Tango No. 9

Photo by Anne Hamersky

From Tango No. 9's website:

In 1998, Clubfoot Orchestra veteran Catharine Clune dreamt of a new project—exploration into the work of Astor Piazzolla. Nine years and three albums later, Tango No. 9 has evolved into a critically acclaimed ensemble performing at milongas, festivals, concert halls, and clubs across the Western U.S..

With its unique instrumentation of violin, trombone, piano, and accordion/bandoneon, Tango No. 9 embraces both a reverence to tango’s seductive past and an innovative vision of the music’s storied future.

To the genre-bending virtuosity of San Francisco's renowned cutting edge chamber music scene (e.g. Tin Hat, Kronos Quartet, Rova Saxophone Quartet, Turtle Island), Tango No. 9 adds the skin-to-skin, sex-breathed passion of classic tango. Here Live No Fish, the group's third album, includes tango standards, original compositions, reinterpreted classics from Piazzolla to Prokofiev, and a guest vocal turn by indie music legend Jonathan Richman — songs that at once pay homage to tango’s seductive past while crafting a new vision of the music’s storied future.

Tango No. 9 is an all-star Bay Area ensemble (members have played with The Residents, Tom Waits, Club Foot Orchestra, Eric McFadden, Extra Action Marching Band...) united in a love for a famously elusive non-native art form. Since 1998, the group has delved deeply into the world of tango, playing countless concerts and milongas, collaborating with many of the top dancers on the west coast, and recording two critically acclaimed albums – the all-Piazzolla All Them Cats in Recoleta (lauded by JazzIz Magazine as one of the best modern tango CDs of 2002) and 2006's exploration of early tango, Radio Valencia.



With the third album, Here Live No Fish, the group no longer felt confined to tango in a single style or from a certain time. The album includes tango standards (a milonga, "Mozo Guapo", a waltz "Palomita Blanca"), original compositions ("Milonga Campera", "Sultango", "Sea of Tranquility", "Syncopath"), reinterpreted classics from Piazzolla to Prokofiev ("Street Tango", "Libertango", "Tim-and-a-Half Gavoote" & "La Cumparsita"), and a guest vocal turn by indie music legend Jonathan Richman ("Amore de Mis Amores"), who sings a song originally made famous by the 1950s Mexican pop idol, Agustin Lara.

Tango No. 9

Astor Piazzolla

Agustin Lara

Tango No. 9's "Amor de Mis Amores" featuring Jonathan Richman on vocals, MP3 (limited time) at SoundRoots

Listen to more tracks and buy the CD here