[Tango-L] (no subject)

[c.roques@mchsi.com]

Ming Mar wrote:

<<The earliest known tango is "Dame la lata" by Juan Perez.  
It was written around 1880 or in the 1880's.  It had 
lyrics.  According to your assertion, tango music existed 
in 1840 and nobody ever sang to tango music until 1880.  Do 
you really think that is the case?>>

There is probably no "first" tango.  For all anyone knows, it could have been a Neopolitan folk song played on the flute.  Like most music, tango was a hybrid of several musical styles that evolved, but Keith is correct about the lack of lyrics, although nothing is strictly black or white. There are exceptions but it is true that the first tangos were instrumentals, especially the ones that people were dancing to.  Songs with lyrics were always written but if you went to a dance in the early days you would not find a vocalist, just as if you find any very old recorded tangos, you will find few with lyrics.  Words were sometimes added after the fact, as in La Cumparsita and others, then gradually a few were written as dance tangos with lyrics.   As vocalists first began to appear though, their role was secondary and only added near the end or as back-up accompaniment or harmony to the orchestra (or quartet or whatever the size of the group.)  The words often didn't mean much other than to harmonize with the music.  They were known as estribillistas and often came in only at the end of the song, a tradition that persisted into the era of vocalists.  Notice that even many sung tangos have very long instrumental beginnings and often the verse is the last part of the song, and sometimes very short.  Over the years dance tangos with lyrics became more common but instrumentals continued to be written.  But even with lyrics, there was always a distinction between dance tangos and tangos to listen to.   Later vocalists (Angel Vargas, notably) were prized for their ability to be danceable.  If you take a taxi ride in Buenos Aires you will often hear "Todo Tango" on the radio playing many sung tangos that you will never hear at the milongas.

Cheers,
Charles