Friday and Saturday March 26th and 27th of 2010, tango masters, musicians and dancers, join in Bloomington for the Zero Hour Tango Fest with concerts in the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre, late night milonga sessions at the Lodge upstairs on the NE corner of 6th and Walnut and talks and workshops.

Indiana University SPEA professor, musician and producer Alfredo Minetti was WFIU’s guest. Minetta describes himself as born in Uruguay, raised in Brazil and later living in Argentina and the U.S. This is a rough transcript of his responses in conversation with George Walker

“Yes, like the tango I’m a transient. Tango is one of those wonderful cultural phenomenon that can only be explained through looking at history and the history of people moving through the world. Obviously they end up in Argentina at some point, but it’s the mix of Italians, Spanish, Polish people, people from all over Europe creating this fabulous way to see the world.”

“We named the festival ‘Zero Hour’ because tango is more than music, than dance, than the poetry, the visual elements. It’s a whole way to see the world. In the literature, the ‘zero hour’ is midnight. It’s a mystery and a message of hope, of a new beginning. And that’s something that appears in many compositions.”

“Tango festivals are quite common around the United States and around the world. But what seldom happens is what’s happening here. They are usually about dance and perhaps a bit about music. What I’m trying to do this time is to put it all together: music, dance, poetry, visual elements, even a bit of music and drink. We’ll have all the elements with none slighted.”

“In addition to being a scholar and producer, I’m also a band leader. My group ‘Tangamente’ is as six piece ensemble with a singer that explores tango from the earliest to the latest forms. We’ll be playing at the late evening milonga parties following both Friday and Saturday’s concerts.”