The Terrified Tango Orchestra

Step 1: Pull a piano off the streets and have it repaired.

Step 2: Put it in the window with some charts.

Step 3: Wait for an unsuspecting victim to come in and read the charts.

Jesse Makela has been a joy to work with! She comes with energy, enthusiasm, and an appreciation for all the styles.

We rehearsed and edited the latter half of winter, and with the addition of a new venue space, we launched in the summer of 2025.

Step 4: Randomly text my orchestra clarinet colleagues and ask if anyone wants to come and play a gig, and then adapt the third voice in the scores for another clarinet. Joe Pisano is an exceptionally accomplished and versatile musician, and very fun to work with.

Step 5: Listen to everyone who told me I needed a bass. I spent the first half of this past year writing bass parts for our library, and the other half of the year asking around for player recommendations. A random text ten days before our one-year celebration from Joanna Chaurette was the best text ever! We couldn’t be happier.