Born on March 11, 1921 in Mar del Plata, province of Buenos Aires. He was a bandoneon player and composer. His contact with music began in New York, where his family lived between 1925 and 1936. At the age of eight, his father gave him his first bandoneon, and he began taking classes with Andrés D´Aquila; he made an acetate recording when he was only ten years old, without commercial purposes. In 1933, he studied music with the Hungarian pianist Bela Wilda, who introduced him to Bach’s sonic universe. The following year, she met Carlos Gardel and quickly established a friendly relationship with him. Gardel heard him play and offered to participate and play various themes in the film El día que me quieras; in which he played a quill. He was also invited to the tour of America in which Gardel lost his life with his team; But, given his young age, he did not travel because he did not have a permit. In 1936, his family returned to Mar del Plata, and Astor participated in various ensembles and learned about the work of the Elvino Vardaro sextet, which influenced him in a definitive way. Determined to explore tango, he moved to Buenos Aires at the age of seventeen and, shortly after, achieved his goal: to join Aníbal Troilo’s orchestra, first as a bandoneon player and occasional pianist and, later, as an arranger of the orchestra. He continued his studies of academic music with Alberto Ginastera and, of piano, with Raúl Spivak. His arrangements took him further and further away from classical tango. Around 1944, he left the Troilo Orchestra to direct the orchestra that accompanied the singer Francisco Fiorentino until 1946, when he composed El Desbande, considered by himself his first tango with a different formal structure. He formed his own orchestra, which he dissolved in 1949, and began to write music for films. He left the bandoneon and approached jazz: the search for a style different from everything led him to deepen his musical studies. Between 1950 and 1954, he composed works clearly different from the conception of tango up to that time (Para lucirse, Tanguango, Prepárense, Contrabajeando, Triunfal, Lo que venrá), and began to define his style. Also at this time, he wrote pieces of music cultured, such as Rhapsody porteña (1952) and Buenos Aires, three symphonic movements (1953). For the latter, he won the Fabien Sevitzky Prize, and the French Government awarded him a scholarship to study in Paris with the famous musical educator Nadia Boulanger, who convinced him to persist on the tango path: «Astor, your scholarly works are fine written, but here is the real Piazzolla, never abandon him ». The fellowship lasted almost a year and, during that time, he formed a string orchestra together with the musicians of the Paris Opera Martial Solal and Lalo Schifrin. With Schiffrin, he recorded Two Argentinians in Paris (1955). Upon his return to Argentina, he summoned leading musicians and formed the Octeto Buenos Aires. It was made up of Enrique Mario Francini and Hugo Baralis, on violins; Roberto Pansera, on bandoneon; José Bragato, on cello; Aldo Nicolini, on bass; Horacio Malvicino, on electric guitar, and Atilio Stampone, on piano. Several versions of the Octet had a decisive influence on the future evolution of tango, due to its rhythmic and contrapuntal novelties. When his father died in 1959, he composed perhaps the most beautiful work in his tribute: Adiós, Nonino. In 1960, after a stay in the United States, where his style was presented as jazz-tango, he formed a quintet with musicians such as Elvio Bardaro, Dante Amicarelli, Antonio Agri, Horacio Malvicino, Oscar López Ruiz, Kicho Díaz, Osvaldo Manzi and Cacho Tirao. In 1968, he composed, with the poet Horacio Ferrer, the opera María de Buenos Aires, for eleven instruments, recitant and female and male singers. In 1969, he began to write, also together with Ferrer, simpler songs for the voice of Amelita Baltar, his partner in those years. They composed Balada para un loco, which became a huge popular success followed by others. In 1972, after a heart attack, he decided to settle for five years in Italy. He formed the Conjunto Electrónico, recorded Libertango and experimented with his approach to jazz-rock. In 1974, he recorded Summit with saxophonist Gerry Mulligan; and, a year later, after the death of Aníbal Troilo, the album Suite Troileana. In 1976, he appeared at the Gran Rex theater with his play 500 Motivations; and, in 1977, with a series of concerts at the Olympia in Paris. In 1978, he returned with his Quintet and consolidated his international fame with tours of Europe, South America, the United States and Japan. In 1983, at the Teatro Colón, he offered a program entirely composed by him.
“The Piazzolla Style” and his influences
One of Piazzolla’s main rhythmic innovations involves a displacement of accents within the milonga and a particular syncopation effect, resulting in a rhythmic pattern of 8 pulses grouped in 3+3+2, introducing an element of ambiguity into the tight metric structure of tango. This became one of the musician’s most characteristic features. Before Piazzolla, tango rhythm did not vary much in meter but rather in tempo changes during performance; Piazzolla enriched tango rhythm within composition and writing. His use of asymmetrical groupings, such as 3+3+2, connects his music to Bela Bartok, who had discovered similar groupings in his region’s folk music. Unlike other performers, Piazzolla regularly employed irregular groupings as a rather stable pattern, providing tango with a completely novel propulsion. Piazzolla’s music resonates with these rhythmic groupings from his unique reworking of the milonga. It might be thought that in Piazzolla’s compositions, one is always hearing the essence of the milonga, whether in its slower forms or variants. Notably, Piazzolla excluded two highly characteristic elements of tango: dance and singing; in fact, the polyphonic nature of Piazzolla’s orchestration precludes vocal accompaniment.
However, the form and treatment of Piazzolla’s music depart significantly from anything previously done within the popular field. His approach involved melding a classical content, drawn from his studies under Ginastera, into the mold of a stylized tango orchestra, with strings, bandoneon, and concertante piano. “Three Minutes with Reality” can be seen as a mini-Rhapsody, filtered through Bartok, suggesting a tension between reality and the contemporary world of tango. This tension is represented by the additive rhythms at the beginning and the Bartok-like piano solo from Ginastera’s Sonata for Piano, which speak of a reality influenced by the present. While initially somewhat grandiose, this tone, reminiscent of Hollywood’s interpretation of classical music, diminished as Piazzolla transitioned to smaller ensembles, where his best work emerged, influenced by lessons from Nadia Boulanger.
Piazzolla’s singular approach mirrored Ellington’s pragmatism in utilizing his musicians’ strengths and masking their weaknesses. For instance, the piano solo in “Three Minutes with Reality” was tailored for Jaime Gosis, demonstrating Piazzolla’s keen understanding of his musicians’ abilities. Some critics, such as those from Que! magazine, questioned Piazzolla’s experimentation, labeling his compositions as “formless” and “the negation of art.” However, despite critical reception, Piazzolla’s octet concept echoed the urgency of Julio de Caro’s sextet of 1926 and the fusion with jazz, evident in his performances alongside renowned jazz musicians like Stan Getz. Piazzolla’s compositions, drawing inspiration from Osvaldo Pugliese and other contemporaries, showcased a marked rhythmic influence from Pugliese’s “Negracha.” Additionally, European influences, notably from Bach, Bartok, and even Igor Stravinsky, left their mark on Piazzolla’s harmonic development and contrapuntal use, while American musicians like George Gershwin and Brian Wilson also influenced his work, as noted by drummer José Luis Properzi.
The Astor Piazzolla Legacy
Piazzolla, far from the possibility of generating a collective movement, resembles Jorge Luis Borges in that sense much more than one might suppose. Both instituted reading systems, invented their genealogies, and created from arbitrary cutouts. Both generated unique and unrepeatable styles (even if imitable) from partial encyclopedias and biased readings. Borges declared himself conservative and yet was revolutionary. Piazzolla, though declaring revolution, also achieved it from a conservative program and from resistance to the directions classical music had taken since 1950.
In 1995, the Konex Foundation awarded him the Konex Award of Honor for his immeasurable contribution to music in Argentina.
In 1996, on June 13, 14, and 15, a tribute named “Astortango” was held at the Teatro Ópera in Buenos Aires, conceived by Eliseo Álvarez. Prominent Argentine and international musicians performed the works of Maestro Piazzolla, including Gary Burton, Chick Corea, Hermeto Pascoal, Jairo, Gerardo Gandini, Fernando Suárez Paz, Horacio Malvicino, Juan Carlos Cirigliano, Rodolfo Mederos, Julio Pane, Néstor Marconi, Raúl Luzzi, Arturo Schneider, Daniel Binelli, his son Daniel, and his grandson Daniel “Pipi” Piazzolla.
In 1993, the Pesaro Music Association, at the behest of Maestro Hugo Aisemberg and other cultural figures in Pesaro, founded the Astor Piazzolla Center.
In 2008, the international airport of Mar del Plata, his hometown, was named “Astor Piazzolla International Airport” in his memory.
Since 2007, the London-based Fugata Quintet has been formed, consisting of musicians who graduated from the Royal Academy of Music in London, united by their common passion for Piazzolla and his Nuevo Tango. Their name derives from the second movement, “Fugata,” of Piazzolla’s Tangada-suite ‘Silfo y Ondina.’ The quintet, predominantly classical in character and origin, seeks to reflect the composer’s own classical origins and his frequent use of classical forms and composition techniques in his many notable works for quintet. Comprised of Antonis Hatzinikolaou (guitar), Anastasios Mavroudis (violin), Zivorad Nikolic (accordion), James Opstad (double bass), and Anahit Chaushyan (piano), they have been actively promoting Piazzolla’s work in London in recent years, with successful live performances and recordings dedicated solely to his work in prestigious venues such as the Royal Albert Hall, the Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room, or The Forge, as well as broadcasts on BBC Radio 3. They recently released a critically acclaimed double album featuring music by the Argentine composer. Notable composers inspired by Piazzolla include Osvaldo Golijov and Daniel Binelli.
Astor Piazzolla´s Discography
- Sinfonía de Tango (1955)
- Tango Progresivo: Octeto Buenos Aires (1956)
- Tango Moderno también llamado simplemente Octeto Buenos Aires (1957)
- Lo que vendrá (Antar PLP 2001. 1957)
- Tango en Hi-Fi (1957)
- An Evening in Buenos Aires (Grabado en EE. UU.) (1959)
- Take Me Dancing! The Latin Rhythms of Astor Piazzolla & his Quintet (1959)
- Piazzolla interpreta a Piazzolla (1961)
- Piazzolla o No? Bailable y apiazolado (1961)
- Nuestro tiempo (1962)
- Tango contemporáneo – Astor Piazzolla y su nuevo octeto (1963)
- Tango para una ciudad – Astor Piazzolla y su quinteto nuevo tango (1963)
- 20 años de vanguardia con sus conjuntos (1964)
- Concierto en el Philarmonic Hall de New York (1965)
- El Tango con Edmundo Rivero y textos de Jorge Luis Borges (1965)
- Historia del Tango Vol. 1: La guardia Vieja (1967)
- Historia del tango Vol. 2: La época romántica (1967)
- Adiós Nonino – Astor Piazzolla con su quinteto (1969)
- Pulsación – Astor Piazzolla y su orquesta (1970)
- Amelita Baltar interpreta a Piazzolla y Ferrer (1970)
- En persona solos de Piazzolla con recitados de Ferrer (1970)
- Con alma y vida (1970)
- La bicicleta blanca Amelita Baltar con Piazzolla (1971)
- Concierto para quinteto (1971)
- Música popular contemporánea de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires Volumen 1 (1971)
- Música popular contemporánea de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires Volumen 2 (1972)
- Libertango (1974)
- Summit – Reunión Cumbre con Gerry Mulligan (1974)
- Piazzolla y Amelita Baltar (1974)
- Il pleut sur Santiago (1975)
- Lumière – Suite Troileana (1975)
- Armaguedon (1977)
- Olympia 77 (1977)
- Persecuta (1977)
- Viaje de Bodas (1977)
- Mundial 78 o Piazzolla 78 (reeditado en CD como Chador) (1978)
- Biyuya (1979)
- Thèmes originaux (1979)
- El infierno tan temido (1979)
- Volver – Astor Piazzolla con su quinteto (1982)
- Aconcagua – SWF Rundfunkorchester (1983)
- Oblivion (1984)
- El exilio de Gardel (1984)
- Nuevo tango: Hora Zero (1986)
- Tristezas de un doble A (1987)
- The New Tango junto a Gary Burton (1987)
- The Rough Dancer and the Cyclical Night (Tango Apassionado) (1988)
- Sur (1988)
- La Camorra: The Solitude of Passionate Provocation (1989)
- Five Tango Sensations (1989) con el Kronos Quartet.
- Bandoneón Sinfónico (1990)
