Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble
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Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble

Greensboro, North Carolina, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2013 | SELF

Greensboro, North Carolina, United States | SELF
Established on Jan, 2013
Band World Latin

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"Telling Stories Of Immigration With Tango"

Her own story and her love for tango motivated her to create a album that serves as a platform for other immigrants to tell their stories. Guillén recorded interviews with five Latina immigrants and then worked with her ensemble to craft songs that blend the voice recordings with her band’s diverse musical sounds. Host Frank Stasio talks with Guillén about what inspired her to produce this work, how music can open minds across ideological boundaries, and how tango as a genre is tightly interwoven with immigration. - WUNC Public Radio


"The Lorena Guillen Tango Ensemble will perform at UpStage Cabaret at Triad Stage in Greensboro"

Vocalist, conductor and educator Lorena Guillen hopes that by sharing their stories through music, others will gain a better understanding of immigrants. Her album, “The Other Side of My Heart,” features among other pieces, work inspired by them. Guillen’s tango ensemble will perform songs from the album Jan. 27 at Triad Stage’s UpStage Cabaret in Greensboro. - New&Record-Go Triad


"“The Other Side Of My Heart”: An Interview With Alejandro Rutty"

Sat. 2/17, 4:15p: On Corazón Tanguero, a conversation hosted by Cristina Baccin with musician and composer Alejandro Rutty, currently Associate Professor of Music at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro about “The other side of my heart”, an exquisite new album deeply grounded in the lives of immigrant women with the creative lyrics of Lorena Guillén and her bright soprano voice. Sometimes a dreamy jazzy atmosphere crosses the genres from tango to Argentinian zamba without you noticing where the bridges of these complex compositions transport you.

In this album, Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble brings the listener real life stories of immigrant melancholy, that essential flavor of tango. In this conversation, Alejandro Rutty shares the creative process he follows in constructing this audio-collage. - KUNM public radio


"Lorena Guillen Tango Ensemble Fuses Old And New Styles"

The Buenos Aires natives have become central figures in the Tango scene here in the states, blending traditional tango standards, with “new” tango, and original compositions like the one sampled in today's show with music by pianist Alejandro Rutty, and lyrics by Lorena Guillen who sings and narrates.

Lorena and Alejandro have performed all over the world, and you can hear the The Lorena Guillen Tango Ensemble in concert this Thursday, February 11th in at UNCG’s Weatherspoon Museum. The free concert begins at 6:00pm. On March 4th Lorena will be joined by pianist Adam Ricci in concert for First Fridays at Green Hill Art Gallery in GSO starting at 6:30pm. - WFDD Public Radio


Discography

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Bio

Lorena Guillen, vocalist and artistic director, has become a figure of the Tango scene in US by presenting with her Lorena Guillen Tango Ensemble imaginative programs that center on, but also expand, the notions of traditional tango standards and “new” tango. 

With its mesmerizing style and sound, the Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble has captivated audiences with soulful arrangements of Argentine tango standards and original compositions that create a dynamic tango and pan-Latin fusion. The musicians in the group each have rich and extensive experience in Argentine tango, jazz, classical and contemporary music, and South American popular music styles, all of which can be heard on their debut recording, The Other Side of My Heart.

From her childhood, Lorena remembers being mesmerized by the sounds of her grandfather's tango and opera recording collection and discovering the major figures of the Argentinian folk by attending with her father various festivals. Those experiences cultivated her musical passion and lead her to express herself through singing in this wide array of styles with the most natural flexibility.

Based in North Carolina, the members of the Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble have been committed to collaborations and concerts with the Latino organizations of the region, such as Casa Azul of Greensboro and the Hispanic League of Winston Salem, and their new recording reflects that community engagement. Developed by Lorena Guillén (lyricist/vocalist) and Alejandro Rutty (composer/bass player), “The Other Side of My Heart,” is an oral-history musical piece based on interviews with six Latina immigrants to NC. The women’s testimonies became the lyrics of six songs, and fragments of their recorded voices can be heard throughout the piece.

The Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble has performed “The Other Side of My Heart” and many other selections from their new recording throughout North Carolina and beyond, including concerts in Los Angeles at Alvas Showroom, LA Harbor College and Crafton Hills College; in Durham for the Mallarmé Chamber Players; in Greensboro for Guilford College, Triad Stage’s UpStage Cabaret, and the Music For A Great Space series; in Winston-Salem for the Hispanic League’s "Fiesta Latino Festival"  and “Colorful Sounds in Concert” series and the Music Carolina SummerFest; at the Blowing Rock Art & History Museum Summer Concert Series; at High Point University; at Georgia Southern University, and at University of Mary Washington (VA)

The ensemble has presented previous musical programs nationally and internationally at Kleinhans Music Hall and the Calumet Arts Café in Buffalo, NY; at the MusicBox Theater and Folk Research Center in Saint Lucia, West Indies; and for concert series sponsored by the Amherst Saxophone Quartet (NY), the Frick Museum (PA), and the Veronika String Quartet (CO).

The Lorena Guillén Tango Ensemble has also been featured recently in live radio and TV broadcasts, including performances on WUNC’s “The State of Things” with Frank Stasio (NPR affiliate in Chapel Hill, NC); WFDD’s “Triad Arts” with David Ford (NPR affiliate in Winston Salem, NC); on KUNM’s “Corazón Tanguero” with Cristina Baccin (NPR affiliate in Albuquerque, NM); and on Fox8News in High Point, NC.  

Interested in engaging young audiences, and with the idea that music it is the best ambassador to appreciate cultural diversity, the ensemble has participated over the years in many outreach programs at universities such as Bennington College (VT), Hartwick College (NY), University of Maryland-College Park (MD), Rutgers University (NJ), Elon University (NC), and at many public schools in Guilford County, NC. 

 

Band Members