ARGENTINA’S finest tango vocalist is to perform in Ashbourne as part of his 24th international tour.
Martín Alvarado is the winner of the prestigious Latin UK Award and last week signed a deal with record label World Music Network.
The concert, which is at Ashbourne Town Hall on Sunday, March 17 at 7.30pm, is the second of his tour, which will include dates at Cardiff, London and Liverpool.
Organised by Nottinghamshire-based L Tango Promotions, the concert will be preceded by an afternoon tango lesson with Joh Cabrera and a tango social dance.
Mr Alvarado, who hails from Buenos Aires, will be performing with musician Mikko Helenius, a classically trained pianist from Helsinki.
Mr Helenius studied bandoneon from some of the instrument’s Argentine maestros in Paris.
The button accordion, which is central to the tango sound, is renowned for being an extremely difficult instrument to play and Mikko Helenius is thought to be unique in the world for having mastered the ability to play both the piano and bandoneon simultaneously.
Mr Alvarado said: “I am so happy to be returning to Derbyshire – I had two lovely concerts in Melbourne and New Mills last year.”
“I love having Mikko with me when I sing because he is a great musician and has written some beautiful arrangements. We also have a lot of fun on stage together.”
Lisa Cherry-Downes is Alvarado’s UK and Europe manager and promoter. She said: “Martin always gets a terrific reception wherever and whenever he sings and I am really pleased he will be performing with Mikko this time. They work really well together and seem to have an intuitive relationship on stage with their performances often improvised and tailored to suit a particular audience.
“No show is ever the same. The magic of their live performances is a memorable experience and one not to be missed.”
The tango lesson is at the town hall is from 1.30pm to 3pm and will be followed by the social dance, or milonga, which includes a demonstration by Mr Cabrera at 6pm. Admission is £10 on the door.
Tickets for the social dance and concert are £10 in advance from GT News, or £12 on the door.
