La Historia de la Música

Before the well known dance of tango there was the music. First, there was the orquesta típica which included violins, piano, bass, guitar, and most importantly the bandoneon. The bandoneon is what gives the tango its sound. It is originally from Germany where it was played in churches but made its way to Argentina along with its immigrants. [1]

This picture depicts the sensual dance of the tango along with
the bandoneon which is a key element in tango music.

         With the globalization of the tango, the meanings of the songs changed from poor street life of Buenos Aires to love. The sound also changed to add a more jazzy sound as artists traveled to other countries and fused them. The Golden Age of Tango was from 1935 through the 40s where the tango was at its highest. Artists like Juan D’Arienzo and Rodolfo Biagi came about and took the tango world by storm with their new electric rhythm that packed the dance floors. But in the late 1940s the tango musicians just wanted to play for records and concerts, not to please the dancers. Also, in 1955 the Peronist government banned the tango because they wanted to bring in music from other countries like rock and roll. People were not even allowed to dance the tango without being imprisoned so the tango faded fast.

Astor Piazzola started as a bandoneonista born in Argentina and moved to the U.S. In 1946 he started his own orchestra and made arrangements that had elements of tango and jazz but much faster. This is what is called the Tango Nuevo. Piazzolla wanted his music to be listened to not danced to but when it hit Buenos Aires people were mad. They said that it was too different from the tango and you could not dance to it which Piazzolla knew. Piazzolla is the most popular modern tango artist especially for the creation of the Tango Nuevo.

After the fall of the Argentine government in 1983 the tango came back into action. In that same year, a hit show called Tango Argentino premiered which made people fall in love with the tango again. People who had not danced it in thirty years began to dance again along with the younger generation who wanted to connect with their culture and learn the lost dance. Today, there are radio stations that just play tango music. New tango artists are mainly influenced Piazzolla but for the people that want to dance the tango want to look into the Golden Age of tango.[2 for all info after [1] click here ]

      I found this paragraph on a great website which I have referenced on this blog before. It is an amazing website that is full of information about the tango and how it came about but this quote says everything. I tried to think of a way to paraphrase it but I think it needs all the parts to relay the message. It is a perfect explanation between the music of tango and the dance.

“Different tango music tends to suggest different styles of dance when we hear it. Although many of the dance styles that were original danced when it was compose are now lost, with our mixed and reinvented tango we are able to interpret it. Some music suggests the use of cortes 'cuts' that reflect its strong rhythm, others are most flowing, while still others are full of tensions and accelerations. In the end it is up to the couple how they dance, but it is important , and more interesting to really listen to the music, and not just dance the way same all the time.”[1]