ABSTRACT
Chapter 1, ‘Introduction’, puts tango music and the artistic research presented by this book into context while providing a brief historical overview and establishing a connection to the current situation of tango practices. It presents the main periods of the history of tango music (Guardia vieja, Guardia nueva, Época de oro and modern times) and its main actors, among whom are the musicians central to this research: De Caro, Pugliese, Salgán, Piazzolla and Beytelmann. From Villoldo, Arolas, Gardel, Fresedo, Cobián, Di Sarli and Troilo to Federico, Francini-Pontier, Mederos, Binelli and Mosalini, among others, Chapter 1 provides a clear foundation for understanding the origins of tango music and its development into a unique musical language in the hands of outstanding musicians (all-in-one performers, arrangers, composers, orchestrators and orchestra leaders) whose contributions and ‘styles’ have shaped the main features of instrumental tango music (in arrangement, composition and performance practices) over the last hundred years. What are the core musical features and techniques that define River Plate tango as a model, and which innovations can be traced in the oeuvre of the musicians studied here in relation to that model? Answers to these questions form the main subject of The Art of Tango.
