth Orchestra, Emily has been mentored by world-class tutors such as Max McBride, Timothy Dunin, Damien Eckersley and Kristy McCahon; as well as playing under conductors such as Sir Mark Elder, Matthew Coorey, Elim Chan, Dietrich Paredes, William Conway, Christopher Seamen. She has also performed in masterclasses with Phoebe Russell, Tim Gibbs, and Milton Masciadri.   

Emily loves playing tango, and was invited to study with Ignacio Varchausky and Patricio Cotella at the Emilio Balcarce Tango Orchestra School (Orquesta Escuela) in 2016. When she’s not playing the bass, she’s jamming on the saxophone and piano. 

Emily’s tango anthem: Oblivion (Astor Piazzolla)

Tom, piano

Tom is a music educator, music director, pianist, conductor, and minimalist. His passion for Argentine tango music extends back to his successful audition for TangoOz in late 2015. In 2016, Tom undertook a study tour to Buenos Aires to attend masterclasses with the musicians of the Orquesta Escuela de Tango Emilio Balcarce, and since 2018, he has assembled tango ensembles of varying sizes for milongas, concerts, and private functions. Adelante represents an important step forward in this vision. Tom is also an adept arranger and orchestrator of tango repertoire, having studied under Dr Daniel Rojas at the University of Sydney.

Beyond the world of tango, Tom is a graduate of a Bachelor of Music (Music Education) from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and he teaches classroom music K-12. He is also involved extensively in the musical theatre scene across Sydney as a pianist, conductor and musical director.

Tom’s tango anthem: Ensueños (Luis Brighenti, arr. Horacio Salgán)