Argentina tango 1970s ▶ 50K subscribers

Astor Piazzolla

Astor Piazzolla was an Argentine composer, bandoneon virtuoso, and arranger who revolutionized tango. By creating a new style known as nuevo tango, he transformed a traditional dance music into something entirely his own.

Origins

Active from the late 1930s, Piazzolla mastered the bandoneon and immersed himself in the tango tradition before reshaping it. He regularly performed his own compositions with a wide variety of ensembles.

The sound

His nuevo tango wove jazz and classical elements into traditional tango, producing music of striking sophistication and emotional intensity, anchored by his virtuosic bandoneon playing.

Legacy

Hailed in 1992 by critic Stephen Holden as “the world's foremost composer of Tango music,” Piazzolla, who died that same year, left a legacy that reaches far beyond Argentina into concert halls worldwide.