Argentina is a country with many outstanding guitarists. Agustín Luna is undoubtedly one of them. He learned from great role models and developed into a musician and composer who has mastered the subtle nuances and symbols of musical language. Influences from Bach and Villa Lobos are evident when he delves deeply into the music of tango and folklore. The great Argentine guitarist Juan Falú said of him: ‘In a country full of excellent guitarists, he is an exemplary role model to follow.’ Agustin Luna was already with us at the 2023 festival. This time, he will give a concert with Noelia Moncada and get the audience in the mood for tango throughout the festival in the foyer and – weather permitting – in front of the House of Music.

The Damián Foretic Trio presents a contemporary approach to tango, where tradition and modernity coexist in balance.
The trio is composed of Damián Foretic (bandoneon and musical direction), Diego Aubía (piano) and Lucas Frontini (double bass); three Argentine musicians based in Paris, each with a wide trajectory within the genre.
For this special occasion, the trio will feature the exceptional singer Noelia Moncada, one of the most representative voices of contemporary tango. Her extensive national and international career, together with an interpretation that blends strength, subtlety and authenticity, make her a unique presence on stage.
The repertoire with original arrangements by Damián Foretic proposes an exploration of new sonic landscapes within tango, evoking its Afro-Rioplatense roots and its rhythmic diversity. An aesthetic journey that honors tradition while projecting it into the present.

Divagando is a mixture of poetry and emotion. The singer Erna Dolcet worked for many years as a tango dancer and teacher and took part in the Tangotoño festival in Innsbruck in 2014. In the meantime, she has devoted herself entirely to singing as her passion. She is sensitive, sensual and authentic. She sings as she dances, she dances as she sings, as described on her website. Marisa Mercadé is well known to La Locura audiences as a bandoneon player. She has performed with us repeatedly with Otros Aires, with the Roberta Roman Trio and most recently with the ‘Opération Sultan’ project. Jérémie Pourchot and Jules Meneboo complete the quartet. They are both trained flamenco guitarists who have found their way to Argentine tango.

Pianist Daniel Godfrid and guitarist Sebastián Espósito have been performing as the duo SEDA since 2019. Their diverse repertoire includes tango classics, folk music and numerous original compositions. They often invite guests to join them on stage at their concerts, such as Lidia Borda, Franco Luciani and Ariel Ardit, to name but a few. They recorded their first album, ‘SEDA en vivo’, at a sold-out concert at the CCK, the Kirchner Cultural Centre in Buenos Aires, in 2022. Both are important representatives of the tango music scene in Buenos Aires.

Marisa Mercadé (bandoneon) and Sylvie Pinchon (piano) take the audience on a fascinating and spirited musical journey that is melancholic, sensual and captivating. The charm of tradition blends with modern influences. Marisa Mercadé comes from Buenos Aires, where she learned her instrument from the great masters Néstor Marconi and Carlos Lazzari and played in the Orquesta Escuela Emilio Balcarce. In France, where she now lives, she has been a member of the orchestras of Juan José Mosalini and Juan Carlos Cacerés, among others. She is known to La Locura audiences as the bandoneonist of Otros Aires, Trio Roberta Roman and ‘Opération Sultan’. Sylvie Pinchon is a classical pianist who teaches at the ‘Cité des Arts’ conservatory in Montpellier. Years ago, she came into contact with tango, which has captivated her ever since. At the same time, as a member of the group ‘Del Prat’, she explores other worlds where improvised music is mixed with traditional Occitan melodies.

At the last La Locura, Eliana Sosa was the highly acclaimed singer of the Orquesta Típica Misteriosa Buenos Aires. Now she is back, but with her own project. This allows her to showcase the diversity of her repertoire, which goes far beyond the interpretation of classic tangos. She is accompanied by outstanding musicians: Juan Pablo Gallardo (piano), Damián Foretic (bandoneon), Mehdi Al-Tinaoui (violin) and Lucas Eubel-Frontini (double bass).

No other country in Europe has as many tango ensembles as France. This is not only because many Argentine musicians have moved there. It is a country that offers good conditions and is nourished and shaped by people’s enormous interest in culture and especially music. The tango music scene is by no means limited to Paris, but is spread across many other cities and regions. One centre is Lyon, where the ensemble Sin Vuelta comes from. The quartet consists of brothers Emile Guion (piano) and Maxime Guion (bandoneon), Marie Delaunay-Quenechdu (violin) and Antoine Fontanel (double bass). In its interpretations of classical tango pieces, it combines power and emotion, creating an atmosphere that invites both dancing and listening.

After having met the wonderful tango musicians Anna Maria, Andrea and Camille during a project in Paris in March 2025, pianist Anna van Nieukerken realized there was no proper excuse anymore NOT to form a new Orquesta. So she invited them to form this brand new group, together with great musicians Stephen (an old music friend for years) and Lysandre (whom she played with years ago). Since November 2025 they brighten up several dance floors with elegant, intense, orchestral tango music. 
You’ll hear the rousing music of legendary orchestras like Pugliese, Di Sarli, Troilo, and D’Arienzo, as well as the more playful tango jazz of Hugo Diaz, the virtuosic polyphony of Horacio Salgán’s tangos and the unmatched melancholy of Astor Piazzolla. LUX’s members are thrilled to perform in this new formation. The sextet has a collaboration with a great singer: Lenore Huang.
Violin: Stephen Meyer, Camille Babut du Marès. Bandoneon: Lysandre Donoso, Andrea Turra. Double bass: Anna Maria Huhn. Piano: Anna van Nieukerken. 
Singer: Lenore Huang 

Although the German-Argentinian quartet has only been in existence since 2023, its members were previously involved in various well-known tango ensembles. Bandoneonist, composer and arranger Peter Reil is a veteran of live tango music. For almost five decades, he has played with such well-known ensembles as El Arranque, Sexteto Canyengue, Sexteto Andorinha, Puro Apronte, Sabor a Tango, Luis Borda and many more, for some of which he also wrote the arrangements. Violinist Ulrike Dinter has also played with various ensembles such as Cuarteto Danzarín, Muzet Royal and Sabor a Tango and has performed at numerous festivals and events in Europe, Argentina and Uruguay. The quartet is completed by pianist Ludger Ferreyro and bassist Tomás Emilio Rösler. The ensemble has been working with Argentine singer Catalina Sophie for some time. She grew up in Spain and made a name for herself in jazz before bringing the voice of blood to tango and folklore. They recently released their first joint album, ‘Cantar … siempre cantar’.

Noelia Moncada is one of Argentina’s greatest singers. Born in Rosario, she moved to Buenos Aires as a young woman, where she immersed herself in tango music. She started out as a street performer, won singing competitions and was accepted into the Orquesta de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires and the Orquesta Escuela de Tango Emilio Balcarce. With the latter, she made her debut at the 2002 Buenos Aires Tango Festival at the Teatro Colón. There she also took on the leading role in the opera ‘María de Buenos Aires’ by Astor Piazzolla/Horacio Ferrer. She also sang this role in other major venues, including the Long Beach Opera in Los Angeles. For several years she was a member of the Orquesta El Arranque, with which she toured Japan and gave concerts at the Buenos Aires Tango Festival, the Théâtre National de Chaillot in Paris (2006) and the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome (2006 and 2008). With El Arranque, she recorded her album ‘A tiempo’, produced by Ignacio Varchausky and arranged by Diego Schissi. Further solo albums followed. She lived in Munich for two years, where she gave concerts with guitarist Luis Borda. Back in Buenos Aires, she immersed herself in the early days of tango. At the Usina del Arte, she performed the concert Encanto Negra, in which she revealed the black roots of tango. Noelia will appear several times at our festival, with the Damián Foretic Trio, with Agustin Luna in concert in the Small Hall and with the Típica Messiez.

The Pablo Murgier Pazdera Quintet is a group rooted in the present, tracing the origins of tango back to migration, to the human need for belonging, and to the desire to take root. Formed by musicians from across the globe, the quintet embodies the universal spirit of contemporary tango: Italian Simone Tolomeo on bandoneon, French Romain Lecuyer on double bass, Norwegian Karl Espegard on violin, Brazilian Miguel Couto on drums, and Argentine pianist and composer Pablo Murgier Pazdera. Pablo Murgier Pazdera draws upon the heritage of tango and Argentine music not as an anchor but as a compass, guiding new musical explorations and dialogues. For this festival, the quintet presents a specially curated repertoire, intertwining reimagined classics from the tango tradition with new original compositions. Their music stands as a defense of a living tango — one that refuses to become a museum piece, constantly renewed through creativity, diversity, and the meeting of cultures.

It is a great honour to welcome these three musicians to our festival. Bandoneonist Horacio Romo, violinist Pablo Agri and pianist Emiliano Messiez are among the very best Argentine tango musicians. The various orchestras and ensembles in which they have played or conducted include names such as Horacio Salgán, Julián Plaza, Leopoldo Federico, Alberto Castillo, Roberto Goyeneche, Néstor Marconi, Juan José Mosalini and many others – the who’s who of Argentine tango music in recent decades. Romo and Agri are members of the legendary Sexteto Mayor, while Messiez, who lives in New York, and Romo play in the Broadway show ‘Forever Tango’, among many other projects in which they are involved. They have gained recognition by winning the Latin Grammy and the Premio Gardel several times. The trio plays well-known tango pieces in unusual interpretations and their own compositions, some of which are included on their recently released album “Con todo”.

We know the musicians from previous festivals, when they thrilled us – in a larger line-up – as Chimichango and Roulotte Tango. This time, they can fully indulge their irrepressible joy of dancing tango everywhere and getting people to dance. They are the resident band, performing repeatedly at different venues and at different times throughout the festival. The trio not only interprets the great classics of tango in its own way, but also plays the songs of Gaspar Pocai, which tell of life, of people and the questions that preoccupy them, but also of the great problems facing humanity. All in the guise of tango, for dancing, but also for listening.

Tanguango is a quintet consisting exclusively of female musicians based in Belgrade. For over ten years, they have been invited to major festivals and milongas throughout Europe, including repeated appearances at ‘Tarbes en Tango’ and ‘Tango Postale’ in Toulouse. We fondly remember La Locura 2023, when the musicians developed such enthusiasm during their final concert on Saturday evening that they lost track of time. Several pieces had to remain unplayed due to the late hour. As a small gesture of compensation, we have now invited them back. To prevent the same fate from befalling them again, they will open the festival on Friday afternoon. We look forward to welcoming Sonja Lukić (piano), Jelena Adamović (violin), Ljubica Damčević (violin, vocals), Dušica Luković (bandoneon) and Ana Stašić (double bass).

Emiliano Messiez is the founder and director of the Orquesta Típica named after him, whose regular members also include Horacio Romo and Pablo Agri. We will also hear the three of them together as a trio in the Small Hall (Romo-Agri-Messiez Tango Trio). The orchestra plays mainly in Buenos Aires and the USA and is therefore not so well known in Europe. We will soon discover that this is a great loss. The orchestra’s energy and enthusiasm captivate the audience from the very first note.
This Típica is a world premiere in its composition, made possible especially for our festival. It features a top-class line-up of musicians who are among the world’s best on their instruments. In addition to the three mentioned above: Fabrizio Colombo, Damián Foretic, Simone Tolomeo (bandoneones), Karl Espegard, Stephen Meyer (violins) and Cristian Basto (double bass) will also be playing. The special guest will be singer Noelia Moncada. It will be a unique experience in every respect.

The Colombo• Kociolek• Frontini Trio was born from the impulse of three musicians: Fabrizio Colombo on bandoneon, Émilie Aridon-Kociolek on piano and Lucas Frontini on double bass, brought together by a fascination with the sound of the emblematic trios in the history of Argentine tango. Following in the footsteps of ensembles like Vanguatrio (Néstor Marconi, Omar Valente and Héctor Console), the repertoire – conceived and arranged by Fabrizio Colombo – offers a rich palette of nuances, blending a strong tango identity with forays into jazz and an exceptional display of virtuosity.
This project is an opportunity for these three musicians to combine their sounds and energies within the magic of the trio format, contributing through this unique proposal to the vibrant and exciting landscape of contemporary instrumental tango.