Rooted in dance and eventually becoming its very own artistic movement, the history of tango is an epic one; and its future truly looks limitless. A musical genre with hybrid origins, it remains one of the most incredible creations to come out of Río de la Plata. “It’s the only thing we don’t ask Europe for its opinion on,” wrote Argentina’s Macedonio Fernández, the man that young Jorge Luis Borges admired “to the point of devout and passionate plagiarism.” A number of coincidences in the late 19th century gave rise to this style of music. As musicologist Carlos Vega said: “no one really tried to create tango.” And yet, here it is; complete with its own traditions and innovations, as well as its own golden age, ill-fated artists, myths and rituals.
Nobody can pinpoint the exact time and place tango came into being. Nevertheless, it’s commonly assumed that it is the result of unruly “compadritos” imitating dances practiced within the Afro community. A few improvised polka and mazurka steps mixed in with some other popular dances at the time would eventually form the musical beginnings of what would become tango: a sound which featured elements of the Cuban habanera, the Andalusian tango and the old milongas. It heralded the creation of a legion of anonymous musicians who all played along to an intoxicating and jovial 2/4 bar rhythm. Tango evolved in Buenos Aires in the early 20th century, emerging from the close confines of Argentina’s collective housing (known as conventillos) where the music and traditions of European immigrants would intermingle. Later, the adoption of the German bandonion as a defining characteristic of tango music gave it the sound we all know and love today.
Over the decades, tango became the ultimate form of musical expression, with every piece offering the perfect opportunity for personalisation. Its repertoire is endless, not only due to the amount of original production, but also because every version of a piece of tango music is a creation in its own right. The oldest tango to still feature in today’s repertoires is probably 'El Entrerriano', composed in 1897 by Rosendo Mendizábal; although legendary violinist Ernesto Ponzio claimed he was the one who wrote it (he once said: “I offered it to Rosendo on one of those evenings where it’s easier to give up a tango than a cigarette”). If you need any proof as to how recreating existing tango music has led to what can only be described as an infinite repertoire, you need only compare the Estudiantina Centenario’s version of 'El Entrerriano' recorded in 1910 (if only out of historical curiosity) with the contemporary reinterpretation of bandoneonist Marcelo Nisinman (which was recorded more than a century later). Not to mention the thousands of versions of 'La Cumparsita' by Matos Rodríguez that have been created since its initial composition in Montevideo in 1917.
Carlos Gardel, the pioneer
Tango’s prehistory is littered with cheerful verses that can occasionally be somewhat lewd. However, the classic tango-song only took on a jovial, bawdy character in 1917 following the verses in 'Mi Noche Triste', which Pascual Contursi based on a melody by Samuel Castriota. Involving the singer Carlos Gardel, who recorded it for the first time, was a pivotal moment in tango’s character arc. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to claim that Gardel invented the tango-song, establishing the basis for the whole musical style. Nor would it be inaccurate to claim that it was the tango-song that invented Gardel, since prior to this song he had mainly focussed on traditional folk music.
The verses of 'Mi Noche Triste' introduced the idea of unhappy love into tango; an idea that would go on to be expressed through the genre in every way possible. However, it didn’t take long for tango’s thematic inspiration to expand, going far beyond the notions of love and romance. Each song is like a drama, or "dramma giocoso”, condensed into three minutes, making appearances in cabarets, legendary suburbs of Buenos Aires and even Paris (where else?). Bandoneonist and composer Anselmo Aieta once said: "the songs are only born when Carlitos Gardel sings them. Only then do we know if the child is beautiful.” Gardel forever cemented his name in the history books with his repertoire of tangos, waltzes and milongas. He also discovered poets like Celedonio Flores and Enrique Cadícamo. He paved the way for so many singers, many of whom ended up in theatres, on the radio or releasing records during the 1920s and 1930s, all either accompanied by guitars or singing with an orchestra, such as Azucena Maizani, Ada Falcón, Ignacio Corsini and Agustín Magaldi.
Gardel was born in 1890 in Toulouse, the son of a single mother who soon emigrated to Buenos Aires. However, his early years are often overshadowed by his untimely death; the singer tragically died in 1935, when the plane that was touring him across America caught fire. He was mourned by fans across the continent. He left behind an incredible artistic legacy—both as a composer and a singer—which is unrivalled in its perfection. He left a mark on the world of tango that no one else could ever hope to fill; though Nelly Omar, who continued taking to the stage right up until her 100th birthday, did her best, earning her the endearing nickname “Gardel in a dress.”
The "typical" orchestra is at the heart of tango: Four bandoneons, four violins, a piano and a double bass constitute the standard structure. Julio De Caro led the genre’s orchestral evolution in the 1920s. His standard sextet brought together elite instrumentalists and arrangements of unparalleled perfection. Another stand-out figure is Juan D’Arienzo. Incredibly popular through the 1940s, and the complete opposite of De Caro, he used the fast, regular rhythm of his orchestra to stir up a real dance fever. As tango dance exploded, the public began to fall in love with orchestras: both traditional and contemporary. Some of the most popular included those of Carlos di Sarli, Osvaldo Fresedo, Osvaldo Pugliese, Aníbal Troilo (who certainly had no shortage of great singers).
De Caro’s legacy laid the foundations for the greatest revolution ever seen within Argentine music. This revolution came in the form of composer Astor Piazzolla, who passed through Troilo’s bandoneons, Alberto Ginastera’s classes in Buenos Aires and Nadia Boulanger’s classes in Paris before creating his own completely original sound. It’s a genre in its own right featuring over three thousand compositions (although Adiós, Nonino could single-handedly render Piazzolla one of the great masters of tango music). The quintet, his favourite ensemble of all those he conducted, remains the most accomplished expression of this revolution; though his many other ventures are also worthy of high praise, such as his traditional (Orchestra of 1946), symphonic (Concerto for bandoneon and orchestra) and progressive work (Octuor Electronique).
Many of the core pieces in the tango genre were born in the 1940s. These pieces were the fruit of Troilo’s collaborations with Homero Manzi ('Sur'), Enrique Cadícamo ('Garúa'), the duos Sebastián Piana and Cátulo Castillo ('Tinta roja'), and Mariano Mores and José María Contursi ('Grincel'), as well as the Expósito brothers ('Naranjo en flor'). However, some of these pieces of music didn’t fully come into their own until later, like 'Los Mareados', a tango originally written by Juan Carlos Cobián to which Cadícamo added verses 20 years later. There were also melodies that were written and perfected in a heartbeat; for example, 'Malena', which Lucio Demare composed in fifteen minutes on a small napkin in a bar called El Gran Guindado. Meanwhile, Enrique Santos Discépolo took three years to write lyrics for 'Uno', a tango for which Mores had written the music.
Río de la Plata’s musical repertoire considers the waltz and the milonga to be inseparable from the tango. Héctor Stamponi “urbanised” the rural waltz in the 1940s and was renamed the “Argentine Strauss" by Piazzolla. The Milonga, which is also of rural origin, underwent substantial evolution thanks to the collaboration between Piana and Manzi. They composed a series of milongas, starting with their 'Milonga Sentimental' in 1931.
Borges - who defined tango as "the decline of the milonga" – reluctantly collaborated with Piazzolla in a few pieces within this series: 'Jacinto Chiclana', 'El Títere' and 'A Don Nicanor Paredes'. These were included in an LP in 1965 and featured the deep, dark voice of Edmundo Rivero (and they would later be recorded by Jairo). Rivero also sang tangos, milongas and poems in lunfardo (a type of slang from Buenos Aires), but these have now been condemned for their misogynistic tendencies following the rise of cancel culture.
The Uruguayan singer Julio Sosa, accompanied by Leopoldo Federico’s orchestra, enjoyed great success in the early 60s with lively versions of classics such as 'Cambalache', 'Araca', 'Corazón' or 'Madame Ivonne'. Sosa was somewhat of an exception during a long period of time which saw tango fall in popularity. The genre took refuge in places such as Caño 14, Troilo’s well known stronghold, and Gotán, the basement that was home to the singer and guitarist Juan “Tata” Cedrón and the avant-garde bandoneonist Eduardo Rovira. Susana Rinaldi, who really made Manzi’s poetry shine, and Rubén Juárez, a gifted singer and bandoneonist, also burst onto the scene during these years. So too did Amelita Baltar, the woman behind the distinctive voice on 'Balada para un Loco', which saw Piazzolla and Horacio Ferrer reinvent the rules of tango-song. Pieces by Eladia Blázquez and Chico Novarro were also added to the repertoire; they were just destined to become classics.
As the traditional orchestra began to take a backseat, instrumental tango reinvented itself by centring its formations on the soloists: In Quinteto Real –in which Horacio Salgán brought all his orchestral thoughts together– Troilo allied with the guitarist Roberto Grela, and later again in the Sexteto Tango and the Sexteto Mayor. In 1983, the Sexteto Mayor and the duo Salgán and De Lio, alongside the singers Roberto Goyeneche (an expert vocalist who was the legendary voice of Salgán’s and Troilo’s orchestras), Raúl Lavié and María Graña were all part of the show Tango Argentino by Claudio Segovia and Héctor Orezzoli. This show debuted in the Paris Autumn Festival and awakened a worldwide "tangomania". The City of Light once again became the trailblazer for all things tango… just like it was back in the good old days, when the artist SEM wrote in 1912: "There are tango-teas, tango-exhibitions, tango-conferences. One half of Paris encourages the other. The whole city has gone into overdrive: It’s got tango on the brain."
The immense musical richness of current tango is based on a variety of styles, on the dialogue between generations and on the crossing of languages. It refuses to be constrained by any rules or dogmas. From traditional orchestras that respect classical arrangements (Pablo Valle Sextet, La Juan D’Arienzo, the Sans Souci orchestra), to the absolute freedom of the Postangos left behind by Gerardo Gandini; from the new generations of bandoneonists, to their forefathers Rodolfo Mederos, Néstor Marconi or Juan José Mosalini, everything is constantly moving and intermingling. The Orchestra Tango School has developed a whole stylistic range of the great típicas. Fernández Fierro’s Orquesta Típìca has become a breeding ground for alternative groups who are experimenting with a punk attitude and "Pugliesien" tempos (that is, tempos in the style of Osvaldo Pugliese). The drummer “pipi” Piazzolla revisits the work of his grandfather, Astor Piazzolla, through the medium of jazz with his group Escalandrum, featuring arrangements from the pianist Nicolás Guerschberg. Meanwhile, the virtuoso bandoneonist Louise Jallu reinterprets him in Paris in arrangements by composer Bernard Cavanna.
Whether its pieces that form part of the traditional repertoire or new creations, voices like Adriana Varela, Lidia Borda, Guillermo Fernández, Ariel Ardit, Daniel Melingo, Malena Muyala and Omar Mollo maintain the same level of expression that’s always been associated with tango. Now that the age of the sampler is well underway, the voice of Ernesto “Che” Guevara is brought back to life by the Gotán Project’s Franco-Swiss-Argentine electronics, and the Río de la Plata fusion collective, Bajofondo, mixes the words of Goyeneche’s version of ‘La última curda’ on a loop in their hit ‘Mi corazón’. This genre of music is still present in today’s musical landscape. Sometimes, tango is no more than a wink, a little quotation, a feeling.
