Teachers
Hugo Patyn & Celina Rotundo
Argentina
To schedule Private Class with Hugo or Celina please email them at: hugo-patyn@hotmail.com
Daniel Nacucchio & Cristina Sosa
World Tango Champions 2008
Argentina
To schedule Private Class with Daniel or Christina please email them at: info.cristinaydaniel@gmail.com
Carlos Urrego & Ruth Hernandez
USA Tango Champions 2025
To schedule Private Class with Ruth Hernandez please email her at: Ruth.tangosalon@gmail.com
or Carlos Urrego at: extravaganzatango@gmail.com
Taxi Dancers
Norman Hinestroza
New York
Reserve your dance with Norman: Whats App 347-898-0678
Victor Rua
Argentina
Reserve your dance with Victor: 512-202-9483
Robson Ferreira
Miami
Reserve your dance with Robson: Whats App 954-310-1198
Claudio Cortes
Reserve your dance with Claudio: Venmo @Claudio-Cortes-6
1 Tanda is $30 or 3 Tandas for $75.
Musicians
Emiliano Messiez
Piano
Emiliano Messiez is a Latin Grammy-nominated composer and pianist originally from Argentina and now based in New York City. Known for his versatile and unique sound, he is the founder and director of the Tango Orchestra Típica Messiez, a member of the Romo-Agri-Messiez Trio, and the pianist for the show Forever Tango. Trained in classical music, jazz, tango, rock, and Latin American rhythms, he has performed globally at renowned venues including Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, and the Houston Grand Opera. As a composer, Emiliano has written several musicals, such as Bordello, the Musical (2019), The Guava Tree (2021), Casa Alfonsa (2022), and The City Dog and the Prairie Dog (2023) among many others.
Mel Atoyan
Violin
Violinist Melisa Gohar Atoyan was born in Argentina to Armenian parents. She is the first violinist and a founding member of the Arya String Quartet, most recently featured in 2019 at the Pleasantville Chamber Music Society. She has performed as a soloist with the Adelphi Symphony Orchestra, with which she served as co-concertmaster. With immense opera experience, she has served asconcertmaster and in the first violin sections of the Utopia Opera, New Opera, Regina Opera, and New Rochelle Opera companies. Additionally, she appeared in America’s Got Talent in 2014, playing in the string section for Emily West’s performance at Radio City Music Hall. Melisa has also appeared in notable venues such as Carnegie Hall (Weill Recital Hall), Merkin Hall, Lincoln Center’s Midsummernight’s Swing, Teatro Coliseo, among others. Besides being classically trained, Ms. Atoyan also performs tango music and has worked with grandiose tango musicians such as:
Grammy Nominee: Emilio Solla, Pedro Giraudo, JP Jofre, and Hector Del Curto. Melisa has also worked with Polly Ferman and GlamourTango, Tango Untangled” (Teatro Circulo) and has served as violin solo for Astoria Tango Orchestra under the direction of Daniel Binelli.
At the age of 8, Ms. Atoyan was awarded 1st prize-Junior Division in the Fundación Banco Mayo Competition (Argentina). After receiving the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) Performing Arts Fellowship in 2009, she was accepted into “La Scuola di Musica di Fiesole” (Italy) International Competition Training Course the following year, studying with renowned pedagogue, Pavel Vernikov. Under the tutelage of Valery Oistrakh at the Brussels Royal Conservatory, she received her B.M. in Violin Performance.
As a dedicated teacher, Ms. Atoyan has served on the violin faculty at the Brooklyn Music House, Herald Music School, Music Box School, Vienna Music, PS 11 (Brooklyn) and currently teaches violin at Bergen Academy of Music and Art as well as leading the intermediate orchestra and teaching group violin classes at UCMP.
Rodolfo M. Zanetti
Bandoneón
A native of Argentina, Rodolfo Zanetti plays the bandoneon, a type of concertina particularly popular in that country and an essential instrument in most tango ensembles. Dedicated to playing tango from an early age, he joined the Mancifesta Orchestra and Tango & Punto before co-founding the Quintet Bandó, with which he made well received tours to Washington, Chicago and New York.
Under the auspices of the Astor Piazzolla Foundation, in 2003 Zanetti directed Maria de Buenos Aires, the masterpiece of Astor Piazzolla and Horacio Ferrer. He performed as bandoneon soloist with the Choir of the National University of Cuyo (U.N.C. - Mendoza) and with the Coro de Jóvenes de la Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. In 2009 he founded El Despunte Tango Club, a traditional tango trío. In 2013 he performed as soloist in the very international wine event of Mendoza, the Fiesta Nacional de la Vendimia.
In the United States, Zanetti has performed as soloist with the Pan American Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Lisner Auditorium of George Washington University, the Embassy of Argentina, the Organization of American States and other notable venues. In New York he performed as soloist at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and Carnegie Hall.
In 2017 he won the First Prize as a bandoneonist at the "Che Bandoneón International Competition" awarded by the Argentine Tango Society at the Stowe Music Tango Festival in Vermont, USA.
In 2018 he participated as a bandoneon player in the album "Vigor Tanguero" by Pedro Giraudo, which has obtanied the Latin Grammy to the best Tango Album.
In 2020 he was a soloist in the recording of the album "Tango of the Americas" which was nominated last year for the best tango album by the Latin Grammy Awards.
Rodolfo Zanetti studied with Jorge Puebla and Hilario Alberto Iribarne on bandoneon, continuing his studies in piano with masters Monica Rizzo and Roberto Urbay at the Faculty of Arts of the National University of Cuyo, Mendoza, Argentina
Pablo Lanouguere
Bass
Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Pablo Lanouguere is a bassist, composer, and bandleader based in New York City. A versatile musician, he performs across tango, jazz, Latin-jazz, swing, salsa, classical, and world music, appearing at premier venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, National Sawdust, Zinc Bar, and Rockwood Music Hall. He has collaborated with renowned artists including Raúl Jaurena, Fernando Otero, Daniel Binelli, Adam Tully, and Tipica Messiez, and has toured extensively throughout the U.S. with both American and Argentine ensembles.
Since 2016, Pablo has been a founding member of Abaddon, a traditional tango sextet in New York, and in 2019 he launched the Pablo Lanouguere Quintet, releasing his debut album Eclectico on Piano Piano Records. His second album, Altar, was produced with support from the Café Royal Cultural Foundation, while the NYFA City Artists Corps awarded him a grant to present his quintet in New York. His work also extends to theater, with credits in numerous productions at Thalia Spanish Theater, Teatro SEA, and beyond, blending tango and contemporary performance.
Pablo studied with distinguished musicians such as Pedro Giraudo, Daniel Falasca, and Gustavo Giles, and earned a degree in Jazz Music from the Escuela de Música Popular de Avellaneda in Buenos Aires. He is currently completing his Master’s in Jazz Performance at CUNY Queens College, where he will graduate in Fall 2025. Through his education, collaborations, and creative projects, Pablo continues to expand his artistry and contribute to both tango and jazz on the international stage.
DJs
Harvey Schwartz
(Washington, DC)
With his holistic understanding and inner reflection of different perspectives, DJ Harvey strives to understand the feelings and generate shared moods among groups. While feeling a miraculous connection with the dancers, he knows critical elements of music that invite them to a better place. He is a spark of life that every listener and dancer desires.
Koichiro Suzuki
(Pittsburgh, PA)
Koichiro “Chewy” Suzuki is a musician, dancer, and internationally recognized Tango DJ who blends his lifelong passion for music and performance with the art of Argentine Tango. A former performer with the world-renowned Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps, he later earned a Master’s in Music Performance from Duquesne University and played with the River City Brass Band before discovering tango during his university years. Since then, he has trained with renowned instructors and developed a style that unites technical precision with deep musicality. In 2008, Koichiro founded Pittsburgh Tango Connection, now the city’s largest tango school, and he leads signature events such as the Pittsburgh Tango Fierro Marathon and Pittsburgh Tango Festival, which draw dancers worldwide. As a DJ, he has performed across Argentina, Japan, Canada, Italy, and beyond, known for his thoughtful, crowd-responsive tandas. Whether teaching, performing, or DJing, Koichiro shares his artistry and love for tango in every step and note.
Jimmy
(Washington, DC)
Jimmy a.k.a. Mas Malevo Jimmy has been DJing, dancing and hosting tango events in the DC area for the past eleven years. As a Tango DJ his journey has taken him to festivals and milongas in NY, Moscow, Tbilisi, ST. Petersburg, Mexico City and of course most local milongas in the DC area. His tandas try to evoke different emotions, from the sublime to the playful, while maintaining a good upbeat, energy that makes dancers want to dance and enjoy every tanda.He is the host/organizer of Milonga Maleva D.C. and Practiquita del viernes.
Roger Peterson (Baltimore, MD)
Roger Peterson, an accomplished dancer whose tango journey began in 2005 under the tutelage of Pablo Fontana. Roger's dance background includes training at the prestigious School of American Ballet and performing as a company member with the New York City Ballet and Pennsylvania Ballet. Not just a skilled dancer, he is also a popular DJ for milongas in the mid-Atlantic region. Enriched by intensive studies in Buenos Aires and the guidance of tango luminaries such as Gustavo Naviera and Giselle Anne, Roger's passion for Argentine Tango shines through as he, along with his partner Claire, lead Tango Esta Noche's engaging classes and milongas.
Linda Alila
(Nashville, TN)
Linda centers the dancers’ experience by fostering a musical space full of connection, playfulness, and sincerity. She began her DJing journey in university tango communities such as Penn and Yale, and has continued to DJ at Vanderbilt. She has also DJed in Philadelphia, New York, New Jersey and Nashville, where she currently lives. Linda also plays tango piano, which has helped deepen her understanding of the music and fine-tune her attention to the floor’s energy. Drawing from the Golden Age, she selects songs that tug at both the feet and heartstrings.
Andy Stein
(Newport News, VA)
Andy is a passionate tango DJ who has been spinning tunes for dancers across the USA and Europe since 2012. He loves to create musical journeys that blend the best of the Golden Age with some surprises and twists. His tandas are carefully crafted to evoke different emotions and moods, from romantic to dramatic, from playful to intense. As the founder of Milonga as a Service (MaaS), he offers a 24/7 online tango service in the cloud that is free and accessible to all.
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Yoga Teacher
Caroline Karditzas
For a meditative class tailored to the needs of the tango dancer.
Caroline has spent the last 18 years defining and refining her yoga teaching style and understands, that just like life and tango, how it is unique to every practitioner. The pauses and holds in yoga are just as important as the movements and should benefit the body and mind, so that we can all continue to do more of what we love for, as long as humanly possible. This will be a non-aerobic practice that is accessible to nearly any body and will not add to the workload of the Tango Marathon. We will concentrate on the pauses and holds in postures so that you will feel stretched, refreshed, and ready for the dance floor. - No previous yoga experience is required, and in fact, Caroline welcomes beginners. Experienced practitioners will, of course, be able to expand on what you already know by moving deeper into the stretches.