Modern Tango World N° 8 (Moscow, Russia) | Page 32

We have worked for over twenty years in particular with
Roxana & Fabian Belmonte, a wonderful couple of danc-
ers from Buenos Aires. We love working with dancers, and
do occasionally perform at a milonga after our concerts.
However, most of our shows are purely instrumental: we
usually perform in 300-400 seat theatres with a standard
seating plan.
MTW: Where do you think tango is going in the future?
Jonathan: I am reluctant to be a futurologist. Usually, im-
portant new developments are unexpected. Who would
have guessed that Gotan Project would have scored such
a huge success at the beginning of the century? I am sure
musicians and dancers will find ways to innovate.
In more recent music, we still make allusions to other
genres, like French chanson and movie music. You can
hear it on the album we made in 2014— Encuentro. This
album won us a Juno Award, the Canadian Grammy.
You can also hear these allusions in our most recent
album: J’aime les nuits de Montréal — a tribute to the
golden age of jazz clubs and cabarets in Montreal during
American Prohibition. The music is meant to evoke that
era, including references to Edith Piaf and Alys Robi.
MTW: How do you approach composition?
Jonathan: We are quite traditional in our composition
methods. We are all classically trained, and we arrive
at rehearsal with entirely composed pieces, with parts
written out and fully notated, etc. But, these parts be-
come a starting point, and each of us plays around with
them, transforming them, as our understanding deepens.
MTW: What are your current projects with Quartango,
and what can you tell us about the future of the group?
Jonathan: We are currently busy promoting our album
J’aime les Nuits de Montréal, and its accompanying concert-
spectacle Les Belles Années. For this show, we worked with
stage director Alain Gauthier to develop its scenic aspects.
It is a show that uses sampled sounds, lighting, costumes and
dialogues to create atmosphere and evoke a specific setting
and historical period. We hope to perform it as much often
possible, because it is a real departure for us: on the album,
we only perform one Piazzolla tune out of fourteen!
MTW: And we at Modern Tango World can’t wait to
see and hear it! Jonathan, thanks for sharing with us your
amazing musical experience and for letting us know more
about the fantastic blend of tango, classical and jazz music
of Quartango!
MTW: From your point of view, is Quartango music
meant to be danced, or at least danceable? Have you
ever worked together with dancers?
Jonathan: I would say that of all the musicians in Quar-
tango, I am the one with the most experience accom-
panying actual milongas. My old band, Sweatshop Tango,
performed frequently in tango schools around Montreal.
That being said, Quartango often performs original cho-
reographies with dancers, set to our music.
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