LONDON, OCT 5, 1913...

'The tango dancing craze promises to be the most conspicuous feature of London's Winter season. Tango teas and classes have now developed into tango clubs, which have multiplied to an extraordinary degree. Several of the tea shops at Piccadilly also offer dancing for digestive and 'other' purposes...'

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Born in Argentina somewhere in the mists of the 19th century, the tango emerged as a mature art form at the turn of the 20th, and it wasn't long before this new dance craze went viral. The first wave of tango fever hit Europe in 1913, with London a prime hotspot. In the UK, the milonga - naturally - manifested itself in the form of 'tango teas', where social dancing was accompanied by the chance to take afternoon tea. Much maligned at first as lascivious and indecent by the more conservative sectors of society, and despite being officially denounced by numerous cardinals and bishops (and even banned by law in the USA), tango hysteria saw several subsequent waves, with tango teas continuing to be advertised in the UK well into the 1940s.

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So...put the kettle on and tune in to this special edition of Living Room Requests as we reminisce about the great tango teas of yesteryear with the dynamic singer of all things retro, Patricia Hammond, and poly-instrumentalist extraordinaire, Matt Redman. Their programme features a selection of early European tangos and other genres that the public were dancing to in London during the first half of the century, alongside more recent pieces that also revel in the nostalgia of the thé dansant. In typical LLR style, Patricia and Matt will also talk extensively about the music, providing some entertaining banter and illuminating insights into this fascinating slice of British music history.

 

This concert accompanies our Milonga 1913 event on the 20th November - click HERE for more info.

 

Robert Rodríguez 'News Clippings' from Tango

Richard Rodney Bennett 'Tango' from A History of the Thé Dansant

William Walton 'Tango-Pasodoble' from Façade

Zygmunt Karasinski Za Pozno 

Jacob Gade Jalousie

Henry Sullivan A Nice Cup of Tea

 

Patricia Hammond mezzo soprano

Matt Redman multi-instrumentalist

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'A music-box of vintage treasures, beautifully sung by a remarkable woman.'

Sir Michael Parkinson

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Canadian-born Patricia Hammond’s career has included oratorio solos for Sir Simon Rattle and the OAE, demonstrating 1910s recording techniques for BBC Television, and singing folk music at Cecil Sharp House. Her recordings have been played on BBC 2, 3 and 4, RTE Lyric FM and Cultura FM Alma Brasileira. Her book on female composers She Wrote the Songs is available on Valley Press.

 

'Period-influenced arrangements by Matt Redman capture the mood of each song perfectly.'

Ragtime Reviews
 

Matt Redman is in huge demand as a guitarist, pianist, double bass player, banjo player, orchestrator and arranger. His work can be heard in movies, TV, radio and…on Youtube, where he and Patricia have performed over 500 requests in numerous genres since March 2020 as part of their ongoing Living Room Requests series. He is also doing a PhD at the University of York on Harp Guitar Practice 1890-1920.

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Organised by ILAMS as part of Echoes Festival 2021 in collaboration with the Instituto Cervantes, and with the kind support of the Embassy of Argentina