The trio met in 2008 during a Creative Music Residency at the Banff Centre in Alberta. There, they transcribed, arranged, performed, and recorded Argentinian, Brazilian, and Cuban music. Over the next two and a half years, they focused their attention on tango music, at first by learning the tango nuevo compositions of Astor Piazzolla, and then exploring traditional tango music and it’s relationship to tango dance.

They have performed in Toronto, Montreal, Banff and Baltimore each time working with different local musicians and dancers. They have collaborated with Katarzyna Marczak (clarinet), Rachel Desoer (cello), Alexandra Marquez (violin), Soohyun Nam (cello), Ivan Bamford (drums), Ryan Butler (guitar), Cheryl Law (viola), Ben Brown (percussion), Melissa Hullman (violin), John Dierker (clarinets) and Alan Munshower (percussion), as well as tango dancers Leila Afriat, Adrien Ronceray, Manuel Soto, Roger Peterson and Claire Braswell. Their performances have been well received in concert halls, traditional tango balls, as well as jazz clubs, loft spaces, bars, and cafes. They are forever grateful to their mentors, pianists Victor Simon (Montreal/Argentina) and Hilario Duran (Toronto/Cuba) for their guidance as well as the compositions they have contributed to the ensemble. The Mash Potangos received a Canada Council grant to attend the Winter 2011 Creative Residency at the Banff Centre, where they spent two weeks working on new tango repertoire, and planning future productions.