TangoVia Buenos Aires
Encyclopedia
Founded in 2002 by its artistic director Ignacio Varchausky
, TangoVia Buenos Aires is a non-profit organization
for progressive arts - focused on preservation but dedicated to creation - that brings together artists, researchers, producers and cultural institutions for the preservation, development, and promotion of the art of tango
in Buenos Aires
and around the world. Since TangoVia Buenos Aires understands tango as a constantly evolving living art form, it promotes all of its formats as contemporary and alive.
and directed today by the prestigious maestro Néstor Marconi. The award-winning documentary “Si Sos Brujo: A Tango Story” — directed by Caroline W. Neal and co-produced by TangoVia Buenos Aires — traces the birth and development of this pedagogical programme based on oral transmission, thanks to which young musicians learn the orchestral styles of tango, its language and secrets, directly from great musicians who played in the orchestras of the 1940s and 1950s and remain active today.
) and more than 600 for bandoneon
solos. Through the digitalisation of high quality recordings, high resolution digital scanning of photographs, scores, musical arrangements and the correct transcription of video archives, a security copy is being created of the enormous amount of existing material. Its classification according to multiple criteria enables this material, once reserved to a few scholars, to be offered to everyone for free consultation. In Argentina there are at least one hundred thousand tango recordings made between 1902 and 1995 (end of the analogical era). However, less than 20% of this material is available on CD. There are already three thousand recordings that appear in catalogues, and thousands of hours of radio and TV programmes, which no longer exist in any format and have been lost forever.
. One example is the artistic production of the CD “Raras Partituras 4” featuring Salgán’s unknown compositions and arrangements for both tango orchestra (recorded by the Gran Orquesta TangoVia Buenos Aires
) and for piano solo (recorded by Andrés Linetzky). The CD was produced in collaboration with the Biblioteca Nacional de Argentina
(Argentina's National Library) and was followed by the book “Arreglos para orquesta típica
: Tradición e innovación en manuscritos originales” (Arrangements for a Typical Tango Orchestra: Tradition and Innovation in Original Manuscripts), co-published with the National Library and offering for the first time Salgán’s original arrangements for tango orchestra, as well as an analysis, bibliography and catalogue of Salgán’s work.
Since TangoVia Buenos Aires believes the tango tradition continually reinvents itself, it produces new recordings and festivals every year, featuring today’s most notable artists in contemporary tango. Since 2003 TangoVia Buenos Aires has been the artistic producer of the Buenos Aires Tango Festival in Paris
, in conjunction with the National Theater Palais Chaillot; 2008 marked the fourth edition of this festival. Other productions include the Festival Montpellier Danse 03, the Festival Buenos Aires Tango in the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome in both 2006 and 2008, and the Festival TangoVia Buenos Aires in both Genoa
, Italy and Lille
, France in 2005.
In the field of CD production, TangoVia Buenos Aires has launched two series. One of them is "El arte del bandoneón" (The Art of the Bandoneon). This series intends to create and preserve a kind of musical memory: a unique register of the most outstanding contemporary bandoneon players, recorded intimately playing solos on the bandoneon. The series began with the CD “Instantaneas” by Julio Pane and continued in 2008 with the CDs “Tiempo Esperado” by Néstor Marconi, “Mi Fueye Querido” by Leopoldo Federico, which won the 2009 Latin Grammy Award for Best Tango Album, and “Mi Refugio” by Walter Rios. The second series “El arte de la orquesta típica" (The Art of the Tango Orchestra) began with “Amanecer Ciudadano” featuring an orchestra directed by the renowned bandoneonist Víctor Lavallén.
, Fondazione Musica per Roma and Parco della Musica, Publishing Houses Warner Chappell and Epsa Publishing, and the Foundation “La Casa del Tango”.
Ignacio Varchausky
Ignacio Varchausky is a double bass player, music producer and founder of Orquesta El Arranque . He is also the creator and artistic director of Orquesta Escuela de Tango Emilio Balcarce....
, TangoVia Buenos Aires is a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
for progressive arts - focused on preservation but dedicated to creation - that brings together artists, researchers, producers and cultural institutions for the preservation, development, and promotion of the art of tango
Tango (dance)
Tango dance originated in the area of the Rio de la Plata , and spread to the rest of the world soon after....
in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
and around the world. Since TangoVia Buenos Aires understands tango as a constantly evolving living art form, it promotes all of its formats as contemporary and alive.
Goals
The organization's main goal is the development and implementation of educational and preservation projects linked to tango, especially the recovery of original sheet music, recordings, films and all other historical material related to the genre. TangoVia Buenos Aires also produces festivals, concert seasons, books and educational tools, documentaries and CDs.Teaching Activities
Since its inception, TangoVia Buenos Aires has worked with the Orquesta Escuela de Tango Emilio Balcarce (“Emilio Balcarce” Tango Orchestra School), created by artistic director Ignacio VarchauskyIgnacio Varchausky
Ignacio Varchausky is a double bass player, music producer and founder of Orquesta El Arranque . He is also the creator and artistic director of Orquesta Escuela de Tango Emilio Balcarce....
and directed today by the prestigious maestro Néstor Marconi. The award-winning documentary “Si Sos Brujo: A Tango Story” — directed by Caroline W. Neal and co-produced by TangoVia Buenos Aires — traces the birth and development of this pedagogical programme based on oral transmission, thanks to which young musicians learn the orchestral styles of tango, its language and secrets, directly from great musicians who played in the orchestras of the 1940s and 1950s and remain active today.
Digital Tango Archive
Officially presented on 17 June 2009, the Digital Tango Archive is TangoVia's exhaustive and almost archaeological effort to recover lost materials relating to the history of tango recordings. Unique in the world - the Digital Tango Archive already houses over 700 original arrangements for the tango orchestra (orquesta típicaOrquesta típica
Orquesta típica, or simply a típica, is a Latin-American term for a band which plays popular music. The details vary from country to country. The term tends to be used for groups of medium size in some well-defined instrumental set-up.- Argentina :In Argentina, a típica is a tango orchestra...
) and more than 600 for bandoneon
Bandoneón
The bandoneón is a type of concertina particularly popular in Argentina and Uruguay. It plays an essential role in the orquesta típica, the tango orchestra...
solos. Through the digitalisation of high quality recordings, high resolution digital scanning of photographs, scores, musical arrangements and the correct transcription of video archives, a security copy is being created of the enormous amount of existing material. Its classification according to multiple criteria enables this material, once reserved to a few scholars, to be offered to everyone for free consultation. In Argentina there are at least one hundred thousand tango recordings made between 1902 and 1995 (end of the analogical era). However, less than 20% of this material is available on CD. There are already three thousand recordings that appear in catalogues, and thousands of hours of radio and TV programmes, which no longer exist in any format and have been lost forever.
Artistic Productions
Through a series of activities, TangoVia Buenos Aires has contributed to the promotion, preservation and first-hand enjoyment of the art of one of the most influential Argentine musicians in history: Horacio SalgánHoracio Salgán
Horacio Adolfo Salgán is an Afro-Argentine pianist, composer, orchestra leader, and arranger who specializes in tango music....
. One example is the artistic production of the CD “Raras Partituras 4” featuring Salgán’s unknown compositions and arrangements for both tango orchestra (recorded by the Gran Orquesta TangoVia Buenos Aires
Gran Orquesta TangoVia Buenos Aires
Gran Orquesta TangoVia Buenos Aires is an orchestra made up by many of the most prominent musicians of the new generation of tango. Created by the non-profit organization TangoVia Buenos Aires in 2003, the orchestra's main goal is to celebrate the art of tango by means of special productions to...
) and for piano solo (recorded by Andrés Linetzky). The CD was produced in collaboration with the Biblioteca Nacional de Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
(Argentina's National Library) and was followed by the book “Arreglos para orquesta típica
Orquesta típica
Orquesta típica, or simply a típica, is a Latin-American term for a band which plays popular music. The details vary from country to country. The term tends to be used for groups of medium size in some well-defined instrumental set-up.- Argentina :In Argentina, a típica is a tango orchestra...
: Tradición e innovación en manuscritos originales” (Arrangements for a Typical Tango Orchestra: Tradition and Innovation in Original Manuscripts), co-published with the National Library and offering for the first time Salgán’s original arrangements for tango orchestra, as well as an analysis, bibliography and catalogue of Salgán’s work.
Since TangoVia Buenos Aires believes the tango tradition continually reinvents itself, it produces new recordings and festivals every year, featuring today’s most notable artists in contemporary tango. Since 2003 TangoVia Buenos Aires has been the artistic producer of the Buenos Aires Tango Festival in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, in conjunction with the National Theater Palais Chaillot; 2008 marked the fourth edition of this festival. Other productions include the Festival Montpellier Danse 03, the Festival Buenos Aires Tango in the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome in both 2006 and 2008, and the Festival TangoVia Buenos Aires in both Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
, Italy and Lille
Lille
Lille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
, France in 2005.
In the field of CD production, TangoVia Buenos Aires has launched two series. One of them is "El arte del bandoneón" (The Art of the Bandoneon). This series intends to create and preserve a kind of musical memory: a unique register of the most outstanding contemporary bandoneon players, recorded intimately playing solos on the bandoneon. The series began with the CD “Instantaneas” by Julio Pane and continued in 2008 with the CDs “Tiempo Esperado” by Néstor Marconi, “Mi Fueye Querido” by Leopoldo Federico, which won the 2009 Latin Grammy Award for Best Tango Album, and “Mi Refugio” by Walter Rios. The second series “El arte de la orquesta típica" (The Art of the Tango Orchestra) began with “Amanecer Ciudadano” featuring an orchestra directed by the renowned bandoneonist Víctor Lavallén.
Support
TangoVia Buenos Aires is supported by numerous public and private institutions, both in Argentina and abroad, including The Government of the City of Buenos Aires, la Sociedad Argentina de Autores y Compositores de Música (SADAIC), la Asociación Argentina de Intérpretes Musicales (AADI), Universidad Nacional de Quilmes, Biblioteca Nacional de la Republica Argentina, Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA), Festival de Tango Buenos Aires, IICES, Jazz at Lincoln Center, CODARTS (Conservatory of Rotterdam), Sydney Youth OrchestraSydney Youth Orchestra
The Sydney Youth Orchestra , is one of Sydney's premier youth orchestras and is the flagship orchestra of the Sydney Youth Orchestras family. The SYO consists of around 100 skilled young musicians residing around Sydney....
, Fondazione Musica per Roma and Parco della Musica, Publishing Houses Warner Chappell and Epsa Publishing, and the Foundation “La Casa del Tango”.