Bassist Ignacio Varchausky is the creator and artistic director of the Orquesta Escuela de Tango Emilio Balcarce which was founded in 2000 and is funded by the Ministry of Culture of Buenos Aires. For over 25 years, Varchausky has taught and lectured worldwide, including at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Edgar Varese Conservatoire in Gennevilliers, the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, CODARTS University of the Arts in Rotterdam, University of London, Americas Society in New York, Ibero-American Institute in Berlin, and Reed College in Portland. His seminar Los Estilos Fundamentales del Tango (The Esse ntial Styles of Tango) has engaged tens of thousands of tango musicians, dancers, and aficionados worldwide, and his own platform (www.ignaciovarchausky.com) features a series of online courses on tango’s primary orchestral styles, providing an extensive and innovative resource for musicians, dancers, and tango enthusiasts worldwide. Varchausky authored The Bass in Tango (2018) and is currently working on a new book about tango styles. His article “Orchestral Rhythmic Designs and Performance Practices: Juan D'Arienzo and Aníbal Troilo” was recently published in The Cambridge Companion to Tango (2024) and he was featured in PBS’s Now Hear This series.

As a producer, Varchausky has contributed to more than 50 records. His work has been nominated for multiple Latin Grammys in the Tango category which he won for the album 20 Años—En Vivo en Café Vinilo. He has also served as artistic director for tango festivals across the globe, with performances at the Hong Kong Cultural Center, Teatro Mayor in Bogotá, and Parco della Musica in Rome, among others. He is the founder of Orquesta El Arranque, with whom he has recorded 12 albums and toured 300 cities across the USA, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. He has performed at prestigious venues such as Lincoln Center in New York alongside Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.

Based in Buenos Aires, Varchausky travels the world performing, teaching, and lecturing about tango music, sharing his expertise in both academic and popular settings, while making a lasting impact on the music and culture of tango both locally and globally.