Fundamentals and My Perspective
- I play traditional tango music for about 95% of the time, mostly from the late 1920s up to the early 1950s, with an emphasis on the golden era.
- The remaining 5% sometimes extends into the late 1950s or even beyond.
- Modern tangos do appear here and there when appropriate, but they usually have a connection to the traditional ones.
- Music is played in tandas, most often in the TT-V-TT-M format (typically 4 tangos per tanda, 3 valses, and 3 milongas).
- Cortinas separate the tandas and help to support them.
- I play music for the dancers and try to cater to every taste. I do not see myself as an „artist“, but rather as a solid craftsman.
My recipe:
In one set, I want to take the dancers on a journey of emotions.
I start off light and buoyant, seasoning rhythmic and lyrical elements together, and over the course of the set I raise the intensity and complexity up to a first climax.
Deliberate “relaxing” and “tensing” add spice and are meant to draw the dancers into an unending state of “flow.”
If the milonga extends beyond a four-hour period, a second climax is often introduced.
Toward the end, the dancers should relax and simply float—or, alternatively, head home full of energy.
Who am I
My name is Michael Neumann, born near Stuttgart and raised in Berlin. Since 2014, I have been living in Hamburg, my chosen home.
Professionally, I work for a large company, have traveled extensively both nationally and internationally, and spent several years stationed abroad (Malaysia/Kuala Lumpur).
Internationality and cultural diversity are part of my DNA—in life and in music.
My favorite orchestras are Pugliese, Troilo, Canaro, Di Sarli, and D’Agostino, followed by Federico, Lomuto, and Carabelli—and yes, D’Arienzo, Biagi, and all the other stars are also right at the top of my repertoire.
If you’d like, I can also adapt this for a DJ profile, website bio, or make it sound more lyrical or more professional.
Interested in a Set?
eMail: info@michael-neumann-hamburg.de
Web: www.michael-neumann-hamburg.de
Fon: +49 (0) 1511 764 32 46
My Tango Story:
I love Argentine tango and what it does to me and to other people.
I started tango in 1995 without really knowing what kind of movement it was—or what it would become. At that time, I took classes in Berlin at Studio Tango Vivo! on Mehringdamm.
We went dancing at the Roter Salon, Walzerlinksgestrickt, and also at a cultural café in Charlottenburg called Trialarit.
At the end of 1998, my first son was born. With that came a wonderful family and a solid professional career, and my focus on tango moved into the background.
In 2011, tango returned to my life—and completely took hold of me again, deeper and more intensely than ever before. Since then, I have been dancing a lot, refining my technique, and working especially on musicality and its expression in my dance.
Regular training and many milongas are the reason for the joy this dance gives me.
Almost inevitably, the desire grew to engage more deeply with the music, the orchestras, and the different eras—so becoming a DJ was the natural next step.
At the beginning of the COVID period, I started my initially “theoretical” DJ project:
What would I do, and how would I do it, if I wanted to be a DJ? Which technology, which music, how to build tandas, which database, and how should data be optimally tagged?
That was the beginning, which led to my first set in November 2024.
Just a project, I thought!!!!!
Copyright photoart-richter 2026
What’s coming up next:
- 15 Feb 2026 – DJ set at el Abrazo (Hamburg), Sunday
- 02 Mar 2026 – DJ set at Die Remise (Lübeck), Monday
- 11 Mar 2026 – DJ set at el Abrazo (Hamburg), Wednesday
- 05 Apr 2026 – DJ set at el Abrazo (Hamburg), Sunday
- 10 Apr 2026 – DJ set at La Divertida (Hamburg)
- 27 May 2026 – DJ set at el Abrazo (Hamburg), Wednesday
- 26 Jun 206 – DJ set at Encuentro Pequeña (SB)
Hosting milongas (Hamburg):
- 18 Mar 2026 – After Work Milonga, El Abrazo, Hamburg
- 19 Apr 2026 – Café Milonga, El Abrazo, Hamburg
- 17 May 2026 – Café Milonga, El Abrazo, Hamburg
Equipment (Main):
- MacBook Pro 14″ (M4)
- DAC Chord Mojo2
- Union.Audio 2 Valve Mixer (+mixRpower)
- Player&Database JRiver,
- Beam (for Display)
- Projector Epson
- M.U.T.T.I (Isolation und Distribution von Line-Signalen)
Equipment (Backup):
- MacBook Pro 13″ (Intel)
- DragonFly Cobalt
- Palmer Monicon (Passive Monitor Controller)
- Player Embrace
- Database JRiver
- Beam (for Display)
- Projector Epson
ducation / Further Training:
- Seminar with Horacio “Pebete” Godoy (AR) – 2026
- DJ seminar at Ta-Taa with Kristof Elst / David Thomas (GB) – 2025
- DJ seminar with Melina Sedo (DE) – 2025
- Tango Teacher Training (TTT) – Saarbrücken, 2018 / 2024
Memberships:
- Tango-DJ-AT
- El Recodo Tango DJ
- Trave Tango e.V. (Lübeck)
- El Recodo – large database, quizzes, and much more
- Tango DJ AT – extensive database
- Tango Time Travel (BE) – excellent transfers of historic recordings
- Tango Tunes – also top-quality transfers of old tango music
- Tango DJ for Good Sound – list of DJs, their equipment, and venues
- Tangoplauderei – a blog dedicated to tango
- Tangokombinat Saarbrücken – my personal tango base
- el Abrazo – the place of my work and my tango home
- Tango Calendar Hamburg – where you can find the city’s milongas
Acknowledgements
I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to so many people—to those who have accompanied me on my journey since 2020 and helped bring me to where I am today.
In particular, my thanks go to:
- Don Esteban / Charlotte – for the first insights into the DJ universe (before and around the COVID period)
- Gregor Tango Nada Mas – a HUGE thank you for technology, music, and software, and simply for advice and hands-on support in all areas and for every question
- Melina Sedo / Detlef Engel – for their input during the TTT
- Sam Joachim – for the nerdy technical and mastering discussions
- Elmira / Alex – for the first real opportunity to DJ
- The el Abrazo team (Dörte, Tamara, Oliver) – for the opportunity to play at Hamburg’s most beautiful milonga
- Kristof Elst / David Thomas – for their seminar at Ta-Taa
- Marion von Oppeln – for her support with my media presence
- Wienke Lenhardt, in particular – for the many hours of listening, the countless tips, the inspirations, the intensive exchange, and above all for “dancing through” tandas together as a way of reviewing and validating them