Melina Sedó was born in London to a German mother and a Spanish father. She communicates in English, German, French, Italian and (after a bit of re-activation) in Spanish.
Melina has been dancing since her early childhood. After exploring ballet, modern and ballroom dance as well as flamenco she finally discovered tango and fell under its spell.
Apart from dancing, Melina’s loves are history and literature. Although she decided against university studies in these fields, she kept pursuing her interest over the years, particularly by engaging in historical role-playing games. In 2020, Melina has written the roleplaying adventure and sourcebook The Straight Way Lost, published by Vortex Verlag. Further projects are in the making.
Melina has a university degree in psychology. She presented her master thesis Sex Roles in Argentine Tango in 2003. As a psychologist, Melina worked with young people, their families and the local institutions for many years before deciding to pursue tango exclusively.
Melina started dancing tango in 1995, teaching in 2001 and travelling internationally in 2006. Together with her teaching partner Detlef Engel she has developed a unique approach to tango that is based on a close embrace, improvisation and musicality. They have built a reputation for outstanding pedagogical skills as well as for their special dedication to promote social tango beyond clichés or acrobatics. Detlef & Melina are conducting Tango-Teacher-Trainings and have produced a comprehensive Book+Film. Melina‘s skills as an organiser have contributed immensely to their international success.
Despite their minimalistic style, Melina and Detlef have performed at countless occasions in Europe, the USA and at some of the most renowned Milongas in Buenos Aires. They capture the audience through their elegance, harmony and highly developed musicality.
Melina and her friends of the Tangokombinat have been organising Milongas, Festivalitos and Encuentros since 2004. Their „Festivalito con Amigos“ is now the longest-running Encuentro Milonguero in the world.
In 2020, Melina co-organised and hosted the first international Tango Queens Congress with female participants and artists from all over the world. For this event, Melina acted as the local co-ordinator and logistics manager as well as teacher, dj and speaker in panels.
Melina is an enthusiastic student and researcher of tango music and has made a name for herself as a DJ at local and international events.
Melina‘s blog is read by a widespread audience and is on a regular basis updated with posts about tango culture, learning and much more.
Melina is skilled in setting up and maintaining websites, developing publicity material and editing videos. For more elaborate projects she nevertheless chooses to work with the designer and photographer Thorsten Janes.
In 2011, Melina took up Yoga and completed the first two modules of a 4-part teacher-training. This venture has helped her to develop a deeper understanding for body-mechanics, relaxation and pedagogy which she integrates in her work as a tango teacher.
In 2022, Melina started to upgrade her professional qualification. She has undergone a training as Dance and Exercise Pedagogue and will complete a formation as Director of Therapeutic Dance (DGT) in 2024. She plans on combining tango, health and personal development in the future.