Artist artifact

Tango

Astor Piazzolla

Bandoneón composer who invented nuevo tango—tango fused with jazz harmony and classical form—against traditionalist resistance.

Biography

Bandoneón composer who invented nuevo tango—tango fused with jazz harmony and classical form—against traditionalist resistance.

Influence

Moved tango from dance floor to concert hall without killing its knife-edge melancholy; global chamber and jazz artists still arrange his works.

Historical context

Bandoneón composer who invented nuevo tango—tango fused with jazz harmony and classical form—against traditionalist resistance. Moved tango from dance floor to concert hall without killing its knife-edge melancholy; global chamber and jazz artists still arrange his works. Buenos Aires conservatives once rejected his innovations as betrayal; exile and return eventually made him tango's modern face.

Associated instruments

  • Bandoneón
  • Composition

Specimen note

Buenos Aires conservatives once rejected his innovations as betrayal; exile and return eventually made him tango's modern face.