On Thursday night at the Club of Shanghai on the fourth floor of Shanghai Concert Hall, the ballroom floor was pulsating to the exciting tempo and beats of Argentinean tango. This was the opening show of the second Shanghai Tango Festival.

Until July 16, this five-day tango festival is taking place in two of the city's top venues: The Paramount, and the aforementioned Club of Shanghai. There are also master workshops taking place for tango enthusiasts. And in the venues, during every night of the festival from 9:30 pm to 2 am, there are  milonga performances (milonga refers to a type of South American music and associated dance that preceded the tango), all featuring dancers from China and abroad.

Saturday's Grand Milonga Night will be held at The Paramount. The evening will also feature a Turquoise Night, in which a winning couple will be awarded a pair of actual turquoise-colored dancing shoes.

Passionate moves

"In the art of tango, the meaningful lyrics, the slow but strong tempo, the evocative tunes and emotional dance moves perfectly reflect the Argentinean temperament. And the Shanghai Tango Festival offers a good platform for tango culture to be better recognized in Shanghai, China and even the whole of Asia," said Francisco Ferro, consul general of the Argentine Republic in Shanghai.

At the opening show, three pairs of renowned tango hoofers from Argentina - Luiggi Ramirez and Analia Carreno, Pablo Giorgini and Noelia Coletti, and Martin Maldonado and Maurizio Ghella - all performed. And the musical accompaniment came courtesy of the Pedro Chemes Quartet. The same Argentinean foursome performed at the Argentina Pavilion at the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai.

Ramirez and Carreno are the lead dancers in a tango performance called Conjuro Tango which combines tango with flamenco dancing and which was also performed at the first Shanghai Tango Festival last year.

As tango world champions in several international competitions, Giorgini and Coletti have performed and carried out workshops around the globe, including in many cities in Asia.

And male duo Martin Maldonado and Maurizio Ghella will doubtlessly impress audiences with their unique style which they have been dubbed "Nuevo Tango." "Tango is not only about learning new moves, but also about choosing suitable dancing skills via mutual interaction. The most important thing is, to feel the mutual bond with your dance partner," said Maldonado.

According to Vivian Yeh, founder of Shanghai-based Tango organization TangoBang, and also one of the organizers of the festival, 18 separate classes given by the three pairs of dancers will also be offered during the festival.  

Musical accompaniment

Another big selling point for the festival is the coming together of the six-member Sexteto Milonguero orchestra. They will perform over the next three nights (Friday, Paramount; Saturday, Club of Shanghai; and Sunday, Paramount) for the festival.

Formed in 2006, the group has played in festivals all over Latin American and Europe, but this will be their first time in Shanghai.

"Tango music enjoys a long history, and we want more Asian people to know that it remains an integral part of tango culture," said a member of the orchestra.

Venue: Club of Shanghai

Address: 4/F, Gate 7, Shanghai Concert Hall, 523 Yan'an Road East 延安东路523号上海音乐厅7号门4楼 

Venue: The Paramount 百乐门

Address: 4/F, 218 Yuyuan Road

愚园路218号4楼

For detailed schedule go to tangobang.cn/shanghai-tango-festival