B i o g r a p h i e s
TANGOTICO violinist Alan Busteed was Professor of Chamber Music at the Academia Nacional Superior de Musica in Lisbon, Portugal, from 1994-2001. While in Spain and Portugal he played over 120 solo recitals covering a broad range of classical repertoire. He later moved to Texas and performed with the Fort Worth Symphony and the Dallas Opera as violinist and violist from 2001-2004.
Alan has backed up Tony Bennett, Dione Warwick, performed under the batons of Marvin Hamlisch, Henry Mancini, and Burt Bacharach, and “traded fours” as solo violinist with Salsa singing legend Celia Cruz in Caracas, Venezuela. As concertmaster for Latin Pop star Marco Antonio Solis and Marc Anthony, he has enjoyed an international career as a soloist for Latin popular music recording in Los Angeles, the Caribbean, and South America.
Alan studied jazz improvisation with Yusef Lateef, Don Cherry, and Billy Taylor. His early experiences listening in person to Jazz legends Woody Shaw and Miles Davis on trumpet, Dexter Gordon, tenor saxophonist, Horace Silver and McCoy Tyner on piano, at The Village Vanguard and other Greenwich Village clubs in New York sparked his lifelong interest in American contemporary music.
By way of Balikpapan East Borneo, Indonesia, TANGOTICO's guitarist extraordinaire Ian Charlie studied composition and music production at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Los Angeles became his home base after completing advanced study in Film Scoring at UCLA. He is currently a busy composer for international commercial television. Ian has performed with Molly Quinn, Barry Goudreau, James Montgomery and is a sought after guitarist for all things Pop.
He produces and plays guitar with the celebrated band, WALLA, whose single, 101, generated over 15 million plays on Spotify. WALLA is repeat recipient of Best Indie Rock Artist designation from All Indie Magazine's Artist in Music Awards. The website Video Music Talent says “what sets them apart is their authentic talent. The thing that impresses most….is the colorful palette throughout each track.” Ian Charlie’s energy and imagination are on full display in his distinctive guitar work with TANGOTICO.
TANGOTICO Music Director and pianist Matias Piegari has been exploring the gamut of compositional and performance opportunities in Los Angeles since he arrived in 2013 to study film scoring at UCLA. His virtuoso arrangements for TANGOTICO display his exciting range of expression and his mastery of textures in sound. His primary work is composing music for feature films and recording his own original scores.
A native of Buenos Aires, his parents are both professional guitarists. Matias was taught from any early age by elite classical teachers in Argentina and, as a youth, mentored by world renowned tango and jazz musicians.
Matias delved into musical theater as a youth. At age twenty, he was Music Director of a professional production, The Diary of Adam and Eve, by Mark Twain, adapted by China Zorrilla. It boasted an extended run in Buenos Aires, from 2007-2009. Creative performing and recording with De la Timba Son in Buenos Aires, a group for which he served as Music Director, pianist, and arranger, led to high profile appearances at music festivals throughout South America.
Double bassist Dominic Martinez, hails from Richmond, Virginia, and graduated magna cum laude from The George Washington University. Based out of Washington, DC, he played in the Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra, the Jennifer Scott Quartet and enjoyed a stint on Royal Carribean’s Oasis of the Seas cruise liner with the RKO Quartet.
Dominic was bassist for the tango show, Puro Tango 2, at the distinguished GALA Hispanic Theater in the nation’s capital. The production was a full evening of dance, song and love stories conceived by Artisic Director Hugo Medrano. PuroTango shows “tugged the heartstrings and fielded sophisticated musicianship.” (Washington Post). In combination with Uruguayan Music Director and pianist, Alvaro Hagopian, and Buenos Aires native Nario Recoba on bandoneon, the month long run played to sold out houses.
Dominic can be seen in clubs and in concert with his Indie Rock duo Lux Cadenza and the band The Lavender Scare.
TANGÓTICO