[Tango-L] Report No. 4 on the Tango Festival & Mundial Buenos Aires 2011

[Shahrukh Merchant]

What do you think of when you hear "Nuevos Tangos"?

Do you think of synthesizers on autopilot paired with bandoneons, and 
lyrics comprising one phrase repeated over and over again (through a 
nasal distortion filter)?

No, no, that's an irreverent (and rather unfair, though it does describe 
some ...) description of "Tango Nuevo" ("The New Tango").

The presentation "Nuevos Tangos," performed last night (Tuesday, Aug 23) 
at the Festival, to a full house, was one of my favourites of the week. 
As the name indicates, it's simply a presentation of "New Tangos." What 
I was not expecting was a traditional Orquesta Típica (4 bandoneons, 4 
violins, piano, bass). The musicians were all young performers in their 
20s and 30s.

The new part was in fact the Tangos themselves--new compositions with 
new lyrics but composed for, and played in, the traditional style. The 
tangos were sung in a traditional style as well, but the lyrics dealt 
with more contemporary themes, and in some cases there was perhaps an 
"urban edge" to the delivery. The focus seemed to be on the lyrics and 
the singers (over the composers and instrumentalists). A half dozen or 
so different talented singers sang the works of new lyricists and 
composers (many of whom were present in the audience). And no, none of 
it was arranged for danceability, though that was really not the point. 
And as to what made it all so special ... well, you had to be there.


The next performance, "El Tango Vuelve al Barrio" (The Tango Returns to 
the Neighbourhood) showcased "Cucuza & Moscato," a guitar/voice duo (a 
classic combination for Tango, by the way, in case anyone thought that 
there had to be a bandoneón for it to be tango). They were joined by 
various guest guitarists and singers for some of the pieces in an 
extremely entertaining and high-quality performance. They are regulars 
at El Faro in Villa Urquiza, a "Bar Notable" of Buenos Aires that holds 
regular Tango performances of this type, mostly for locals (hence the 
name) and some tourists "in the know" (which now includes any of you who 
come down!).


In the main hall, the qualifying rounds were in full swing. There was a 
steady procession of competitors entering and leaving the venue, easily 
recognizable by their competition attire (suits and slinky dresses), 
makeup (unusually long eyelashes for the women and hair gloss for the 
men), and the suitcases they were wheeling (presumably containing their 
change of clothes, dance shoes, eyelash cases, etc.). I danced one tanda 
with a woman from Montevideo ("Men here in Buenos Aires have a different 
lead from the men in Montevideo") on the parallel social dancers' floor 
before escaping to the other hall. :-)

Shahrukh

P.S. Kace Eng <kace ong <kaceong at gmail.com> referring to my last post, says:

> I like to add my vote to Shahrukh for his excellent on-site reporting, and the
> filling in of background of the artistes.
> It often takes a tourist's eye (and time and energy) to see the forest for the
> trees

Thanks Kace, and glad you like it, but I actually haven't been a tourist 
in Buenos Aires for well over 5 years now! But indeed, for the last 
couple of festivals I was guilty of not finding the time/energy to go to 
the festival, much less to report on it. But, as they say, better late 
than never, and from what I've heard from those who did go in previous 
years, it seems to be getting better and better each year (the 
organization as well as programming).

And Keith Elshaw <keith at totango.net> wrote:
> Thanks from me, too Sharuhk, for the music news especially! ...

You're welcome!

> Ignatio Varchausky is surely the great tango angel/producer of our age.

True, but not sure about his role in the festival this year -- the 
program, at least, does not list him in the credits amongst the dozen or 
so people responsible for the programming and direction (though El 
Arranque was one of the many orchestras which performed at the festival).