Buenos Aires has tango neighborhoods: for their history, their songs, their essence. El Abasto is one of them: the spirit of the “Zorzal Criollo” – a nickname for Carlos Gardel – remains intact in this neighborhood where you can discover his old house and the passage that bears his name, where his monument stands.
The Abasto Neighborhood: a bit of history
The Abasto is an area of the city of Buenos Aires that is located between the neighborhoods of Balvanera and Almagro. It takes its name from the former Abasto Market of Buenos Aires (whose main facade is the work of architect Viktor Sulčič) and is the center of this unofficial neighborhood. It is located on Avenida Corrientes at 3200 and it is in this area of the city where the singer Carlos Gardel was raised, known for this reason as El Morocho del Abasto. The market was closed in 1984, being reopened in 1998, now converted into the Abasto de Buenos Aires shopping center.
The neighborhood is recognized as one of the most tango-centric neighborhoods in the city, and there exists the Pasaje Carlos Gardel, a continuation of Humahuaca Street, where on the corner opposite the market there is a statue of Gardel next to which is a monument to the bandoneón. Sculptures commemorating other outstanding figures of the genre such as Tita Merello, Aníbal Troilo, Roberto Goyeneche, Alberto Castillo, and Astor Piazzolla have also been incorporated into the passage.
The history of the Abasto (whose original market – with its facade still preserved on Lavalle Street – was inaugurated in 1893) is indissolubly linked to that of tango. The Garibotto Bar on Avenida Pueyrredón and San Luis was one of the first strongholds where tango was danced. There, the accordionist Angel Villoldo, author of the famous “El Choclo,” Enrique Cadícamo, or the actor Pepe Arias used to gather. In the corner of Tucumán and Anchorena or in Agüero and Lavalle, one could see in the early 1900s Ovidio José Bianquet, better known as El Cachafaz, considered the best tango dancer in history.
In the 1920s, fights between thugs and hoodlums were common in this area, joined by gangs of wealthy children, better known as “indiadas,” who used to go to the suburbs to provoke the compadritos. High society characters like Aaron Anchorena or Jorge Newbery were part of the ‘indiada.’ The dances were frequently interrupted by large brawls that began in bars only to end in shots and stabbings. In one of these fights, José “Cielito” Traverso, a famous tough guy from Abasto and one of the owners of the O’Rondeman Bar on Agüero and Humahuaca, killed a member of the Argerich family and had to exile himself to Uruguay. Carlos Gardel made his debut in this bar under the protection of Alberto “Don Yiyo” Traverso, “Cielito’s” brother, back in 1910.
In addition to inns and bars, there were always boarding houses, tenements, brothels, and of course, political committees in the surrounding areas. Gardel not only sang at the Traverso caudillos’ café but also at the adjacent conservative committee. Important payadores sang at committees. During those years, committees were one of the main places for the dissemination of local art. In the Abasto, they met with the payadores and criollo singers José Betinotti and Ambrosio Río, and with none other than José Razzano, his friend, artistic partner, and manager, on the occasion of a private meeting at the home of a pianist named Gigena. The Buenos Aires tango made a splash in the following years in Argentine culture, and the singers of cafes and committees became the great spokespeople of criollo singing with the help of record releases, thus displacing the payadores.
Aníbal Troilo, “the greatest bandoneón player of Buenos Aires,” was born in 1914 in the Abasto neighborhood, as were the singers Roberto Rufino and Virginia Luque. The maestro Osvaldo Pugliese lived for a time at Corrientes 3742, and the brothers Lucio Demare (composer of tangos and orchestra director) and Lucas Demare (musician turned film director) lived in this area. In 1955, “Mercado de Abasto,” a film directed by Lucas and with music by Lucio Demare and the performance of the legendary Tita Merello and the popular comedian Pepe Arias, was released. In it, you can appreciate the market as it was in appearance and in its daily activity during those years.
The Tango Circuit in the Abasto Neighborhood
This classic tango neighborhood of the City invites you to take a tour of some of its emblematic sites with this special circuit to
- Passage and Monument “Carlos Gardel”
Carlos Gardel Passage 3164, between Jean Jaurés and Anchorena. Buenos Aires paid tribute to Carlos Gardel with this monument representing his image as a singer. - Bar “El Progreso”
Anchorena 517. A traditional bar that preserves characteristics of early 20th-century bars. - Tango House “Esquina Carlos Gardel” “Chanta Cuatro”
Carlos Gardel Passage 3200. Founded in 1893, “Chanta Cuatro” was one of Gardel’s favorite bars. He used to meet friends there to eat, talk about horses, soccer, and women. It was one of the emblematic tango houses of the City, it´s closed today - Osvaldo Pugliese’s House
Corrientes Avenue 3742. A brilliant pianist, orchestra leader, and composer, Pugliese lived in this house for years with his wife, who still resides there. - Zelaya Passage
Zelaya 3100 (corner of Anchorena). In this passage where the facades of the houses display sheet music, lyrics, and portraits of Gardel painted, you can breathe tango. - Fileteado Walk
Jean Jaurés 700. Fileteado is a typically Buenos Aires decorative painting style. It is showcased on the walls of this walk. - Carlos Gardel Museum-House
Jean Jaurés 735. In 1927, Carlos Gardel bought this house for Berta Gardés, his mother. He lived there until 1933. The singer’s death came in a plane crash in Medellin, Colombia, during his last tour of Latin America on June 24, 1935. - Aníbal Troilo’s House
Cabrera 2937. Anibal Troilo “Pichuco” was born in this house on July 11, 1911. Interpreting with his bandoneón, Troilo was as decisive for tango as Gardel was with his singing. July 11 is celebrated as “Bandoneón Day” in his honor.
