Outside the Box Series
The focus of this series is to create dialogue and collaboration with artists inside and outside the Western European classical tradition based in Minnesota.
Baroque Tango Sequel
Melodies of Desire, Passion, and Fire
Back by popular demand, The Bach Society of Minnesota, led by Associate Artistic Director Marco Real-d’Arbelles, teams up with the Twin Cities-based Charles Gorczynski Tango Quartet for part two of Baroque Tango. This concert explores the many twists and turns that bring these two musical languages closer than we imagined. Audiences will feel the push and pull between old and new styles of works as special guest tango dancers join the ensembles on stage, adding to the passion and rhythmic drive of music by masters of tango and baroque.
We'll also have South American-inspired pastries available for purchase from local Argentine baker Paula Sabores who will be set up in the lobby!
Love in a Time of Hate
Immerse yourself in the gripping tragedy of “Love in a Time of Hate.” Set in a reimagined Latin American dystopia, this modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet explores the timeless themes of love in a futuristic world where unscrupulous politicians manipulate the masses to stay in power. Witness the clash between social classes as corrupt politicians satisfy their greed. Echoes of Shakespeare’s classic resonate throughout this Orwellian landscape, offering a poignant commentary on how hate continues to plague humanity into the future.
Written by William Shakespeare
Adapted by Teatro del Pueblo
Music by Bach Society of Minnesota
June 20 – 30, 2024
Luminary Theater, Luminary Arts Center
700 N 1st Street, Minneapolis
Tickets: Pay What You Can – $39
A Latino twist on Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet
Baroque Tango
Marco Real-d’Arbelles
Award-winning conductor Marco Real-d’Arbelles serves as Associate Artistic Director of the Bach Society of Minnesota and creator of "Outside the Box" series. He recently conducted sold out performances of The Cradle Will Rock with Minneapolis-based An Opera Theatre. He is also Music Director for Bold North Baroque Opera and Opera on the Lake. Born in Nicaragua, raised in Miami, where he made his debut, he has since worked with operas and orchestras in North and South America, Europe, and Asia.
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Charles Gorczynski Tango Quartet
Charles Gorczynski Tango Quartet is a Minneapolis-based ensemble dedicated to contemporary and original tango music. The group is an institution in the Twin Cities with regular performances in local concert venues, milongas (tango social dances), and regional festivals. CGTQ released their debut album The Conservatory in 2023, establishing an original recorded voice in the tango community and making the scores freely available. The ensemble has served as faculty resident ensemble for Tango Sin Fin at Reed College, and members have studied with legendary Argentine tango artists Ignacio Varchausky, Diego Schissi, Julian Peralta, Exequiel Mantega, Pablo Jaurena, Paulina Fain, Guillermo Rubino, and more.
Charles Gorczynski
Bandoneonist and composer Charles Gorczynski works in contemporary tango and music production. He is the director of Minneapolis-based Twin Cities Tango Collective, the bandleader of Redwood Tango Ensemble and Charles Gorczynski Tango Quartet, and has worked as bandoneonist for dozens of tango projects including Mariano Barreiro Tango Trio, Alejandro Ziegler Cuarteto, Maldito Tango Duo, Maxi Larrea Trio, and Los Tangueros Del Oeste. He has toured North America and Europe extensively to support original tango music releases, most recently releasing the album “We Become The Night Sky” recorded by 12-piece tango ensemble based in San Francisco. As a life-long producer, Charles is a Latin Grammy-nominated mixing engineer and owner of the Minneapolis-based studio/label Caverns, focused on producing and releasing high quality and future-driven new tango work.
Devan Moran
Violinist Devan Moran is a founding member of Twin Cities Tango Collective, Orquesta Tipica Kingfield, and Charles Gorczynski Tango Quartet. He has studied tango with Guillermo Rubino (Diego Schissi Quinteto, Sur Del Sur), offered workshops to local violinists interested in the style, and served as lead violinist for the resident ensemble of Tango Sin Fin at Reed College. Devan holds a BM from North Park University in Chicago, and studied with the assistant concertmaster and principal violist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He has also studied with Young-Nam Kim in Minnesota and Lina Bahn at the University of Colorado Boulder. Devan also performs with the Laurels String Quartet and 10th Wave Chamber Music Collective.
Alexander Woods
Alexander Woods is a pianist and music teacher living in the Twin Cities, MN. He strives to
maintain an innovative perspective in his performances, seeking out new and old works from diverse genres and composers. Woods is a member of Orquesta Típica Kingfield and the
Charles Gorczynski Tango Quartet and has worked with Exequiel Mantega and Pablo Jaurena. He is a Lecturer of Music at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, holds additional positions at Central Presbyterian Church (St. Paul) and Voices of Hope Prison Music Initiative, and has spent summers as a staff pianist at Borromeo Music Festival (Altdorf, Switzerland), International Cello Institute (Northfield, MN), and St. Croix Valley Opera Summer Vocal Institute (Hudson, WI). Woods has also played with the Mississippi Valley Orchestra, Dakota Valley Symphony & Chorus, South Metro Chorale, and St. Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral Orchestra
Nick Gaudette
Bassist and cellist Nick Gaudette began playing at age five, tuning cello as a bass, and has performed classical and contemporary music ever since. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music and co-founded The Orange Mighty Trio, touring nationally and scoring indie films and commercials. Nick has performed with the Chanhassen Dinner Theater, Theater Latte Da, The Children’s Theatre, the South Dakota Symphony, and other Midwest ensembles. A progressive composer and educator, he leads ensembles, directs the Cherry Spoon Collective, and conducts orchestras at Edina High School.
Michael Stiffman
Michael Stiffman is a tango guitarist based in St Paul, Minnesota. He works with Twin Cities Tango Collective, Northwoods Tango Ensemble, Tangoso, and in duo with bandoneonist Charles Gorczynski. He has studied with some of the most prominent tango guitarists of today, including Sebastian Henríquez, Agustín Luna, and Maximiliano Larrea. When not playing music he works as a family physician in the twin cities.
Charles Asch
Charles Asch performs as a baroque cellist throughout Minnesota with ensembles including Bach Society of MN, Lyra Baroque Orchestra, and Bach Roots Festival. He has also performed solo cello and chamber music recitals through the Twin Cities Early Music Festival, where he also got his training on baroque cello from Jaap ter Linden. He obtained his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Minnesota, as well as his Master of Music degree from Juilliard. His undergraduate studies were completed at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, in both German studies and Music Performance.
Phillip Rukavina
Lutenist Phillip Rukavina performs as a lute and vihuela soloist and as a continuo lutenist. He has appeared at many major Early Music festivals, including the Utrecht Early Music Festival (2013) and the Boston Early Music Festival (2015). Phillip performed as a soloist at the European Lute Festival in Füssen, Germany (2017) and at the Lute Society of America's WestFest in Canada. He has performed with many prominent ensembles, including the Newberry Consort, the Texas Early Music Project, the Bach Society MN and with renowned sopranos Emma Kirkby and Ellen Hargis.
Asako Hirabayashi
A harpsichordist and composer, Asako Hirabayashi's first recording on Albany Label, whose program is entirely composed and played by herself, was selected as one of the top ten albums of the year 2018 by the Global Music Awards and received 7 favorable reviews internationally. She won two McKnight Fellowships, Jerome Fund for New Music by American Composers Forum, Schubert Club Composer Award, Opera America’s Discovery Grant, MNiatures award by MN Opera and several first prizes in Alienor International Harpsichord Composition Competition. Her live performance of own composition was featured in Performance Today. She holds a DMA from the Juilliard School
Matt Rayford & Tatiana Danilova
Matt and Tanya are Twin Cities-based tango dancers who met in 2024 and quickly discovered a shared artistic vision. Since then they became performers at Twin Cities’ milongas and have been actively involved in workshops and events in the local tango community and the student Argentine tango club at the University of Minnesota. Tanya and Matt have trained with both local and world-renowned tango maestros and studied tango in Buenos Aires. They bring a blend of quality dancing and storytelling to the floor for a unique performance.
Paula Sabores
I was born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I grew up helping my grandmother bake delicious pastries, this is how my passion for baking began. For many years, I dedicated my time to baking very intricate, personalized birthday cakes. However, when I moved to Minnesota in 2016, I realized I wanted to keep my culture alive. Through a lot of work, dedication, and love, Paula Sabores Argentinos was born. Today I make home baked Alfajores, amongst other Argentinian sweets, and I am looking forward to sharing my country’s traditional flavors with people like you, bringing the love from my kitchen to your home.
Seeds of Culture
Co-creators: Marcoantonio Real-d’Arbelles and Hip Hop and Spoken Word artist See More Perspective
November 17, 2023, Friday | 7:30 PM
Sacred Heart Music Center
201 W 4th Street, Duluth
Tickets: In Advance $20 | At the Door $25
Tickets go on sale on September 29.
Presented by Sacred Heart Music Center and University of Minnesota Duluth.
