Friday Performance Pick – 48

Piazzolla: Tango Suite, 3rd movement

One of the things I like about writing this series is discovering new music and interesting performers. So much can be found on the internet. Of course, you have to wade through some rather disappointing things to find the gems, but it always seems to pay off.

Astor Piazzolla
Astor Piazzolla

I came across this guitar duo for reasons I’ll explain later. Maybe you already know them, but I didn’t. After listening to them play Handel and Scarlatti, I found this Tango Suite by Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992).

Born in Argentina, Piazzolla grew up primarily in some rough areas of Manhattan. He returned to Buenes Aires during the war years and studied with Alberto Ginastera. Later he won a grant to study in Paris with Nadia Boulanger, the teacher of so many famous 20th-century composers. Piazzolla is said to have revolutionized the traditional tango with its Latin and African roots, adding elements of jazz and classical music. The result was a style called Tango Nuevo.

Last week we discussed music for piano four hands. So naturally I started exploring other examples of two players on one instrument. And that led me to Duo Siqueira Lima. Four-hand music takes a different form (or a different stance) on guitar. And of course it contains an element of showmanship that works best on popular showstoppers like Tico Tico. How much practice does it take to coordinate all of this? Add to that the passages where they are playing the right hand of one part and the left hand of the other.