argen&ne’tango’ dj’and’music’workshop’ file14/3/2015 · ’ﬂute,guitar,accordion,...

Argen&ne Tango DJ and Music Workshop

John Hess Tucson Tango Fes&val March 2014

What Pleases the Ear Reaches our Heart

Webpage

J Hess March, 2014

“Some people see tango as primarily a dance …however most will say tango is the music, and the lyrics, and the dancers' interpreta&on of that music, and the sen&ments it expresses. GePng to know the music is part of learning tango……

James Stewart, Edinburgh Tango Society

J Hess March, 2014

ü Music Ages -‐ The Orchestras -‐ What DJs Play in BA

J Hess March, 2014

-‐ Discographies -‐ Where to Buy Music -‐ Tandas / Cor&nas -‐ High Quality Sound -‐ Making it Happen -‐ Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

Ages of Argen&ne Tango ?

1910/20/25 – 1935/36 Guardia Nueva Before 1910/20/25 Guardia Vieja

Golden Age ? 1935/36 – 1949/55

Pre Golden Age ? Guardia Vieja

J Hess March, 2014

or

or

ü  Golden Age 1935 – 1955

J Hess March, 2014

My DJ Music Ages of Argen&ne Tango

•  Most common defini&on

•  1935 -‐ D’Arienzo/Biagi reignite dancers

•  1955 – Peron ousted, the beginning of the decline of Tango


ü  Pre-‐Recording 1870 – 1904

ü  Acous&c 1905 – 1925

-‐  Recordings using mechanical techniques -‐  Poor quality recordings

ü  Pre Golden Age 1926 – 1934

-‐  Early electrical recordings in Argen&na -‐  “Milongable” recordings

ü  Golden Age 1935 – 1955

-‐ Recording technology con&nues to improve J Hess March, 2014

Pre-‐Recording 1870 – 1904

ü  Early tango music (2 x 4)* / dance styles (tango milonga)

ü  Simple, improvised

ü  1890s – wrijen tangos

ü  Traveling duos, trios, quartets

ü  Portable – harp, violin, flute, guitar, accordion,

clarinet, bandoneon

J Hess March, 2014 * Tango Stories: Musical Secrets, Lavocah Pg. 8

Acous&c 1905 – 1925 ü  Acous&c (mechanical) recording / playback

-‐ horn & diaphram / limited sound quality -‐ 200 to 2400 Hz (violins / piano up to 4000 Hz)

ü  1910 – flat disc (“shellacs”) -‐ 78 RPM -‐ 10" & 12" -‐ 3 mins / side -‐ disc gramaphone

J Hess March, 2014

Acous&c 1905 – 1925

J Hess March, 2014

Acous&c 1905 – 1925 ü  Dance halls / carnivals / canyengue dancing

ü  1916 -‐ Sextet (piano, double bass, 2 violins, 2 bandoneons)

ü  Mature tango rhythm – 4 x 8

ü  1924 -‐ Orquesta Típica (add more violins / bandoneons)

ü  Tango in Europe and New York ü  Poor recordings -‐ not played

at tradi&onal milongas

J Hess March, 2014

Example: Maglio “Cuasi Nada” 1912 Quartet

Example: Firpo “La Cumparsita” 1916 Sextet (4x8)

Example: Krebs “Mercato in 4”

ü  The “Canaro” Era – Example: Canaro “Ventanita Florida” 1932 Example: Firpo “Vieja Iglesia” 1933 Example: Fresedo “Chingolito” 1928 Example: OTV “Adios Argentina” 1930

ü  Two schools of music -‐ Tradi&onal led by Firpo / Canaro (dancers) -‐ Evolu&onary led by De Caro (listeners) 4 x 4

Example: De Caro “Flores Negras” 1927

ü  Dancers interest decreasing -‐ Music slow / sad / similar, listening music -‐ World financial crisis -‐ Tango out of fashion in Europe

J Hess March, 2014

Pre Golden Age 1926 – 1934

ü  1932/33 – first milonga “Milonga Sen&mental”

Example: Mercedes Simone 1932 Example: Francisco Canaro 1933

ü  Some nice selec&ons for Tradi&onal

Milongas -‐ use sparingly

J Hess March, 2014


Example: Carabelli “Cuatro Palabras” 1933

Example: Canaro “Adios Juventud” 1933 vals

Example: Fresedo “Vida Mia” 1933

Golden Age 1935 – 1955

J Hess March, 2014

ü  1935 – 1941 -‐ The “D’Arienzo” Era (BA rock & roll era)

-‐ Dancers excited – orchestras follow the money

Example: D’Arienzo “El Africano”1937 Example: Biagi “Pura Clase” 1939 Example: Di Sarli “La Trilla” 1940

ü  1942 -‐ 1947 -‐ The “Roman&c” Era -‐ Less rigidly rhythmic, more harmonic and melodic -‐ Lunfardo unofficially banned in 1943

Example: Di Sarli “Verdemar”1943 Example: Calo “Jamas Retornaras” 1942 Example: Pugliese “Farol” 1943

Golden Age -‐ Rhythmic & Lyrical ü  Most music is rhythmic – tango music also

ü  Strong Rhythm -‐ Marching music -‐ easy to tap, hard to hum -‐ D'Arienzo/Biagi (1936) – strong staccato rhythms -‐ For dancers it is clear when to make the next step Example: D’Arienzo “El Flete” 1937 Example: D’Arienzo “El Choclo” 1937

ü  Lyrical Music -‐ Harder to tap, easy to hum -‐ Musical theme more relaxed, freely interpreted -‐ Harder to dance to, more challenges to be crea&ve -‐ Carlos Gavito – “Tango is What Happens Between the Beats” Example: Calo“El Compas Del Corazon” 1942

J Hess March, 2014


J Hess March, 2014

ü  1948 -‐ The “Avant Garde”, Piazzolla & Salgan

ü  1950 – 1955 -‐ Echo -‐ Drama&c / big sound / big singers -‐ Hi-‐Fidelity

Example: Di Sarli “Por Que le Llaman Amor” 1954 Examples: D’Arienzo “El Choclo” 1954 Example: Pugliese “La Yumba” 1952 vs 1946

My DJ Music Ages of Argen&ne Tango ü  Post Golden Age 1956 – 1982

-‐  Tango declines due to dictatorship and rock & roll

-‐  Ends with Falklands War

-‐  Stereo / reel to reel & casseje tape

-‐  60’s RCA Victor burned master discs

-‐  Tango for listening – Piazzolla

-‐  70s -‐ only a few hundred social dancers in BA

-‐  Some beau&ful late 50s for tradi&onal milongas

J Hess March, 2014

Example: Di Sarli “Indio Manso” 1958

Evolu&on of Tango Music

Pre GA Rhythmic, Slow, Sad (Canaro) Example: “TBC” 1928

1935-‐41 Rhythmic, Fast, Happy (D’Arienzo) Example: “El Retirao” 1939

1942-‐49 Lyrical, Roman&c Example: “Adios Te Vas” 1943

1950’s Echo, Drama&c, Big Orchestras Example: “El Jaguel” 1956

J Hess March, 2014

Violins go from 2 to 8, bandoneons go from 2 to 5


ü Modern 1983 – Present

-‐  Tango Argen&no sparks new interest

-‐  Cons&tu&onal rule returns

-‐  CD / MP3

-‐  30 Years of Revival

-‐  2007 in BA – 300 milongas a week, 120 venues, 35,000 par&cipants

-‐  Seldom played at tradi&onal milongas

J Hess March, 2014

Example: Otros Aires “Milonga Sentimental” 2004

My DJ Music Ages of Argen&ne Tango Pre-‐Recording 1870 – 1904

Acous&c 1905 – 1925



Post Golden Age 1956 – 1982

Modern 1983 – Present

Tradi&onal Music 1930 – 1959 (98%)

DJ Sweet Spot 1935 – 1945 (80+%) Golden Decade

J Hess March, 2014

-‐ 2 Dis&nct Styles – Listening, Dancing -‐ 100,000 Tango Recordings* -‐ 1930 – 1959 Tradi&onal -‐ Up to 2,000 suitable for Social Dancing -‐ Not all are 5 star -‐ Not all good for every dance group/style -‐ So we have a treasure hunt

J Hess March, 2014 * hjp://www.bendtango.com/cell2-‐1.html

How Much Tradi&onal Music is There?

* hjp://simbatango.com/2009/10/16/the-‐golden-‐age-‐visualized/

Number of Recordings by Year

ü  Next Page – Graph

ü  12K data points from tango.info

ü  Note ra&o of Tangos to Vals or Milongas Golden Age – 6X

hjp://simbatango.com/2009/10/16/the-‐golden-‐age-‐visualized/

J Hess March, 2014

-‐  Music Ages ü  The Orchestras -‐ What DJs Play in BA

J Hess March, 2014


Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

Tradi&onal Milonga Orchestras Big 4 / Sweet 16

Juan D’Arienzo Carlos Di Sarli Anibal Troilo Osvaldo Pugliese Francisco Canaro* Osvaldo Fresedo* Edgardo Donato* Francisco Lomuto*

Rodolfo Biagi Ricardo Tanturi Angel D’agos&no Miguel Calo Enrique Rodriguez Alfredo de Angelis Pedro Laurenz Lucio Demare

* Early Pioneers J Hess March, 2014

Tradi&onal Milonga Orchestras Occasional 14

Julio De Caro* Roberto Firpo* Adolfo Carabelli* Orquesta Tipica Victor* Alfredo Gobbi Ricardo Malerba Horacio Salgan

Hector Varela Jose Garcia Alberto Cas&llo Leopoldo Federico Manuel Buzon Jose Basso Enrique Francini – Armando Pon&er

J Hess March, 2014 * Early Pioneers

Tradi&onal Milonga Orchestras Rare Sigh&ngs

Juan Maglio* Pedro Maffia* Luis Petrucelli* Manuel Pizarro Juan Carlos Cobian Ricardo Pedevilla

Astor Piazzolla Juan Sanchez Gorio Enrique Mora Armando Lacava Alfredo Ajadia Pepe Aguirre

J Hess March, 2014

etc., etc., etc.

* Early Pioneers

Two Schools of Music (star&ng 1916) ü  Tradi&onal led by Firpo / Canaro

-‐ Concentrated on rhythm and dancability -‐ Simple arrangements -‐ 4 x 8 -‐ Includes D’Arienzo, Lomuto, Donato,Tanturi, Biagi,

Rodriguez, de Angelis

ü  Evolu&onary led by De Caro -‐ Explored melody and harmony -‐ Sophis&cated arrangements -‐ 4 x 4 -‐ Includes Fresedo, Troilo, Laurenz, Di Sarli,

Pugliese, Caló, D’Agos&no, DeMare, Salgan, Gobbi, Piazzola, Francini-‐Pon&er J Hess March, 2014

Orchestra – Juan Maglio “Pacho” ü  1910 – first rock star (self-‐taught)

ü  900 recordings ü  Last recordings 1931

Example “Orillas Del Plata”1928 V

ü  Rare sigh&ng

J Hess March, 2014

Orchestra – Roberto Firpo (1884-‐1969) ü  1914 – replaced Maglio as biggest tango star

ü  Wrote many tangos

ü  Introduced the piano & bass (rhythmic engine)

ü  Tradi&onal tango school -‐ rhythm / danceability

ü  Sextet -‐ Orchestra -‐ Quartet

ü  2800 recordings (1600 acous&c) #2 1914 – 1956

ü  Occasionally played Example: “Barreras de Amor” 1936 V Example: “Pena Mulata” 1941 M

J Hess March, 2014

Orchestra – Francisco Canaro (1888 – 1964) ü  “Pirincho” crested bird

ü  1924 – added “Refrain Singer”

Example: “Poema” 1935

ü  Made lots of money

ü  3800 recordings* #1 (940 acous&c) 1915 – 1964

* includes foxtrot, pasodoble, shimmy, polka, ...

ü  Best – tangos, vals, milongas with singers 1935 – 1942

Example: “El Adios” 1938 Maida T

Example: “Cuando Estaba Enamorado” 1940 Amor V

Example: “Milonga Criolla” Maida 1938 M J Hess March, 2014

Orchestra – Julio De Caro (1899 – 1980)

J Hess March, 2014

ü  Classically trained violinist – Stroh violin to amplify sound

ü  420 tango recordings -‐ 20s thru early 50s –mostly

instrumentals

ü  Pedro Laurenz Bandoneon

ü  Heavily influenced Pugliese

ü  Occasionally played

Example: “Esta Noche” 1939 T Example: “Sorpresa de Novia” 1943 V Example: “Saca Chispas” 1938 M

Orchestra – Osvaldo Fresedo (1897 – 1984)

J Hess March, 2014

ü  Dreamy dance music

ü  Other instruments – vibes, harp, percussion, etc.

ü  Longest recording career – 1922 -‐ 1980

ü  800 recordings – Best are 30s thru early 40s – Singers Ray, Ruiz, Serpa

Example: “Yo no se llorar” 1933 Ray

Example: “Y no puede ser” 1939 Ruiz

Example: “Te llama mi violin” 1942 Serpa

ü  Good mood changer for milongas

Orchestra – Juan D’Arienzo (1900 – 1976) ü  Turned tango listeners into tango dancers

ü  El Rey del Compas – rhythm and danceability

ü  Poor violin player – showman

ü  1000 recordings 1928 – 1975

ü  Most popular of Golden Age -‐ La Cumparsita 8X 14M copies

ü  A must at milongas

ü  Listen for wailing violins

J Hess March, 2014

Example: “El Choclo” 1937 1:15 Biagi T Example: “Felicia” 1939 :50 after Biagi T Example: “Passion” 1937 1:25 V

Orchestra – Carlos Di Sarli (1903 – 1960) ü  El Señor del Tango -‐ also cruelly known as El

Tuerto (the One-‐Eyed)

ü  Talented piano player –Fresedo strong influence

ü  Clear walking rhythm (panther) – piano, bass, bandos – melody violins

ü  Forged his own music-‐ sophis&cated and complex

simplicity

ü  600 recordings 1929 – 1958


J Hess March, 2014

Orchestra – Anibal Troilo (1914 – 1975) ü  “Pichuco” or “El Gordo” 485 recordings (1938-‐1971)

ü  Orchestra singer – Fioren&no

ü  Best -‐ Orlando Goni on Piano 1938, 41 (Fior), Vals <10%

ü  A|er 1941 music more melodic /difficult to dance

ü  Astor Piazzolla arrangements

ü  Sophis&cated, many layered, symphony/concert music


J Hess March, 2014

Example: “Tinta Roja” 1941 Fiorentino Example: “Quejas de Bandoneon” 1944

Orchestra – Osvaldo Pugliese (1905 – 1995)

ü  Development of concert-‐style music

ü  Brilliant pianist / composer

ü  First recordings 1943 ü  Communist his whole life – 50’s spent &me in jail – red

carna&on on keyboard “Clavel Rojo”


J Hess March, 2014

Example: “Recuerdo” 1944 Example: “Emancipacion” 1955

Orchestra Signature Endings

ü  Rodriguez

ü  Calo

ü  Tanturi

Example: “Una Noche de Garufa” 1941

Example: “Lejo de Buenos Aires” 1942

Example: “El Morochito” 1941

ü ON MY WEBSITE

-‐  Music Ages -‐  The Orchestras ü What DJs Play in BA

J Hess March, 2014


Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

J Hess March, 2014

What DJs Play in BA 14 Milongas Surveyed in 2008 Ron Weigel, Tango Society of Central Illinois

J Hess March, 2014

What DJs Play in BA

-‐  Music Ages -‐  The Orchestras -‐ What DJs Play in BA

J Hess March, 2014

ü  Discographies ü Where to Buy Music ü  Tandas / Cor&nas ü  High Quality Sound ü Making it Happen ü  Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda


J Hess March, 2014

Argen&ne Tango DJ and Music Workshop

John Hess Tucson Tango Fes&val March 2014


Webpage

J Hess March, 2014


J Hess March, 2014

ü  Discographies -‐ Where to Buy Music -‐ Tandas / Cor&nas -‐ High Quality Sound -‐ Making it Happen -‐ Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

Discographies

ü Most orchestras -‐ sound changed over &me ü  Some songs -‐ recorded more than once / different &mes

ü  Each vocalist had their own style ü  For each song DJ should know:

-‐ Song &tle (some have mul&ple &tles) -‐ Orchestra / singer -‐ Year recorded

ü ON MY WEBSITE J Hess March, 2014

Discographies

J Hess March, 2014

J Hess March, 2014

Discographies


J Hess March, 2014

-‐  Discographies ü Where to Buy Music -‐ Tandas / Cor&nas -‐ High Quality Sound -‐ Making it Happen -‐ Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

Buying Music ü  Digital -‐ Amazon / I-‐Tunes / Google Play

ü  Digital -‐ Remastered hjp://totango.net hjp://www.tangotunes.com

ü  CDs hjp://www.milonga.co.uk/index.shtml hjp://tango-‐dj.at/shop/?product_cat=ar&sts

ü  Tanda CDs hjp://www.planet-‐tango.com/music.htm hjp://totango.net

ü  ON MY WEBSITE

J Hess March, 2014

ü Milongable Music

-‐  How much noise (hiss, crackle, pop, etc) ?

-‐  Caused by old/improper recording or storage

-‐  Many &mes cannot be removed without compromising music quality

-‐  So much beau&ful dance music that is not Milongable

-‐  Dancer sensi&vity

Buying Music

J Hess March, 2014

Example: “Viernes de Pasion” Lomuto 1945 Example: “La Bruja” D’Arienzo 1938


J Hess March, 2014

-‐ Discographies -‐  Where to Buy Music ü  Tandas / Cor&nas -‐ High Quality Sound -‐ Making it Happen -‐ Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

Tandas

ü  Probably developed in 1980s/1990s

ü  A group of 3 or 4 songs followed by a break (cor&na) to clear the floor

ü  Tandas are same genre – Tango, Vals, Milonga ü ON MY WEBSITE

J Hess March, 2014

ü Most common tradi&onal sets

T3-‐T3-‐V3-‐T3-‐T3-‐M3 …. Approx. 50-‐55 mins



Tandas

ü For tradi&onal tandas

-‐ Most common order T-‐T-‐V-‐T-‐T-‐M

-‐ More tangos

-‐ Dancers know what to expect

J Hess March, 2014

ü Number of songs depends on:

-‐ Preference of dancers

-‐ Mix of leads to follows

-‐ Organizer (final say)

-‐ Event (Fes&val, small milonga, etc)

-‐ Length of songs (Alterna&ve, etc)

-‐ Established norms?

Tandas

J Hess March, 2014

ü  1st Song – Make People Get Out of Their Chairs ü Middle Songs – Direc&onal ü  Last Song – Climax (Don’t Disappoint)

Tandas

J Hess March, 2014

Tandas

J Hess March, 2014

ü  Years +-‐2

ü  Feel / Mood / Tempo -‐  Similar music (not too similar) -‐  Consistent vs ebb & flow -‐  Build / release tension

ü  Proper/consistent volume -‐ incl Cor&nas

ü  Consistent &ming C-‐2S-‐T-‐2S-‐T-‐2S-‐T-‐2S-‐C ü  Instrumentals to vocal ra&o / mixing ü  Rhythmic / lyrical / complexity ü  Energy level

Tandas -‐ Intui&on vs Formula

ü  Feel it

ü  Classify it (Stephen Brown) -‐ Hard Rhythm -‐ So| Rhythm -‐ Smooth -‐ Lyrical -‐ Drama&c

ü  Computerize it -‐ Vancouver Ca (Eric Lanoix) VODCA

J Hess March, 2014

Tandas – Stringing Them Together

J Hess March, 2014

Closing an Evening of Dancing

ü La Cumparsita

-‐ Most famous Tango song

-‐ Last song of the night

-‐ Tradi&on started 1990s in BA ?

-‐ Hundreds of versions

J Hess March, 2014

Example: “La Cumparsita” D’Arienzo 1937

ü  Probably developed with Tandas in 1980s/1990s

ü  30 secs -‐ 1 min depending on crowd size (so|ware – on MY WEBSITE)

ü  Silence -‐–> Non-‐Danceable -‐-‐> Danceable

ü  BA Experience

ü ON MY WEBSITE

Cor&nas

J Hess March, 2014

ü  My Philosophy

-‐ Opportunity lost

-‐ Key Part of milonga experience (mood set)

-‐ Fun (It’s a party, not a funeral)

-‐ Avoid hard rock / heavy metal / explicit

-‐ Danceable is good

-‐ Theme &ming

-‐ Transi&ons

Cor&nas

J Hess March, 2014


J Hess March, 2014

-‐ Discographies -‐ Where to Buy Music -‐  Tandas / Cor&nas ü  High Quality Sound -‐ Making it Happen -‐ Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

Music ü Understanding sound ü Signal processing / digital formats ü Media player Equipment ü DAC (soundcard) ü Cables / connectors -‐ Amplifier / speakers / headphones Listening Environment -‐ Speaker placement / acous&cs

Producing High Quality Sound

The Weakest Link in the Chain Limits Music Quality J Hess March, 2014

Understanding Sound

ü  Each primary frequency has upper/lower harmonics ü  Harmonics give music fidelity ü  High frequencies provide depth and color ü  Limit harmonics too much -‐ sound becomes flat and

lifeless ü  Sound quality limited -‐ human ear will tell the brain,

"something doesn't sound right." J Hess March, 2014

Sound Changing Over Time

J Hess March, 2014

Using hardware / so|ware -‐ add / remove / change what we hear

Signal Processing

Compression -‐ Remove some of the audio

J Hess March, 2014

Signal Processing / Digital Formats

Tradeoff between file size / download speed / sound quality kbps – amount of info read every second J Hess March, 2014

Music Source / Digital Files

The Future -‐ uncompressed audio with all the warmth, brilliance, and depth of the original master recording

J Hess March, 2014

Signal Processing

Use with Cau&on!

ü  Levelers / Automa&c Volume Control -‐  Problem -‐ music from many sources -‐  Work to a limited degree ü  Equalizers -‐  Adjust the rela&ve power of the frequency ranges to

enhance aspects of the music -‐ Can help with room and speaker problems -‐ Cannot fully compensate for poor recording (hiss etc.) -‐  Needs knowledge and prac&ce

J Hess March, 2014

Media Players

J Hess March, 2014

DAC (Soundcard)

J Hess March, 2014

Cables / Connectors

J Hess March, 2014


J Hess March, 2014

-‐ Discographies -‐ Where to Buy Music -‐ Tandas / Cor&nas -‐  High Quality Sound ü Making it Happen -‐ Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

Making it Happen

J Hess March, 2014

Making it Happen

Playlist

DJ on the Fly -‐ Songs by Genre/Orchestra/Style/Yr -‐ Tandas by Genre/Orchestra/Style/Yr -‐ 5-‐8 songs by Genre/Orchestra/Style/Yr

DJ Combo

J Hess March, 2014

ü  Play only 5 star songs – 1,000+

ü  Don’t make the dancers work too hard ! -‐ Volume, dancer’s ability (80%), etc.

ü  Play what dancers like – not what you like

ü  Know your music

ü  Be prepared

ü  Dan Boccia Handout ON MY WEBSITE

ü  hjp://groups.yahoo.com/group/TangoDJ

Making it Happen

J Hess March, 2014

ü  Nothing beats experience / prepara&on ü  Big advantage -‐ knowing the dancers ü  Are people

-‐  Talking to the DJ -‐  Anxious to dance -‐  Excited, happy

J Hess March, 2014

Making it Happen

ü  Energy up

ü  The Purest – DJ on computer / no dancing -‐ Head out of the computer / observe -‐ Eye contact / smile / accessible

ü  If a DJ is well prepared – dance! -‐ Inputs on the dance floor / feel energy -‐ Feel sound quality / volume

ü  Look like you are having fun, you are an entertainer

J Hess March, 2014

Making it Happen

Music Hundreds/Thousands Equipment Hundreds/Thousands

Hours -‐ Listening/ Researching

Hundreds/Thousands

J Hess March, 2014

Making it Happen

J Hess March, 2014

Making it Happen


J Hess March, 2014

-‐ Discographies -‐ Where to Buy Music -‐ Tandas / Cor&nas -‐ High Quality Sound -‐  Making it Happen ü  Neo-‐Tango Music

Part 1 Part 2

Agenda

J Hess March, 2014

argen&ne’tango’ dj’and’music’workshop’ file14/3/2015 · ’ﬂute,guitar,accordion,...

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