Piazzolla - Le Grand Tango

Le Grand Tango by Astor Piazzolla (1921–1992) Betsy Rettig (cello) and Natalia Hudson (piano) Melos Chamber Music Concerts Website: www.melosmusic.us Astor Piazzolla was an Argentine bandoneon player, composer, and arranger, who revolutionized the tango form, combining that passionate, somewhat melancholy dance with elements of classical music and jazz. A virtuoso bandoneonist, he regularly performed his own compositions with a variety of ensembles. In 1954, Piazzolla studied composition in Paris with the legendary French composition teacher Nadia Boulanger, who encouraged him to stick with the tango rather than focusing solely on classical composition. Taking her words to heart, he began to experiment with the standard Argentine tango, diverging from the expected Latin harmonies and producing an edgier sound than that found in classic tango. While studying composition in Paris, Piazzolla also renewed his acquaintance with American jazz, and his new music was partially written out in the classical fashion, and partly improvised. His "tango nuevo" (new tango) at first brought only angry rejection from traditional tango aficionados in his home country of Argentina. In the decade after his death, however, his music exploded in popularity. Not easily classifiable as classical music, pop, jazz, or traditional tango, Piazzolla seemed fascinating to a generation of music fans who were used to crossing genre boundaries and hearing music that drew freely from various traditions. His energy, prolific creativity, and persistence finally brought his unique music to the attention of the world. Le Grand Tango expresses the spirit of nuevo tango (“new tango”), a melding of traditional tango rhythms and jazz-inspired syncopation. Written in 1982, Le Grand Tango was published in Paris, thus its French rather than Spanish title. Website: www.nataliahudson.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/nataliahudson/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/SoCalPianista/