Classics of Tango Dance MusicAn evolving list of great tangos, milongas and valses for social dancing as recommended by tango dancers and DJs from around the world.

Conceived and Organized by Stephen Brown

Acknowledgments and Comments

List as of 1 May 2011

Organized by Epoch and Style

Old Guard — Orquesta Tipica Victor, Carabelli, Firpo, Lomuto, Fresedo Early Golden Age — De Caro, Donato, Canaro Golden Age Harder Rhythmic — D'Arienzo, Biagi, Rodriguez Golden Age Softer Rhythmic — Troilo, Tanturi, Caló, Federico, Laurenz, D'Agostino, Di Sarli Golden Age Smooth — Di Sarli, Canaro, Fresedo, Troilo, De Angelis Golden Age Lyrical — Caló, Di Sarli, Troilo, Canaro, Fresedo, Tanturi, Demare, De Angelis Golden Age Dramatic — De Angelis, Pugliese Transition Era New Tango Modern Dance Orquestas Tango Shows Tango Fusion Milongas Valses La Cumparsita  

Old Guard — Orquesta Tipica Victor, Carabelli, Firpo, Lomuto

The tangos of the old guard generally had less complex arrangements and simpler, more naked rhythms in comparison to the tangos played during the golden age and later eras.

Los Tubatango (Los Tubatango is a modern-era orchestra that played in old-guard style.)     Caminito — Una Noche de Garufa  (Music Hall, discontinued)     Rodriguez Peña — Una Noche de Garufa  (Music Hall, discontinued)     Una Noche de Garufa — Una Noche de Garufa  (Music Hall, discontinued)     Almagro — Una Noche de Garufa  (Music Hall, discontinued)     Zorro Gris — Una Noche de Garufa  (Music Hall, discontinuted)

Orquesta Tipica Victor     Negro — 1926-40  (El Bandoneon EBCD 85)

    Pato — 1926-40  (El Bandoneon EBCD 85)     Re Fa Si — 1926-40  (El Bandoneon EBCD 85)     Che Papusa Oi — 1926-40  (El Bandoneon EBCD 85)     De Mi Barrio — 1926-1940 (El Bandoneon EBCD 85)     Viento Norte — 1926-1940 (El Bandoneon EBCD 85)     Barra Universitaria — 1925-1934  (El Bandoneon EBCD 41)     Coqueta — 1925-1934  (El Bandoneon EBCD 41)     Vieja Calecita — 1925-1934  (El Bandoneon EBCD 41)     Viejo Rincon — 1925-1934  (El Bandoneon EBCD 41)     Niño Bien — RCA Victor 100 Años     El Porteñito — RCA Victor 100 Años     Ventarron — RCA Victor 100 Años     Adios Buenos Aires — RCA Victor 100 Años

Adolfo Carabelli     Felicia — Cuatro Palabras  (El Bandoneon)     Mi Refugio — Cuatro Palabras  (El Bandoneon)     El Cabure — Cuatro Palabras  (El Bandoneon)     Cuatro Palabras — Cuatro Palabras  (El Bandoneon)     Alma — Cuatro Palabras  (El Bandoneon)     El 13 — Cuatro Palabras  (El Bandoneon)

Roberto Firpo     Bar Exposicion — Milonga Orillera (El Bandoneon)     El Cuzquito — Milonga Orillera (El Bandoneon)     Organito de la Tarde — Milonga Orillera (El Bandoneon)     Matasano — Sentimiento Criollo (El Bandoneon)     El Cencerro — Sentimiento Criollo (El Bandoneon)     La Payanca — Sentimiento Criollo (El Bandoneon)     El Once — Sentimiento Criollo (El Bandoneon)     El Lloron — De La Guardia Vieja (EMI Reliquias)

Francisco Lomuto     Mano a Mano — Great Bands of Tango's "Golden Age" 1936-47  (Harlequin)     A La Gran Muñeca — Amor Y Celos  (El Bandoneon)     Madreselva — Amor Y Celos  (El Bandoneon)     Nunca Mas — y su Orquesta Tipica  (BMG - Argentina 74321 27549-2)     Si Soy Asi — y su Orquesta Tipica  (BMG - Argentina 74321 27549-2)     Nostalgias — y su Orquesta Tipica  (BMG - Argentina 74321 27549-2)     Sentimiento Gaucho — y su Orquesta Tipica  (BMG - Argentina 74321 27549-2)     Quiero Verte una Vez Mas — y su Orquesta Tipica  (BMG - Argentina 74321 27549-2)

Osvaldo Fresedo (Old Guard)     Tigre Viejo — Serie de Oro (Sonido) or         40 Grandes Exitos  (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango  Blue Moon)     Arrabalero — Arrabalero (El Bandoneon) or         40 Grandes Exitos  (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango  Blue Moon)     La Cachila — Arrabalero (El Bandoneon) or         40 Grandes Exitos  (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango  Blue Moon)

    Derecho Viejo (1941 version) — Serie de Oro (Sonido) or         1933-1948  (Collecion 78 RPM Euro RCA)     Poliya — Serie de Oro (Sonido) or         1933-1948  (Collecion 78 RPM Euro RCA)     Julian — Serie de Oro (Sonido)     El Irresistible — Serie de Oro (Sonido)     El Choclo — Serie de Oro (Sonido)     La Mariposa — Serie de Oro (Sonido)     La Cumparsita — Serie de Oro (Sonido)

 Other Fresedo     also see Golden Age Smooth     also see Golden Age Lyrical

Early Golden Age — De Caro, Donato, Fresedo, Canaro

The early golden-age tangos represent a transition from the old guard to the golden age of tango.  They have clear, simple rhythms but show signs of the stronger orchestration and lyricism that characterize golden-age tangos.

Julio De Caro     El Monito — Instrumental Tangos of the Golden Age  (Harlequin)     Colombina — Instrumental Tangos of the Golden Age  (Harlequin)     Derecho Viejo — Instrumental Tangos of the Golden Age  (Harlequin)     Boedo — Instrumental Tangos of the Golden Age  (Harlequin)     Gallo Ciego — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Carro Viejo — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Chique — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     La Rayuela — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Mal de Amores — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Mala Junta — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Maula — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Anibal Troilo — Tangos de Rompe y Raja  (EMI Reliquias)     Mi Dolor — Tangos de Rompe y Raja  (EMI Reliquias)     Tierra Querida — Tangos de Rompe y Raja  (EMI Reliquias)     Mala Pinta — Tangos de Rompe y Raja  (EMI Reliquias)

Edgardo Donato     Carnaval de Mi Barrio — y Su Muchachos 1932 - 1939  (El Bandoneon)     El Huracan — y Su Muchachos 1932 - 1939  (El Bandoneon)     El Acomodo — y Su Muchachos 1932 - 1939  (El Bandoneon)     Se Va La Vida — y Su Muchachos 1932 - 1939  (El Bandoneon)     La Tablada — y Su Muchachos 1932 - 1939  (El Bandoneon)     El Chamuyo — y Su Muchachos 1932 - 1939  (El Bandoneon)     Elegante Papirusa — A Media Luz  (El Bandoneon)     A Oscuras — A Media Luz  (El Bandoneon)

    A Media Luz — A Media Luz  (El Bandoneon)     Me Voy A Baraja — A Media Luz  (El Bandoneon)     Sinfonia De Arrabal — A Media Luz  (El Bandoneon)

Francisco Canaro (Early Golden Age)

Francisco Canaro y su Quinteto Pirincho     Viento en Popa — Nobleza de Arrabal  (El Bandoneon)     Don Esteban — Nobleza de Arrabal  (El Bandoneon)     Champagne Tango — Nobleza de Arrabal  (El Bandoneon)     Alma en Pena — Nobleza de Arrabal  (El Bandoneon)     Loca — Nobleza de Arrabal  (El Bandoneon)     La Viruta — Nobleza de Arrabal  (El Bandoneon)     Pronto Regreso — Tangos del Teimpo Viejo, vol. 4 (EMI Reliquias)     Hotel Victoria — Tangos del Teimpo Viejo  (EMI Reliquias)

Francisco Canaro     La Melodia de Nuestro Adios — La Melodia de Nuestro Adios  (El Bandoneon)     Pampa — Bailando Tangos, Valses y Milongas (EMI Reliquias), La Melodia de Nuestro Adios  (El Bandoneon)     Retintin — Bailando Tangos, Valses y Milongas (EMI Reliquias), La Melodia de Nuestro Adios  (El Bandoneon)     Organito De La Tarde — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     La Ultima Copa — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     El Acomodo — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     El Chamuyo — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     Charamusca — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     Hotel Victoria — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     El Adios — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     La Maleva — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     La Tablada — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     Sentimiento Gaucho — 40 Grandes Exitos (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     Alma Tanguera — Alma Tanguera  (Maestros del Tango Argentino BMT)     Muchachada del Centro — Alma Tanguera  (Maestros del Tango Argentino BMT)     SOS — Alma Tanguera  (Maestros del Tango Argentino BMT)     Viejos Tiempos— Canta Roberto Maida, Vol. 2 (EMI Reliquias)*     Mala Suerte — Sus Exitos con Ernesto Fama (EMI Reliquias)*     Cuartito Azul — Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)     Poema — Canta Roberto Maida, Vol. 2 (EMI Reliquias)*

*also available on Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)

Other Canaro     Golden Age Smooth     Golden Age Lyrical

Golden Age Harder Rhythmic — D'Arienzo, Biagi, Rodriguez

Harder-rhythmic tangos are characterized by prominent ric-tic, double-time rhythms that seem to insist on milonguero-style dancing.  For the tangos in this style that have vocals, the singer stays relatively close to the orchestra's rhythm.  (The prominence of the ric-tic, double-time beats is what distinguishes the harder rhythmic, softer rhythmic, and smooth categories of tango music.  Although the differences in rhythmic accents may give an impression of differences in tempo, these categories are distinguished by the rhythmic accents and not the tempo at which the orchestra plays.)

Juan D'Arienzo (Golden Age Harder Rhythmic)

Juan D'Arienzo — Instrumentals     Sabado Ingles (1935) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     Re Fa Si (1935) —  Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     9 de Julio (1935) — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)*     La Viruta (1936) — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)*     La Payanca (1936) — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)*     Ataniche (1936) — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)*     El Flete (1936) — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)*^     Don Esteban (1936) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     Retintin (1936) — El Rey del Compas  (El Bandoneon)     Don Juan (1936) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     Comme il Faut (1936) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     El Irresistible (1936) — El Rey del Compas  (El Bandoneon)     La Morocha (1937) — El Rey del Compas  (El Bandoneon)     Jueves (1937) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     El Cencerro (1937) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     El Africano (1937) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     Que Noche (1937) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     El Cachafaz (1937) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     El Choclo (1937) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     El Porteñito (1937) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     Gallo Ciego (1937) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     Champagne Tango (1938) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     Rodriguez Peña (1938) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     La Catrera (1938) — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     Union Civica (1938) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     El Internado (1938) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)*     Lelia (1938) — Grandes del Tango Vol. 3/23 (Lantower)*     Pampa (1939) — Meta Fierro-Yunta Brava 1939-1940 (RCA 70 Años)     Derecho Viejo (1939) — Meta Fierro-Yunta Brava 1939-1940 (RCA 70 Años)*     Felicia (1939) — Meta Fierro-Yunta Brava 1939-1940 (RCA 70 Años)*     Tucuman (1950) — Bien Pulenta 1950-1952 (RCA 70 Años)     Canaro en Paris (1950) — Bien Pulenta 1950-1952 (RCA 70 Años)     El Pollo Ricardo (1952) — Bien Pulenta 1950-1952 (RCA 70 Años)

    Independencia (1953) — Mucho Mucho 1953-1954 (RCA 70 Años)     El Internado (1954) — Mucho Mucho 1953-1954 (RCA 70 Años)     Felicia (1954) — Con Lamarque, Echagüe y Laborde 1954/1957 (Euro RCA)     Jueves (1955) — Viento Sur 1954-1955 (RCA 70 Años)

*also available at somewhat lower fidelity on Sus Primeros Exitos Vol. 1 or 2. (Tango Argentino) ^also available on The Tango Lesson (Sony Movie Soundtrack)

Juan D'Arienzo con Alberto Echagüe     Pensalo Bien — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)^     Cambalache — Corrientes y Esmeralda 1944-1949 (RCA 70 Años)     No Va Mas — Bien Pulenta 1950-1952 (RCA 70 Años)     Paciencia — Grandes del Tango Vol. 2 (Con Sus Cantores)/6 (Lantower)     Che Negrito — Vol. 21 (1952-1953)  (Club Tango Argentino)

^also available on The Tango Lesson (Sony Movie Soundtrack)

Juan D'Arienzo con Armando Laborde     Viejo Smoking — Bien Pulenta 1950-1952 (RCA 70 Años)

Juan D'Arienzo con Hector Maure     Tierrita — El Rey del Compas 1941-1943 (RCA 70 Años)*     Ya Lo Ves — El Rey del Compas 1941-1943 (RCA 70 Años)*     Enamorado (Metido) — El Rey del Compas 1941-1943 (RCA 70 Años)*     Ammaras — Corrientes y Esmeralda 1944-1949 (RCA 70 Años)*     Garronero — D'Arienzo/Maure  (Solo Tango)     Mirame en la Cara — D'Arienzo/Maure  (Solo Tango)

*also available on D'Arienzo/Maure (Solo Tango)

Juan D'Arienzo con Mario Bustos     Justo El 31 — Tangos Orilleros  (Tango Argentino)     Si Soy Asi — Tangos Orilleros  (Tango Argentino)     No Te Quiero Mas — Tangos Orilleros  (Tango Argentino)     Susanita — Tangos Orilleros  (Tango Argentino)

Orquesta Juan D'Arienzo     Derecho Viejo — La Cumparsita  (Phillips)     Organito de la Tarde — La Cumparsita  (Phillips)     Don Juan — La Cumparsita  (Phillips)     Pampa — La Cumparsita  (Phillips)

Other D'Arienzo     Golden Age Lyrical

Rodolfo Biagi

Biagi was the pianist in Juan D'Arienzo's orchestra during its most popular period and helped create the rhythmic drive that characterized D'Arienzo's sound.  Leading his

own orchestra, Biagi kept the harder rhythmic style and added striking syncopated elements—often through gaps in the rhythm.  Sometimes, these gaps can create an impression akin to falling into an elevator shaft.  That is, you are dancing along and suddenly the ground drops out from below you.  In a noisy room with a poor sound system, some Biagi tangos can get lost.

Rodolfo Biagi — Instrumentals     Racing Club — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)*     Pura Clase — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)*     El Recodo — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)*     Didi — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)*     Union Civica — Sus Exitos con Andres Falgas and Teofilo Ibanez     El Incendio — Su Orquesta y Sus Cantores (EMI Reliquias)     La  Maleva — Su Orquesta y Sus Cantores (EMI Reliquias)     El 13 — Solos de la Orquesta  (EMI Reliquias)

*also available with slightly lower fidelity on Solos de la Orquesta  (EMI Reliquias)

Rodolfo Biagi con Alberto Amor     Nada — Sus Exitos con Alberto Amor  (EMI Reliquias)     Si La Llegaran A Ver — Sus Exitos con Alberto Amor  (EMI Reliquias)     Tus Labios Me Diran — Sus Exitos con Alberto Amor  (EMI Reliquias)     Seamos Amigos — Sus Exitos con Alberto Amor  (EMI Reliquias)

Rodolfo Biagi con Jorge Ortiz     Humillacion — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz  (EMI Reliquias)     Guapo y Varon — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz  (EMI Reliquias)     Señor, Señor — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz  (EMI Reliquias)     Pajaro Ciego — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz  (EMI Reliquias)     Zaraza — Campo Afuera  (El Bandoneon)

Rodolfo Biagi con Andres Falgas     Cicatrices — Sus Exitos con Andres Falgas and Teofilo Ibanez     Son Cosas del Bandoneon — Sus Exitos con Andres Falgas and Teofilo Ibanez     A Mi No Me Interesa — Sus Exitos con Andres Falgas and Teofilo Ibanez

Rodolfo Biagi con Teofilo Ibanez     Alma de Bohemio — Sus Exitos con Andres Falgas y Teofilo Ibanez  (EMI Reliquias)

Rodolfo Biagi con Hugo Duval     Bailarina de Tango — Sus Exitos con Duval, Heredia, Saavedra y Amor  (EMI Reliquias)

Enrique Rodriguez

Enrique Rodriguez con Roberto Flores o Armando Moreno     Son Cosas del Bandoneon — El "Chato" Flores en el Recuerdo (EMI Reliquias)     A Media Luz — Tangos con Armando Moreno (EMI Reliquias)     Como Se Pianta la Vida — Tangos con Armando Moreno, Vol. 2 (EMI Reliquias)

    En la Buena y en la Mala — Tangos con Armando Moreno (EMI Reliquias)     Llorar por una Mujer — Tangos con Armando Moreno (EMI Reliquias)     Suerte Loca — Tangos con Armando Moreno (EMI Reliquias)     Yo No Se Por Que Razon — Tangos con Armando Moreno, Vol. 2 (EMI Reliquias)

Golden Age Softer Rhythmic — Troilo, Tanturi, Caló, Federico, Laurenz, D'Agostino, Di Sarli

In softer rhythmic tangos, the ric-tic rhythms are present but not prominent, allowing the music to support either milonguero- or salon-style dancing.  For the tangos in this style that have vocals, the singer stays relatively close to the orchestra's rhythm. (The prominence of the ric-tic, double-time beats is what distinguishes the harder rhythmic, softer rhythmic, and smooth categories of tango music.  Although the differences in rhythmic accents may give an impression of differences in tempo, these categories are distinguished by the rhythmic accents and not the tempo at which the orchestra plays.)

Anibal Troilo (Golden Age Softer Rhythmic)

Anibal Troilo — Early Instrumentals     Guapeando — Yo Soy El Tango  (Troilo en RCA Victor)*     Cordon de Oro — Yo Soy El Tango  (Troilo en RCA Victor)*     Cachirulo — Yo Soy El Tango  (Troilo en RCA Victor)*     Milongueando en el 40 — Yo Soy El Tango  (Troilo en RCA Victor)*     La Maleva — Barrio de Tango  (Troilo en RCA Victor)*     El Entrerriano — Tres Amigos  (Troilo en RCA Victor)*     Inspiracion — Uno  (Troilo en RCA Victor)*     Ojos Negros — Cafetin De Buenos Aires  (Troilo en RCA Victor)     Contratiempo — Sus Mejores Momentos  (Music Hall discontinued)

*also available with somewhat lower fidelity on Instrumental 1941-1944  (Tango Argentino)

Anibal Troilo con Edmundo Rivero     Yira, Yira — Romance de Barrio  (Troilo en RCA Victor)

Anibal Troilo con Francisco Fiorentino     Toda Mi Vida — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     Te Aconsejo Que Me Olvides — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     Tabernero — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     El Bulin de Calle Ayacucho — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     Tinta Roja — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)

Other Troilo     Golden Age Smooth     Golden Age Lyrical

Ricardo Tanturi (Golden Age Softer Rhythmic)

Ricardo Tanturi — Instrumentals     Una Noche de Garufa — Great Bands of Tango's Golden Age  (Harlequin)     Argañaraz — 1940-1950 (Collecion 78 RPM Euro RCA) or Tangos Para Bailar  (RCA Compilation)     Raza Criolla — Noches de Tango  (Tango Argentino)

Ricardo Tanturi con Alberto Castillo     El Tango Es el Tango — Tanturi/Castillo  (Solo Tango)     Noches de Colon — Tanturi/Castillo  (Solo Tango)     Al Compas de un Tango — Tanturi/Castillo  (Solo Tango)     Muñeca Brava — Tanturi/Castillo  (Solo Tango)     Como Se Pianta la Vida — Tanturi/Castillo  (Solo Tango)     Recuerdo Malevo — El Tango Es el Tango  (Tango Argentino)     Cuatro Compases — El Tango Es el Tango  (Tango Argentino)     Asi Se Baila el Tango — El Tango Es el Tango  (Tango Argentino)     Madame Ivonne —  El Tango Es el Tango  (Tango Argentino)     Ese Sos Vos — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)     Pocas Palabras — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)     La Vida Es Corta — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)

Other Tanturi     Golden Age Lyrical

Miguel Caló (Golden Age Softer Rhythmic)

Miguel Caló — Instrumentals     Sans Souci — Stock Privado  (EMI)     La Maleva — Recordando Viejos Temas (EMI Reliquias)     Saludos — Sus Exitos con Podesta, Ortiz y Beron (EMI Reliquias)

Miguel Caló con Alberto Podesta     La Cantina — Sus Exitos con Podesta, Ortiz y Beron  (EMI Reliquias)     Percal — Sus Exitos con Podesta, Ortiz y Beron  (EMI Reliquias)     Yo Soy el Tango — Yo Soy el Tango  (El Bandoneon)     Que Falta Que Me Haces — Yo Soy el Tango  (El Bandoneon)

Other Caló     Golden Age Lyrical

Domingo Federico     Saludos — Solo Tango

Domingo Federico con Carlos Vidal     Yo — Solo Tango

Pedro Laurenz     Alma de Bohemio — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Arrabal — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)

    De Puro Guapo — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Amurado — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Orgullo Criollo — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Nunca Tuvo Novio — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)

Angel D'Agostino y Angel Vargas     El Choclo — y Su Orquesta Tipica  (El Bandoneon)     Tres Esquinas — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 1  (Tango Argentino)     Pero Yo Se — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 1  (Tango Argentino)     Una Pena — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 1  (Tango Argentino)     A Pan y Agua — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)     Esta Noche en Buenos Aires — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)

    Mano Blanca — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)     Hotel Victoria — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)     Tomo y Obligo — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 3  (Tango Argentino)     El Aristocrata — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 3  (Tango Argentino)     Mi Viejo Barrio — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 4  (Tango Argentino)     Caricias — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 4  (Tango Argentino)     Cafe Dominguez — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 4  (Tango Argentino)     Me Llaman Tango — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 4  (Tango Argentino)

Carlos Di Sarli (Golden Age Softer Rhythmic)

Carlos Di Sarli — Early Instrumentals     Shusheta — Milongueando en el 40 (Euro Archivo RCA)*     La Cachila — Milongueando en el 40 (Euro Archivo RCA)*     La Torcacita — Milongueando en el 40 (Euro Archivo RCA)*     El Recodo — Instrumental Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)     La Racha — Instrumental Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)

*also available with slightly lower fidelity on Instrumental Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)

Other Di Sarli     Golden Age Smooth     Golden Age Lyrical

Golden Age Smooth — Di Sarli, Fresedo, Canaro, Troilo, De Angelis

Smooth tangos are generally instrumental music that lack the ric-tic accents found in the harder and softer rhythmic music and the big crescendos, dramatic pauses and heavier beat of dramatic tango music.  (The prominence of the ric-tic, double-time beats is what distinguishes the harder rhythmic, softer rhythmic, and smooth categories of tango music.  Although the differences in rhythmic accents may give an impression of differences in tempo, these categories are distinguished by the rhythmic accents and not the tempo at which the orchestra plays.)

Carlos Di Sarli (Golden Age Smooth)

Carlos Di Sarli — Instrumentals     Los 33 Orientales —  40 Grande Exitos  (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     A La Gran Muñeca — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*^     El Cabure — 40 Grande Exitos  (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)*^     Milonguero Viejo — RCA Victor 100 Años  (RCA)*^     Comme Il Faut — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*^     La Morocha — RCA Victor 100 Años  (BMG RCA)^     El Choclo — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)^     Mi Refugio — 40 Grande Exitos  (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)*^     Don Juan — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*     Tinta Verde — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*     Germaine — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*     Organito de la Tarde — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*     El Pollo Ricardo — Instrumental  (Tango Argentino)     El Ingeniero — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*     Cara Sucia — Instrumental vol 1  (Solo Tango)     Bahia Blanca (1957 version) — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)     Bahia Blanca (1958 version) — The Tango Lesson  (Sony)     El Pollito —  40 Grande Exitos  (Los Grandes Orquestas del Tango Blue Moon)     El Amanecer — Instrumental vol 1  (Solo Tango)*     El Once — Instrumental Vol. 1  (Solo Tango)*     Champagne Tango —  Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)*     El Abrojo — Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)     Una Fija — Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)     Indio Manso — Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)

    *also available with lower fidelity on Instrumental  (Tango Argentino)     ^also available with good fidelity and a stronger arrangement on the discontinued CD Milonguero Viejo  (Music Hall)

Other Di Sarli     Golden Age Softer Rhythmic     Golden Age Lyrical

Osvaldo Fresedo (Golden Age Smooth)

Osvaldo Fresedo — Instrumentals     El Once — El Pibe de la Paternal  (El Bandoneon)

Other Fresedo     Old Guard     Golden Age Lyrical

Francisco Canaro (Golden Age Smooth)     Toda Mi Vida — Tangos Inolvidables Del 40  (EMI Reliquias)

    Quejas De Bandoneon — Instrumentales Para Bailar  (EMI Reliquias)     Sentimiento Gaucho — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)

Other Canaro     Early Golden Age Rhythmic     Golden Age Lyrical

Anibal Troilo (Golden Age Smooth)

Anibal Troilo — Instrumentals     Quejas de Bandoneon — Sus Mejores Momentos  (Music Hall discontinued)     El Marne — Sus Mejores Momentos  (Music Hall discontinued)     El Pollo Ricardo — Sus Mejores Momentos  (Music Hall discontinued)     Don Juan — Sus Mejores Momentos  (Music Hall discontinued)

Other Troilo     Golden Age Softer Rhythmic     Golden Age Lyrical

Alfredo De Angelis (Golden Age Smooth)     Pura Maña — Los Primeros Instrumentales  (EMI Reliquias)     El Entrerriano — Los Primeros Instrumentales  (EMI Reliquias)

Other De Angelis     Golden Age Lyrical     Golden Age Dramatic

Golden Age Lyrical — Caló, Di Sarli, Troilo, Canaro, Fresedo, Tanturi, Demare, De Angelis

During the golden age, sometimes the singer sang with orchestra, sometimes the orchestra played for the singer.  In lyrical tangos, the singer doesn't adhere closely to the orchestra's underlying rhythm, and the overall effect is to emphasize the lyrical nature of the music.

Miguel Caló (Golden Age Lyrical)

Miguel Caló con Raul Beron     Al Compas del Corazon — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Trasnochando — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Que Te Importa Que Te Llore — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Tristezas de le Calle Corrientes — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Lejos de Buenos Aires — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Tarareando — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)

Miguel Caló con Roberto Arrieta     Tedio — Stock Privado  (EMI)     Tarde Gris — Stock Privado  (EMI)

Miguel Caló con Raul Iriarte     Trenzas — Sus Exitos con Raul Iriarte  (EMI Reliquias)     Mañana Ire Temprano — Sus Exitos con Raul Iriarte, vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)     Margo — Sus Exitos con Raul Iriarte, vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)     Madalit — Sus Exitos con Raul Iriarte, vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)

Other Caló     Golden Age Softer Rhythmic

Carlos Di Sarli (Golden Age Lyrical)

Carlos Di Sarli con Roberto Rufino     Tristeza Marina — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 1  (Tango Argentino)     Verdemar — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 1  (Tango Argentino)     Charlemos — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 1  (Tango Argentino)     Patotero — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 1  (Tango Argentino)     Cascabelito — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 1  (Tango Argentino)     Canta, Pajarito — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 1  (Tango Argentino)     Si Tu Quisieras — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 3  (Tango Argentino)

Carlos Di Sarli con Jorge Duran     Porteño y Bailarin — Porteño y Bailarin  (Tango Argentino)     Un Tango y Nada Mas — Porteño y Bailarin  (Tango Argentino)     Vieja Luna — Porteño y Bailarin  (Tango Argentino)     Duelo Criollo — Porteño y Bailarin  (Tango Argentino)

Carlos Di Sarli con Argentino Ledesma     Fumando Espero — Buenos Aires Tango Voces (RCA)     (The Di Sarli CD, RCA Victor 100 Años lists this recording, but it actually contains the version with vocalist Roberto Florio.)

Other Di Sarli     Golden Age Softer Rhythmic     Golden Age Smooth

Anibal Troilo (Golden Age Lyrical)

Anibal Troilo con Francisco Fiorentino     Malena — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     Pajaro Ciego — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     En Esta Tarde Gris — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     El Cuarteador — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     Sencillo y Compadre — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     Gricel — Troilo/Fiorentino, vol. 2  (Solo Tango)

Other Troilo     Golden Age Softer Rhythmic     Golden Age Smooth

Francisco Canaro (Golden Age Lyrical)

Francisco Canaro con Ernesto Fama     Como Dos Extraños — Tangos Inolvidables del '40  (EMI Reliquias)     Mala Suerte — Sus Exitos con Ernesto Fama (EMI Reliquias)*

*also available on Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)

Francisco Canaro con Carlos Roldan     Uno — Desde al Alma  (EMI Reliquias)     Esta Noche de Luna — Desde al Alma  (EMI Reliquias)

Francisco Canaro con Eduardo Adrian     Cada Vez Que Me Recuerdes — Desde al Alma  (EMI Reliquias)     Nido Gaucho — Desde al Alma  (EMI Reliquias)

Francisco Canaro con Guillermo Coral     Duelo Criollo — Tangos Inolvidables del '40  (EMI Reliquias)

Francisco Canaro con Alberto Arenas     Yira Yira — Tangos Inolvidables del '40  (EMI Reliquias)

Francisco Canaro con Roberto Maida     Viejos Tiempos— Canta Roberto Maida, Vol. 2 (EMI Reliquias)*     Poema — Canta Roberto Maida, Vol. 2 (EMI Reliquias)*

*also available on Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)

Francisco Canaro con Francisco Amor     Cuartito Azul — Susana Miller compilation CD (#1 or A)

Other Canaro     Early Golden Age     Golden Age Smooth

Osvaldo Fresedo (Golden Age Lyrical)

Osvaldo Fresedo con Roberto Ray perhaps better classified as old guard lyrical, these tracks work well as golden age lyrical     Vida Mia — Tangos de Salon  (Tango Argentino)     Niebla del Riachuelo — Tangos de Salon  (Tango Argentino)     Pampero — Tangos de Salon  (Tango Argentino)     Sollozos — Tangos de Salon  (Tango Argentino)

Other Fresedo     Old Guard     Golden Age Smooth

Ricardo Tanturi con Enrique Campos (Golden Age Lyrical)     Domingo a la Noche — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)     Muchachos Comienza la Ronda — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)     Asi Se Canta — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)     Malvon — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)     Que Nunca Me Falte — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)     Recien — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)     Una Emocion — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)     Oigo Tu Voz — Una Emoción  (Tango Argentino)

Other Tanturi     Golden Age Softer Rhythmic

Juan D'Arienzo con Jorge Valdez (Golden Age Lyrical)     Remembranzas — Sentimental  (Tango Argentino)     Destino de Flor — Sentimental  (Tango Argentino)

Other D'Arienzo     Golden Age Harder Rhythmic

Lucio Demare con Roberto Arrieta     Cancion de Rango — Sus Primeros Exitos  (EMI Reliquias)     Tango Guapo — Sus Primeros Exitos  (EMI Reliquias)

Lucio Demare con Juan Carlos Miranda     Malena — Sus Exitos con Miranda, Beron y Quintana  (EMI Reliquias)     Al Compas de un Tango —  Sus Exitos con Miranda, Beron y Quintana  (EMI Reliquias)

Lucio Demare con Raul Beron     Oigo Tu Voz — Sus Exitos con Raul Beron  (EMI Reliquias)     Una Emocion — Sus Exitos con Raul Beron  (EMI Reliquias)     Y Siempre Igual — Sus Exitos con Raul Beron  (EMI Reliquias)     La Cosa Fue en un Boliche — Sus Exitos con Raul Beron  (EMI Reliquias)     Tal Vez Sera Su Voz — Sus Exitos con Raul Beron  (EMI Reliquias)

Alfredo De Angelis (Golden Age Lyrical)

Alfredo De Angelis con Carlos Dante     Compadrón — 20 Exitos, Vol. 1  (EMI Reliquias)     Gloria — 20 Exitos, Vol. 1  (EMI Reliquias)

Altredo De Angelis con Carlos Dante y Julio Martel     Adiós Marinero — Los Duos De Carlos Dante Y Julio Martel, Vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)

Other De Angelis     Golden Age Smooth     Golden Age Dramatic

Golden Age Dramatic — De Angelis, Pugliese

Dramatic tangos build on the power of the smooth sound and have more dramatic arrangements with bigger crescendos, often a heavier beat, pauses, and sometimes tempo shifts.

Alfredo De Angelis (Golden Age Dramatic)

Alfredo De Angelis — Instrumentals     Mi Dolor — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     El Tango Club — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Felicia — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     La Mariposa — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     El Pial — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Guardia Vieja — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Pavadita — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)

Other De Angelis     Golden Age Smooth     Golden Age Lyrical

Osvaldo Pugliese (Golden Age Dramatic)

Osvaldo Pugliese — Instrumentals     Tierra Querida — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Mala Junta — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Orgullo Criollo — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Boedo — Instrumentales Inolvidables, vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)     Tiny — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Mala Estampa — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Recuerdo — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     El Paladin — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Pelele — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     El Arranque — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     El Remate — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Raza Criolla — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Derecho Viejo — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     La Yumba (1952 version) — Instrumentales Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias)     Para Dos — Instrumentales Inolvidables, Vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)     El Embrollo — Instrumentales Inolvidables, Vol. 3 (EMI Reliquias)     La Tupungatina — Cantan Alberto Moran y Roberto Chanel  (EMI Reliquias)     Chique — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon)

    La Rayuela — Instrumentales Inolvidables, Vol. 3  (EMI Reliquias)     Emancipacion — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon)     Nochero Soy — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon)     A Mis Compañeros — Instrumentales Inolvidables, Vol. 2 (EMI Reliquias)     Yunta de Oro — Instrumentales Inolvidables, Vol. 3 (EMI Reliquias)     Pata Ancha — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     La Bordona — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Gallo Ciego — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     A Los Amigos — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Arrabal — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Don Agustin Bardi — Nostalgico  (DBN Polydor)     La Mariposa — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon)     A Evaristo Carriego — Nostalgico  (DBN Polydor)     Tinta Roja — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     El Andariego — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)

Osvaldo Pugliese con Roberto Chanel     Farol — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon) or Sus Exitos con Roberto Chanel (EMI Reliquias)     Fuimos — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon) or Sus Exitos con Roberto Chanel (EMI Reliquias)     Corrientes y Esmeralda — Sus Exitos con Roberto Chanel (EMI Reliquias)

Osvaldo Pugliese con Alberto Moran     Pasional — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon)

Osvaldo Pugliese con Jorge Maciel     Cascabelito — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon)     Remembranza — Ausencia  (EMI Odeon)

Transition Era

Transition-era tangos were recorded during an era in which the tango orchestras were shifting from dance music to concert music.  Transition-era music was built on the foundation developed by golden-era orchestras, and many of the transition era orchestras were led by musicians who led or played in the big-name orchestras of the golden age.  Those transition-era recordings useful for social dancing have a prominent dance beat.

Horacio Salgan     A Fuego Lento — Trayectoria  (Polygram)  and various other CDs

Juan Cambareri     Derecho Viejo — y su Quarteto 1952-1957  (Disco Latina discontinued)

Alfredo Gobbi     La Viruta — Instrumentales Inolvidables     Orlando Goñi — Instrumentales Inolvidables     Puro Apronte — Instrumentales Inolvidables     Racing Club — Instrumentales Inolvidables

Florindo Sassone     Rawson — Bien Milonguero Vol. 1  (EMI Reliquias)     Rodriguez Peña — Bien Milonguero Vol. 1  (EMI Reliquias)     Bar Exposicion — Bien Milonguero Vol. 1  (EMI Reliquias)     La Viruta — Bien Milonguero Vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)     Re Fa Si — Tangos de Oro  (espa)

Hector Varela con Argentino Ledesma     Fumando Espero — 20 Grandes Exitos  (Sony Columbia)

Carlos Garcia and Tango All Stars     Adios Nonino — Tango II  (JVC discontinued)     Verano Porteño — Tango II  (JVC discontinued)

Orquesta Franicini/Pontier     A Media Luz — Tango I  (JVC discontinued)

Raul Garello     Verano Porteño — Buenos Aires by Night (EMI compilation)

Anibal Troilo     Don Juan — RCA 100 Años  (BMG RCA)

New Tango

Building on the work of Anibal Troilo, Osvaldo Pugliese and Horacio Salgan, Astor Piazzolla led a revolution in concert-oriented tango music in which drama was heightened through rubato playing, pauses, and tempo changes.  The combined effect works well for tango dance performances, but can be outside the comfort zone for social dancing.   For social dancing, the most useful new-tango recordings combine some of Piazzolla's sensibilities with a tango dance beat that is sufficiently strong for modern ears.

New York Tango Trio     El Entrerriano — Cabarute  (Lyrichord)     Yuyito — Cabarute  (Lyrichord)     9 de Julio — Cabarute  (Lyrichord)

Tango Bar (Raul Jaurena musical director)     Nostalgico — Tango Bar (Chesky)

Litto Nebia Quinteto     Tango Canyengue — Tangos Argentinos de Enrique Cadicamo  (Iris)     Malandra — Tangos Argentinos de Enrique Cadicamo  (Iris)     Cabaret — Tangos Argentinos de Enrique Cadicamo  (Iris)     Nostalgias — Tangos Argentinos de Enrique Cadicamo  (Iris)

Trio Pantango     Silbando — Tango Argentino  (ARC)     Madame Ivonne — Tango Argentino  (ARC)

Hugo Diaz (harmonica)     Milonga Triste — The Tango Lesson  (Sony movie soundtrack)

Daniel Barenboim     Mi Buenos Aires Querido — Tangos Among Friends  (Teldec)

Gidon Kremer     Oblivion — Hommage à Piazzolla  (Nonesuch)

Quartango     Oblivion — Esprit (Justin Time)

Modern Dance Orquestas

Some modern tango orchestras, such as Color Tango, have returned to the dance beat that characterized the golden era of tango dance music.  The recordings made by modern dance orchestras typically have more intricate arrangements with a little more of a dramatic concert feel than those made during the golden era, but the dance beat is prominent and the fidelity is much better than on the old recordings.  In many ways, the music played by modern dance orquestas seems to be what might have developed had tango music and social dancing continued evolving together after the golden era.

Los Reyes del Tango     El Internado — La Ventana  (espa)     Felicia — La Ventana  (espa)     La Morocha — La Ventana  (espa)     A Media Luz — La Ventana  (espa)     El Choclo — La Ventana  (espa)

El Arranque     El Arranque — Tango  (Vaiven)     Zorro Gris — Tango  (Vaiven)     El Abrojito — Tango  (Vaiven)

Orquesta Color Tango     A Evaristo Carriego — Con Estilo de Bailar Vol. 2  (Techno Disc)

    Emancipacion — Con Estilo de Bailar Vol. 2  (Techno Disc)     Recuerdo — Con Estilo de Bailar Vol. 2  (Techno Disc)     Festejando — Con Estilo de Bailar (Techno Disc)     La Yumba — Con Estilo de Bailar  (Techno Disc)     Zum — Con Estilo para Bailar (Techno disc)     Yunta de Oro — Con Estilo de Bailar Vol. 3     Union Civica — Con Estilo de Bailar Vol. 3

Sexteto Sur     Tanguera — Libertango  (Victor Japan)

Tango Shows

Music from contemporary tango shows is designed to help professional dancers with considerable rehearsal time dazzle their audiences.  The music varies from full orchestration to smaller ensembles, but it is typically marked by fast tempos, rhythm changes and other dramatic devices developed in the progressive sound of Pugliese, Piazzolla and Salgan.  The best recordings for social dancing are similar to those made by later Pugliese orchestras.

Tango X 2     Gallo Ciego — Perfumes de Tango     Malvon — Una Noche de Tango     Mi Buenos Aires Querido — Perfumes de Tango

Forever Tango     La Tablada

Tango Argentino     Nostalgias

A Passion for Tango     Asi Se Baila El Tango     Cafetin de Buenos Aires

Tango Fusion

Tango fusion integerates traditional tango rhythms and instrumentation with other musical traditions, contemporary instruments and/or electronica to create a modern and culturally relevant world tango music, often with a dance-club sound.  With the musical genre being relatively new, the following listings may not prove to be classics in the sense of being timeless.

Carlos Libedinsky     Vi Luz y Subi — Narcotango     Plano Sequencia — Narcotango     Otra Luna — Narcotango

Gotan Project     Queremos Paz — La Revancha del Tango     Una Musica Brutal — La Revancha del Tango     Epoca — La Revancha del Tango

Bajofondo Tango Club     En Mi/Soledad — Bajofondo Tango Club     Perfume — Supervielle     Pulso — Supervielle     Air Concret — Supervielle     Centroja — Supervielle

Carla Pugliese     Ostinato — Ojos Verdes Cerrados

Mizrahi-Longhi     Youkali — Carne Argenta     Praga — Carne Argenta

Tanghetto     Una Llamada — Emigrante     Inmigrante — Emigrante

Electrocutango     Felino — Felino

Hi Perspective/Astor Piazzolla     El Tango — Astor Piazzolla Remixed or Aubade Leçons de Tango

Hybrid Tango     Mas de lo Mismo — Hybrid Tango

Tango Project     Sentimientos — Vol II New Tango     Buddy — Vol II New Tango

Ultratango     CiteTango — Astornauta

Buenos Aires Ensemble     La Cumparsita — Tango Chill Out     Chill en Buenos Aires — Tango Chill Out

Ewan McGregor, Jose Feliciano and Jacek Koman     El Tango de Roxanne — Moulin Rouge soundtrack

Milongas

Carlos Gardel     Milonga Sentimental — Antologia 60 Aniversario (RCA)

Francisco Lomuto     Parque Patricios — y su Orquesta Tipica  (BMG - Argentina 74321 27549-2)     No Hay Tierra Como la Mia — y su Orquesta Tipica  (BMG - Argentina 74321 27549-2)

Edgardo Donato     Ella Es Asi — A Media Luz  (El Bandoneon)

Francisco Canaro     Milonga Sentimental — La Melodia de Nuestro Adios (El Bandoneon)     Milonga del 900 — Todo Milonga (Club Tango Argentino 1051)     Silueta Porteña — La Melodia de Nuestro Adios (El Bandoneon)     Reliquias Porteñas — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango (Blue Moon)     Milonga Brava — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango (Blue Moon)     No Hay Tierra Como La Mia — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Cuando Un Viejo Se Enamora — Milongueando Con Canaro (EMI Relquias)     La Milonga de Buenos Aires — Grandes Exitos (EMI)     Milongon — Bailando Tangos, Valses y Milongas (EMI Reliquias)

Francisco Canaro y su Quiteto Pirincho     Orillera — Tangos del Tiempo Viejo  (EMI Reliquias)     El Torito — Tangos del Tiempo Viejo  (EMI Reliquias)

Juan D'Arienzo     De Pura Cepa — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)*     Milonga Vieja Milonga — Grandes del Tango Vol. 1 (Instrumental)/5 (Lantower)     El Esquinazo — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     Milonga del Corazon — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)     Estampa de Varon — Grandes del Tango Vol. 2 (Con Sus Cantores)/6 (Lantower)     El Temblor — El Rey del Compas  (El Bandoneon)     Milonga Querida — El Rey del Compas  (El Bandoneon)     La Cicatriz — Meta Fierro-Yunta Brava 1939-1940 (RCA 70 Años)     Candombe Oriental — 1940/1942 (Euro RCA)     Me Gusta Bailar Milonga — Corrientes y Esmeralda, 1944-1949 (RCA 70 Años)     La Espuela — Corrientes y Esmeralda, 1944-1949 (RCA 70 Años)     El Comandante — Vol. 21, 1952-1953  (Club Tango Argentino CTA 321)     Milonga Que Peina Canas — Tango Bravo (Tango Argentino)     El Potro — Corrientes y Esmeralda, 1944-1949 (RCA 70 Años)     La Puñalada — Tangos Para El Mundo, Vol. 2 (Tango Argentino)

*Also available at somewhat lower fidelity on Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol. 2 (Tango Argentino)

Rodolfo Biagi     Campo Afuera — Sus Exitos con Andrés Falgás y Teófilo Ibáñez (EMI Reliquias)     Picante — Su Orquesta y sus Cantores (EMI Reliquias)     Cantando Se Van Las Penas — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz, Vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)

    Flor de Montserrat — Sus Exitos con Alberto Amor  (EMI Reliquias)

Pedro Laurenz     Milonga Compadre — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Yo Soy de San Telmo — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Milonga de Mis Amores — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)

Ricardo Tanturi con Alberto Castillo     Mi Morocha — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)     Asi Es la Milonga — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)     Mozo Guapo — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)

Osvaldo Pugliese     Tortazos — Cantan Alberto Moran y Roberto Chanel (EMI Reliquias)     Un Baile A Beneficio — La Yumba  (EMI Odeon)

Alberto Castillo     Tortazos — Milongas Solo Milongas (Music Hall compilation)

Anibal Troilo     Mano Bravo — Troilo/Fiorentino  (Solo Tango)     Del Tiempo Guapo — Troilo/Fiorentino Vol. 2 (Solo Tango)     Ficha de Oro — Del Tiempo Guapo  (El Bandoneon)     Barrio del Tambor — Obra Completa En RCA Vol. 4 (RCA)     Milonga del Corralon — y Su Orquesta Tipica (BMG-RCA)     Milonga de la Parda — y Su Orquesta Tipica (BMG-RCA)

Miguel Caló     Milonga Antigua — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Azabache — Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Milonga Que Peina Canas — Sus Exitos con Podesta, Ortiz y Beron  (EMI Reliquias)

Angel D'Agostino     Todos Te Quieren — Con Vargas Y Otros 1943/1963  (RCA)

Carlos Di Sarli     Rosa Morena — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 3.  (Tango Argentino)     Zorzal — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 3.  (Tango Argentino)     La Mulateada — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 3.  (Tango Argentino)     Pena Mulata — Sus Primeros Exitos, Vol 1.  (Tango Argentino)

Lucio Demare     Carnavalito —  Tango Guapo  (El Bandoneon)

Juan Cambareri     Patio de Antaño — Milongas Solo Milongas (Music Hall compilation discontinued)

    Pena Mulata — y Su Cuarteto  (Disco Latina discontinued)

Orquesta Reliquias Porteñas     Baldosa Floja — Orquesta Reliquias Porteñas (Diapason SA - 1997)

Tango X 2     Corrales Viejo — Una Noche de Tango

Dan Diaz and the Tango Camerata     Milonga del 900 — Live at Stanford University

Valses

Francisco Rotundo     El Viejo Vals — El Viejo Vals  (Maestros del Tango Argentino BMT 004)

Francisco Canaro     Corazon de Oro — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Bajo El Cielo Azul —  Desde El Alma  (EMI Reliquias)     Yo No Se Que Me Han Hecho Tus Ojos — Tiempos Viejos  (Blue Moon)     Desde El Alma — Desde El Alma  (EMI Reliquias)     Rosa De Otoño — Los 100 Mejores Tangos, Milongas y Valses del Milenio, vol. 4  (El Bandoneon)     Muchacha — Tangos Inolvidables del '40  (EMI Reliquias)     Soñar y Nada Mas —  Tangos Inolvidables del '40  (EMI Reliquias)     Adios Juventud — La Melodia de Nuestro Adios (El Bandoneon)     Ronda del Querer — La Melodia de Nuestro Adios  (El Bandoneon)     Para Ti Madre — La Melodia de Nuestro Adios  (El Bandoneon)

Francisco Canaro y su Quinteto Pirincho     Vibraciones del Alma — Tangos del Tiempo Viejo  (EMI Reliquias)     El Trovero — Tangos del Tiempo Viejo, Vol. 4  (EMI Reliquias)     Francia — Tangos del Tiempo Viejo, Vol. 4  (EMI Reliquias)     Maria Esther — Tangos del Tiempo Viejo, Vol. 4  (EMI Reliquias)

Juan D'Arienzo     Amor y Celos — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)^     Corazon de Artista — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)     Lagrimas y Sonrisas — De Pura Cepa 1935-1936 (RCA 70 Años)     No Llores Madre — La Cumparsita  (El Bandoneon)

    Inolvidable — La Cumparsita  (El Bandoneon)     Mentías — Sus Primeros Exitos vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)     Valsecito de Antes — Grandes del Tango Vol. 3/23 (Lantower)     Valsecito Criollo — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)*     El Aeroplano — El Esquinazo 1937-1938 (RCA 70 Años)     Cabeza de Novia — Grandes del Tango Vol. 2 (Con Sus Cantores/6 (Lantower)     La Serenata de Ayer — El Rey del Compas 1941-1943 (RCA 70 Años)

*also available at somewhat lower fidelity on Sus Primeros Exitos Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino) ^also available on The Tango Lesson (Sony Movie Soundtrack)

Rodolfo Biagi     Paloma — Sus Exitos con Alberto Amor  (EMI Reliquias)*     Por Un Beso de Amor — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz, Vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)*     Cuatro Palabras — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz, Vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)*     Lagrimas y Sonrisas — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz  (EMI Reliquias)*     Amor y Vals — Valses Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias compilation)*

*also available on Al Compas del Vals (EMI Reliquias)

Pedro Laurenz     Mascarita — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Paisaje — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)     Mendocina — Milonga de Mis Amores  (El Bandoneon)

Anibal Troilo con Floreal Ruiz     Flor de Lino — Romance de Barrio  (Troilo en RCA Victor)     Romance de Barrio — Romance de Barrio  (Troilo en RCA Victor)     Llorarás, Llorarás — Maria  (Troilo en RCA Victor)     Palomita Blanca  — Quejas de Bandoneon  (Troilo en RCA Victor)

Ricardo Tanturi con Alberto Castillo     La Serenata —  Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)     Con Los Amigos — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)     Mi Romance — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)     Recuerdo — Tangos de Mi Ciudad  (Tango Argentino)

Miguel Caló     Bajo un Cielo de Estrellas — Valses Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias compilation)     Pedacito de Cielo — Valses Inolvidables  (EMI Reliquias compilation)     El Vals Soñador —  Al Compás del Corazón  (EMI Reliquias)     Flor de Lino — Sus Exitos con Raul Iriarte, vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)

Angel D'Agostino y Angel Vargas     Esquinas Porteñas — Tangos de los Angeles, Vol. 1  (Tango Argentino)

Carlos Di Sarli     Cortando Camino (1941 w/ Rufino) — Sus Primeros Exitos vol 3 (Tango Argentino)

    Rosamel (1940 w/ Rufino) — Sus Primeros Exitos vol 1 (Tango Argentino)     Ausencia (1940 w/ Volpe) — 1940-1943 (Collecion 78 RPM Euro RCA)     Sueño de Juventud (1945 w/ Duran) — 1943-1948 (Collecion 78 RPM Euro RCA)     De Vuelta (1947 w/ Podesta) — 1943-1948 (Collecion 78 RPM Euro RCA)         or Porteño y Bailarin (Maestros del Tango Blue Moon)     Estampa Federal (1942 w/ Podesta) — Sus Primeros Exitos vol 3 (Tango Argentino)     Acuerdate de Mi (1946 w/ Duran) — Porteño y Bailarin (Tango Argentino)         or El Señor del Tango (El Bandoneon)

Alfredo De Angelis     Pobre Flor — Los Dúos de Carlos Dante y Julio Martel (EMI Reliquias)     Soñar Nada Mas — Los Dúos de Carlos Dante y Julio Martel (EMI Reliquias)     Flores del Alma — Los Dúos de Carlos Dante y Julio Martel (EMI Reliquias)     A Magaldi — Los Dúos de Carlos Dante y Julio Martel (EMI Reliquias)     Olga — Los Primeros Instrumentales (EMI Reliquias)

Osvaldo Pugliese     Desde el Alma — Ausencia  (EMI)

Juan Cambareri     Lagrimas y Sonrisas —  y su Quarteto 1952-1957  (Disco Latina discontinued)

Hector Varela     Palomita Blanca — Buenos Aires de Noche  (EMI compilation)

Miguel Villasboas     Luna de Arrabal — Tango Rioplatense (StarMusic)     Angustias del Corazon — Tango Rioplatense (StarMusic)     Desde el Alma — Tango Rioplatense (StarMusic)

El Arranque     La Serenata de Ayer — Tango  (Vaiven)

Orquesta Color Tango     Ilusion de Mi Vida — from Con Estilo Para Bailar  (Techno Disc)     Maypa — from Timeless Tango  (EMI)

Tango X 2     Desde el Alma — Una Noche de Tango     Pobre Flor — Una Noche de Tango

Lalo Schifrin Orquesta     Corazon de Oro — Tango  (Deutsche Grammophon movie soundtrack)

La Cumparsita

    Roberto Firpo — De La Guardia Vieja  (EMI Reliquias)     Los Tubatango — Una Noche de Garufa  (Music Hall)     Francisco Lomuto — Great Orchestras of Tango’s Golden Age  (Harlequin compilation)     Francisco Canaro — Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango  (Blue Moon)     Juan D'Arienzo — Sus Primeros Exitos  (Tango Argentino)     Juan D'Arienzo — Tangos Para El Mundo  (Tango Argentino)     Rodolfo Biagi — Sus Exitos con Jorge Ortiz, Vol. 2  (EMI Reliquias)     Angel D'Agostino y Angel Vargas — Tangos de Los Angeles, Vol. 2  (Tango Argentino)     Pedro Laurenz — Instrumental Tangos of the Golden Age  (Harlequin compilation)

    Carlos Di Sarli — Instrumental  (Tango Argentino)     Anibal Troilo — Instrumental  (Tango Argentino)     Los Porteños — Tangos de Siempre  (Seyer)     Alfredo De Angelis — From Argentina to the World  (EMI)     Orquesta Francini Pontier — Tangos I  (JVC)     Florindo Sassone — Bien Milonguero, vol. 2     Carlos Garcia — Tangos II  (JVC)     Tango X 2 Orquesta — Una Noche de Tango     Anibal Troilo — RCA Victor 100 Años     New York Buenos Aires Connection — The New Tango  (VAI Audio)     Quinteto Francisco Canaro — Quinteto Francisco Canaro  (Melopea Discos)

Acknowledgments and Comments

More than 20 people—Dan Boccia, Steve and Susan Brown, Mark Celaya, Keith Elshaw, Christopher Everett, Al Garvey, Alberto Gesualdi, Graciela Gonzalez, Robert Hauk, Tine Herreman, Christoph Lanner, Mike Lavocah, Polly McBride, Carole McCurdy, Andrea Missé, Matej Oresic, Daniel Saindon, Astrid Sato, Dave Schmitz, Tom Stermitz, Florencia Taccetti, Peter Turowski and Ruddy Zelaya have contributed to the current list, and their contributions have been significant.  All listings have been at my discretion, however, and I bear all responsibility for any shortcomings of the list.

More work remains to be done to make the list of classics of tango dance music the best resource it can be and to keep it up to date as new CDs are released and others go out of production.  I opened the list for public viewing with the idea that it would never be perfect and that public scrutiny would help improve it as a resource.

One of the issues in developing a list like the classics of tango dance music is assessing recording quality and availability.  If such a list is to be useful to the readership, it ought to consist of great tango, milonga and vals music on readily available CDs with the highest sound quality.

With sound quality in mind, I listed a number of Troilo recordings as coming from the Troilo en RCA Victor series, Troilo/Fiorentino (Solo Tango) and Instrumental (Tango Argentino) rather than the much lower fidelity El Inmortal Pichuco (El Bandoneon).  The El Bandoneon release is actually somewhat more available because it can be found in some stores.  The other two recordings typically have to be mail ordered from businesses like Juan Fabbri's The Tango Catalogue in the United States, Mike Lavocah's milonga.co.uk in the United Kingdom, or Zival's in Buenos Aires.  For a tango enthusiast or dj, that is probably not too much trouble.

For those recordings where the only available recording is on a CD that has gone out of print, I have retained the listing because it remains the only source.  People can better find out-of-print CDs (such as those on the EMI Pampa, Disco Latina or Music Hall labels) if they know to look for them.  When a good alternative to an out-of-print CD becomes available, I will list the new CD.

For only a few classics, privately issued CD-Rs seem to be the only source.  Privately issued CD-Rs are likely to be on shaky legal ground—even when they are compiled from vintage recordings that are 50 years old or older.  All commercial labels either own or pay for the rights to the material they release.  Several commercial labels have obtained the rights to produce CDs from vintage recordings that were originally issued by other companies by paying nominal licensing fees to an international agency—but without paying any royalties to the original artists or recording companies.  A few other commercial labels have obtained the rights to produce their CDs by contracting directly with the original recording companies.  In contrast, private CD-Rs may have been created without the payment of any licensing fees or royalties.

The sound quality on private CD-Rs ranges from terrible to better than that found on some commercial releases.  Availability can be a difficult issue for privately issued CD-Rs because they are typically only available from the individual producer.  In this electronic age, contacting and ordering CD-Rs directly from some producers is relatively easy.  Other CD-Rs may require a bit of work to track down.  With availability and legality in mind, I have listed commercial recordings whenever possible and privately issued CD-Rs only when absolutely necessary.

Tango Argentino de Tejas

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Tango Lyrics in Spanish and English www.planet-tango.com

LA MOROCHAThe brunette (1905) Music by: Ernesto SaboridoLyrics by: Angel VilloldoTranslated by: Alberto Paz Return to Table of Contents

Last Updated: 12/20/00

La Morocha is credited with creating one of the first Tango explosions in Europe sometime around 1906 when Argentine graduates from the Naval Academy carried with them freshly printed music sheets of La Morocha. The nickname "morocha" is commonly used in Argentina to describe women of swarthy complexion with dark hair. The inspiring "morocha" allegedly was one Lola Candales, a professional dancer with a pleasant voice. Enrique Saborido composed the music and Angel Villoldo wrote the lyrics in a few hours on Christmas morning of 1905 at a bar where bohemian artists hung out after hours. There is a nationalistic and somehow chauvinistic undertone in the description of a day in the life of the "ideal" female partner. She is up before sunrise busy boiling the water and filling up the mate gourd with "yerba" to offer the bitter concoction (cimarron) to the countrymen, supposedly on their way to work the land. She is happy at home, singing, feeling in love and saving herself for her "owner." She sings to the Pampero (a westerly wind of the pampas), to her beloved country (she is also a patriot!) and to the faithful one who owns her heart.  

Version en castellano English versionYo soy la Morocha la más agraciada, la más renombrada de esta población. Soy la que al paisano muy de madrugada brinda un cimarron.

Yo, con dulce acento, junto a mi ranchito, canto un estilito

I am the Morocha the most graceful, the most renowed of this village. I'm the one who to the countryman very early in the morning offers an unsweetened mate.

I, with a sweet accent, near to my little hut, sing a estilito

con tierna pasion, mientras que mi dueño sale al trotecito en su redomon.

Soy la morocha argentina, la que no siente pesares, y alegre pasa la vida con sus cantares. Soy la gentil compañera del noble gaucho porteño, la que conserva la vida para su dueño.

Yo soy la morocha de mirar ardiente, la que en su alma siente el fuego de amor. Soy la que al criollito mas noble y valiente ama con ardor.

En mi amado rancho, bajo la enramada en noche plateada, con dulce emoción le canto al pampero, a mi patria amada y a mi fiel amor.

Soy la morocha argentina, la que no siente pesares y alegre pasa la vida con sus cantares. Soy la gentil compañera del noble gaucho porteño, la que conserva el cariño para su dueño.

with tender passion, while my owner goes at a trot on his half-trained horse.

I am the Argentine brunette, the one who does not feel regrets, and spend life happy with her singing. I am the gentle partner of the noble porteño gaucho, the one who saves her life for her owner.

I am the brunette of burning gaze, the one who feels in her soul the fire of love. I am the one who, to the little Creole, the more honest and bravest, loves with warmth.

In my beloved hut, under the arbour on silvery nights, with sweet emotion I sing to the wind, to my beloved country and to my faithful love.

I am the Argentine brunette, the one who does not feel regrets, and spends life happy with her singing. I am the gentle partner of the noble porteño gaucho, the one who saves her affection for her owner. 

TodotangoNo other tango so strongly influenced by zarzuela, among those of the early period of the genre, lasted in the repertoires with the same strength like Saborido's and Villoldo's "La Morocha". Its incomparable story embraces all the generations of female performers of tango. In fact, it unites two extremes: Flora Hortensia Rodríguez de Gobbi and Susana Rinaldi.

About the circumstances of its premiere, Enrique Saborido himself provided different versions, but which are not irreconcilable.Raúl Lafuente, based on an interview published in the newspaper Crítica on November 1, 1925, affirms that "La Morocha" was dedicated to the members of the Ball Club on 400 Piedras Street and was premiered at the local Tarana, previously called Hansen, where «by that time Saborido headed a trio that included the latter on piano, Genaro Vázquez on violin and Benito Masset on flute».In the same edition of Cuadernos de Difusión del Tango that includes Lafuente's work, the collector Eduardo Visconti transcribes, from his personal archives, an interview published in Caras y Caretas on September 1, 1928, in which Saborido affirms that "La Morocha" was premiered by Lola Candales. Undoubtedly that could have been an informal premiere, presumably at the Bar Reconquista, prior to the performance of the trio that Crítica mentions. The interview of Caras y Caretas that here we transcribe, also details the history of its birth:«-Was the tango inspired, maybe, by a pretty little criolla of that time?Saborido thinks. It seems that in his mind there is a revival of scenes of that unforgettable time.-By that time the Bar Reconquista run by the popular Ronchetti still existed. I used to go there frequently and also the pretty Uruguayan dancer named Lola Candales used to go...

- Was she your muse?- I will tell you. One night the rendezvous was extremely lively. Among the patrons were the boys Victorica, Argerich, the deputy Félix Rivas and others. As they noticed that I was very delighted with Lola who was an exquisite brunette, they challenged me by saying that I would not be able to write a tango that she could sing successfully. The spree went on and, already at dawn, we all left the local. I went to bed and I was about to fall asleep when I remembered the challenge.

- And right away did you write your tango?- At once. It was five o'clock, and I sat down at the piano. At half past six I had already composed the piece. One hour later I was at the place of my friend Ángel Villoldo requesting him that he would write the lyrics. By ten in the morning, lyrics and music matched and, at noon we both went to visit Lola.

- To play the new tango for her?- So it was. She learned it by heart, she rehearsed it and that evening, in front of all that memorable coterie, she herself sang it for the first time.

- A complete victory!- Absolutely. She had to repeat it eight times, among the applause of the audience, and the deputy Rivas sent 200 pesos to Lola as a prize for her success.

- And later?- I took it to Luis Rivarola who was the main music publisher. He printed it and, one month later, everybody in Buenos Aires was singing it, I think, like a tango was never sung before. It was an unexpected triumph, and few times I felt as happy as then.»Let us say that Héctor and Luis Bates, stemming from an interview of 1935 with Saborido, included in their Historia del Tango (History of Tango), date the birth of "La morocha" at the Christmas of 1905.As for the conditions of publishing of this tango, the versions are contradictory. Again Lafuente, based on Crítica, affirms: «Immediately after he composed it, he took it to the Rivarola publishing house and he assigned his royalties to the publisher. The latter rewarded him by giving him a piano and paid a voyage to Montevideo for our man.»But the Bates, on the other hand, denounce: «Published by Rivarola, 280.000 copies were sold at $0.70 each. However, for Saborido "La Morocha" didn't mean a single cent. Nonsense, inconceivable but exact! An individual, alluding rights that nobody had given to him, turned up at the Odeon company, saying that, as Saborido was dead(?), he was the only one authorized to have and to hold the tango piece. Firstly recorded by Mrs. Gobbi, and after that "authorization" by almost all the orchestras and singers, the supposed executor collected all the rights. For the composer was only left the glory.»Certainly, in any case, Saborido was very far from obtaining with "La morocha" a proportional benefit to the enormous level of spread of the tango piece.Villoldo died in 1919. Saborido, in 1941. At different times, both ended up traveling to Europe and, at least, had the satisfaction of seeing their tango internationally known. Because "La morocha" is regarded as the first tango sheetmusic for export, the first one that crossed the Atlantic, a few months after its original publication, around 1906. «The Sarmiento frigate was on its second voyage to Europe -say the Bates-, and it carried 1,000 copies of the tango, leaving them in all the harbors of its route.»

Besides the original and consecrated lyric, Villoldo wrote other words on the music of "La morocha" that were recorded either by himself or by his buddy Alfredo Gobbi Sr. Firstly, a slight adaptation exists for a male singer of which the two players left renditions. This lyric replaces "Yo soy la morocha" by "Tengo una morocha" and, systematically, changes the first person by the third person, without other essential modifications.But, also, Villoldo used the music of that tango to write and to record "La suba de alquileres", a humorous request from a tenant to the owner of a tenement house. In fact, it is an ardent protest against the rent increases. In like manner, Gobbi sang and committed to record "Los mamertos", with the same music that is the remote antecedent of "De puro curda" and of the many tangos with that subject matter.Returning to the original lyrics, in works by Eduardo Romano and Ricardo Ostuni there are references to a possible source of inspiration. These authors point out that at the beginning of 1905, that is to say, before the birth of this tango, the magazine Caras y Caretas published a poem titled La morocha, written by Francisco Aníbal Riu that says: "Yo soy la gracia argentina/con mi garbo de morocha/la que un poema derrocha/de flores cuando camina..." (I am the Argentine grace/with my brunette's garb/the one who boasts a poem /of flowers when she walks...) The coincidences are more than suggestive.Among the singers that recorded "La morocha", besides those above mentioned, let us highlight the forgotten pioneer Linda Thelma and the legendary Lola Membrives. Ada Falcón recorded it on two occasions with Francisco Canaro's orchestra: as vocalist and as soloist. It was as well recorded, at different periods, by Mercedes Simone, Libertad Lamarque, Virginia Luque and Lolita Torres. In instrumental versions it was recorded by the orchestras led by Juan D' Arienzo and Carlos Di Sarli.Saborido himself tried, without too much luck, to reissue the success of La Morocha with a new tango entitled "La hija de la Morocha."It is not the only tango linked to the one that concerns us. Around 1906 a piece was published with the following titles: "Yo soy la Rubia", Tanguito criollo. Response to La Morocha. Maybe the main curiosity is that lyrics and music were written by a woman, with noble title: the baroness Eloísa D'Herbil de Silva. Ricardo Ostuni reconstructed, through diverse sources, the history of this singular figure. She was the daughter of the French baron Joseph D'Herbil and the Portuguese duchess Raquel Angel de Cadia. She was born in Cuba in 1852 and she lived in Argentina since her childhood; she was a pianist and composer. Her lines, inspired by those of "La morocha", introduce the variant of roguish remarks: "Yo soy la rubia gentil/la de los cabellos oro/la que conserva un tesoro/en su lánguido mirar./Yo soy la rubia ideal/la que soñando la vida/a sus

placeres convida/con su risa angelical./Tengo la gracia de la porteña/tengo de la francesa todo su chic/de la española tengo el salero/y de la rubia inglesa su dulce flirt./Soy cariñosa, soy hacendosa/y sé hacer unas cosas!/que sí que no./Cantar, bailar, coser, bordar y un mate amargo también cebar... (I am the gentle blond/the one with the golden hair/the one who hides a treasure/in her languid look. / I am the ideal blond/the one who day dreaming/ invites others to her pleasures/ with her angel's laugh. / I have the grace of the porteña/ from the French girl all her charm/ from the Spaniard I have the wit/ and from the English blond her sweet flirt. / I am affectionate, I am a hard-working girl/and I know how to do such things!/oh yes, oh no. / like singing, dancing, sewing, embroidering and serving a bitter drink...)καμία άλλη ταγκό έτσι επηρεάζεται έντονα από Zarzuela, μεταξύ εκείνων της πρώιμης περιόδου του είδους, κράτησε στο ρεπερτόριο με την ίδια δύναμη όπως της Saborido Villoldo και "La Morocha". Ασύγκριτη ιστορία της αγκαλιάζει όλες τις γενιές των γυναικών καλλιτεχνών του tango. Στην πραγματικότητα, αυτό που ενώνει τα δύο άκρα: Φλώρα Hortensia Rodríguez de Gobbi και Σουζάνα Rinaldi.Σχετικά με τις συνθήκες της πρεμιέρας του, ο ίδιος ο Enrique Saborido παρέχονται διαφορετικές εκδόσεις, αλλά οι οποίες δεν είναι ασυμβίβαστες.

Ραούλ Lafuente, βασίζεται σε μια συνέντευξή του που δημοσιεύεται στην εφημερίδα Crítica την 1η Νοεμβρίου 1925, επιβεβαιώνει ότι «Λα Morocha" ήταν αφιερωμένη στα μέλη του Club μπάλα σε 400 Piedras Street και έκανε πρεμιέρα στο τοπικό Tarana, που ονομαζόταν παλαιότερα Χάνσεν, όπου «από εκείνη τη στιγμή Saborido επικεφαλής ένα τρίο που περιλαμβάνονται στην τελευταία στο πιάνο, Genaro Vázquez στο βιολί και ο Μπενίτο Masset για φλάουτο».

Στην ίδια έκδοση της Cuadernos de Difusión Tango del που περιλαμβάνει το έργο Lafuente, ο συλλέκτης Eduardo Βισκόντι μεταγράφει, από προσωπικό του αρχείο, μια συνέντευξη που δημοσιεύθηκε στην Καράς y Caretas την 1η Σεπτεμβρίου 1928, στην οποία Saborido επιβεβαιώνει

ότι «La Morocha» έκανε την πρεμιέρα από Λόλα Candales. Αναμφίβολα αυτό θα μπορούσε να ήταν μια ανεπίσημη πρεμιέρα, κατά πάσα πιθανότητα στο μπαρ Reconquista, πριν από την παράσταση του τρίο ότι Crítica αναφέρει. Η συνέντευξη του Καράς Caretas y ότι εδώ έχουμε καταγράψει τα στοιχεία και την ιστορία της γέννησης:

«Ήταν το-εμπνευσμένο ταγκό, ίσως, από ένα όμορφο μικρό CRIOLLA εκείνης της εποχής;Saborido σκέφτεται. Φαίνεται ότι στο μυαλό του υπάρχει μια αναβίωση της σκηνές της εποχής αξέχαστες.-Μέχρι εκείνη τη στιγμή ο Δικηγορικός Σύλλογος Reconquista τρέχει από τη δημοφιλή Ronchetti εξακολουθούσε να υφίσταται. Πήγαινα συχνά και επίσης υπάρχει η όμορφη χορεύτρια της Ουρουγουάης που ονομάζεται Λόλα Candales χρησιμοποιείται για να πάει ...

- Ηταν μούσα σας;- Θα σας πω. Ένα βράδυ η συνάντηση ήταν εξαιρετικά έντονη. Μεταξύ των προστάτες ήταν τα αγόρια Victorica, Argerich, ο αναπληρωτής Φέλιξ Ρίβας και άλλοι. Καθώς παρατήρησα ότι ήταν πολύ ικανοποιημένος με την Λόλα, που ήταν ένα πανέμορφο μελαχρινή, που με προκάλεσε να πω ότι δεν θα είναι σε θέση να γράψετε ένα ταγκό ότι θα μπορούσε να τραγουδήσει με επιτυχία. Το γλέντι συνεχίστηκε και, ήδη την αυγή, αφήσαμε όλα τα τοπικά. Πήγα στο κρεβάτι και ήμουν έτοιμος να κοιμηθεί, όταν θυμήθηκα την πρόκληση.

- Και αμέσως δεν γράφετε ταγκό σας;- Σε μια φορά. Ήταν πέντε, και κάθισα στο πιάνο. Στη μισή τελευταία έξι είχα αποτελείται ήδη το κομμάτι. Μία ώρα αργότερα ήμουν στη θέση του φίλου μου του Ángel Villoldo ζητώντας ότι θα έγραφε τους στίχους. Από τις δέκα το πρωί, σε στίχους και μουσική και συμφωνημένα, το μεσημέρι και οι δύο πήγαν να επισκεφθούν Λόλα.

- Για να παίξετε το νέο τάνγκο για εκείνη;- Έτσι ήταν. Έχει μάθει από την καρδιά, εκείνη την πρόβα και το ίδιο βράδυ, μπροστά σε όλους εκείνη την αξέχαστη κλίκα, η ίδια το τραγούδησε για πρώτη φορά.

- Η ολοκληρωτική νίκη!- Απολύτως. Είχε να τα επαναλάβω οκτώ φορές, μεταξύ των χειροκρότημα του κοινού, καθώς και των αναπληρωτών Rivas έστειλε 200 πέσος για να Λόλα ως έπαθλο για την επιτυχία της.

- Και μετά;- Το πήρα με τον Luis Rivarola ο οποίος ήταν ο κύριος εκδότης μουσικής. Την εκτύπωση και, ένα μήνα αργότερα, ο καθένας στο Μπουένος Άιρες ήταν το τραγούδι, νομίζω, σαν ένα tango ποτέ ψαλλόταν πριν. Ήταν μια απρόσμενη νίκη, και μερικές φορές ένιωθα τόσο ευτυχής όπως και τότε. »

Ας πούμε ότι και ο Luis Héctor Μπέιτς, που απορρέουν από μια συνέντευξη του 1935 με Saborido, που περιλαμβάνονται στο Historia del Tango τους (Ιστορία του Ταγκό), σήμερα από τη γέννηση του "La morocha" στο Χριστούγεννα του 1905.

Ως προς τις προϋποθέσεις της έκδοσης αυτού του τάνγκο, οι εκδόσεις είναι αντιφατικές. Πάλι Lafuente, με βάση Crítica, επιβεβαιώνει: «Αμέσως μετά τον το συνθέτουν και το πήρε στο σπίτι Rivarola εκδόσεων και ανέθεσε τα δικαιώματα του στον εκδότη. Ο τελευταίος τον αντάμειψε με το δόσιμο του ενός πιάνου και πλήρωσε ένα ταξίδι στο Μοντεβιδέο για τον άνθρωπο μας. »

Αλλά ο Bates, από την άλλη πλευρά, να καταγγείλει: «Εκδόθηκε από Rivarola, 280,000 αντίτυπα πουλήθηκαν σε $ 0,70 η κάθε μία. Ωστόσο, για Saborido "La Morocha"

δεν σημαίνει ένα μόνο λεπτό. Ανοησίες, αλλά η ακριβής αδιανόητο! Ένα άτομο, αναφερόμενος δικαιώματα που κανείς δεν είχε δώσει σ 'αυτόν, εμφανίστηκε στην εταιρεία Odeon, λέγοντας ότι, όπως Saborido ήταν νεκρός (?), Ήταν ο μόνος που επιτρέπεται να έχει και να κρατήσει το κομμάτι τάνγκο. Πρώτον καταγράφονται από την κα Gobbi, και μετά από αυτή την "άδεια" από σχεδόν όλες τις ορχήστρες και τραγουδιστές, η υποτιθέμενη εκτελεστής συλλέγονται όλα τα δικαιώματα. Για τον συνθέτη έμεινε μόνο τη δόξα. »

Βεβαίως, σε κάθε περίπτωση, Saborido ήταν πολύ μακριά από την απόκτηση με την "La morocha" ένα ανάλογο όφελος για τον τεράστιο επίπεδο της εξάπλωσης της κομμάτι τάνγκο.

Villoldo πέθανε το 1919. Saborido, το 1941. Σε διαφορετικές χρονικές στιγμές, και οι δύο κατέληξαν να ταξιδεύουν στην Ευρώπη και, τουλάχιστον, είχε την ικανοποίηση να δει τους τάνγκο διεθνώς γνωστό. Επειδή το "La morocha" θεωρείται ως το πρώτο sheetmusic tango για εξαγωγή, η πρώτη που διέσχισε τον Ατλαντικό, λίγους μήνες μετά την αρχική δημοσίευσή της, γύρω από το 1906. «Η φρεγάτα Σαρμιέντο ήταν το δεύτερο ταξίδι του στην Ευρώπη-λένε-ο Bates, και μετέφερε 1.000 αντίγραφα του ταγκό, αφήνοντάς τους σε όλα τα λιμάνια της διαδρομής του.»

Εκτός από το πρωτότυπο και καθαγιάστηκε λυρική, Villoldo έγραψε άλλα λόγια για τη μουσική της "La morocha» που καταγράφηκαν από τον ίδιο ή από τον φίλο του, Αλφρέντο Gobbi πρεσβύτερος Πρώτον, μια μικρή προσαρμογή υπάρχει για έναν άντρα τραγουδιστή των οποίων οι δύο παίκτες αριστερά παραδόσεις . Αυτή η λυρική αντικαθιστά "Yo σόγιας la morocha" από το "Una morocha Tengo» και, συστηματικά, αλλάζει το πρώτο πρόσωπο από το τρίτο πρόσωπο, χωρίς άλλες

ουσιαστικές τροποποιήσεις.

Αλλά, επίσης, Villoldo χρησιμοποιείται η μουσική του τάνγκο να γράφουν και να καταγράφουν "Λα Suba de alquileres», μια χιουμοριστική αίτημα από έναν ενοικιαστή στον ιδιοκτήτη ενός σπιτιού κατοικιών. Στην πραγματικότητα, αποτελεί ένα σθεναρό διαμαρτυρία ενάντια στις αυξήσεις των ενοικίων. Με τον ίδιο τρόπο, τραγούδησε Gobbi και δεσμεύεται για την εγγραφή "Λος mamertos", με την ίδια μουσική, που είναι ο πρόγονος της εξ αποστάσεως "De curda puro» και των πολλών ταγκό με το εν λόγω θέμα.

Επιστρέφοντας στους πρωτότυπους στίχους, στα έργα του Εντουάρντο Ρομάνο και ο Ρικάρντο Ostuni υπάρχουν αναφορές σε μια πιθανή πηγή έμπνευσης. Αυτές οι συντάκτες επισημαίνουν ότι στις αρχές του 1905, δηλαδή, πριν από τη γέννηση αυτού του ταγκό, το περιοδικό Caras y Caretas δημοσίευσε ένα ποίημα με τίτλο La morocha, γραμμένο από τον Francisco Aníbal Riu που λέει: "Yo σόγιας la Gracia Αργεντινή / con mi Γκάρμπο de morocha / la que un poema derrocha / de Flores Cuando camina ... " (Είμαι ο Αργεντινός χάρη / μελαχρινή με περιβολή μου / αυτός που μπορεί να υπερηφανεύεται για ένα ποίημα / των λουλουδιών όταν περπατά ...) Οι συμπτώσεις είναι περισσότερο από ό, τι υποδηλώνουν.

Μεταξύ των τραγουδιστών που καταγράφονται "La morocha", εκτός από αυτά που αναφέρονται παραπάνω, ας τονίζουν την ξεχασμένη πρωτοπόρος Λίντα Θέλμα και τα θρυλικά Membrives Λόλα. Άντα Falcón να καταγράφεται σε δύο περιπτώσεις με την ορχήστρα Φρανσίσκο Canaro: ως τραγουδιστής και ως σολίστας. Ήταν επίσης καταγραφεί, σε διαφορετικές περιόδους, από τη Mercedes Simone, Libertad Lamarque, Βιρτζίνια Luque και Λολίτα Τόρες. Στην οργανικές εκδόσεις που καταγράφηκε από τις ορχήστρες με επικεφαλής τον Χουάν

Arienzo προσφέρει Δ »και ο Carlos Di Sarli.

Saborido ίδιος προσπάθησε, χωρίς πολλή τύχη, να επανεκδώσει την επιτυχία της La Morocha με ένα νέο τάνγκο με τίτλο «La Hija de la Morocha."

Δεν είναι μόνο το τάνγκο συνδέεται με εκείνο που μας αφορά. Γύρω στο 1906 ένα κομμάτι δόθηκε στη δημοσιότητα με τους ακόλουθους τίτλους: "Yo σόγιας la Rubia», Tanguito Criollo. Απάντηση σε Λα Morocha. Ίσως ο κύριος περιέργεια είναι ότι οι στίχοι και η μουσική γράφτηκαν από μια γυναίκα, με την ευγενή τίτλο: η βαρόνη D'Eloisa Herbil de Silva. Ρικάρντο Ostuni ανακατασκευάστηκε, μέσω διαφόρων πηγών, την ιστορία αυτού του μοναδικού σχήμα. Ήταν η κόρη του Γάλλου βαρώνου D'Herbil Ιωσήφ και της Πορτογαλικής δούκισσα Raquel Angel de Cadia. Γεννήθηκε στην Κούβα το 1852 και έζησε στην Αργεντινή από την παιδική ηλικία της? Ήταν ένας πιανίστας και συνθέτης. Γραμμές της, εμπνευσμένα από εκείνες του "La morocha», εισάγει την παραλλαγή του παρατηρήσεις πανούργος: "Yo σόγιας la Rubia Gentil / la de los Cabellos Oro / la que un διατήρησης Tesoro / en su lánguido mirar / Yo σόγιας la Rubia ιδανικό /. que la soñando La Vida / a sus placeres convida / con su Risa αγγελική. / Tengo la Gracia de la Porteña / tengo de la francesa todo su σικ / de la española tengo el salero / y de la Rubia Inglesa su dulce φλερτάρουν. / σόγιας cariñosa, σόγια hacendosa / y hacer Sé unas cosas! / que si que no. / Cantar, Bailar, coser, bordar y un σύντροφο Amargo también cebar ... (Είμαι ο ξανθός ευγενής / ο ένας με τα χρυσά μαλλιά / το ένα που κρύβει έναν θησαυρό / στην νωθρό βλέμμα της. / είμαι ο ιδανικός ξανθό / αυτός που ονειρεύεται την ημέρα / προσκαλεί άλλους να απολαύσεις του / της με γέλιο άγγελος της. / έχω τη χάρη του Porteña / από την Γαλλίδα όλα γοητεία της / από τον Ισπανό έχω την / πνεύμα και από την αγγλική ξανθιά γλυκό φλερτ της. / είμαι στοργικός,

είμαι ένας σκληρά εργαζόμενος κορίτσι / και ξέρω πώς να κάνω τέτοια πράγματα! / Ω ναι, αμ δε. / σαν το τραγούδι , χορό, το ράψιμο, κέντημα και εξυπηρετούν ένα πικρό ποτό ...)

A mi morochaEstilotodotangoMusic: Carlos Gardel / José Razzano Lyric: Alberto Vacarezza

Por la morocha gentil de negros pelos trenzaos,la de labios coloraos, como pimpollo de abril,la que ha sido en el sentir, envidia de los colores,la que ha nacido entre flores y se ha arrullao con la luna,criolla dormida en la cuna del alma de mis amores.

Yo te vi en los juncales y al mirar que tus ojazos,lanzaban vivos chispazos como rayos infernales,me dejaste las señales de no sé qué maravilla,pues en la cercana orilla, al verte cruzar, ¡paloma!florecieron en la loma, hasta el cardo y la gramilla...

Pero qué duro es mi hablar, me diste a tomar morena,que no adivino la pena que el pecho me halla sin mal,y es el recuerdo sagrao de tus ojazos, mis soles,que me han sacao a tirones, esta pasión que me embruja,decime ¿quién te hizo bruja pa’ envenenar corazones?...

MI MOROCHA lyricsLYRICS: VilloldoMUSIC: Villoldo

Tengo una morochaque me apasionala mas mentadade la poblacionsiempre me despiertamuy de madrugadacon un cimarron

para gente tristebajo su ranchitopantalon chiquitomuestra de pasionmuestra que lo pasapasa al trotecitoes mi revocon

Es la morocha argentinala que no tiene pesaresy alegre pasa la vidacon sus cantareses la gentil compañeradel noble gaucho porteñola que conserva el cariñopara su dueño.

Es mi morochitade mirar ardienteque canta siempreel fuego de amores una criollitacual noble y valientey ama con ardor.

El dolor del ranchobajo la enramadaen noche plateadacon dulce emocionle cantó al pamperoa la patria amadasu cantar de amor.

Es la morocha argentinala que no tiene pesaresy alegre pasa la vidacon sus cantareses la gentil compañeradel noble gaucho porteñola que conserva el cariñopara su dueño.

Έχω μια μελαχρινήΕίμαι παθιασμένοςη πιο mentedτου πληθυσμούΠάντα ξυπνάωπολύ νωρίςένα Cimarronλυπημένος για τους ανθρώπουςκάτω από την καλύβα τουμικροσκοπικά εσώρουχαοθόνες του πάθουςδείχνει τι συμβαίνειπερνά σε τρέξιμοΕίναι revocon μου

Η Αργεντινή είναι η μελαχρινήπου δεν έχει προβλήματακαι ευτυχισμένη ζωή περνάμε τα τραγούδια τουείναι η απαλή εταίροςη ευγενής Gaucho Μπουένος Άιρεςη οποία διατηρεί την αγάπηγια τον ιδιοκτήτη του.

Είναι το κορίτσι της χώρας μουγια να δούμε ζεστόπάντα τραγουδώνταςη φωτιά της αγάπηςείναι μια CRIOLLAπου ευγενικός και γενναίοςκαι αγαπά με πάθος.

Ο πόνος του αγροκτήματοςκάτω από την κληματαριάσε ασημί νύχταμε γλυκό συναίσθηματραγούδησε pampero

η αγαπημένη χώρατο τραγούδι της αγάπης του.

Η Αργεντινή είναι η μελαχρινήπου δεν έχει προβλήματακαι ευτυχισμένη ζωή περνάμε τα τραγούδια τουείναι η απαλή εταίροςη ευγενής Gaucho Μπουένος Άιρεςη οποία διατηρεί την αγάπηγια τον ιδιοκτήτη του.

Product: Mi morocha ||

TINP: 02480002735755product artist:product collection: Disco Zonofono (Black & Gold Label)

date:catalog number: 13714EAN:

Disc Id: A 161/Disc qty: 2Track qty: 2tango.info/wiki: /wiki/02480002735755 - no content yettango.info tagging: /tools/tagger1.3.2 shops/producer: -

TracksD# T# Title Genre Orchestra Vocalists Perf date Duration info1 1 Mi morocha tango Ángel Villoldo

Work: La morochaTIWC: T0370019774Genre: tango

Alternative name(s):

http://eng.tango.info/T0370019774

Date: 1905

Composer: Enrique Saborido

Lyricist: Ángel Villoldo

SADAIC work number:

2007

Title in ISWC format:

LA MOROCHA

TracksSee: /tracks/T0370019774

Performances

Ads

# Title Orchestra Vocalists Perf dateTrac

k qty

Duration info

1 La morocha Ada Falcón 1 02:59 info2 La morocha Libertad Lamarque 5 info3 La morocha Libertad Lamarque 1928 1 info4 La morocha Mercedes Simone 1951 1 info5 La morocha Susana Rinaldi 1 info6 La morocha Susana Rinaldi 1980--1981 1 03:55 info7 La morocha - 1 02:27 info8 La morocha Alfredo De Angelis - 1981 1 03:15 info9 La morocha Alfredo Malerba Libertad Lamarque 2 02:22 info10 La morocha Alfredo Malerba Libertad Lamarque 1938 1 info11 La morocha Alfredo Malerba Libertad Lamarque 1938-12-15 3 02:21 info12 La morocha 1 info13 La morocha Ranko Fujisawa 1953 1 02:32 info14 La morocha Carlos Di Sarli - 1941 1 info15 La morocha Carlos Di Sarli - 1941--1954 4 02:41 info16 La morocha Carlos Di Sarli - 1941-11-20 3 02:36 info17 La morocha Carlos Di Sarli - 1951 2 02:45 info18 La morocha Carlos Di Sarli - 1951-09-26 1 02:48 info19 La morocha Carlos Di Sarli - 1951-11 1 02:43 info20 La morocha Carlos Di Sarli - 1954-09-28 3 02:44 info21 La morocha Ranko Fujisawa 1 info22 La morocha

(1)Francisco Canaro Ada Falcón 1929 1 info

23 La morocha Francisco Canaro Ada Falcón 1929 15 03:03 info24 La morocha

(2)Francisco Canaro Ada Falcón 1929 1 info

25 La morocha Francisco Canaro Ada Falcón 1929-07-24 4 03:02 info26 La morocha Roberto Firpo 2 info27 La morocha Roberto Firpo - 1 02:07 info28 La morocha Roberto Firpo - 1950-11-21 1 02:01 info29 La morocha Roberto Firpo - 1951 1 02:04 info30 La morocha José Basso - 1970 2 info31 La morocha Juan Cambareri - 1949-11 1 02:14 info32 La morocha Juan D'Arienzo - 1937--1963 5 02:33 info33 La morocha Juan D'Arienzo - 1937-12-21 7 02:29 info34 La morocha Juan D'Arienzo - 1949-04-06 5 02:26 info35 La morocha Juan D'Arienzo - 1963-11-13 5 info36 La morocha Juan Félix Maglio 1 info37 La morocha Juan Félix Maglio 1912--1913 1 03:28 info38 La morocha Libertad Lamarque Libertad Lamarque 1 info39 La morocha 1 info40 La morocha Miguel Villasboas 2 02:15 info41 La morocha Miguel Villasboas - 1 02:15 info42 La morocha Florindo Sassone 1 info43 La Morocha Florindo Sassone - 1 02:56 info44 La morocha Roberto Firpo - 3 02:04 info

# Title Orchestra Vocalists Perf dateTrac

k qty

Duration info

45 La morocha Roberto Firpo - 1938 1 02:05 info46 La morocha Roberto Firpo - 1950-11-21 1 02:01 info47 La morocha 1 info48 La morocha Héctor Varela - 1 02:47 info49 La morocha Héctor Varela - 1955 1 info50 La morocha Héctor Varela - 1964 1 02:46 info51 La morocha Quinteto Pirincho,

dir. Francisco Canaro- 1959-04-22 2 02:12 info

52 La morocha Sexteto Tango 1 info53 La morocha Los Tubatango - 1 02:21 info

http://tangodj.blogspot.com/ January 01, 2005Milonga kit - metanda 1 These meta-sets aren't easy to make. I'm just putting together those I can use, and I'll analyze them later. Here's the first CD:

[Tango - early, medium speed Di Sarli] Verdemar : Di Sarli Porteño Y Bailarin : Di Sarli Duelo Criollo : Di Sarli Tu Intimo Secreto : Di Sarli

*Cortina* Chuluchululu : Bula Fiji Bula

[Tango - early, medium speed D'Arienzo] Compadron : D'Arienzo Dime Mi Amor : D'Arienzo Uno : D'Arienzo Ya Lo Ves : D'Arienzo

*Cortina* Valse Lento : Quadro Nuevo

[Vals - Romantic Canaro] Bajo El Cielo Azul : Canaro El Trovero : Quinteto Pirincho Tristeza Criolla : Canaro Corazon De Oro : Canaro

*Cortina* Freddie Freeloader : Miles Davis

Thursday, January 13, 2011Foreshadowing and Alternative Tango Music I met an eclectic and tasteful musician to whom I described Alternative Tango music. Helpfully, he gave me some wonderful music to listen to ... really brilliant stuff: authentic and inventive ... with the hope that I might be able to use some of it.

I know I can dance to some of it. I go to a lot of alternative Tango events just for fun. So I can do it. But I'm "looking for new songs". Because the alternative tango songs get boring pretty quickly. Good tango music shouldn't be like that. The great traditional music, which generally has poor sound quality and no hint of modern sensibility, is still easy to dance to over and over again. Sometimes it gets tiring, but there's something in the structure of the music that gives it legs. Let's call it "S".

I finally have realized the reason Alternative Music doesn't inspire Tango for very long. It's because the special quality, "S", needed by Tango cannot be "discovered" in a song. The song needs to be composed and played with "S".

I've also finally realized the essence of "S". It is foreshadowing. You need to build the music, or the song, with a lively attempt to communicate to the dancer (which could be an appeal to instinct or to intellect) the thing that is coming next. This "S" is everywhere in Golden Age tango music. You can find hints of it in other music -- a rhythm, after all, conveys a kind of primitive S, but doesn't change, so it's not interesting "S".

I don't think there will be a new Golden Age for tango music (and perhaps not for Tango dancing) until we see a modern, complex, interesting and exciting movement of composers who are interested in the foreshadowing that dancers need to help them decide upon their next steps. posted by Greg Bryant at 3:11 PM 2 comments Wednesday, January 28, 2009The Sequence When I need to prepare a milonga quickly, this is what I do ... and this is the order I do it in ... it's an efficient morphogenesis ... the unfolding of the evening's structure. You don't need to do things in this order. But it might be worth trying this, if you think you have trouble in building coherent evenings.

1. Cortinas

I pick out two dozen cortinas for the evening, often from one or two albums, of the same musical genre. This adds unity to the evening. Then I put a line of stars in the comments section so they act as markers between tandas (sets) ... "cortina lines" which need to be filled with dance songs.

2. T-T-V-T-T-M

Except for some adjustments towards the end of an evening, I stick to the Tango-Tango-Vals-Tango-Tango-Milonga Tanda structure.

3. Starting Tango Tandas

I almost always pick the two Tango tandas that start the evening first. They need to be good, be fun for both the advanced dancers and the completely beginners, who stay on the floor after the introduction lesson.

4. Valses

Waltzes are quite a bit more scarce than tangos, so I find the Valse sets I'd like to play that evening, hoping to keep it exciting, while still playing favorites.

5. Milongas

Good Milongas are a bit more plentiful, thanks to a few hard workers like Canaro. I construct a few slow-to-fast Milonga tandas, and put them in their place in the evening's structure.

6. Tangos: moods and hits

Figure out how you'd like the mood to shift over the evening. Peppy to moody to tragic to nutty? Build tandas to fit the mood, or use tandas that you like and have set aside, including variants, as playlists you can just pull it.

While doing that, make sure that you make your more experienced dancers happy by providing songs they know. Tango hits.

7. Energy

Typically, you want to move from slow to fevered over the first two hours, with a few tandas here and there that step back before pushing faster, harder, tougher. But make sure there IS an overall energy, an overall flow threading its way through your songs. It seems incoherent to dancers if you play something slow, then something loud, then something quiet, then something far out. Use gradients instead, in all the dimensions you can think of.

8. Good endings

There are lots of ways to wind up. It depends somewhat on your crowd, but of course a truly amazing final tanda and song really make that possible. It's pretty common to put a La Cumparsita at the end of the last Tanda, without a cortina. If you do this, you need to cultivate your favorite Cumparsita's, and construct great Tandas that work well leading into that version. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:20 PM 2 comments Monday, January 26, 2009The Basics I just wrote this quick letter to a Tango instructor who is now considering Dj-ing a Saturday evening at the Tango Center.

"Hi,

Here are some DJ basics.

At the TC, we always start out with sets of Tango that are on the slow side, for the beginners' sake, with a steady beat but interesting enough for advanced dancers. The slow Di Sarli works well, but so do appropriate pieces by Calo, Canaro, De Angelis, Orchesta Tipica Victor, etc. Using fast tangos to start will fail, miserably.

Inside of most tandas (there are always exceptions) it's important to build up, from slow-to-fast. Think of a tanda as a story, typically with a climax. Also, it's important to put the most familiar or interesting songs at the beginning and at the end, to draw people onto the floor. Slow familiar songs at the start of a Tanda are always a good idea. But, super-exciting songs (Donato's El Huracan comes to mind) can also launch a tanda.

The tanda size that works best is three or four songs ... almost always of the same type of music (same band, same era, and of course, all Tango, all Vals or all Milonga) ... a consistent number (all three or all four) is more important than the actual number itself ... because people count songs. I always use four (except for milongas when I use three) but there's nothing wrong with three in Tango and Vals sets, if you always use three ...

The classic overall tanda structure is usually:

Tango(cortina)Tango(cortina)Vals(cortina)Tango(cortina)Tango(cortina)Milonga(cortina)

... then repeat ... this works really well.

To keep things interesting, it's important to avoid songs within a tanda that sound identical ... sometimes a band (Tanturi is a good example) will record two songs that essentially use the same rhythm, same tricks, the same key, the same singer, and a very similar melody. It's important to avoid putting those back-to-back! Also, you rarely want to play two covers of the same song near each other in an evening. There are lots of great songs ...

Good luck!" posted by Greg Bryant at 7:14 PM 1 comments Saturday, December 17, 2005Warmth

The Tango Center is over a 100,000 cubic feet of space. Right now, it's below freezing outside, and we have holes in the ceiling and vents in the roof ... so, until our ceiling is sealed (something we're working on), heating the place is very hard.

As the temperature drops to about 62 degrees fahrenheit (17 C) people start to complain about the cold. As it drops to 60 F, they start to bundle up. At 58 F, they get manic, and try to dance continously, energetically.

So I was wondering ... what kind of Tango music can keep people warm?

Recording "warm tones" is a real acoustic engineering challenge, even today. You need the right microphones, positioned carefuly, on the right instruments ... and a good ear for mixing. Some of the recordings of the "new acoustic movement" in the 1970's (David Grisman is an example) began to approach the true quality of warmth.

So, clearly the original tango recordings before this time won't achieve this quality. But some of the older stuff is quite sensitive and tender, and people will often 'read' the warmth into the playback.

But when the room is cold, that doesn't help a lot.

Much of the modern electronic music doesn't try to be warm, although it tends to sound warmer than the very brassy recordings of Tango from the 50's & 60's. Late De

Angelis, including one of my favorite pieces "Pavadita", sounds pretty cold in a cold room. The later Tango covers, like the post-Canaro, 1990's "F. Canaro Orquesta", sound even colder ... you can hear the pauses hanging in the air like icicles. Canaro would know better ... laying down lots of sound helps to make up for sound infidelity at all frequencies.

Luckily, with some late Piazzolla, we have explosive original pieces, semi-danceable, with good recording quality. If it's bitter cold, give them a try, at the end of each tanda. Then play some modern acoustic string instruments for cortinas. And the most romantic golden age songs you can find. That's the best I could come up with, on the spur of the moment yesterday.

I also threw in a Beach Boys song: "The Warmth of the Sun". posted by Greg Bryant at 2:53 PM 7 comments Sunday, December 11, 2005Different fusions For each of the 200 or more milongas at the Tango Center, the music, the mood, etc, has been marvelously different. They've been all good parties, certainly. At least judging by the happiness of the majority. Certainly, individuals have bad nights ... their dancing is off, everyone else's dancing is off, no one danced with them, the room's temperature wasn't right, something really irritated them, the music didn't please them, etc.

Most of that stuff is part of life. And most of that stuff "gets worked out" in the long run. Dancing improves, adaptive ability improves, the party's mood lifts you beyond small concerns and large troubles ... and the music? The musical mix finds its own level: something that pleases most people, most of the time, and teaches tolerance to the rest.

This level is different in different places. And in many places there's no levelling at all: at Portland's Wednesday Nocturnal milonga, you don't know what you'll get, because the DJ's all have very distinct ideas about what should be played. I should say, you know what you'll get if you know the DJ's.

At the Cellspace milonga, on the same night in San Francisco, there's been a lot of discussion and trial and error regarding the appropriate mix for that milonga's community of dancers. And each time I go, I find it pretty much sounds the same. So you don't have to pay really close attention to the DJ's -- the mix is a very reliable "cellspace fusion".

Now, we in Eugene haven't really branded our fusion yet. It leans much more heavily in the Golden Age direction. And it has a taste for ethnic, alternative and nuevo music, in equal parts. It has no taste for traditional covers ... Color Tango, the movie 'Tango', etc. This is pretty distinct ... even in Buenos Aires, traditional covers are more accepted than they are in Eugene. I just danced at a few milongas in Moscow, and most of the music was traditional covers.

Eugene has a strong relationship with tough Golden Age music, because of who we invited to teach & DJ, because of the tastes of our instructors, etc.

But there's one more reason ... the Tango Center's experiments with live music. When live musicians tried to play for tango dancers, they often failed to make people happy. This became a real crisis ... some musicians were insulted, some retreated into Golden Age arrangements ... but ultimately we tried to look at the structure of golden age music to see why it worked.

Most people who don't like Golden Age music, don't like the 'antique sound' and/or the sound quality ... or at least, they don't like too much of it. Usually they're happier with the better Golden Age recordings, like Pugliese from the 60's, or Di Sarli from the 50's, or Canaro from those same periods. But there's a harshness to some of these Late Golden Age recordings (De Angelis & D'Arienzo's particularly), which are a product of their time -- although they're excellent dance pieces, you just shouldn't play them too much.

So, new live tango musicians need to look at pieces from the 1930's and 1940's to really understand what's going on. This is probably why we're still very much into it. Many of us would like to create a "Eugene Tango" new music scene, and Golden Age music is our reference point -- not the mixes of other tango comunities. The real fusion will be the product of this new, second golden age. I hope. posted by Greg Bryant at 8:00 PM 1 comments Music & democracy So much about democracy is little understood in Modern American culture, that it takes a community-level discussion to reveal the basic patterns. The following may seem obvious, but really, we don't think about it or talk about it much.

Democracy happens even without voting, to varying degrees. -- when you're a DJ at a regular milonga, some 10% of the crowd is very vocal about music. But the rest vote with their feet. They're either dancing, or they aren't. They're having a good time, or they're sulking. Sometimes that has to do with the music, and sometimes it doesn't, so you have to get to know a crowd over time. But when you do, the crowd has essentially voted on the musical format.

Don't change my vote unless I tell you to. -- A vocal dancer recently let me know that his tastes had changed, and that certain kinds of alternative music really added spice to the evening for him. He was changing his vote.

Given over two years of this kind of voting at The Tango Center, as we embark on using a computer tool to poll ranges of musical percentages for an evening, we have to make sure (A) that these opinions get recorded and (B) that we don't move them around ... you vote once, until you change your vote. Oregon voters continually have to vote down a sales tax forwarded them by the State legislature. We have the opportunity, electronically, to let someone's vote stand until known otherwise.

Why are we embarking on this exercise in electronic voting? Partly because we want to see if it's a useful tool, something that could be used for weightier matters, outside of the Tango world. But, also, we have two major Tango extravaganzas a week, and many smaller ones ... so many people are involved, and the population is so much in flux, that there needs to be a community memory. We're loading that community memory with pertinent community opinion. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:09 PM 0 comments

Mixing: an additional possibility ... One thing I'd like to try, is create real Tango 'house mixes' ... basically tanda-length 'pieces', sometimes with golden age pieces embedded in them, carefully, in their entirety, etc ... with nuanced use of pauses and switching between different nuevo & alternative effects. Many new pieces have no real endings, but bits of them are wonderful ... this kind of sound engineering isn't done much in tango ... but it could be interesting now and then. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:06 PM 1 comments Sunday, December 04, 2005Pleasing everyone In the big picture, of building a tango community, it seems that an all-golden-age milonga, or an all-alternative milonga, is not really aimed at community inclusiveness. It's divisive.

That's ok, most nights. But not on Friday & Saturday nights. These are like the worker's sabbath: a couple that hasn't seen each other all weekend, want to go out, socialize, and dance. They want to hear all differents kinds of tango-danceable music. That can draw from a range of musical eras. But it has to be good. And good for Tango.

It is important to have the other, more divisive kind of milonga or practica. It's an opportunity for DJ's to test music -- not all golden age Tango is danceable, for example. But a higher percentage is danceable, relative to later Tango eras. That's why a high percentage of golden age music, like 75%, works well for a growing community. But you have to pepper it with nuevo, traditional covers, and alternative. Later in the evening, a few of these could even be strung into tandas. Depending, as usual, on the crowd. A DJ is there to please the dance crowd -- in this case, a Tango dance crowd.

A DJ knows that, but very few musicians have experience with this. Some do, and try to play for dancers. It isn't easy, when there's no culture of musicians who do this. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:36 PM 0 comments Sunday, November 27, 2005Community music machine

We needed a learning tool for Tango music, for Dj-ing etc, at The Tango Center. It seemed kind of strange that a small number of DJ's were doing all the work, collecting all the music, sorting through it, learning orchestra names, etc. So, we put together an old Mac G4, and made it part of the DJ station. Now everyone puts their playlists on one machine, so we can all listen and learn from the music in classes, practicas, milongas etc. It really works wonderfully. Highly recommended for any community project. posted by Greg Bryant at 4:29 PM 6 comments Monday, October 31, 2005Piazzolla take one Astor Piazzolla was an innovative and brilliant musician & composer. His pieces are superb and suffused with feeling. They are a major contribution to the World's musical canon.

The music he wrote was Tango, because it is recognizable as Tango. But it probably wasn't intended for dancing ... Piazzolla led a highly skilled Tango band in Tango's Golden Age, and was part of the culture that created the classic Tango dance structure. At Eugene's Tango Center, we had one of his proteges, Claudio Mendez, playing at a milonga ... and he plays classic dance Tango like a firestorm. So clearly Piazzolla knew the difference between classic Tango, and his Nuevo Tango, as well as anyone.

But because they weren't written for dancers, most of Piazzolla's pieces confuse most dancers. Very relaxed dancers can still have a good time ... they can dance even without music. After all, Tango is an improvisational relationship between two people.

But the classic structure of Golden Age tangos is more likely to work well, for most dancers, and more likely to show everyone a good time. The classic tangos evolved to serve Tango, a kind of cooperative physical movement. New dance Tangos can be written, of course ... but this apparently wasn't Piazzolla's goal.

That said, some of Piazzolla's pieces are so good, as music, that they have slipped into the regular Tango repertoire. This is certainly true of the Piazzolla/Goyeneche recording of 'Vuelvo al Sur'. Many Piazzolla pieces have a slow, sensuous quality, which provides a nice change of pace during an evening of dance. His 'Oblivion' is among the most common pieces played in Tango performances.

The fast pieces are more problematic, but many get played, sometimes recorded by other Golden Age musicians. Troilo & Pugliese both recorded danceable versions of Piazzolla's 'Verano Porteno'. His "Fuego Lento", "Adios Nonino", "Festajando", "Fuga y Misterio" etc. often find their way into an evening, and his "Libertango" -- whose original progressions and rhythms have been imitated for years around the world -- is still a favorite. They are great tunes, and inspiring pieces, even though they can be pretty hard for dancers.

Piazzolla also purposely twisted the classic Tango structure, sometimes in ways that are good for dancers, such as in "Ciudad Tango", and sometimes in ways that are comically difficult, as in the original version of "Escualo".

I've heard and read a great deal of historical material on the 'old guard' 's accusations against Piazzolla, that he "killed tango". I don't know who these "old guard" were -- there are always people who don't like new fashions. But Piazzolla's fellow Golden Age musicians held him in high esteem, and the older dancers I've met from Argentina seemed very touched by his music. To the current generation of dancers, emerging after 1980, his jazzy Parisian/Tango fusions are just part of the fabric -- contributing to the distinctive, fascinating diversity of music in Tango. posted by Greg Bryant at 2:10 PM 3 comments Sunday, July 03, 2005Experimental results So, after 2 years of milongas at The Tango Center, just this weekend we started to embark on the Tango Music educational program. It needed to happen, because I can't DJ for the next 5 weekends.

It takes a lot longer to load a library of disks & Tandas on a machine than I thought! Especially when the machine is 6 years old & pretty decrepit. So I didn't get very far ... I loaded a couple of CD's from major orchestras, a couple of cortina CD's, a couple of alternative CD's, and a couple of Nuevo CD's. The best 10% of the collection, but only about 1/4 of what it should be.

More unfortunately, I didn't have time to put Tandas on the system. Luckily Jim reminded me to bring Tanda lists from DJ's, and he copied them and passed them out

to those interested. So it should be possible for people to read those, search the library, create a tanda for themselves, learn from it, create their own, etc.

I trained Jeff on the technicalities of performance with iTunes on our DJ schoolroom computer. We forced Rebecca & Andrew to teach the intro (which included close embrace) to Demare's orchestra, which was interesting to watch. We created some Tandas on the fly. And we played from that old machine, over the Tango Center's massive 8-speaker system, from the 8pm pre-milonga class start until the 10:30pm performance. Then I switched over to my laptop.

Pretty good start. These things take time. posted by Greg Bryant at 2:49 PM 2 comments Sunday, June 26, 2005DJ teams "How can a bunch of people DJ?" I am asked.

It's a good question. I don't think it will be as wild as it sounds.

This weekend, in much the way that people work the front desk, people will work the DJ station. There will be three "active people" per one-hour time slot. They'll be selected randomly from the pool. I'll hang around to give advice at "decision moments".

Person 1: whoever has the steadiest hands (if it's a toss-up, take turns) does the actual playlist manipulation. They drag the tandas & cortinas that the trio agrees upon, down to the playlist. Then every subsequent group will be able to see what's played so far. They can program ahead, but the next trio can make adjustments.

Person 2: controls the volume on the board, and helps decide on which Tandas/Cortinas to choose.

Person 3: makes sure that the trio is paying attention to the crowd, to what they want, to what they can do, to the sound quality, and to the energy in the room.

Others will swing by occasionally, to learn what's playing. Comments & criticisms will be welcome and necessary.

That's the experiment. We'll see how it works. posted by Greg Bryant at 8:01 PM 0 comments Tuesday, June 21, 2005Sharing I think we've figured out how to teach more people to DJ: share the equipment.

There are a few ways to do this. For example, a few dedicated DJ's could share a laptop. But our particular problem at the Tango Center is broader. We have lots of people interested in the music, but few who would like to devote time to preparing an evening.

So we'll have a shared machine nailed down to the Dj Station. Here's how it will work, from my announcement to the community, earlier today:

"Each person who's signed-up and been-trained to use the system, will have an account on the machine. There will also be a general account open for non-event times."

"We'll have all the music from Tango CD's we can find, loaded up on the machine. Each account will have access to the music on the machine. People can make Tandas & playlists, and export them to a general library, and import the tandas & playlists they want to use."

"So we'll finally have a way to share knowledge about the structure of an evening. ( I'll load up all my playlists, Tandas, Cortinas, alternative pieces etc, and all those from other DJ's I've collected). We'll have just a single piece of technology, a Mac running iTunes, so there won't be any compatibility problems, and people can group-DJ, partner-DJ, individually-DJ, or just help each other out. We'll all also get to know the music Much better. "

We have to raise the money for the machine. Stay tuned. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:05 PM 4 comments Thursday, May 26, 2005New milonga It's so rare to find a milonga that breaks new ground ... but this one sure sounds like one, from the group Electrocutango -- written, I guess, for Pablo Veron and the Oslo production of "Tanghost".

The song is "retrotango", and I've never heard so many references, or quotes, in a danceable modern piece: milonga, candombe milonga, brazilian, Piazzolla, D'Arienzo, Canaro, and Vince Guaraldi's sweet piano jazz (obviously a reference to his Brazilian collaborations).

I'll play it tonight, to see if people are excited about it. posted by Greg Bryant at 3:06 PM 0 comments Saturday, May 07, 2005More gestalt evidence After four months, or 32 milongas, of trying to create an evening with more "analog" methods (i.e. CD's) I'm certain that no system of CD's can ever achieve the quality in an evening possible using a laptop computer.

First of all, CD's are less holistic than a computer can be. You cannot adjust their relative volume on the fly. You cannot rearrange them on the fly, you cannot preview them easily ... but most importantly, absolutely, is that when you make a discovery, you'll lose it, if you don't write it down. And even if you do write it down, it is out of context, and you have to try to re-create the evening from your head or your notes ...

I've seen quite brilliant DJ's, like Alex Krebs & Robert Hauk, try to do this. The more I listen to their evenings, the more I feel they are limited by their technology. And what if someone is less brilliant or educated than they are? I don't know as much about musical structure as Alex, so I need to listen carefully, and make carefully considered Tandas, with careful notes, integrated with the music files. Otherwise I'll just forget good stuff, and I won't be able to improve bad stuff.

The cortina problem is typical ... some cortinas simply fit beautifully between two particular Tandas. But you don't always want to play those two tandas in a row. But having the same music on multiple CD's is maddening. I've tried it. It kinda works, but it doesn't work well. You'll end up limiting your range to compensate.

It's back to a laptop for me. A solid DJ laptop, the low-end iBook, isn't that expensive these days. But we'll be setting up a desktop (or two, for pair dj-ing) at the Tango Center's DJ station, so people can arrange their own playlists. And share their playlists with each other ... borrow & learn.

But I still believe real analog can beat digital ... live music: for dancers, for tango. posted by Greg Bryant at 3:05 PM 0 comments Pair DJ-ing At the Tango Center last night in Eugene, I DJ'd together with Demetrius Gonzalez, who's part of the DJ pool at Homer Ladas' collective Cellspace milonga in San Francisco. Technically, "pair dj-ing" is pretty easy: two to three tandas per dj, and show each other what you'll be playing, so adjustments can happen on the fly. It probably gets better as DJs know each other better.

I think this is the second time I've shared DJ-ing a night: Jaimes Friedgen & I did it last weekend at the Tango Center, but it was more "I'll take the first half, you take the second". Still, Jaimes & I have a closer range of Tango music, so it sounded pretty smooth to the dancers.

Although I told Demetrius that we were doing a "traditional" night, I didn't explain what I meant by "traditional". At Cellspace, "traditional" apparently includes post-golden age covers, such as Hugo Diaz, Tubatango, Color Tango, etc. So, during my share, I stuck to Golden Age music, to keep the evening from getting out of people's normal range. I also tried to play three sets to Demetrius' two.

I liked his music, and enjoyed dancing to it. I've always enjoyed dancing at Cellspace. But Golden Age music is critical to a Milonga: it's very organically intertwined with Tango as a dance, and it helps you to play with dancing on the beat. But I also believe new music to be critically important too, in doses ...

... and when a real live Tango music scene re-emerges, I'm quite sure it will sound completely different than what anyone imagines. posted by Greg Bryant at 2:18 PM 0 comments Saturday, March 12, 2005Gestalt evidence If you want flexibility, to adapt to the evening's crowd, you need to be able to put tandas on independent of a plan. If that's true, you need to have the cortinas separate from the Tandas ... you can't burn them on the same CD and get that nice cortina which relates to the previous piece and the next piece.

People have known this for a while. After a computer, the second most desirable piece of DJ-ing equipment is the two-player box. This lets you adjust the cortinas as often as you adjust the tandas, and find the perfect one. This is a gestalt accomodation ... the less-gestalt version would have you burn CD's with a neutral cortina onto the end of

each tanda. Not much chance for interconnectivity.

The problem is how to remember all those nice transitions ... a computer could be helpful in this, but the current software doesn't let you save tanda-cortina-tanda ideas, except as text notes somewhere ... posted by Greg Bryant at 6:07 PM 1 comments Friday, February 18, 2005Mutual aid? Be prepared! Thursday was opening night of Valentango, one of the best tango events anywhere. But when I walked in the door, fashionably late, some kind of disco was playing! Huh? Christopher looked at me and asked "do you have any CD's with you?" Apparently the complex and expensive sound system, which was rented, had no cables, so he couldn't hook-up his iPod.

I remembered humbly the first Milonga I hosted at The Tango Center, where I just put on some kind of Tango compilation, and people started complaining. Luckily Alex Krebs & Andrew Burt both had their music with them, on CD & laptop. Within 30 minutes or so, they'd taken charge.

Since then I've DJ'd, I dunno, a few hundred milongas, but I don't travel much, so I didn't really think to take my music & cables. Sure, Christopher should have his back-ups with him ... but what if those failed? Or if he had some emergency? 250 people were there from around the world to dance Tango. Robert, Alex, Jaimes, Andrew, myself and all the other DJ's there ... some of the best in the world ... we should have had our gear with us. Luckily Ward didn't live very far away ...

It's a good lesson. posted by Greg Bryant at 4:30 PM 0 comments Tuesday, January 04, 2005Solid Biagi, later Biagi, odd Biagi The tanda below is not right. The later Biagi [Santa Milonguita, Milonga Triste] is quite different from the super solid Biagi's above it. There's also some very 'odd beat' Biagi. These all have different effects ... the odd stuff is definately for advanced dancers. The late songs have a rich orchestration. But the old, solid stuff will haunt you for days. Clearly Biagi's version of Quejas de Bandoneon is the best. But it needs to be mixed with similar Biagi, or else everything else will pale. Unless you end with it.

But I like putting the best known song at the beginnig, and the best song second ... to make sure everyone dances to it. Robert likes to put the best song last, but I find that too many people are done before the fourth song. Again, it depends on the crowd. It's best to DJ from a computer, but that makes it hard to train other DJ's ... posted by Greg Bryant at 5:57 PM 2 comments Saturday, January 01, 2005Milonga kit - metanda 1 These meta-sets aren't easy to make. I'm just putting together those I can use, and I'll analyze them later. Here's the first CD:

[Tango - early, medium speed Di Sarli] Verdemar : Di Sarli Porteño Y Bailarin : Di Sarli Duelo Criollo : Di Sarli Tu Intimo Secreto : Di Sarli

*Cortina* Chuluchululu : Bula Fiji Bula

[Tango - early, medium speed D'Arienzo] Compadron : D'Arienzo Dime Mi Amor : D'Arienzo Uno : D'Arienzo Ya Lo Ves : D'Arienzo

*Cortina* Valse Lento : Quadro Nuevo

[Vals - Romantic Canaro] Bajo El Cielo Azul : Canaro El Trovero : Quinteto Pirincho Tristeza Criolla : Canaro Corazon De Oro : Canaro

*Cortina* Freddie Freeloader : Miles Davis posted by Greg Bryant at 4:24 PM 0 comments

Monday, December 27, 2004Tango DJ toolkit So, I want to start a number of people at the Tango Center as DJs. They must, of course, be dancers, love the music etc. There are a lot of people like this, and I've been trying to think of how to get them going.

So I'm going to make maybe 10 CD's, with a format like ...   Tango-Cortina-Tango-Cortina-Vals-Cortina   Tango-Cortina-Tango-Cortina-Milonga-Cortina

... and characterize them, with a little high-level guide to adjusting the mood of an evening.

Starting the evening, "Slow, steady, lovely, interesting, easy". For me, the first two sets are often:   Orchesta Tipica Victor   Mid-to-late Di Sarli   Calo   Early De Angelis   40's D'Arienzo

Then there's "rock-solid beat, romantic":   Biagi   Rodriguez

The first waltz set and the first milonga set should also start slow.

Then, mid-evening, energy & romance ...

There's "Jazzy, fascinating, good beat":   early Pugliese   early-mid Canaro   Lomuto   Donato   Vardaro   Early Calo   Early Troilo

There's "super-romantic":   Troilo   Calo   Vargas/D'agostino

There's "super-improvisational":   Mid Pugliese   Fresedo

Then there's "fast beat":   Early Di Sarli   Early D'Arienzo   Fast Canaro

There's more. I'll put them together, and post the results here. Then I'll update the toolkit as it gets polished.

Patterns of an evening Tandas Sets of closely related songs give structure to the evening.

For recorded tango music, Tandas, or sets, consist of 3-5 solid, danceable recordings of a particular band (say, Di Sarli), of a particular era (say, the late 1930's), and a particlar genre (Vals, fast Tango, medium Tango, slow Tango, Milonga, candombe Milonga). Generally you try to make each Tanda coherent in itself ... playing profoundly with a particular range of moods, speeds, sounds, and rythms & melodies.

Cortinas A wide range of music can punctuate the effect of a tanda.

Cortinas bridge bewteen two Tandas ... and contrast to them as well. It can be music with no relation to eaither Tanda, and which relate to other cortinas over the night. A cortina can also playfully suggest something from the previous Tanda, or suggestively lead into the next. The main purpose is to get people to stop dancing ... but also ....

The Alternative song Cortina Sometimes a single alternative dance song fits just right in between two tandas.

If you want to play a chacarera, a salsa, swing, nuevo or alternative Tango song, later in the evening usually, it's not a bad idea to skip the cortina, and just play the alternative piece. This isn't always true ... especially if the crowd tends to dance to everything! But it is a useful pattern.

The odd song Tanda finish Sometimes a single unrelated or alternative dance song makes the perfect ending for a Tanda.

The first three songs please you, but you can't finish it with the same band. You might find another piece, or an alternative dance piece, that complements the mood.

Tango-Tango-Vals-Tango-Tango-Milonga [repeat] The large-scale structure of an evening

Usually you want to start an evening with a few sets of tango, and slow-to-medium speed, but exciting in some way. Then a Vals set, then one or two Tango sets, then a Milonga set ... then repeat. Approximately. Milonga sets are the only thing you can have too much of ... it depends on the number and energy of the crowd ... but this meta-structure works well.

Thursday, January 13, 2011Foreshadowing and Alternative Tango Music I met an eclectic and tasteful musician to whom I described Alternative Tango music. Helpfully, he gave me some wonderful music to listen to ... really brilliant stuff: authentic and inventive ... with the hope that I might be able to use some of it.

I know I can dance to some of it. I go to a lot of alternative Tango events just for fun. So I can do it. But I'm "looking for new songs". Because the alternative tango songs get boring pretty quickly. Good tango music shouldn't be like that. The great traditional music, which generally has poor sound quality and no hint of modern sensibility, is still easy to dance to over and over again. Sometimes it gets tiring, but there's something in the structure of the music that gives it legs. Let's call it "S".

I finally have realized the reason Alternative Music doesn't inspire Tango for very long. It's because the special quality, "S", needed by Tango cannot be "discovered" in a song. The song needs to be composed and played with "S".

I've also finally realized the essence of "S". It is foreshadowing. You need to build the music, or the song, with a lively attempt to communicate to the dancer (which could be an appeal to instinct or to intellect) the thing that is coming next. This "S" is everywhere in Golden Age tango music. You can find hints of it in other music -- a rhythm, after all, conveys a kind of primitive S, but doesn't change, so it's not interesting "S".

I don't think there will be a new Golden Age for tango music (and perhaps not for Tango dancing) until we see a modern, complex, interesting and exciting movement

of composers who are interested in the foreshadowing that dancers need to help them decide upon their next steps. posted by Greg Bryant at 3:11 PM 2 comments Wednesday, January 28, 2009The Sequence When I need to prepare a milonga quickly, this is what I do ... and this is the order I do it in ... it's an efficient morphogenesis ... the unfolding of the evening's structure. You don't need to do things in this order. But it might be worth trying this, if you think you have trouble in building coherent evenings.

1. Cortinas

I pick out two dozen cortinas for the evening, often from one or two albums, of the same musical genre. This adds unity to the evening. Then I put a line of stars in the comments section so they act as markers between tandas (sets) ... "cortina lines" which need to be filled with dance songs.

2. T-T-V-T-T-M

Except for some adjustments towards the end of an evening, I stick to the Tango-Tango-Vals-Tango-Tango-Milonga Tanda structure.

3. Starting Tango Tandas

I almost always pick the two Tango tandas that start the evening first. They need to be good, be fun for both the advanced dancers and the completely beginners, who stay on the floor after the introduction lesson.

4. Valses

Waltzes are quite a bit more scarce than tangos, so I find the Valse sets I'd like to play that evening, hoping to keep it exciting, while still playing favorites.

5. Milongas

Good Milongas are a bit more plentiful, thanks to a few hard workers like Canaro. I construct a few slow-to-fast Milonga tandas, and put them in their place in the evening's structure.

6. Tangos: moods and hits

Figure out how you'd like the mood to shift over the evening. Peppy to moody to tragic to nutty? Build tandas to fit the mood, or use tandas that you like and have set aside, including variants, as playlists you can just pull it.

While doing that, make sure that you make your more experienced dancers happy by providing songs they know. Tango hits.

7. Energy

Typically, you want to move from slow to fevered over the first two hours, with a few tandas here and there that step back before pushing faster, harder, tougher. But make sure there IS an overall energy, an overall flow threading its way through your songs. It seems incoherent to dancers if you play something slow, then something loud, then something quiet, then something far out. Use gradients instead, in all the dimensions you can think of.

8. Good endings

There are lots of ways to wind up. It depends somewhat on your crowd, but of course a truly amazing final tanda and song really make that possible. It's pretty common to put a La Cumparsita at the end of the last Tanda, without a cortina. If you do this, you need to cultivate your favorite Cumparsita's, and construct great Tandas that work well leading into that version. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:20 PM 2 comments Monday, January 26, 2009The Basics I just wrote this quick letter to a Tango instructor who is now considering Dj-ing a Saturday evening at the Tango Center.

"Hi,

Here are some DJ basics.

At the TC, we always start out with sets of Tango that are on the slow side, for the beginners' sake, with a steady beat but interesting enough for advanced dancers. The slow Di Sarli works well, but so do appropriate pieces by Calo, Canaro, De Angelis, Orchesta Tipica Victor, etc. Using fast tangos to start will fail, miserably.

Inside of most tandas (there are always exceptions) it's important to build up, from slow-to-fast. Think of a tanda as a story, typically with a climax. Also, it's important to put the most familiar or interesting songs at the beginning and at the end, to draw people onto the floor. Slow familiar songs at the start of a Tanda are always a good idea. But, super-exciting songs (Donato's El Huracan comes to mind) can also launch a tanda.

The tanda size that works best is three or four songs ... almost always of the same type of music (same band, same era, and of course, all Tango, all Vals or all Milonga) ... a consistent number (all three or all four) is more important than the actual number itself ... because people count songs. I always use four (except for milongas when I use three) but there's nothing wrong with three in Tango and Vals sets, if you always use three ...

The classic overall tanda structure is usually:

Tango(cortina)Tango(cortina)Vals

(cortina)Tango(cortina)Tango(cortina)Milonga(cortina)

... then repeat ... this works really well.

To keep things interesting, it's important to avoid songs within a tanda that sound identical ... sometimes a band (Tanturi is a good example) will record two songs that essentially use the same rhythm, same tricks, the same key, the same singer, and a very similar melody. It's important to avoid putting those back-to-back! Also, you rarely want to play two covers of the same song near each other in an evening. There are lots of great songs ...

Good luck!" posted by Greg Bryant at 7:14 PM 1 comments Saturday, December 17, 2005Warmth

The Tango Center is over a 100,000 cubic feet of space. Right now, it's below freezing outside, and we have holes in the ceiling and vents in the roof ... so, until our

ceiling is sealed (something we're working on), heating the place is very hard.

As the temperature drops to about 62 degrees fahrenheit (17 C) people start to complain about the cold. As it drops to 60 F, they start to bundle up. At 58 F, they get manic, and try to dance continously, energetically.

So I was wondering ... what kind of Tango music can keep people warm?

Recording "warm tones" is a real acoustic engineering challenge, even today. You need the right microphones, positioned carefuly, on the right instruments ... and a good ear for mixing. Some of the recordings of the "new acoustic movement" in the 1970's (David Grisman is an example) began to approach the true quality of warmth.

So, clearly the original tango recordings before this time won't achieve this quality. But some of the older stuff is quite sensitive and tender, and people will often 'read' the warmth into the playback.

But when the room is cold, that doesn't help a lot.

Much of the modern electronic music doesn't try to be warm, although it tends to sound warmer than the very brassy recordings of Tango from the 50's & 60's. Late De Angelis, including one of my favorite pieces "Pavadita", sounds pretty cold in a cold room. The later Tango covers, like the post-Canaro, 1990's "F. Canaro Orquesta", sound even colder ... you can hear the pauses hanging in the air like icicles. Canaro would know better ... laying down lots of sound helps to make up for sound infidelity at all frequencies.

Luckily, with some late Piazzolla, we have explosive original pieces, semi-danceable, with good recording quality. If it's bitter cold, give them a try, at the end of each tanda. Then play some modern acoustic string instruments for cortinas. And the most romantic golden age songs you can find. That's the best I could come up with, on the spur of the moment yesterday.

I also threw in a Beach Boys song: "The Warmth of the Sun". posted by Greg Bryant at 2:53 PM 7 comments Sunday, December 11, 2005Different fusions For each of the 200 or more milongas at the Tango Center, the music, the mood, etc, has been marvelously different. They've been all good parties, certainly. At least judging by the happiness of the majority. Certainly, individuals have bad nights ... their dancing is off, everyone else's dancing is off, no one danced with them, the room's temperature wasn't right, something really irritated them, the music didn't please them, etc.

Most of that stuff is part of life. And most of that stuff "gets worked out" in the long run. Dancing improves, adaptive ability improves, the party's mood lifts you beyond small concerns and large troubles ... and the music? The musical mix finds its own level: something that pleases most people, most of the time, and teaches tolerance to the rest.

This level is different in different places. And in many places there's no levelling at all: at Portland's Wednesday Nocturnal milonga, you don't know what you'll get, because the DJ's all have very distinct ideas about what should be played. I should say, you know what you'll get if you know the DJ's.

At the Cellspace milonga, on the same night in San Francisco, there's been a lot of discussion and trial and error regarding the appropriate mix for that milonga's community of dancers. And each time I go, I find it pretty much sounds the same. So you don't have to pay really close attention to the DJ's -- the mix is a very reliable "cellspace fusion".

Now, we in Eugene haven't really branded our fusion yet. It leans much more heavily in the Golden Age direction. And it has a taste for ethnic, alternative and nuevo music, in equal parts. It has no taste for traditional covers ... Color Tango, the movie 'Tango', etc. This is pretty distinct ... even in Buenos Aires, traditional covers are more accepted than they are in Eugene. I just danced at a few milongas in Moscow, and most of the music was traditional covers.

Eugene has a strong relationship with tough Golden Age music, because of who we invited to teach & DJ, because of the tastes of our instructors, etc.

But there's one more reason ... the Tango Center's experiments with live music. When live musicians tried to play for tango dancers, they often failed to make people happy. This became a real crisis ... some musicians were insulted, some retreated into Golden Age arrangements ... but ultimately we tried to look at the structure of golden age music to see why it worked.

Most people who don't like Golden Age music, don't like the 'antique sound' and/or the sound quality ... or at least, they don't like too much of it. Usually they're happier with the better Golden Age recordings, like Pugliese from the 60's, or Di Sarli from the 50's, or Canaro from those same periods. But there's a harshness to some of these Late Golden Age recordings (De Angelis & D'Arienzo's particularly), which are a product of their time -- although they're excellent dance pieces, you just shouldn't play them too much.

So, new live tango musicians need to look at pieces from the 1930's and 1940's to really understand what's going on. This is probably why we're still very much into it. Many of us would like to create a "Eugene Tango" new music scene, and Golden Age music is our reference point -- not the mixes of other tango comunities. The real fusion will be the product of this new, second golden age. I hope. posted by Greg Bryant at 8:00 PM 1 comments Music & democracy So much about democracy is little understood in Modern American culture, that it takes a community-level discussion to reveal the basic patterns. The following may seem obvious, but really, we don't think about it or talk about it much.

Democracy happens even without voting, to varying degrees. -- when you're a DJ at a regular milonga, some 10% of the crowd is very vocal about music. But the rest vote with their feet. They're either dancing, or they aren't. They're having a good time, or they're sulking. Sometimes that has to do with the music, and sometimes it doesn't, so

you have to get to know a crowd over time. But when you do, the crowd has essentially voted on the musical format.

Don't change my vote unless I tell you to. -- A vocal dancer recently let me know that his tastes had changed, and that certain kinds of alternative music really added spice to the evening for him. He was changing his vote.

Given over two years of this kind of voting at The Tango Center, as we embark on using a computer tool to poll ranges of musical percentages for an evening, we have to make sure (A) that these opinions get recorded and (B) that we don't move them around ... you vote once, until you change your vote. Oregon voters continually have to vote down a sales tax forwarded them by the State legislature. We have the opportunity, electronically, to let someone's vote stand until known otherwise.

Why are we embarking on this exercise in electronic voting? Partly because we want to see if it's a useful tool, something that could be used for weightier matters, outside of the Tango world. But, also, we have two major Tango extravaganzas a week, and many smaller ones ... so many people are involved, and the population is so much in flux, that there needs to be a community memory. We're loading that community memory with pertinent community opinion. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:09 PM 0 comments Mixing: an additional possibility ... One thing I'd like to try, is create real Tango 'house mixes' ... basically tanda-length 'pieces', sometimes with golden age pieces embedded in them, carefully, in their entirety, etc ... with nuanced use of pauses and switching between different nuevo & alternative effects. Many new pieces have no real endings, but bits of them are wonderful ... this kind of sound engineering isn't done much in tango ... but it could be interesting now and then. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:06 PM 1 comments Sunday, December 04, 2005Pleasing everyone In the big picture, of building a tango community, it seems that an all-golden-age milonga, or an all-alternative milonga, is not really aimed at community inclusiveness. It's divisive.

That's ok, most nights. But not on Friday & Saturday nights. These are like the worker's sabbath: a couple that hasn't seen each other all weekend, want to go out, socialize, and dance. They want to hear all differents kinds of tango-danceable music. That can draw from a range of musical eras. But it has to be good. And good for Tango.

It is important to have the other, more divisive kind of milonga or practica. It's an opportunity for DJ's to test music -- not all golden age Tango is danceable, for example. But a higher percentage is danceable, relative to later Tango eras. That's why a high percentage of golden age music, like 75%, works well for a growing community. But you have to pepper it with nuevo, traditional covers, and alternative. Later in the evening, a few of these could even be strung into tandas. Depending, as usual, on the crowd. A DJ is there to please the dance crowd -- in this case, a Tango dance crowd.

A DJ knows that, but very few musicians have experience with this. Some do, and try to play for dancers. It isn't easy, when there's no culture of musicians who do this. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:36 PM 0 comments Sunday, November 27, 2005Community music machine

We needed a learning tool for Tango music, for Dj-ing etc, at The Tango Center. It seemed kind of strange that a small number of DJ's were doing all the work, collecting all the music, sorting through it, learning orchestra names, etc. So, we put together an old Mac G4, and made it part of the DJ station. Now everyone puts their playlists on one machine, so we can all listen and learn from the music in classes, practicas, milongas etc. It really works wonderfully. Highly recommended for any community project. posted by Greg Bryant at 4:29 PM 6 comments Monday, October 31, 2005Piazzolla take one Astor Piazzolla was an innovative and brilliant musician & composer. His pieces are superb and suffused with feeling. They are a major contribution to the World's musical canon.

The music he wrote was Tango, because it is recognizable as Tango. But it probably wasn't intended for dancing ... Piazzolla led a highly skilled Tango band in Tango's Golden Age, and was part of the culture that created the classic Tango dance

structure. At Eugene's Tango Center, we had one of his proteges, Claudio Mendez, playing at a milonga ... and he plays classic dance Tango like a firestorm. So clearly Piazzolla knew the difference between classic Tango, and his Nuevo Tango, as well as anyone.

But because they weren't written for dancers, most of Piazzolla's pieces confuse most dancers. Very relaxed dancers can still have a good time ... they can dance even without music. After all, Tango is an improvisational relationship between two people.

But the classic structure of Golden Age tangos is more likely to work well, for most dancers, and more likely to show everyone a good time. The classic tangos evolved to serve Tango, a kind of cooperative physical movement. New dance Tangos can be written, of course ... but this apparently wasn't Piazzolla's goal.

That said, some of Piazzolla's pieces are so good, as music, that they have slipped into the regular Tango repertoire. This is certainly true of the Piazzolla/Goyeneche recording of 'Vuelvo al Sur'. Many Piazzolla pieces have a slow, sensuous quality, which provides a nice change of pace during an evening of dance. His 'Oblivion' is among the most common pieces played in Tango performances.

The fast pieces are more problematic, but many get played, sometimes recorded by other Golden Age musicians. Troilo & Pugliese both recorded danceable versions of Piazzolla's 'Verano Porteno'. His "Fuego Lento", "Adios Nonino", "Festajando", "Fuga y Misterio" etc. often find their way into an evening, and his "Libertango" -- whose original progressions and rhythms have been imitated for years around the world -- is still a favorite. They are great tunes, and inspiring pieces, even though they can be pretty hard for dancers.

Piazzolla also purposely twisted the classic Tango structure, sometimes in ways that are good for dancers, such as in "Ciudad Tango", and sometimes in ways that are comically difficult, as in the original version of "Escualo".

I've heard and read a great deal of historical material on the 'old guard' 's accusations against Piazzolla, that he "killed tango". I don't know who these "old guard" were -- there are always people who don't like new fashions. But Piazzolla's fellow Golden Age musicians held him in high esteem, and the older dancers I've met from Argentina seemed very touched by his music. To the current generation of dancers, emerging after 1980, his jazzy Parisian/Tango fusions are just part of the fabric -- contributing to the distinctive, fascinating diversity of music in Tango. posted by Greg Bryant at 2:10 PM 3 comments Sunday, July 03, 2005Experimental results So, after 2 years of milongas at The Tango Center, just this weekend we started to embark on the Tango Music educational program. It needed to happen, because I can't DJ for the next 5 weekends.

It takes a lot longer to load a library of disks & Tandas on a machine than I thought! Especially when the machine is 6 years old & pretty decrepit. So I didn't get very far ... I loaded a couple of CD's from major orchestras, a couple of cortina CD's, a

couple of alternative CD's, and a couple of Nuevo CD's. The best 10% of the collection, but only about 1/4 of what it should be.

More unfortunately, I didn't have time to put Tandas on the system. Luckily Jim reminded me to bring Tanda lists from DJ's, and he copied them and passed them out to those interested. So it should be possible for people to read those, search the library, create a tanda for themselves, learn from it, create their own, etc.

I trained Jeff on the technicalities of performance with iTunes on our DJ schoolroom computer. We forced Rebecca & Andrew to teach the intro (which included close embrace) to Demare's orchestra, which was interesting to watch. We created some Tandas on the fly. And we played from that old machine, over the Tango Center's massive 8-speaker system, from the 8pm pre-milonga class start until the 10:30pm performance. Then I switched over to my laptop.

Pretty good start. These things take time. posted by Greg Bryant at 2:49 PM 2 comments Sunday, June 26, 2005DJ teams "How can a bunch of people DJ?" I am asked.

It's a good question. I don't think it will be as wild as it sounds.

This weekend, in much the way that people work the front desk, people will work the DJ station. There will be three "active people" per one-hour time slot. They'll be selected randomly from the pool. I'll hang around to give advice at "decision moments".

Person 1: whoever has the steadiest hands (if it's a toss-up, take turns) does the actual playlist manipulation. They drag the tandas & cortinas that the trio agrees upon, down to the playlist. Then every subsequent group will be able to see what's played so far. They can program ahead, but the next trio can make adjustments.

Person 2: controls the volume on the board, and helps decide on which Tandas/Cortinas to choose.

Person 3: makes sure that the trio is paying attention to the crowd, to what they want, to what they can do, to the sound quality, and to the energy in the room.

Others will swing by occasionally, to learn what's playing. Comments & criticisms will be welcome and necessary.

That's the experiment. We'll see how it works. posted by Greg Bryant at 8:01 PM 0 comments Tuesday, June 21, 2005Sharing I think we've figured out how to teach more people to DJ: share the equipment.

There are a few ways to do this. For example, a few dedicated DJ's could share a laptop. But our particular problem at the Tango Center is broader. We have lots of

people interested in the music, but few who would like to devote time to preparing an evening.

So we'll have a shared machine nailed down to the Dj Station. Here's how it will work, from my announcement to the community, earlier today:

"Each person who's signed-up and been-trained to use the system, will have an account on the machine. There will also be a general account open for non-event times."

"We'll have all the music from Tango CD's we can find, loaded up on the machine. Each account will have access to the music on the machine. People can make Tandas & playlists, and export them to a general library, and import the tandas & playlists they want to use."

"So we'll finally have a way to share knowledge about the structure of an evening. ( I'll load up all my playlists, Tandas, Cortinas, alternative pieces etc, and all those from other DJ's I've collected). We'll have just a single piece of technology, a Mac running iTunes, so there won't be any compatibility problems, and people can group-DJ, partner-DJ, individually-DJ, or just help each other out. We'll all also get to know the music Much better. "

We have to raise the money for the machine. Stay tuned. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:05 PM 4 comments Thursday, May 26, 2005New milonga It's so rare to find a milonga that breaks new ground ... but this one sure sounds like one, from the group Electrocutango -- written, I guess, for Pablo Veron and the Oslo production of "Tanghost".

The song is "retrotango", and I've never heard so many references, or quotes, in a danceable modern piece: milonga, candombe milonga, brazilian, Piazzolla, D'Arienzo, Canaro, and Vince Guaraldi's sweet piano jazz (obviously a reference to his Brazilian collaborations).

I'll play it tonight, to see if people are excited about it. posted by Greg Bryant at 3:06 PM 0 comments Saturday, May 07, 2005More gestalt evidence After four months, or 32 milongas, of trying to create an evening with more "analog" methods (i.e. CD's) I'm certain that no system of CD's can ever achieve the quality in an evening possible using a laptop computer.

First of all, CD's are less holistic than a computer can be. You cannot adjust their relative volume on the fly. You cannot rearrange them on the fly, you cannot preview them easily ... but most importantly, absolutely, is that when you make a discovery, you'll lose it, if you don't write it down. And even if you do write it down, it is out of context, and you have to try to re-create the evening from your head or your notes ...

I've seen quite brilliant DJ's, like Alex Krebs & Robert Hauk, try to do this. The more

I listen to their evenings, the more I feel they are limited by their technology. And what if someone is less brilliant or educated than they are? I don't know as much about musical structure as Alex, so I need to listen carefully, and make carefully considered Tandas, with careful notes, integrated with the music files. Otherwise I'll just forget good stuff, and I won't be able to improve bad stuff.

The cortina problem is typical ... some cortinas simply fit beautifully between two particular Tandas. But you don't always want to play those two tandas in a row. But having the same music on multiple CD's is maddening. I've tried it. It kinda works, but it doesn't work well. You'll end up limiting your range to compensate.

It's back to a laptop for me. A solid DJ laptop, the low-end iBook, isn't that expensive these days. But we'll be setting up a desktop (or two, for pair dj-ing) at the Tango Center's DJ station, so people can arrange their own playlists. And share their playlists with each other ... borrow & learn.

But I still believe real analog can beat digital ... live music: for dancers, for tango. posted by Greg Bryant at 3:05 PM 0 comments Pair DJ-ing At the Tango Center last night in Eugene, I DJ'd together with Demetrius Gonzalez, who's part of the DJ pool at Homer Ladas' collective Cellspace milonga in San Francisco. Technically, "pair dj-ing" is pretty easy: two to three tandas per dj, and show each other what you'll be playing, so adjustments can happen on the fly. It probably gets better as DJs know each other better.

I think this is the second time I've shared DJ-ing a night: Jaimes Friedgen & I did it last weekend at the Tango Center, but it was more "I'll take the first half, you take the second". Still, Jaimes & I have a closer range of Tango music, so it sounded pretty smooth to the dancers.

Although I told Demetrius that we were doing a "traditional" night, I didn't explain what I meant by "traditional". At Cellspace, "traditional" apparently includes post-golden age covers, such as Hugo Diaz, Tubatango, Color Tango, etc. So, during my share, I stuck to Golden Age music, to keep the evening from getting out of people's normal range. I also tried to play three sets to Demetrius' two.

I liked his music, and enjoyed dancing to it. I've always enjoyed dancing at Cellspace. But Golden Age music is critical to a Milonga: it's very organically intertwined with Tango as a dance, and it helps you to play with dancing on the beat. But I also believe new music to be critically important too, in doses ...

... and when a real live Tango music scene re-emerges, I'm quite sure it will sound completely different than what anyone imagines. posted by Greg Bryant at 2:18 PM 0 comments Saturday, March 12, 2005Gestalt evidence If you want flexibility, to adapt to the evening's crowd, you need to be able to put tandas on independent of a plan. If that's true, you need to have the cortinas separate from the Tandas ... you can't burn them on the same CD and get that nice cortina which relates to the previous piece and the next piece.

People have known this for a while. After a computer, the second most desirable piece of DJ-ing equipment is the two-player box. This lets you adjust the cortinas as often as you adjust the tandas, and find the perfect one. This is a gestalt accomodation ... the less-gestalt version would have you burn CD's with a neutral cortina onto the end of each tanda. Not much chance for interconnectivity.

The problem is how to remember all those nice transitions ... a computer could be helpful in this, but the current software doesn't let you save tanda-cortina-tanda ideas, except as text notes somewhere ... posted by Greg Bryant at 6:07 PM 1 comments Friday, February 18, 2005Mutual aid? Be prepared! Thursday was opening night of Valentango, one of the best tango events anywhere. But when I walked in the door, fashionably late, some kind of disco was playing! Huh? Christopher looked at me and asked "do you have any CD's with you?" Apparently the complex and expensive sound system, which was rented, had no cables, so he couldn't hook-up his iPod.

I remembered humbly the first Milonga I hosted at The Tango Center, where I just put on some kind of Tango compilation, and people started complaining. Luckily Alex Krebs & Andrew Burt both had their music with them, on CD & laptop. Within 30 minutes or so, they'd taken charge.

Since then I've DJ'd, I dunno, a few hundred milongas, but I don't travel much, so I didn't really think to take my music & cables. Sure, Christopher should have his back-ups with him ... but what if those failed? Or if he had some emergency? 250 people were there from around the world to dance Tango. Robert, Alex, Jaimes, Andrew, myself and all the other DJ's there ... some of the best in the world ... we should have had our gear with us. Luckily Ward didn't live very far away ...

It's a good lesson. posted by Greg Bryant at 4:30 PM 0 comments Tuesday, January 04, 2005Solid Biagi, later Biagi, odd Biagi The tanda below is not right. The later Biagi [Santa Milonguita, Milonga Triste] is quite different from the super solid Biagi's above it. There's also some very 'odd beat' Biagi. These all have different effects ... the odd stuff is definately for advanced dancers. The late songs have a rich orchestration. But the old, solid stuff will haunt you for days. Clearly Biagi's version of Quejas de Bandoneon is the best. But it needs to be mixed with similar Biagi, or else everything else will pale. Unless you end with it.

But I like putting the best known song at the beginnig, and the best song second ... to make sure everyone dances to it. Robert likes to put the best song last, but I find that too many people are done before the fourth song. Again, it depends on the crowd. It's best to DJ from a computer, but that makes it hard to train other DJ's ... posted by Greg Bryant at 5:57 PM 2 comments Saturday, January 01, 2005Milonga kit - metanda 1

These meta-sets aren't easy to make. I'm just putting together those I can use, and I'll analyze them later. Here's the first CD:

[Tango - early, medium speed Di Sarli] Verdemar : Di Sarli Porteño Y Bailarin : Di Sarli Duelo Criollo : Di Sarli Tu Intimo Secreto : Di Sarli

*Cortina* Chuluchululu : Bula Fiji Bula

[Tango - early, medium speed D'Arienzo] Compadron : D'Arienzo Dime Mi Amor : D'Arienzo Uno : D'Arienzo Ya Lo Ves : D'Arienzo

*Cortina* Valse Lento : Quadro Nuevo

[Vals - Romantic Canaro] Bajo El Cielo Azul : Canaro El Trovero : Quinteto Pirincho Tristeza Criolla : Canaro Corazon De Oro : Canaro

*Cortina* Freddie Freeloader : Miles Davis posted by Greg Bryant at 4:24 PM 0 comments Monday, December 27, 2004Tango DJ toolkit So, I want to start a number of people at the Tango Center as DJs. They must, of course, be dancers, love the music etc. There are a lot of people like this, and I've been trying to think of how to get them going.

So I'm going to make maybe 10 CD's, with a format like ...   Tango-Cortina-Tango-Cortina-Vals-Cortina   Tango-Cortina-Tango-Cortina-Milonga-Cortina

... and characterize them, with a little high-level guide to adjusting the mood of an evening.

Starting the evening, "Slow, steady, lovely, interesting, easy". For me, the first two sets are often:   Orchesta Tipica Victor   Mid-to-late Di Sarli   Calo   Early De Angelis   40's D'Arienzo

Then there's "rock-solid beat, romantic":   Biagi   Rodriguez

The first waltz set and the first milonga set should also start slow.

Then, mid-evening, energy & romance ...

There's "Jazzy, fascinating, good beat":   early Pugliese   early-mid Canaro   Lomuto   Donato   Vardaro   Early Calo   Early Troilo

There's "super-romantic":   Troilo   Calo   Vargas/D'agostino

There's "super-improvisational":   Mid Pugliese   Fresedo

Then there's "fast beat":   Early Di Sarli   Early D'Arienzo   Fast Canaro

There's more. I'll put them together, and post the results here. Then I'll update the toolkit as it gets polished. posted by Greg Bryant at 7:00 PM 1 comments Saturday, December 18, 2004The tone of an evening Usually a Tango DJ is responsible for the mood of the evening. Or, that's the conventional wisdom.

Certainly a DJ can ruin an evening with a bad ear and a bad eye. But a DJ has little other influence over the social scene. People dance with whomever they want, get tired, or get moody. The Tao of Tango: if each evening was equally delightful, it would be meaningless.

That's a convenient philosphy, of course, and shouldn't be used as an excuse for hurting an evening. For example, I think the best dancers have a community responsibility to dance with a wide range of people through the evening, peppered with dancing with favorite partners. Because it's good for the community, and because it makes the best moments. But all dancers don't see it this way.

Partner dancing is about trying your best, all the time. That's pretty exhausting, and it can't be 100% successful. It's quite important to try ... and it's of course challenging to try to be sensitive, positive, inventive, strong, community-minded, calm & playful; as well as encouraging, to yourself, to your partner, to the DJ & musicians, to the people around you. It's a tall order. But if everyone is trying ... that sets the tone for an evening! posted by Greg Bryant at 11:15 AM 0 comments Monday, December 13, 2004Patterns of an evening Tandas Sets of closely related songs give structure to the evening.

For recorded tango music, Tandas, or sets, consist of 3-5 solid, danceable recordings of a particular band (say, Di Sarli), of a particular era (say, the late 1930's), and a particlar genre (Vals, fast Tango, medium Tango, slow Tango, Milonga, candombe Milonga). Generally you try to make each Tanda coherent in itself ... playing profoundly with a particular range of moods, speeds, sounds, and rythms & melodies.

Cortinas A wide range of music can punctuate the effect of a tanda.

Cortinas bridge bewteen two Tandas ... and contrast to them as well. It can be music with no relation to eaither Tanda, and which relate to other cortinas over the night. A cortina can also playfully suggest something from the previous Tanda, or suggestively lead into the next. The main purpose is to get people to stop dancing ... but also ....

The Alternative song Cortina Sometimes a single alternative dance song fits just right in between two tandas.

If you want to play a chacarera, a salsa, swing, nuevo or alternative Tango song, later in the evening usually, it's not a bad idea to skip the cortina, and just play the alternative piece. This isn't always true ... especially if the crowd tends to dance to everything! But it is a useful pattern.

The odd song Tanda finish Sometimes a single unrelated or alternative dance song makes the perfect ending for a Tanda.

The first three songs please you, but you can't finish it with the same band. You might find another piece, or an alternative dance piece, that complements the mood.

Tango-Tango-Vals-Tango-Tango-Milonga [repeat] The large-scale structure of an evening

Usually you want to start an evening with a few sets of tango, and slow-to-medium speed, but exciting in some way. Then a Vals set, then one or two Tango sets, then a Milonga set ... then repeat. Approximately. Milonga sets are the only thing you can have too much of ... it depends on the number and energy of the crowd ... but this meta-structure works well. posted by Greg Bryant at 2:57 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, December 07, 2004Useful links Robert Hauk has a nice list of solid classic CD's

ToTango has comments from Dan Boccia, "Lucia", Alex Krebs, Stephen Brown, Andrew Burt, Keith Elshaw.

Stephan Brown's excellent Tango music pages are well worth studying.

In the alternative realm: Santiago Steele's CD reviews on tangonauts, Sharna Fabiano's DJ List of Neo Tangos and Jackie Wong's Neo-Tango Music.

A list of Portland Tango DJs.

And this entry in wikipedia needs a lot of work.

Probably the most important thing for a Tango DJ, is to contribute original work -- it's quite possible to be an average DJ by reading the above pages and copying Tandas, and using nothing else. It's instructive to copy, but we need to do more, or our laziness will come across to the dancers. None of the above authors would recommend just copying - so, we go back to the albums, listen to as much as possible, and find new approaches. We test them on the crowd, and we watch them carefully. Or else we don't develop a feel for the people on the floor.

And we post it in blogs, to keep it exciting. posted by Greg Bryant at 11:38 AM 0 comments Some Vals Tandas A typical Tango DJ complaint: it's hard to provide enough good Tango waltz sets ... so here are some successful ones, which are also pretty unusual:

Roberto Firpo Vals Tanda Record Andote (Tangos Y Valsecitos) Hacia Ti Va Mi Alma (Tangos Y Valsecitos) Angustias Del Corazon (Tangos De Antano) Olga (De La Guardia Vieja)

Cuarteto Palais de Glace Vals Tanda Sonar Y Nada Mas (Cuarteto Palais De Glace) Ilusion Azul (Cuarteto Palais De Glace) Olga (Cuarteto Palais De Glace) Un Placer (Cuarteto Palais De Glace) [This album is out of print, but shouldn't be.]

Enrique Rodriguez Vals Tanda Los Piconeros (El "Chato" Flores En El Recuerdo) Tengo Mil Novias (El "Chato" Flores En El Recuerdo) Isabelita (Para Bailar Sin Parar) Llora Corazon (Tangos Valses Y Milongas) posted by Greg Bryant at 11:09 AM 0 comments