Tango!

One of the most popular and celebrated music styles that can easily set you on fire.

Hello and welcome to our next edition of Musical Discoveries.

Argentinian Tango originated in the streets of Buenos Aires in the late of 19th century when immigrants from Africa and Europe came to search for their better life.

They brought with them their culture and longing for something that they have left behind.

Dance and music was their way of expressing themselves to the world.

The mix of cultural influences of immigrants from Africa, Europe, and native Argentina, where African rhythms, polka, waltz, mazurka, and habanera started to blend together, created one of the most nostalgic and passionate music styles, known today as tango.

The history and evolution of tango music is best described by Astor Piazzolla in one of his most famous compositions titled Histoire du Tango (History of Tango) originally written for flute and guitar with four movements: Bordello 1900, Café 1930, Nightclub 1960, and Concert d'Aujourd'hui (Today's Concert).

Piazzolla himself provides an extended program notes for composition, describing the way tango came from the slums of Buenos Aires, where poor desperate men, mostly single immigrants, with their pride to earn enough to return to their native countries, were looking for place to socialize after work.

So they gathered together in the streets, at the night clubs, bars, cafes, and brothels.

Dance and music was a big part of their entertainment.

At first, many societies despised tango but its addictive and intoxicating music made more and more communities to fall in love with it.

By 1910 Paris fall in love with tango, and by 1913 tango became an international phenomena embraced by all social classes.

In Europe, tango was a popular music style alongside foxtrot, slow waltz, and rumba.

It was never only a dance though but a multidimensional art form of music, dance and poetry.

One of the most influential and popular tango artists of all times was Carlos Gardel, songwriter, composer, and the iconic tango singer, known as a Father of Tango Canción.

His songs about abundant lovers became the story of tango.

Other notable tango singers include: Francisco Canaro, Julio Sosa, Carlo di Sarli, as well as Pyotr Leshchenko, an Ukrainian tango singer known as The King of Russian Tango.

He was especially recognized for his rendition of Serdtce (The Heart) Spanish tango song sang in Russian.

Another signature song of this legendary singer is "Vsyo, chto bylo" "Everything Like It Used To Be" The vast majority of woman stars joined the roster of tango singers, among them Ada Falcón, Susana Rinaldi, Tita Merello, Amelita Baltar or Milva, especially recognized for her collaboration with Astor Piazzolla.

As tango traveled trough the world many composers adapted it into their works.

In Germany, Kurt Weill was fascinated with tango style.

In 1928 he composed the Threepenny Opera with its recognizable Tango Ballad.

Till this day the opera is widely performed around the world.

There was a time, and now it's all gone by When we two lived together, she and I.

Some of Kurt Weill songs also have a feel of tango.

One of the most recognizable ones is Youkali or Tango Habanera.

In Poland tango also reached its golden age.

Many of tangos composed by Jerzy Petersburski and often performed by Mieczyslaw Fogg, gained great popularity and were real crowd pleasers.

One of them titled The Last Sunday was mostly known as "Tango of Death" During the Nazi occupation, the song was often played while Jewish prisoners were marching to the gas chambers.

On the happier note, another attractive tango melody written by Jerzy Petersburski was Tango Milonga.

Finally, tango music found its way to America with musicals being performed on Broadway as well as at the Yiddish Theater on Second Avenue in New York.

From many Broadway musicals with flair of tango music, the most memorable are Rent, Moulin Rouge, or Chicago.

The men who is responsible for bringing tango music to concert halls is Astor Piazzolla, composer and virtuoso bandoneon player.

He revolutionized tango music by bringing to it elements of jazz and classical music with new forms of harmonic and melodic structures.

His new style is called Tango Nuevo or New Tango.

Unfortunately, not everyone liked the idea of messing up with traditional tango style.

Therefore, Piazzolla was often called by his fellows Argentinians a traitor, a little rascal and even a tango's assassin, but after all he is the one who is responsible for revolutionizing tango music and bringing it from the streets of Buenos Aires into concert halls around the world.

Today, tango is still a living art form that continues to grow with new modern elements of music.

Thank you for listening to our program and we hope to see you soon.