The tango has reached the ears of the 21st century, despite the best efforts of the church to denounce and ban the genre as an “immoral dance”, “new paganism”, and “the waltz of the devil’s begotten”, and Jewish religious leaders denouncing it as “vulgar” and “indecent”.
More effective at nearly crushing tango was the Argentine military dictatorship that came into power in the 1940s (which imposed heavy censorship, persecution and exiled prominent figures of tango), and the loud American seductive influence of ‘Rock n’ Roll’. Fear imposed by the dictatorship quashed the desire to have social gatherings and dance (which tango demands), and Rock n’ Roll provided a lonely outlet for pent up frustrations. Additionally, Rock n’ Roll (and most ‘popular culture’) has a tradition of rejecting anything ‘old’, and tango was seen as that.
Whereas in other parts of the world, such influences have successfully destroyed a wealth of local traditions and cultures, we have much to be grateful for to Astor Piazzolla that tango survived to grace our ears today. Oddly, despite the Argentine military regime’s suppression of tango, Piazzolla and his tango band were used as a propaganda chip and sent on European tours to show how wonderful Argentina was! Back at home, the tango began to be seen as a symbol of Argentinian identity, and once again embraced.
Now, tango is one of the most popular dances in the world with an estimated one million practitioners internationally.
Composing 28 minutes of tangos for a single instrument presents potentially a big challenge for keeping interest. Fortunately, the cello is an exceptionally versatile instrument and can (with a little ingenuity) create many of the sounds of the orchestra, folk music world, and tango world. Crucially, the cello’s pitch range allows the playing of all parts, from the bass to the soprano descant.
I hope this arrangement shows not only the range of the capabilities of the cello, but also the emotional and intellectual range of the genre of ‘tango’. Ultimately, all serve the spirit of the music.
The arrangement is largely egalitarian. Every cellist takes solos, and each of the 12 take turns in the role of leadership. There is no single leader to dictate creativity, and any sense of hierarchy is diluted. In my experience, this is a far more pleasant and conducive atmosphere for working and creating as a group, and an environment which allows for individual potential and inspiration to shine. One hopes that this positive energy of alive music is transmitted to the audience.
As an arranger, having 12 parts to work with is a liberation. There is no point when I felt I had to make compromises or thin the texture due to lack of parts.
They are called “The Four Seasons”, but they do not musically describe the four seasons. It is just a title!
I would like to thank Young-Hoon Song and Liwei Qin for encouraging my arranging activities over the years, and to thank the Seoul International Music Festival for supporting artists and commissioning this work.
James Barralet
<aside> 👈 Go Back
</aside>
<aside> 🏡 Home
</aside>