The New Tango

If you had told me that today I was going to listen to a live album by an Argentinian tango composer and bandoneon player in collaboration with a renowned vibraphonist, and that I would really enjoy it, I would have called you crazy and kicked you out of my house. But this was really, really good. I'm a sucker for melancholy violin music, and with the vibraphone that makes an unexpectedly nice combination. And the bandoneon, an instrument I had never heard of until today, adds a nice touch as well. Surprisingly, I'm going with 4 stars on this one.

Like being in an elevator for an hour.

I feel like I'm trapped in the interstitial sections of an episode of Mister Rodger's Neighbourhood.

Y'know, I look at this album after listening and think how much of an album this is in the "walk by without thinking about listening" spectrum, which is really a shame, because the contents inside are excellent. The violin's ability to go from scretching to being absolutely gorgeous at a moments notice, or the piano appearing sporadically to aid with the Vibraphone's more mellow sound, or the bandoneon really partnering with everything else to create this great album. Yes, the songs do go on a tad long, and I could understand why someone may find this more boring than anything, but just listening to the wide range of emotions really lets this one spread it's wings and be absolutely fantastic. Perhaps not music for a Sunday drive or a workout, but music for the point of listening.

3.5 - I imagine this is what Dr. Frasier Crain listens to at the end of a long day should he come home to an empty apartment. He’ll slip out of his beige sport jacket and Italian cordovan loafers. He may pour himself a glass of Lagavulin 16 and sit back in his Eames chair as he reaches for the remote to turn on his 5-CD changer. He may even page through the Sharper Image catalog on his coffee table.

Just because you’re the best musician at playing an obscure instrument, it doesn’t equate to playing some of the best music Not list worthy.

Tim Burton meets the Fifties is the vibe I got from this. But in a good way. Very impressive for a live album.

Tango was already perfect. Did we really need a new Tango? Turns out maybe we did. This album is a delight. Playing around with classical tango sounds, tossing in some vibraphone just to be cheeky, and towing the line between classical and avant garde perfectly. I'm a sucker for any kind of Tango music like this. Reminded me a lot of Gotan Project, for example. Easy 5 stars for me even though I can see why this wouldn't work for a lot of people.

I don't see the appeal very much at all. Not a fan 0.5-1/10

It is like Lightning Bolt but for Jazz and it is live. Got through half the album and almost fell asleep.

Eh. Listened to it. Feel like I completed a task.

I was surprisingly blown away by this. I love how it incorporates traditional Italian/Argentinian tango music with the really dramatic classical influence and even some jazz fusion. The dynamics are really engaging and the musicianship/composition is excellent. Totally unlike anything I would have ever come across on my own.

This is my first foray into Tango, let alone "New Tango" that this album is dubbed as, both in the title and with its genre label. I guess "New Tango" sorta emphasizes the jazz fusion aspects of the genre. Bandoneon player and composer Astor Piazzolla seems to be a prominent (if not the most prominent) figure in this genre from what I've read. He's joined here by Gary Burton, the vibraphone player alongside Fernando Suárez Paz on violin. There's also a slew of other players on bass and piano; there is a very diverse set of instruments and players here. Bass and drum aside, these tracks are entirely composed of piano, violin, vibraphone, and bandoneon and the best part of it is that there's no real instrument that sticks out, it's almost like a large time-share between all the instruments. I know this is typical in jazz but this effect was only amplified here because each instrument gives off such a unique vibe. Astor's bandneon for example gives off an unsettling, looming aura, while the violin portrays something epic, clean, and elegant. Sometimes one instrument is at the forefront for a certain period, and other times, a bunch of instruments are blending in with one another. The vibraphone is the most consistently present here, being layered on top of a lot of "solos" here. I love how most tracks follow this sort of wave pattern, reaching peaks and troughs in pace and energy. While the speedier moments, especially when the violins come in, paint a more classical, baroque-era image, the slower segments of this album feel mysterious as if something's lurking or building up. I love the way the pace picks up near the middle of the song "Milonga Is Coming" and how it slowly fades into ambiance near the end, it's very subtle. I have to mention the fact that this is a live recording; aside from the clapping, it's difficult to tell. It's all recorded so well but still, the typical live energy is certainly there. After the slow, almost improvisational vibraphone-exclusive opening, I love the way the violin, piano, and bandoneon drive the second half of the song "Vibraphoneissimo". The titular track may be the most visceral song here. I'd attribute that to the violin primarily, but the way the instruments take turns stating their presence while also blending seamlessly with one another was incredible. I like the screeching violin noise that crops up occasionally as almost a transition to the next part of the song. This is an incredible song. "Laura's Dream" sounds like its title, it's a dreamlike, very slow, and long track, that I admittedly didn't find very interesting when listening to it actively, but it had a strange, lulling effect on me which I assume was at least somewhat intentional. "Operation Tango" may be the most cinematic-sounding song when considering the song name and the lead violin melody; it almost feels like the climax of the album. Maybe as the album grew on, I started to grow tired of the limited instrumental palette and formula established on this live recording, but it never really became sour or unenjoyable. I think it speaks volumes to the amazing musicianship of all those involved in this when I say that this thing kept twisting, turning, and fighting until the very end. Even though I may not revisit this one super often, it was certainly a great experience and an even better introduction to this style of music.

I am no tango fan, so had no idea it could sound this progressive. I am, however, a fan of Gary Burton, and could listen to his wonderfully expressive vibes playing all day. Didn't have a scooby that Burton turned his hand to tango. These compositions, which I'm guessing are by Astor Piazzolla, bring the whole 'newgrass' movement to mind, whereby bluegrass was cut with jazz and rock to make an exciting, virtuosic variant of a traditional genre. Stimulating stuff, then, although the first half of 'Vibraphonissimo' sounds like the section before the guitar solo in Frank Zappa's 'Zomby Woof' - and I'll never not find the title 'Operation Tango' to be funny.

Gonna be useful for the next time I have to tiptoe out of a bank with a burlap sack of money on my back. Hope I don't slip on a banana peel, boy would that stink. Has some really cool moments and I like when they explore more avantgarde sounds, but the whole thing is just waaaayy too long for me to give it anything more than a 3/5.

There's "here's an acknowledged classic of a genre you may not know well" and then there's "here's a piece of music that's almost intentionally impenetrable so you can feel dumb when you don't get it."

It's The Cylinder with a squeeze box, I mean seriously. No soup for you..NEXT!

nope, not for me

Viivin kommentti "pilipalimusiikista" nauratti sen verran, että melkein haluaisin antaa toisen tähden. Mutta onhan kuitenkin vasta tiistai.

I guess I'm not as open minded as I'd thought. I'm not having this though. Not what I came here for. Honestly, this may be the toughest thing I've had to entertain listening to so far in the course of over 600 albums. Even just clicking through the tracks this started to make me agitated and uncomfortable in a way that nothing else on this list quite has before. This music would repel me from practically any room. Sorry.

I cant. I just cant.

I tired but yeah this was a tough one.

Simply brilliant! Magical and mesmerizing

Molto bello tango, amico!

You will not appreciate this if you only listen a couple times. It can just blend into the background otherwise. For that reason I was initially at a 3. But as I kept listening I really picked up on the different instruments and moods being set in the music. It was like listening to an opera or ballet - I could picture characters moving and expressing emotions with the music. Very cool. Some favorites - Little Italy (loved the emotion from the strings), Laura's Dream (sweeping, and again the strings; sounded like sirens at times), and Operation Tango (cool pacing with slow and frenetic bits).

There are some legitimately beautiful moments, some overly dramatic moments (it’s tango, after all) and exceptional musicianship on this record, but I’m not sure that it would ever make its way to regular listening for me. I would have to be in a very specific mood to put this on.

As I'm fighting off a cold, I laid down to take an afternoon nap and I put on some music to help me rest. The New Tango was the perfect music to relax to, with the soothing sound of vibraphone and accordian. It was mellow and chill and I appreciate the musicianship and I surprisingly enjoyed it. It's all about the mood and if I listened to get while working it might not have gotten my attention so much. Not the genre of music I normally listen to, but it's sometimes good to listen outside your comfort zone and this was comforting, at least at that moment.

As good as one could ever expect from music played on the xylophone and accordion.

Not my kind of thing at all. Accordion Latin Jazz is fairly low on my list of things to listen to. That said, the musicianship was great, and I enjoyed it more than I expected.

kinda neat

not my cup of tea

What makes this special? It isn’t bad, but I’ve heard hundreds of albums that aren’t on this list, that are better than this. 2/5

Wasn't particularly taken with this one

96 / 1069 Meh. Top 1001...? I don't think so. One of the most boring things I've listened to.

That was the most boring thing I've ever heard.

Why is this on the list?

Not for me.

Muziek is prachtig, het spel van Piazzolla ook. Fantastische vioolpartijen maar helaas ook de hele tijd de vibrafoon van Burton.

Another one that I just don’t have the musical language to appreciate, maybe. But really really not for me.

My wife: "Someone's just doing the demo track on a keyboard."

I bet the mosh pit went fucking HARD

today i found out i apparently love tango

this is nice

Would not expect I’d give 5 stars to an accordion and some vibraphone but this fucking slapped.

5/5, difficult to imagine anything slapping harder

This is a groundbreaking and brilliant album, but only apt for those who are knowledgeable of the musical crossovers that were developed in Latin America in the 20th Century. To appreciate this album you need to know what is happening harmonically, with no easy hooks nor relatable lyrics or easily churnable melodies. The musical language that this albums offers asks from the listener a previous exposure or musicological background. You need to understand classic tango, some jazz, but even more so how Piazzolla internalizes the experimental legacy of composers such as Bartok or Stravinsky. Piazzolla’s legacy resides in his ability to integrate Argentine musical roots within the experimental currents that inspired him. This is Argentine avant garde. If you can’t stand Bartok or Stravinsky and you don’t know much about tango you will not get the point. It will fly over your ears. We need first to clarify a preliminary misunderstanding. “The new tango” is not a representation of tango music per se, at least not in a literal sense. Some purists would not even call this tango, as many critics didn’t even consider Camarón de la Isla’s output pure flamenco. This is not Aníbal Troilo or Gardel, but an attempt at pushing the boundaries between the tango/ Milonga traditions and challenging new classical music. It flirts with atonality, soundscapes, and sonorities. It is brusque, it is rough. Then velvety and passionate. And then chaotic and unpredictable. This is intentionally a wild ride. This is neither the parody of tango that many Anglo audiences are used to see in their TVs in “Dancing with stars” nor the tearjerker Gardel’s voice over the melancholy scratches of a vynil. Whatever you may think of this album cannot be a reflection of tango per se, because here Piazzolla is toiling within the fringes of the genre. If Robert Dimery’s intention was to include a representation of tango perhaps he should have chosen a different album (Roma 1972, Tango: Zero Hour, Rough Dancer, Gidon Kremer’s renditions, El tango from 1997, the memorable poetic collaboration with Goyeneche, etc.). I can understand why many people may not like it or even abhor this album. However, before indulging into cultural imperialistic rants you must need to consider the following: taste is informed by geocultural power dynamics, i.e you tend only to like what you have been exposed to. If you ate hamburgers all your life you may not like swordfish. If you never had spicy food you might find it intolerable. But your opinion says more about you, about your lack of knowledge and exposure, than of the possible quality of albums such as this. Within the framework of self-serving Anglo-dominated trends (just check any list of best albums promoted in the US and UK), “The new tango” can not either be understood nor appreciated. Same could be said of new flamenco, new middle eastern trends, new sitar, and new gamelan traditions. They speak a language you might not understand. You are not just its audience. It should be noted the imbalance of this context: those who understand new tango will know about American and English popular music, even if it is at a superficial level, whereas the opposite is not true. The imbalance of power is translated into an imbalance of exposure cultural traditions that might feel other to you. Ask any Argentine about The Rolling Stones, and then ask an American about Soda Estéreo. Those who know Sinatra might not know about Yupanqui. This dynamic of othering signals a blind spot of knowledge, and that blind spot signals at cultural imperialistic dynamics. When you rant about what you don’t know you perpetuate the imbalance. You naturalize your ignorance and the mistreatment of cultures different to yours. The visceral response of many reviewers here exemplifies this reality. It is, to some extent, understandable. However, it should never serve as an excuse to validate a condescending, disparaging views regarding musical traditions out of your comfort zone. Unless you do the homework, you cannot judge what you cannot even understand. Beware of your colonial biases, my friends.

As a classically trained percussionist I'm very familiar with Burton and Piazzolla's collaboration. I've even played some of this myself. I did not need to listen to this to score it but did anyway, what an amazing piece of art this is. I'm kind of sad to see the abundance of one stars on this but it's to be expected on something so niche as this.

Ei muuta kuin ett rakastan Astor Piazzollaa,,,, ja tää albumi varsinkin täynnä niin kaunista ja etenkin helppoa!! tangoa! Helppoa as in jos (kun) taidemusiikki on jonkun mielestä vaikeeta kuunneltavaa eikä tykkää niin tää on mukava alku tangon maailmaan!

Really good jazz that borders between serene and eerie.

Albums like this are exactly why I'm doing this. Something not in my normal wheelhouse that I get turned on to and like. I've never heard of Astor Piazzolla but you can bet your ass I'm gonna listen to this album again. Probably even seek out more. I had no clue I would ever want to hear something like this and now I do.

Love the spookiness of some of the tracks! Reminded me of Danny Elfman. Great focus album.

Not bad. It's a relaxing and lounge album. Definitely worth plenty of listening sessions.

The opening track, “Milonga Is Coming”, instantly became one of my favorite instrumental compositions - devastatingly beautiful. A captivating live recording that made me forget about anything else during its entire duration.

Monster players on a monster album. The virtuosity is A+, and its live! To me it often sounds orchestral with shades of Shostakovich and Stravinsky. They create their own sound and reinvent the Tango. The sound of the strings and accordion is almost otherworldly at times. This is exactly the kind of album which belongs on this list: unique, groundbreaking, and important. 5

I can’t even articulate how much I loved this. It was all completely new to me and it hit me like a truck… I really have no words here. Probably because I don’t know how to talk about music in any useful way, but really I am just in awe. It’s like gnashing, angry noise, but sad and beautiful and melancholic, and I was happy, and then I was staring pensively out the window… idk. I need an extra star or two for this one.

When I first read "Tango", I immediately imagined the dance, or the music to the dance, but this is so much more, and so much different. It's really a type of classical music. Super dynamic — at times energetic, at times sweet and delicate. I'll need to listen to this at least a dozen more times to truly absorb the details. Excellent discovery.

I listened to it 5 times throughout the day. Absolutely lovely. Incredible musicianship; delightfully jazzy; emotionally charged. It's got everything. Going to have to pick this one up.

This was fantastic. I thought that at the very least, I’d be exposed to some tango and it would be cool, but this was much more complex than that. These are intricate compositions that cover a wide breadth of styles.

Boy did I love this album. Absolutely fantastic. The only question I have is if they’re going to include albums like this on this list, why the hell are we listening to so much shitty 70s prog rock?

Really fantastic jazz album. Love Gary Burton, and Astor Piazzolla was amazing. 5/5!

The only thing better than discovering a brilliant album is discovering a brilliant artist with a whole back catalogue.

Delightful!

I had no knowledge of or context for this. As an old fart muso it was great to be surprised and delighted by something on this. I strongly suspect the 1 star reviewer who described this as elevator music didn't go past the first track or they've been on some fairly frantic elevators. Ach they've made me do an unintended Mick Hucknall reference. Told you I'm an old fart muso.

Straight fire

Wonderful work. Great musicians, great music. I suppose difficult for all, which are not used to jazz, tango or similar music but if you are patient enough to listen a few times to this album it will pay you back!

Oh I love this! Fantastic musicians. Music to work to, during a dinner, etc.

Honestly one of the most surprisingly stunning album on the list. So fucking good. Two absolute titans of their instrument teaming up to create an hour of mezmorizing tango

Just five stars without any comments!

As far as instrumentals go, I like the noises in this one a lot. It was really fun! Like imo this should be a 4 but the fact that I think an instrumental should be a 4 makes it a 5 I think. 9/10

Very much enjoyed it. Happy and complex with some of the underlying tension present in Tango. Quite fun!

Genius Astor - nett ergänzt mit Marimbaphon.

Favorites: La Muerta deL Angel, Milonga is coming Fun album!

From calm to frantic there is incredible playing throughout this recording. Watch the video on youtube for an idea of how much work it is.

Completely unexpected

Yeah, okay, I love it

I actually love Tango, I def need to listen to it more.

Masterful and passionate music. Two beasts surprisingly making widely disparate music sound like it was meant to be. Will revisit.

Gary Burton was the name of my Hoosier bus driver.

Phenomenal.

Love a good jazz adjacent album

Evidently, I just love Jazz because I just let Apple Music keep playing a smart playlist after this, and time disappeared.

Increíble la reinterpretación

Never had I dreamed that the combination of Accordion and Vibraphone would be enthralling. This album is 58 minutes of purse musical virtuosity, and it reminds me that there are still so many areas of music I have yet to uncover. Fav Tracks: Best enjoyed in it's entirety

Absolutely invigorating. I feel vigorous!

You had me at vibraphone. Then once I figured out what a bandoneon was you had me there too. This sounded much more modern and varied than I expected from a tango album. The songs progressed through different moods and emotions that I found very compelling. Again I am thankful for being introduced to another album that I would likely never have encountered but for this project.

Sounds like a work of genius. This is the first album in the two weeks or so I've been rating albums here I had to listen to more than once as it was so good. What a fantastically enjoyable wild ride!

Ripping accordian part on the first track. This is really pleasant and i like it. This is a really refreshing and lovely album. La Muerta Del Angel is just this beautiful icing on this total cake of an album!

xylophone goes CRAZY here!!!!

A new discovery. Quote extraordinary

Really liking this blending of styles. Some parts I didn't like as much but overall super cool.

I'm not even sure how to describe this, only that it gives me classical feels and that it's fascinating in the best way

Really love this album and never would have chosen it for myself. As a classically trained musician this just made my heart happy.

cool

Belleza 🌿🌿 me gustan mucho como suenan los xilófonos ahí.

Well this was unexpected. I really dug these instrumental tracks and will enter my chill music to listen to at work playlist. This is the type of stuff the list is made for. I'd have never listened to this without it. A fantastic find and some really great tunes and musicianship.

What a find. Wow.

Initially sceptical that I needed to hear any tango, let alone new tango, I must say the sheer power and beauty of this Nuevo Tango record was staggering. I don’t think there is a piece of music quite like it - passionate, powerful and deep - a jazz recording, a classical composition, nigh impossible to categorise. I found it to be captivating and could not stop listening. A work of art.

Vibes aren't everyone's favorite, but I like this music

Very cool

It was like being in a pretentious indie film. Pretty cool