Tango on the Rocks Festival Loco Tango Milonga playlist

So happy to be back in Denver and Boulder and to DJ at the Avalon once again! We had to cut our California adventure short, and to start driving East in the dead of the night, after Homer and Cristina's Berkeley practica, just to catch a short rest home and then to keep driving East to meet them again at the Merc 4 days later. But whatever it takes to support our dear Colorado friends in their most recent, most crazy project. Welcome to Tango on the Rocks, John Miller and Jesica Cutler's radically novel concept of a tango festival - an anarchically decentralized event where 3 nights of the milongas are organized by the notable local hosts at their classic venues, and only the Saturday matinee and night milongas are fully festival's. We had a blast at the Merc and Savoy and La Rumba and the Avalon and of course the Cheesman Pavilion! Homer and Cristina taught class after class, John and Homer and Marc and Jessica La Vitrolera DJ'd, Orquesta Tipica Natural Tango played live - with an amazing powerful bando section and a stunning shivers-down-your-spine trumpet solo, Grisha and Erskine and Olga jammed together too, Jurni and Naseema volunteered, Halina created an unbelievable dinner meal for the milonga, and it all would have been just like coming to root for the hometown team except this time around I signed up to play along, too. Thank you for your work and your talents and your sleepless nights, friends! Thank you for the tandas and the conversations and for your companionship! Here's to many more Colorado nights together!

Memories of the Merc, Savoy, and Cheesman milongas
(including photos from Naseema and Kim)

So my "work shift" falls on Labor Day's night. The dinner at the Avalon Ballroom is soo good, and so well advertised, that the crowds of people start filling the space right after the first chords of the first tango. But it still takes 3 full tandas before the first couples actually make it to the dance floor :) Everyone is so busy with their delicious baked salmon and their dinner table conversations :) But then, almost in an instant, el gente's on the floor dancing. (Later at night I learn that despite Halina's traditionally opulent super-abundance, the food actually ran out this time ... maybe that was the secret to the sudden shift of the public from the tables onto the floor ;) ... anyway, the music of the opening tandas provided a nice backdrop for the party).

001. Quinteto Don Pancho - Instrumental "Champagne tango" 1938 2:30
002. Quinteto Don Pancho - Instrumental "El garron" 1938 2:27
003. Quinteto Don Pancho - Instrumental "Loca" 1938 2:57
004. Zhanna Aguzarova  "Old Hotel cortina long"  0:38
005. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos  "A media luz" 1941 2:31
006. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos  "Te busco" 1941 2:26
007. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos  "A oscuras" 1941 2:48
008.  "Katyusha"  0:33
009. Rodolfo Biagi - Alberto Amor "Paloma" 1945 2:28
010. Rodolfo Biagi - Alberto Lago  "Amor Y Vals" 1942 2:48
011. Rodolfo Biagi - Andrés Falgás "Dejame Amarte Aunque Sea un Dia (vals)" 1939 2:55
012. Carmen Piculeata  "Egy kis cigainy dal" 2013 0:29
013. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón "Jamás Retornarás" 1942 2:28
014. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón "Cuatro compases" 1942 2:43
015. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón "Que te importa que te llore" 1942 2:44
016. Victor Tsoy  "Blood type (cortina)"  0:36
The first alternative tanda is united by its spring-like "up" feeling - the closing track stands out a bit because it achieves this effect with any guitar strings, just by exuberant singing a capella, but it is the sweetest piece of the set and I'm confident that it belongs there. Yet I am really stressed at this moment - as I was pretty much all day, actually - because it's such a difficult task for me, to try to build a semi-alternative playlist which will accommodate all tastes and rock everybody with its energy waves, those who love alt and those who sit it out. I wrote at length about "the alternative allure and quandary" last time when I DJ'd here. Tonight, too, several classics-only dancers remain uncomfortable with the musical format, and it weighs heavily on my mood. But the floor fills up with people, and I field my first "what-was-that-cool-thing" questions for the night, and my stress level begins to dissipate.
017. Fool's Garden  "Lemon tree" 1995 3:09
018. Jason Mraz  "I'm Yours" 2008 4:20
019. Damour Vocal Band  "Sway"  3:49
020. The Blues Brothers  "Theme From Rawhide 1" 1980 0:21
The vibe is passed on to a springy, smiley mixed-orchestra milonga set, getting just a touch more grounded at the end (where we leave Uruguay and return to BsAs ... but perhaps Miguel Villasboas's "El sentir del corazon", "La mulita", or "Mozo guapo" or even "Pena mulata" could have completed the tanda instead?)

021. Emilio Pellejero - Enalmar De Maria "Mi Vieja Linda " 1941 2:26
022. Miguel Villasboas - Instrumental  "La Milonga Que Hacia Falta" 1961 2:18
023. Julio De Caro - Luis Díaz "Saca Chispas" 1938 2:30
024. Carmen Piculeata  "Egy kis cigainy dal" 2013 0:29
025. Carlos di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Tú, el cielo y tú" 1944 2:58
026. Carlos di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Llueve otra vez" 1944 3:05
027. Carlos di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Lloran las campanas" 1944 2:57
028.  "Katyusha"  0:33
029. Enrique Rodríguez - Armando Moreno "Tango argentino" 1942 2:37
030. Enrique Rodríguez - Armando Moreno "En la buena y en la mala" 1940 2:26
031. Enrique Rodríguez - Armando Moreno "Como has cambiado pebeta" 1942 2:37
032. Victor Tsoy  "Blood type (cortina)"  0:36
The lone alternative vals tanda for the night ... I love the classic Argentine valses so much, and there could be so few vals tandas anyway, that I'd be hard pressed to give them up to play any more alt's. But this is a nice ethnic-vibe tanda mostly gravitating to the Old Bygone Poland. The first track is in Yiddish, a beautiful song inspired, as I understand, by an Ukrainian tune. Alas, to put it in the beginning of a tanda, I had to cut a wonderful segment of joyful klezmer from the ending section, just to make sure that a waltz transitions seamlessly into the next waltz...
033. Klezmatics - Chava Alberstein "Di Krenitse (milonga cut)" 2001 3:39
"She was pretty like an angel and fat like an intestine sausage". A humorous Polish folk romance from the antebellum Lwow which has been nicely remixed but, alas, largely without the flavor of the (now extinct) local dialect. For the milonga, I cut the ballad at the verse where it becomes clear that the star-crossed lovers are going to die, creating a new crescendo finale and skipping several more verses about their death, burial, etc.
034. Zespół Starling  "Ballada o pannie Franciszce (milonga cut)"  3:14
Felipe Antonio's is a small Argentine band playing classic scores with a distinct folk vibe, which kind of fits to this very folksy waltz tanda
035. Felipe Antonio  "A mi madre"  2:27
036. Zhanna Aguzarova  "Old Hotel cortina long"  0:38
We start in the antebellum Poland again, and continue the European oldies tanda in Austria / Latvia / Russia and France. I wrote many more details about the stories of these songs last time when I played in Boulder (and still more here) - there is so much talent and so much pain and heartbreak behind their lines - please follow the links if you're interested!
037. Jerzy Petersburski - Mieczysław Fogg "To ostatnia niedziela" 1936 3:19
038. Frank Fox - Piotr Leschenko "Chernye Glaza (Dark Eyes)" 1933 3:15
039. Rafael Canaro - Roger Toussaint "La Melodia Notre Adieu" 1936 3:15
040. Zhanna Aguzarova  "Old Hotel cortina long"  0:38
The Tanturi-Castillo tanda gradually accelerates in preparation for the nuevo milongas:
041. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "La última copa" 1943 2:39
042. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "Recuerdo malevo" 1941 2:33
043. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "La Vida Es Corta" 1941 2:23
044. The Blues Brothers  "Theme From Rawhide (long vocal cortina)" 1980 0:33
045. Otros Aires  "Un Baile De Beneficio" 2010 3:42
046. Juan Carlos Cáceres "Tango Negro" 2003 3:45
047. Kevin Johansen  "Sur o No Sur" 2002 4:53
048. Carrapicho  "Tic Tic Tac cortina 1" 2007 0:17
049. silent pause
(a call for birthday valses which turn out to be quite chaotic ... so many birthday boys and girls show up, and so many other guests don't know them well, that figuring who's staying on the pista and who's leaving is all but impossible. Well, tango can accommodate a lot of chaos in it ... but ... note to self: if we ever play a birthday vals at a well-attended milonga with many out-of-towners, them we need to mark the birthday tangueros more clearly. Give them wreaths or bright ribbons for heads or arms? Introduce them better, too. A microphone may be necessary, too)
050. Enrique Rodriguez - El "Chato" Flores "Los Piconeros" 1939 2:47
051. Carrapicho  "Tic Tic Tac cortina 1" 2007 0:17
and the following tanda is for the Avalon's traditional community / "waterfall" dance:
052. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida "Recuerdos De Paris" 1937 3:12
053. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida "Condena (S.O.S.)" 1937 2:39
054. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida "Solo una novia" 1935 3:23
055. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida "Invierno" 1937 3:25
056. Carrapicho  "Tic Tic Tac cortina 1" 2007 0:17
057. silent pause  - a call for chacareras
058. "Chacarera del violin"  2:12
059. Carlos Carabajal  "De la Banda a Santiago"  2:21
060. Russian Folk  "Kalinka-Malinka 2 (cortina)"  0:25
And, phew, the many specials, however wonderful, are over, and it's time to "whip the milonga back into action" with D'Arienzos - which works like a charm.
061. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe "Que Importa" 1939 2:08
062. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe "Indiferencia" 1938 2:31
063. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe "Mandria" 1939 2:22
064.  "Katyusha"  0:33
065. Edgardo Donato - Hugo del Carril "El vals de los recuerdos" 1935 2:18
066. Edgardo Donato - Félix Gutiérrez "La Tapera - vals" 1936 2:54
067. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos "Quien Sera - vals" 1941 2:15
068. Victor Tsoy  "Blood type (cortina)"  0:36
a cooldown / dreamy vibe alternative tanda
069. Jem  "Come On Closer" 2004 3:47
070. Mecano  "Hijo De La Luna"  4:29
071. Haris Alexiou  "To Tango Tis Nefelis" 1998 4:07
072. Zhanna Aguzarova  "Old Hotel cortina long"  0:38
and back into the energetic roll with the tanda of softly rhythmic Di Sarli instrumentals setting the stage for the trifecta of Otros Aires's milongas:
073. Carlos Di Sarli - Instrumental "La Trilla" 1940 2:21
074. Carlos Di Sarli - Instrumental "Shusheta" 1940 2:24
075. Carlos Di Sarli - Instrumental "Nobleza De Arrabal" 1940 2:07
076. The Blues Brothers  "Theme From Rawhide 1" 1980 0:21
077. Otros Aires  "Milonga Sentimental" 2005 3:57
078. Otros Aires  "Rotos en el Raval" 2005 3:53
079. Otros Aires  "Los Vino" 2010 2:43
080. Carmen Piculeata  "Egy kis cigainy dal" 2013 0:29
the grounded, highest intensity tanda of the night:
081. The Alex Krebs Tango Sextet  "La Yumba" 2011 2:57
082. Fervor de Buenos Aires  "E.G.B." 2007 2:26
083. Ojos De Tango "El Adios"  3:13
084. Zhanna Aguzarova  "Old Hotel cortina long"  0:38
085. Lucio Demare - Juan Carlos Miranda  "Malena" 1942 2:57
086. Lucio Demare - Juan Carlos Miranda  "Sorbos amargos" 1942 3:22
087. Lucio Demare - Juan Carlos Miranda  "No te apures, Carablanca" 1942 3:29
088. Victor Tsoy  "Blood type (cortina)"  0:36
A surprise, unplanned special here - Grisha Nisnevich, Erskine Maytorena, and Olga Tikhovidova jamming together! When they finally dared to do it less than half an hour earlier, I suggested that they start after a more melodic / romantic randa - and here they blast in with two final milongas of the night.
089. Kayah & Bregovic  "Ta-Bakiera [This Tabakeria]" 1999 4:17
090. Kayah & Bregovic  "To Nie Ptak [Not a Bird]" 1999 4:40
091. Zhanna Aguzarova  "Old Hotel cortina long"  0:38
The time is almost up and we swirl towards the dramatic crescendo with some of the best Uruguayan tangos, followed by a merged late De Angelis - Pugliese tanda.
092. Donato Racciatti - Olga Delgrossi  "Hasta siempre amor" 1958 2:57
093. Donato Racciatti - Olga Delgrossi "Sus Ojos Se Cerraron" 1956 2:47
094. Donato Racciatti - Olga Delgrossi  "Queriéndote" 1955 2:49
095. Zhanna Aguzarova  "Old Hotel cortina long"  0:38
096. Alfredo de Angelis - Instrumental  "Felicia" 1969 2:47
097. Osváldo Pugliese - Roberto Chanel "Rondando Tu Esquina" 1945 2:48
098. Osváldo Pugliese - Jorge Maciel  "Remembranza" 1956 3:41
099. Alfredo de Angelis - Instrumental  "La cumparsita" 1961 3:33
100. silent pause  0:31
(followed by last-hugs & cleanup / furniture moving set)
and I doubt if I could ever possibly end the night without "Los ejes" if I ever DJ the closing milonga of a Colorado tango weekend again, because it's always the endless I-80 across the prairies of Wyoming which awaits me after it's over. Always the same repeating lines: "Es demasiado aburrido seguir y seguir la huella! Es demasiado aburrido seguiiir y seguiiir la huella..."
101. Paco Mendoza & DJ Vadim  "Los Ejes De Mi Carreta" 2013 3:23
102. Alacran  "Reflejo De Luna" 2010 3:44
103. Souad Massi  "Ghir Enta" 2008 5:06

The stats? Well, if you let me be "greedy" & count all contemporary / outside of Argentina tandas as non-classic, even the post-Cumparsita set, then we end up with an (arguably inflated) 11 / 13 alt / classic ratio. Wow. Could it even be true? Perhaps a more reasonable thing to do would have been to tally the Uruguayans among the classic, and to stop at La cumparsita. Then the alternative / classic ratio tallies as 8 / 15, with fully half of the remaining alt's being totally faithful to the classic tango and milonga genres. Now that's more or less what I had in mind.

P.S. Jessica already has (most of) her Pavilion Tango Colorado playlist up on Spotify, and Homer will probably add his alternative milonga playlist to his great DJ Resource page soon, too. 

Milonga Sin Nombre playlist - Aug 2015

The August 22 Milonga Sin Nombre was organized as a special thank-you celebration for the volunteers of the Mountain Milonga Retreat 2015 

Volunteer Appreciation night at the Milonga Sin Nombre
 "with the roaring comeback of the banana empanadas"
There are dark clouds of uncertainty about the future use of our beautiful venue -
let's hope that this twentieth Sin Nombre won't be the last one...

Mountain Milonga Retreat 2015, the largest one of the many annual retreats traditionally organized by the Wasatch Tango Club in the historic 1929 ski lodge high above the Salt Lake Valley, was a lot of fun - and whole lot of work. Hats off to our fantastic volunteers and staff, to our wonderful instructors and musicians and DJs, and kudos to all the tangueros who helped at every turn of this amazing tango weekend! Thank you for your generosity, thank you for the openness and friendship, thank you for the magic of the connections between souls - this is what makes the M2 so special and unique. See you again next year - please mark your calendars for August 12-15, 2016!

001. Osvaldo Fresedo - Instrumental  "Poliya" 1939 2:31
002. Osvaldo Fresedo - Instrumental  "El Once (A divertirse)" 1945 2:43
003. Osvaldo Fresedo - Instrumental  "Arrabalero" 1939 2:32
004. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26
005. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental "El flete" 1936 2:58
006. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental "Derecho viejo" 1939 2:24
007. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental "El Cencerro" 1937 2:40
008. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
009. Anibal Troilo - Alberto Marino/Floreal Ruiz  "Palomita Blanca (Vals)"  3:22
010. Aníbal Troilo - Floreal Ruiz  "Romance de barrio" 1947 2:36
011. Anibal Troilo - Instrumental "Un Placer (Vals)"  2:19
012. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
013. Enrique Rodriguez - Armando Moreno "Llorar por una mujer" 1941 2:51
014. Enrique Rodriguez - Armando Moreno "En la buena y en la mala" 1940 2:26
015. Enrique Rodriguez - Armando Moreno "No te quiero mas" 1940 2:18
016. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26
017. Carlos Di Sarli - Alberto Podesta "No esta"  2:45
018. Carlos Di Sarli - Alberto Podesta "Vamos!..."  2:48
019. Carlos Di Sarli - Alberto Podesta "Al compas del Corazon"  3:19
020. The Blues Brothers  "Theme From Rawhide 2" 1980 0:18
a tanda of gentle milongas
021. Francisco Canaro - Ernesto Fama  "Milonga sentimental" 1933 3:10
022. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida "Tangon (slow milonga)" 1935 3:17
023. Francisco Canaro - Ernesto Fama  "Milonga del 900" 1933 2:55
024. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
025. Ricardo Malerba - Orlando Medina "Ricardo Malerba - Embrujamiento" 1943 2:52
026. Ricardo Malerba - Antonio Maida "Encuentro" 2:20
027. Ricardo Malerba - Orlando Medina "Gitana rusa" 1942 2:47
with the summer night of just 26 people, I feel that it's time to try four-tango tandas at last. It is a format I have virtually no experience with, but it just makes sense to play fewer, longer tandas on a night like this
028. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26
029. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos  "A media luz" 1941 2:31
030. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos  "A oscuras" 1941 2:48
031. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos  "Se va la vida" 1936 2:39
032. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos  "Lagrimas" 1939 2:50
033. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
favorite valses of Firpo's quartet which he convened after losing the big orchestra during the Great Depression years
034. Roberto Firpo "Olga (vals)" 2:10
035. Roberto Firpo "Para Las Chicas (vals)" 1942 2:14
036. Roberto Firpo "El Aeroplano (vals)" 2:14
037. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
August is the birth month of Demare, and I already started to celebrate it with a Demare-Quintana tanda 3 weeks back, Continuing now with a set of Demare's hits with the voice of Juan Carlos Miranda:
038. Lucio Demare - Juan Carlos Miranda  "Malena" 1942 2:57
039. Lucio Demare - Juan Carlos Miranda  "No te apures, Carablanca" 1942 3:29
040. Lucio Demare - Juan Carlos Miranda  "Sorbos amargos" 1942 3:22
041. Lucio Demare - Juan Carlos Miranda  "Manana zarpa un barco" 1942 3:22
042. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26
043. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo  "Recuerdo Malevo"  2:33
044. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "Decile Que Vuelva" 1942 2:33
045. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo  "Así Se Baila El Tango"  2:34
046. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo  "La vida es corta" 1941 2:25
047. The Blues Brothers  "Theme From Rawhide 2" 1980 0:18
048. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino "Zorzal" 1941 2:40
049. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino  "Cuando un viejo se enamora" 1942 2:14
050. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino "Yo Soy De San Telmo" 1943 2:20
051. "Palolo - Charlie Wilson" 0:27
052. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida  "Paciencia" 1938 2:31
053. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida  "Alma del bandoneon" 1935 2:46
054. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida  "Condena (S.O.S.)" 1937 2:39
055. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida  "Invierno" 1937 3:26
056. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26
057. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón "Jamas Retornaras" 2:31
058. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón  "Trasnochando" 1942 3:04
059. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón  "Que te importa que te llore" 1942 2:44
060. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón  "Lejos de Buenos Aires" 1942 2:54
061. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
062. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos "Quien Sera - vals" 1941 2:15
063. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos "Con Tus Besos (vals)" 1938 2:23
064. Edgardo Donato - Félix Gutiérrez "La Tapera - vals" 1936 2:54
It's always a question if it is a better idea to run a few alternative / unusual tandas back to back, or to spread them evenly in the milonga flow. I guessed that increasing energy and then transitioning to D'Arienzo will keep the dancers on the floor throughout this block of tandas, and it worked very well
065. Carmen Piculeata  "Egy kis cigainy dal" 2013 0:29
066. Kayah & Bregovic  "Ta-Bakiera [This Tabakeria]" 1999 4:17
067. Kayah & Bregovic  "To Nie Ptak [Not a Bird]" 1999 4:40
068. Goran Bregovic  "This Is A Film (feat. Iggy Pop)" 2003 4:18
069. Leonid Bykov  "Smuglyanka"  0:33
070. Fool's Garden  "Lemon tree" 1995 3:09
071. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole  "Over The Rainbow" 2001 3:32
072. Souad Massi  "Ghir Enta" 2008 5:06
073. The Blues Brothers  "Theme From Rawhide 2" 1980 0:18
The final tanda of "the trio of the unusuals" are the Golden-Age foxes
074. Enrique Rodriguez - Armando Moreno "Suavemente"  3:05
075. Enrique Rodriguez - Armando Moreno "No Te Apures Por Dios Postillon "  2:59
076. Enrique Rodriguez - Armando Moreno "Contando las estrellas"  2:23
077. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
078. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe  "Pensalo bien" 1938 2:27
079. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe  "Que importa" 1939 2:17
080. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe  "Ansiedad" 1938 2:42
081. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe  "La bruja" 1938 2:18
082. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26
083. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental  "Marejada" 1941 2:32
084. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "El ingeniero" 1952 3:25
085. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "Cara sucia" 1957 2:48
086. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "El amanecer" 1951 2:30
087. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
088. Rodolfo Biagi - Andrés Falgás "El Ultimo Adios (vals)" 2:08
089. Rodolfo Biagi - Jorge Ortíz "Pajaro Herido (vals)" 2:18
090. Rodolfo Biagi - Jorge Ortíz "Lagrimas Y Sonrisas (vals)"  2:41
091. Anzhelika Varum  "Autumn Jazz"  0:20
My all-time favorite Laurenz hits are with Alberto Podesta, which, of course, means that I may be playing other Pedro Laurenz great tangos too seldom. Trying to fix it now (and switching back to 3-song tandas because we are almost out of out time and I still want to play the crazy late D'Arienzo instrumentals and the must-have Pugliese):
092. Pedro Laurenz - Juan Carlos Casas "Vieja amiga"  3:13
093. Pedro Laurenz - Juan Carlos Casas "Al Verla Pasar"  3:23
094. Pedro Laurenz - Juan Carlos Casas "No me extrana"  2:44
095. "Na Pua O Hawaii - George Ku Trio" 0:22
096. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental  "La torcacita" 1971 2:31
097. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental  "Zorro gris" 1973 2:03
098. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental  "Este Es El Rey" 1971 3:10
099. "Lady Be Good - Sol Hoopii Trio" 0:23
100. Osvaldo Pugliese - Roberto Chanel  "Farol" 1943 3:22
101. Osvaldo Pugliese - Roberto Chanel "Corrientes Y Esmeralda" 1944 2:49
102. Osvaldo Pugliese - Roberto Chanel  "Rondando tu esquina" 1945 2:48
103. Alfredo de Angelis - Instrumental  "La cumparsita" 1961 3:33
104. 17 Hippies  "Marlène" 2005 3:54
105. Eendo  "Eshgh e Aasemaani" 2011 3:31

Thank you! We couldn't hve done it without you! Share the memories, share the embraces, and see you up in the mountains next August!

Mystic Milonga playlist - Guest DJ Michael D'Elia

The 2nd annual Mystic Milonga Afterparty Tour gathered 24 of the craziest tangueros who just wouldn't part ways after the last Cumparsita of the Mountain Milonga Retreat 2015! We drove South to the Fremont Indian State Park to see its famous petroglyphs (some accessible from the pavement, others requiring ascending the airy Cliff Edge trial), checked into the antique log cabins and refurbished 1970s vintage school buses of Mystic Hot Springs, and reconvened in the Monroe City Park for an asado and a pavilion milonga, before retreating to the hot springs to soak under the glow of the Milky Way and  shooting stars of the Perseid flow. And capped the adventure by a hike in Bryce Canyon National Park the following day!

It was the guest DJ Michael D'Elia's first stint in our state, and the second-ever milonga in the vast Central Utah! Michael graciously shared his playlist for the night, which I reformatted here more or less along the lines of the rest of the playlist posts. See you again at Mystic next August! We shall go to see Goblins or Arches next time - it was great to see the hoodoos of Bryce twice, but now I think we'll need a new adventure!

01. Orquesta Típica Víctor - Alberto Gómez 1932 "Rodríguez Peña" Tango
02. Orquesta Típica Víctor - Alberto Gómez 1932 "Don Juan" Tango
03. Orquesta Típica Víctor - Alberto Gómez 1933 "Ventarrón" Tango

04. The Black Crowes -  1992 "Thorn In My Pride" Cortina
05. Francisco Lomuto -  1942 "Sentimiento Gaucho" Tango
06. Francisco Lomuto -  1943 "Catamarca" Tango
07. Francisco Lomuto - Fernando Díaz 1940 "Quiero Verte Una Vez Más" Tango
08. Radical Face -  2006 "Welcome Home" Cortina
09. Rodolfo Biagi -  1942 "Bélgica" Tango
10. Rodolfo Biagi -  1950 "Racing Club" Tango
11. Rodolfo Biagi -  1952 "El Recodo" Tango
12. Blind Melon -  1995 "Mouthful Of Cavities" Cortina
13. Francisco Canaro -  1936 "Dolores" Vals
14. Francisco Canaro -  1938 "Corazón De Oro" Vals
15. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida 1938 "Romántica" Vals
16. The Be Good Tanyas -  2000 "The Coo Coo Bird" Cortina
17. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo 1942 "Muñeca Brava" Tango
18. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo 1942 "Cuatro Compases" Tango
19. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo 1941 "Recuerdo Malevo" Tango
20. Gnarls Barkley -  2006 "Crazy" Cortina
21. Pedro Laurenz - Alberto Podestá 1944 "El Criollito Oriental" Milonga
22. Pedro Laurenz -  1944 "Milonga De Mis Amores" Milonga
23. Pedro Laurenz - Alberto Podestá 1943 "Yo Soy De San Telmo" Milonga
24. Beirut -  2006 "Postcards From Italy" Cortina
25. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino 1941 "Cascabelito" Tango
26. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino 1941 "Griseta" Tango
27. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino 1942 "Mañana Zarpa Un Barco" Tango
28. Kevin Johansen -  2002 "Sur o No Sur" Cortina
29. Enrique Rodríguez - Armando Moreno 1940 "No Te Quiero Mas" Tango
30. Enrique Rodríguez - Armando Moreno 1944 "Dicen Que Así Soy Yo" Tango
31. Enrique Rodríguez - Armando Moreno 1940 "Danza Maligna" Tango
32. Luminescent Orchestrii -  2005 "Amaritsi" Cortina

33. Francisco Canaro -  1938 "Retintín" Tango
34. Francisco Canaro -  1938 "La Maleva" Tango
35. Francisco Canaro -  1939 "Quiero Verte Una Vez Más" Tango
36. Diego's Umbrella -  2007 "Das Borjka" Cortina
37. Edgardo Donato - Félix Gutiérrez 1936 "La Tapera" Vals
38. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos 1938 "Con Tus Besos" Vals
39. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos, Lita Morales, y… 1940 "Estrellita Mía" Vals
40. M. Ward -  2003 "Duet for Guitars #3" Cortina
41. Osvaldo Fresedo - Roberto Ray 1933 "Vida Mía" Tango
42. Osvaldo Fresedo - Roberto Ray 1937 "Sollozos" Tango
43. Osvaldo Fresedo - Roberto Ray 1937 "No Quiero Verte Llorar" Tango
44. Lhasa De Sela -  1998 "Desdenosa" Cortina
45. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos 1938 "Sácale Punta" Milonga
46. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos 1938 "Ella Es Así" Milonga
47. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos 1940 "Campo Afuera" Milonga
48. Laura Marling -  2008 "Ghosts" Cortina
49. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón 1942 "Tristezas De La Calle Corrientes" Tango
50. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón 1942 "Margarita Gauthier" Tango
51. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón 1942 "Corazón No Le Hagas Caso" Tango
52. CocoRosie -  2010 "Smokey Taboo" Cortina
53. Aníbal Troilo - Francisco Fiorentino 1942 "Malena" Tango
54. Aníbal Troilo - Francisco Fiorentino 1941 "El Bulín De La Calle Ayacucho" Tango
55. Aníbal Troilo - Francisco Fiorentino 1942 "Pa' Que Seguir" Tango
56. Radiohead -  2007 "Jigsaw Falling Into Place" Cortina
57. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo 1941 "Mi Romance" Vals
58. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo 1941 "La Serenata (Mi Amor)" Vals
59. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo 1941 "Recuerdo" Vals
60. Neko Case -  2006 "Dirty Knife" Cortina
61. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas 1942 "Ninguna" Tango
62. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas 1941 "Adiós Arrabal" Tango
63. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas 1945 "El Aristócrata" Tango
64. Jenny Lewis -  2008 "Bad Man's World" Cortina
65. Francisco Canaro - Ángel Ramos y Ernesto Famá 1933 "Milonga Sentimental" Milonga
66. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida 1936 "Milonga Criolla" Milonga
67. Francisco Canaro - Roberto Maida 1936 "Silueta Porteña" Milonga
68. Andrew Bird -  2009 "Tenuousness" Cortina
69. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos 1938 "El Adiós" Tango
70. Edgardo Donato - Lita Morales 1940 "Triqui-tra" Tango
71. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos 1937 "Gato" Tango
72. DeVotchKa -  2004 "We're Leaving" Cortina
73. Juan D'Arienzo -  1966 "9 De Julio" Tango
74. Juan D'Arienzo -  1963 "El Choclo" Tango
75. Juan D'Arienzo -  1937 "La Cumparsita" Tango

Milonga Mas Alta playlist, Aug 2015

The old lodge fills with dancers - Sandra Angel's photo

I am trying, frantically, to catch up with the August playlists, please forgive me if I'm zipping by too fast for this incredibly eventful month, marked by Wasatch Tango Club's signature event, the Mountain Milonga Retreat!  The days and nights of living together, of ever-strengthening connections between the like-minded souls, of group hikes and communal meals, and much, much tango in a beautiful 1929 log-house ballroom! My heart is just melting with every memory of the Retreat, and I bow low to all the volunteers and crew members and helpers who make the "M2" possible! You are so awesome!

As an organizer of the 80+-strong gathering, I know that I must put up with many 3-hour sleep nights, with many missed tanda opportunities, and with a total deficit of time ... which also means that I can't get a good chance to play my own music selections. But I still jumped at a chance to play some music at a first-of-its-kind milonga of the "M2", the Sunday outdoor milonga at the top of a ski lift (a.k.a. Krista's Peak). I scoped the location last fall - the winter cafe terrace has an even but rough floor, and I packed a blue tarp to make it more pivot friendly. From this year's experience, I know that we'll need to bring a larger tarp or plastic sheeting, and a more powerful speaker set - and to expect a good crowd. Welcome to the first-ever Milonga Mas Alta, Utah's highest elevation milonga ever, where the music was almost an afterthought - and where I chose to play a lot of oldies "from the era when people really danced on dirt and oilcloth tarps"


01. Orquesta de Roberto Firpo  "Una Noche En La Milonga" 1929 2:56
02. Sexteto Carlos di Sarli - Ernesto Famá  "La estancia" 1930 3:17
03. Sexteto Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "Belen" 1929 2:44
04. Cuarteto Roberto Firpo "El Aeroplano (vals)" 1936 2:14
05. Los Provincianos, Alberto Gomez  "Samaritana (vals)" 1932 2:58
06. Cuarteto Roberto Firpo - Carlos Varela  "Barreras de Amor" 1936 2:36
07. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas  "Solo compasion" 1941 2:58
08. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas "Un Tropezón"  2:34
09. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas  "Una pena" 1941 2:55
10. Orquesta Típica Víctor (dir. Adolfo Carabelli) - Roberto Díaz  "Vieja calesita" 1929 2:40
11. Orquesta Tipica Victor (dir. Adolfo Carabelli)  "Che, papusa, oi" 1927 2:37
12. Roberto Firpo - Teofilo Ibanez  "Ya no cantas, Chingolo" 1928 2:56
13. Osvaldo Fresedo - Roberto Ray "Yo no se llorar" 1933 2:36
14. Osvaldo Fresedo - Ricardo Ruiz  "Si no me engana el corazon" 1939 2:31
15. Osvaldo Fresedo - Ricardo Ruiz  "Inquietud" 1939 2:28
16. Osvaldo Fresedo - Ricardo Ruiz  "Buscandote" 1941 2:49

and then we were off down the hill to make it to the final hour of DJ Serena's Tango Addicts Milonga at the lodge...

Milonga Nuestra playlist, August 2015

DJing the Nuestra

The "house milonga" of the tango school of the DF Studio makes a roaring comeback after a two-month summer break - wow, what a turnout! The "Nuestra" crowd is as always a mix of the aspiring students and the wider local community - and my concept of a music mix for the night was "no pre-Golden age records, some accessible music, lots of passion and drive, some alternative". (Especially since I hope to land an invite to DJ another part-alternative milonga out of town soon ... gotta work on the sets :) ... I managed to squeeze 4 alt tandas in 3 hours this time). The alternative and the powerful-drive tandas drew dancers on the floor really well, but still left me with a few questions to ponder...
01. Quinteto Don Pancho - Instrumental "Champagne tango" 1938 2:30
02. Quinteto Don Pancho - Instrumental "El garron" 1938 2:27
03. Quinteto Don Pancho - Instrumental "Alma en pena" 1938 2:46
04. "Na Pua O Hawaii - George Ku Trio" 0:22
05. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental  "Cara sucia" 1952 2:20
06. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental  "Don Juan" 1955 2:48
07. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental  "El pollito" 1951 3:22
08. Carrapicho  "Tic Tic Tac cortina 1" 2007 0:17
09. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental  "Valsecito de Antes" 1937 2:19
10. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echague  "En tu corazon (vals)" 1938 2:46
11. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental  "Corazon de artista (vals)" 1936 2:22
12. "Lady Be Good - Sol Hoopii Trio" 0:23
13. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas "Adiós, Arrabal" 1941 3:10
14. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas "Mano Blanca" 1944 2:43
15. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas "Ahora No Me Conocés" 1941 2:35
16. Gypsy Folk  "Autumn Dew"  0:30
17. Rodolfo Biagi - Instrumental "La Maleva" 1939 2:35
18. Rodolfo Biagi - Andrés Falgás "Cielo!" 1939 2:31
19. Rodolfo Biagi - Andrés Falgás "La Chacarera" 1940 2:24
20. Alla Pugacheva "Million Scarlet Roses" 1982 0:19
21. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino "La Mulateada" 1941 2:22
22. Carlos Di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Entre Pitada Y Pitada" 1942 2:33
23. Carlos Di Sarli - Roberto Rufino "Pena Mulata" 1941 2:27
24. Adriano Celentano "Quel Punto"  0:27
The post-milonga cooldown set is an airy and mysterious alt tanda, a quality which we hardly ever get with the classic tango music.
25. Pentatonix  "Say Something (Christina Aguilera Cover)"  4:39
26. Yann Tiersen "Comptine D'un Autre Ete" 2001 2:21
27. Hindi Zahra  "Beautiful Tango" 2011 3:57

Tangueros fill the floor after just a few opening tandas.
Atakan's photo.

28. "Lady Be Good - Sol Hoopii Trio" 0:23
29. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón "Jamas Retornaras"  2:31
30. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón  "Lejos de Buenos Aires" 1942 2:54
31. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón "Que te importa que te llore" 1942 2:44
32. Carrapicho  "Tic Tic Tac cortina 2" 2007 0:18
Spirited valses from the period when Federico Scorticati, an Uruguayan-born virtuoso bandoneonist, led Victor label's house orchestra. Scorticati got his first bando at 8, and soon put it to work at the silent movie theaters of Montevideo. And he kept playing the same instrument, with well-worn keys, well into his 70s on tours across Latin America and Japan! 
All three famous singers in these records started their illustrious tango orchestra recording careers with Scorticati's "OTV". But this date in history is especially linked with the name of Lita Morales. On August 6, 1941, Lita made her last record with Donato's orchestra, and apparently took a maternity leave, from which she never emerged. Exactly a year later, Edgardo Donato fired her and both of his male vocalists over some unspeakable scandal - and then his whole orchestra instantly imploded, with musicians, composers, poets leaving, to never record any more tangos again. You can read a poetic reconstruction attempt of this dark drama on El Espejero's blog.
33. Orquesta Tipica Victor - Lita Morales "Noches de invierno" 1937 2:47
34. Orquesta Típica Víctor - Ángel Vargas "Sin Rumbo Fijo (vals)" 1938 2:18
35. Orquesta Tipica Victor - Mario Pomar  "Temo" 1940 2:55
36. Leonid Utesov  "Road to Berlin (slow)"  0:27
The final piece of this alternative tanda is contagiously rhythmic yet it may actually be the hardest to interpret as tango? If you know me, you may understand how I picked it, in part, for a common theme of "trains going North", but I am not so sure now.... What do you think?
37. Feist and Ben Gibbard  "Train Song"  3:03
38. Waldeck  "Addicted" 2007 3:51
39. Valery Meladze "Vera" 2009 4:06

40. "Palolo - Charlie Wilson" 0:27
41. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "Noches Del Colon" 1941 2:36
42. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "Recuerdo Malevo" 1941 2:33
43. ARicardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "Comparsa Criolla" 1941 2:53
44. Alla Pugacheva "Million Scarlet Roses" 1982 0:19
45. Otros Aires dos  "Los Vino"  2:41
46. The Alex Krebs Tango Sextet  "Largas las Penas" 2011 3:02
47. Esteban Morgado  "Morena" 2005 2:27
48. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26

Lucio Demare (Totango photo)

August is the birth month of Lucio Demare ( 8/9/1906 - 3/6/1974 ), a romantic pianist whose talent matured during his decade in Paris in the 1920s and 30s, and who often played solo or accompanied singers. His Golden Era orchestra recorded only 50 or so pieces, and the recordings with the voice of Horacio Quitana are often overshadowed by the stellar pieces with Raúl Berón ("Una emocion!") and Juan Carlos Miranda ("No te apures Carablanca"!), but they are all beautiful.
49. Lucio Demare - Horacio Quintana "Solamente ella" 1944 3:15
50. Lucio Demare - Horacio Quintana "Torrente" 1944 3:10
51. Lucio Demare - Horacio Quintana "Igual que un bandoneon" 1945 3:02
52. "Palolo - Charlie Wilson" 0:27
53. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental  "Germaine" 1941 2:58
54. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental  "Catamarca" 1940 2:23
55. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental  "La trilla" 1940 2:21
56. Carrapicho  "Tic Tic Tac cortina 2" 2007 0:18
57. Rodolfo Biagi "Lágrimas y Sonrisas (Vals)" 1941 2:40
58. Rodolfo Biagi - Jorge Ortíz "Por Un Beso De Amor (vals)" 1940 2:44
59. Rodolfo Biagi - Alberto Lago "Amor y vals" 1942 2:48
60. Enya & Enigma  "Delerium \ Flowers become screens"  0:27
61. Fool's Garden  "Lemon tree" 1995 3:09
62. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole  "Over The Rainbow" 2001 3:32
63. Souad Massi  "Ghir Enta" 2008 5:06
64. "Lady Be Good - Sol Hoopii Trio" 0:23
65. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos, Romeo Gavioli, Lita Morales "Sinfonía De Arrabal" 1940 3:07
66. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos "El Adios" 1938 3:09
67. Edgardo Donato - Lita Morales, Romeo Gavio  "Mi Serenata" 1940 3:02
68. Alla Pugacheva "Million Scarlet Roses" 1982 0:19
These candombes have an irresistible drive and the floor fills quickly ... but the inexperienced tangueros seem to have a challenging time with their beat. Need to think about "milonga tandas on training wheels" ... could one play a fun set of milongas which are also beginner-friendly? Slower-paced Canaros?
69. Miguel Caló - Raúl Berón  "Azabache" 1942 3:05
70. Alberto Castillo y su orquesta "El Gatito en el Tejado" 1957 2:37
71. Romeo Gavioli y su orquesta típica  "Tamboriles" 1956 2:56
72. Oleg Gazmanov  "Summer Rains"  0:26
73. Donato Racciatti - Olga Delgrossi "Sus Ojos Se Cerraron" 1956 2:47
74. Donato Racciatti - Olga Delgrossi  "Hasta siempre amor" 1958 2:57
75. Donato Racciatti - Olga Delgrossi  "Queriéndote" 1955 2:49
76. "Palolo - Charlie Wilson" 0:27

"Muchacha" has a captivating vocal but may be weaker, overall, than required for the culmination tanda... The real high point here is Remembranza, another tango with a Parisian pedigree, composed in 1934 by bandoneonist Mario Melfi (best known for being a coauthor of Poema). August is Melfi's birth month (in 1905), and he sailed for Paris also in August, just shy of his 18th birthday - to never come back. On the sheet music, even the lyrics are in French!
77. Osvaldo Pugliese - Jorge Maciel  "Esta noche de luna" 1955 3:48
78. Osvaldo Pugliese - Jorge Maciel  "Muchacha" 1956 3:18
79. Osvaldo Pugliese - Jorge Maciel "Remembranza" 1956 3:41
80. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental  "La cumparsita" 1951 3:49
81. Goran Bregovic  "Maki Maki" 2009 3:33
We're already 15 minutes past the closing time, but the dancers beg for more and are granted two more songs while the cleanup is underway :)
82. Alfredo de Angelis - Instrumental  "Pavadita" 1958 2:55
83. Alfredo De Angelis - Instrumental  "Felicia" 1969 2:48

Practica del Centro playlist, July 27, 2015

01. Carlos Di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Llueve Otra Vez" 3:06
02. Carlos Di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Nada" 2:45
03. Carlos Di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Junto a tu corazon" 3:00
04. Francisco Canaro - Instrumental "El cabure" 1936 2:37
05. Francisco Canaro - Instrumental "Hotel Victoria" 1935 2:49
06. Francisco Canaro - Instrumental "El chamuyo" 1933 3:11
07. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "Comme il faut" 1955 2:33
08. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "El ingeniero" 1955 3:18
09. Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "Bahía Blanca" 1957 2:52
10. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental "Derecho viejo" 1939 2:21
11. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental "Champagne tango" 1938 2:29
12. Juan D'Arienzo - Instrumental "Melodia porteña" 1937 2:48
13. Carlos Di Sarli - Instrumental "Germaine" 1941 2:58
14. Carlos Di Sarli - Instumental "El Paladin" 1941 2:34
15. Carlos Di Sarli - Instumental " Ensueños" 1943 2:43 2:43
16. Quinteto Pirincho - Instrument "Zorro gris" 1957 2:46
17. Francisco Canaro - Instrumental "El flete" 1928 2:46
18. Quinteto Don Pancho - Instrumental "El garron" 1938 2:27
19. Pedro Láurenz - Juan Carlos Casas "Mascarita" 1940 2:54
20. Pedro Láurenz - Alberto Podestá "Paisaje" 1943-08-06 2:51
21. Pedro Láurenz - C. Bermudez y J. Linares "Mendocina" 1944 2:35
22. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas "Solo compasion" 1941 2:58
23. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas "Ahora No Me Conocés" 1941 2:35
24. Ángel D'Agostino - Ángel Vargas "Así era el tango" 1944 2:49
25. Enrique Rodriguez "Alma en pena" 1946 3:05
26. Enrique Rodriguez "Como se pianta la vida" 1940 2:25
27. Enrique Rodriguez "Llorar por una mujer" 1941 2:51
28. Carlos di Sarli - Alberto Podestá "Entre pitada y pitada" 1942 2:33
29. Carlos di Sarli - Roberto Rufino "Pena mulata" 1941 2:27
30. Carlos Di Sarli Roberto Rufino "La Mulateada" 1941 2:22
31. Francisco Canaro - Ernesto Famá "Tormenta" 1939 2:35
32. Francisco Canaro - Ernesto Famá "No me pregunten porque" 1939 2:51
33. Francisco Canaro - Ernesto Famá "Te quiero todavia" 1939 2:54
34. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe "La bruja" 1938 2:18
35. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe "Que importa" 1939 2:17
36. Juan D'Arienzo - Alberto Echagüe "No mientas" 1938 2:39
37. Francisco Canaro - Francisco Amor "Salud, Dinero, Amor (vals)" 3:06
38. Francisco Canaro - Francisco Amor "La zandunga" 1939 3:16
39. Francisco Canaro - Francisco Amor "Cuando Estaba Enamorado (vals)" 2:49
40. Ricardo Tanturi "Comparsa Criolla" 1941 2:53
41. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "Pocas palabras" 1941 2:27
42. Ricardo Tanturi - Alberto Castillo "Así se baila el tango" 1942 2:37
43. Sexteto Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "Pobre yo" 1929 2:12
44. Sexteto Carlos di Sarli - Instrumental "Belen" 1929 2:44
45. Sexteto Carlos di Sarli - Ernesto Famá "La estancia" 1930 3:25
46. Quinteto Pirincho "El lloron" 1948 2:01
47. Quinteto Pirincho "La cara de la luna" 1959 2:29
48. Quinteto Pirincho "El torito" 1950 2:20
49. Osvaldo Fresedo - Roberto Ray "Yo no se llorar" 1933 2:36
50. Osvaldo Fresedo - Roberto Ray "Recuerdo de bohemia" 1935 2:36
51. Osvaldo Fresedo -Roberto Ray "Sollosos" 1937 3:27
52. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos "Me voy a Baraja" 1936 2:30
53. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos "A oscuras" 1941 2:48
54. Edgardo Donato - Horacio Lagos "Lagrimas" 1939 2:50
55. Orquesta Típica Víctor - Carlos Lafuente "Amor y celos" 1933 2:26
56. Orquesta Típica Víctor - Ángel Vargas "Sin Rumbo Fijo" 1938 2:18
57. Orquesta Tipica Victor - Lita Morales "Noches de invierno" 1937 2:47
58. Pedro Laurenz - Alberto Podestá "Garua" 1943 3:09
59. Pedro Laurenz - Alberto Podestá "Todo" 1943 2:37
60. Pedro Laurenz - Alberto Podestá "Recien" 1943 2:43
61. Alfredo De Angelis - Instrumental "Mi dolor" 1957 2:51
62. Alfredo De Angelis - Instrumental "Felicia" 1969 2:48
63. Alfredo De Angelis - Instrumental "Pavadita" 1958 2:55
64. Osváldo Pugliese - Roberto Chanel "Corrientes Y Esmeralda" 1944 2:49
65. Osváldo Pugliese - Roberto Chanel "Farol" 1943 3:22
66. Osváldo Pugliese - Roberto Chanel "Rondando Tu Esquina" 1945 2:49
67. Alfredo de Angelis - Instrumental "La cumparsita" 1961 3:35
68. Cream Margot Jazz "Krem-Margo-Poka-igraet-dzhaz" 3:16

Eduardo Lazarowski tango orchestras seminar, July 2015

Alicia and Eduardo in NC

Eduardo Lazarowski grew up and studied in Buenos Aires before moving to North Carolina's famous Research Triangle, and rediscovering tango as a dance form. His multimedia presentation on the Golden Era orchestras of tango has become the highlight of my trip to the beautiful Casa Tango - and stay tuned for Eduardo's upcoming book!!

Before I turn to my seminar notes, let me add a few words about the Casa Tango experience, which in many ways defeated my expectations. The dance hall was full of light and paintings; the food was nothing short of remarkable (ahh Michele's fruit tarts!); the vibe really friendly. On the other hand I was surprised how socially awkward would be the arrangement of the men seated together at one side of the hall - for, as it turns out, our tango men aren't too skilled in maintaining conversations with each other in the absence of the ladies (but luckily, an escape to the kitchen and the lounge always offered co-ed socialization and saved the nights ... and it was clear that many invitations to dances happened in the lounge and the hallway rather than just across the dance floor). Speaking of the latter, I thought my long-distance cabeceo skills were reasonable, but I didn't realize that when the opposite sexes are seated tightly on narrow chairs, and the heads of the two leaders or two followers aren't separated by more than a few inches, then a cabeceo needs a true laser precision ... otherwise, be ready to confusions between one's cabeceo's intended and unintended targets. Ouch.

The dogs were the happiest away from tango :)

And lastly, I really looked forward to gain some insight from the classes - improving the milonguero technique could be a true mind-altering experience - but the classes were generally too full to get enough personal attention and physical touch from the instructors, so the verbal instruction with its New Age rhetoric predominated (this verbiage may work nicely for the mood-setting but is too nebulous for the technical instruction, and simply makes me tune out if used in too large doses). In this delicate craft of the milonguero technique, I guess I'd rather stick with the private lessons! (Of course my own mood-setting may have been hampered by my own hobo circumstances ... a sleeping bag with two dogs curled up inside, under the random pines on the outskirts, for the living quarters, and skinnydipping under the highway bridge for the morning shower, ya know :) )

Eduardo Lazarowski's lecture

Once he wanted to go to history, but chose biochemistry... now exploring the history in depth again. Originally a seminar was the on whole history of tango since 1850. Today - just the orchestras.
1930s-50s. Beautiful multimedia. Animation, sound, just superb.
Starts from Gardel - melodic, singable, How to make it danceable?
The opposite extreme end of the spectrum ... Astor Piazzolla ... rhythmic yet irregular

Who were the guys who made it danceable like we like it? Canaro, Firpo, De Caro, Fresedo trailblazing between 1920-1930

Rosendo Mendizabal

Then come 4 masters D'Arienzo, Di Sarli, Troilo, Pugliese

A flashback to 1890-1910 - fluid, improvising bands. Rosendo Mendizábal - a middle class black pianist - records possibly the first tango sheet music. 1895
Villoldo many famous compositions like "El choclo"
Vicente Greco - first Orquesta Tipica 1912 (Eduardo plays their "Hotel Victoria"). Canaro debuted with Greco - he was a same-block neighor.
Genaro Esposito - 1913 Entrerriano. Bandoneon! "El Tano" Genaro hired Firpo who introduced piano into the orchestra.

Francisco Canaro 1920 - listen - all the instruments playing more or less together all the time. Now compare with Firpo - 1928 "El Amanecer" - layering of instruments, melodic layers.  Start of "evolutionists" as opposed to trad school like Canaro, or Anselmo Aieta who had debuts with him of D'Arienzo, Lomuto, and D'Agostino. But it was solely the rhythm which was danced then - the melodic layers just assisted with the mood.

Sexteto De Caro

In 1925, the things begins to change. Julio De Caro sextet of 1925. Pedro Maffia, Pedro Laurenz. Harmony, phrasing, rubato, staccato, syncopation, arpeggio etc etc.  Pizzicato. soloists, counter-cantos. Thoroughly educated musicians. Listen to the 1926 "Recuerdo".

Layoffs and poor pay of the Great Depresson disrupted the orchestras. De Caro transitioned away from the dancers. Fresedo remained the sole evolution-school force. He ruled at the cabaret. Soft, melodic dancing for the remaining rich. Roberto Ray sounded like a Spanish import to the porteños! Too perfectly speaking, too perfectly accompanying the music. In the same era Canaro ruled the Music Hall,  with the musical comedies, kind of symphonic in sound and theatrical in scope, his 1932 invention and also a rich-folk entertainment. Not many regular people dance by the mid-30s....

1936-1937 - Big Change (but also economy improved and politics turned a bit less oppressive, so the mood brightened overall). Juan D'Arienzo! Staccato and contrasting pauses. Young, unruly people are hooked. Jobs for musicians appear again!! And the orchestras come back: Troilo 1937, Di Sarli 1938, Pugliese 1939. And then a whole wave.

Alberto Echagüe - a real porteño voice, and he sings the rhythm, not the melody like it used to be. Compare with the later D'Arienzo vocalists like Jorge Valdez - 1958 "Hasta siempre, amor" - still a rhythmic voice, but overwhelmingly shifted into melody.

Francisco Fiorentino

Troilo is the master of phrasing. Reinvented the singer role as a rhythm-marking "instrument" in such a way that dancers can follow it with Fiorentino - that started even before Echagüe. (DP note - I would think that the rhythmic, irreverent appeal of the music and poetry and the rough syllable-cutting vocal quality were carried through the Decada Infamia by Edgardo Donato's orhestra and singers such as Felix Gutierrez - for example, of the 1932 "El huracan" - but perhaps the local lore wouldn't give enough credit to the Uruguayan and Afro tango musicians?)

Di Sarli composed "Bahia Blanca" as a remembrance of his childhood when he knew he will die soon (he had pancreatic cancer and died in his 50s). Di Sarli could be very rhythmic but "in decent clothes" unlike D'Arienzo. Legendary left hand piano - "el bordoneo" style - kind of following the milonga-campera strumming of the gaucho guitar, affectionately known as "la bordona". Also arrastres (drumroll-like all-strings on a guitar originally), adopted for bandoneons. "A la gran muñeca" is a great example of both techniques. Great singers worked him - Rufino started as a teenager, before he was "a grownup in long pants" - it was Di Sarli who bought the first "leones" (pantaloons) for him. Podesta, Duran. The best time for the danceable-music singers was in the 40s. In the 1950s Di Sarli rearranged a lot of ancient compositions, in a romantic way with incredible virtuosity, but the instrumentals of this later era stand out in particular.

And finally to Pugliese. Really expanded the horizons. Started with rescuing De Caro's concepts, and famously invented "la yumba" - the new kind of arrastre. "Urban arrastre". "Was so good that even his political enemies let his music slip through".

What made the music of the 40s great? Outstanding level of the musicians. Resurgence of the vocal tango. Great lyricists. "Una emocion" sings of the union of tunes and words.

"Natu" teaching tango history (to be reviewed soon!)

Finally a plug for Osvaldo Natucci, "the first modern DJ in Argentina" (who burst into the BsA milonga scene only in teh mid-1990s, but revolutionized teaching and conceptualizing of the tango DJing), and his music collection which is so heavy on the 40s. Di Sarli, Troilo, Pugliese, D'Arienzo top his list by #s of tango titles - here is another way to define the "Most Important Orchestras".

And an introduction of Eduardo's own, "90% ready" tango history book!

(Speaking of history, I promise to return to the oldest and most famous Argentine DJs - Osvaldo Natucci, Felix Picherna, Horacio Godoy - and to explore where and when we got our DJing concepts of tandas, cortinas, structures, and flows - soon!)