Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Amsterdam-based quartet Tango Aliado releases Argentian Tango inspired "El Compás"


Tango Aliado is a unique Amsterdam-based quartet with a passion for Argentinian tango music: Françoise van Varsseveld (violin), Mariken Zandvliet (piano), Lucas Stam (cello) and Gert Wantenaar (bandoneon). The members of the quartet, all professional musicians, undertook a journey of discovery into the works of the renowned Astor Piazzolla and other past masters of the tango, including Carlos Gardel, Aníbal Troilo and Horacio Salgán. Tango Aliado’s repertoire includes many self-made arrangements of these breathtaking compositions.

The quartet’s musicians come from a variety of musical backgrounds, from classical to light music and world music. Their paths crossed at the conservatory and in the professional orchestral circuit, and the connection they found encouraged them to continue as a group. Tango Aliado performs with pleasure at various venues in The Netherlands and France where their music and performances are consistently met with overwhelming enthusiasm. This year they were already featured on Dutch national radio with a performance coming live from the Dutch Royal Concert Hall in Amsterdam.

El Compás, the title of the album, stands for rhythm and cadence, but also refers to a dance figure in the Argentine tango where one draws circles with the legs. Tango Aliado is fascinated by the power of rhythm in the tango. At the end of the 19th century, the towns on the Río de la Plata were a big melting pot of different cultures, each bringing their own kind of music. Rhythms from the habanera, milonga, candombe and tango waltzes flowed together in the versatile tango music.


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