Tango Jazz Quartet (Argentina)

PizzaExpress Live in partnership with the Hampstead Jazz Club proudly present Tango Jazz Quartet a wonderful and creative collision of Argentinian Tango and Jazz roots. With 10 albums released 31 international tours made, including 7 consecutive years in UK, the band performed in the most prestigious jazz clubs and festivals in Europe, USA, China, Russia, South America and Africa. TJQ is distinguished by its innovative approach to interpreting Argentine Popular Music and by its constant activity and innovation in its musical offerings. The music of Tango Jazz Quartet ranges from traditional tango to the music of Astor Piazzolla, without ever leaving the realm of jazz. The band has been declared "Tango Ambassadors" by the Buenos Aires Legislature and is sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Argentina. This year the group returns to PizzaExpress Live for the fifth time with a renewed repertoire that explores a good part of traditional tango and the avant-garde tango by the famous composer Astor Piazzolla. This showcase is a unique musical fusion of Tango and Jazz, a fascinating journey from the origins of traditional Tango to the innovative proposals of Astor Piazzolla's music. Tango Jazz Quartet magically captures the harmonies and the improvisation of jazz to blend them with the melodies and rhythms of tango. The striking contrast between the vibrant and playful "milongas", the romantic "tango-waltzes" and the electrifying music of Piazzzola will not leave anyone in the audience indifferent. The band has also worked in the production of musical films: it has produced the documentary "Tango Meets Jazz" premiered at the 2020 Black Mountin Jazz Festival in Wales and the film "Centenary of Music & composer Astor Piazzola" together to Welsh violinist Xenia Porteus premiered at the 2021 Brecon Jazz Festival in Wales. Saxophonist and clarinetist Gustavo Firmenich, leader of TJQ recreated with this band the dancing evenings that were common in the golden era of the tango in Buenos Aires, where Tango and Jazz lived together although playing separately. Founded in 2009 im Buenos Aires, The Tango Jazz Quartet of Argentina (TJQ) is a pioneer in creating a new sound within Tango, taking its melodies and rhythm and combining them with the harmony and improvisation of Jazz. After 31 international tours, TJQ has established itself on the international music scene. The group has performed in Europe (18 tours); the United States (3 tours); China-Hong Kong (1 tour); Russia-Siberia (1 tour); Africa (3 tours); and Brazil (5 tours). With five albums released, TJQ has performed not only as a quartet but also in concerts with Jazz Big Bands and symphony orchestras. They have collaborated with renowned musicians such as Richard Galliano, Delfeayo Marsalis, Vince Giordano, and many more. Declared since 2012 "Musical Group of Cultural Interest" by the Argentine Foreign Ministry and awarded the "Ambassadors of Tango" diploma by the Legislature of the City of Buenos Aires. "“Tango Jazz Quartet, from Argentina. A foursome that demonstrates how tango and its variants support a music culture more than they offer just an excuse to take the floor with risqué intent, the TJQ tour the world like missionaries”. " - Nigel Jarret. Wales Arts, Review