Even as a seasoned dancer, discovering tango music and its performers can be a daunting adventure. If you hear tango DJs talk, they seem to have this vast knowledge of composers, orchestras and individual singers with detailed preferences for specific years and recording sessions. Where does a beginning lover of tango music start? And which CDs can you buy to start a (modest) collection?
Stephen and Susan Brown from TejasTango have written a nice article about where tango dancers can start learning and collecting music (just one tip: start with Di Sarli). They recommend the following records:
- Francisco Canaro: La Melodia de Nuestro Adios / Las Grandes Orquestas del Tango
- Miguel Caló: Yo Soy el Tango
- Carlos Di Sarli: Instrumental Vol. 1 / RCA Victor 100 Años / Instrumental / Sus Primeros Exitos, vol.1 (c. Roberto Rufino)
- Juan D’Arienzo: El Rey del Compas / Sus Primeros Exitos, vol. 1 / Sus Primeros Exitos, vol. 2
- Anibal Troilo: Instrumental / Troilo/Fiorentino / El Inmortal Pichuco
- Ricardo Tanturi con Alberto Castillo: Tanturi/Castillo / Tangos de mi Ciudad / El Tango es el Tango
- Alfredo De Angelis: From Argentina to the World / Instrumentales Inolvidables
- Osvaldo Pugliese: Ausencia / Instrumentales Inolvidables
- Rodolfo Biagi: Sus Exitos con Falgas y Ibanez / Campo Afuera
These are the four indispensable records according to Milonga.co.uk :
- “RCA Victor 100 Años” – Carlos Di Sarli
- “Ausencia” – Osvaldo Pugliese
- “Yo Soy El Tango” – Aníbal Troilo
- “Solo Tango” – Juan D’Arienzo
According to Tine Herreman from Yale Tango Club, if you would buy less than 10 CDs, they should be the following:
- Carlos Di Sarli: RCA Victor 100 Años / Instrumentales Vol 2
- Francisco Canaro: Bailando Tangos, Valses Y Milongas
- Juan D’Arienzo: De Pura Cepa
- Osvaldo Pugliese: Instrumentales inolvidables Vol 1
- Rodolfo Biagi: Solos de orquesta – Reliquias
- Miguel Caló: Sus Exitos Con A. Podesta, J. Ortiz Y R. Beron – Reliquias
- Osvaldo Fresedo: any of the Coleccion 78rpm
Where to buy them?
As you might have noticed, the tango collection of iTunes is very limited. There are luckily online tango music shops that offer much more.
- www.tangostore.com: Shipping from Buenos Aires
- www.thetangocatalogue.com: Shipping from US
- www.milonga.co.uk: Shipping from UK
- www.danzaymovimiento.com/: Shipping from Germany
- Amazon also has a limited collection, with shipping from UK, Germany or France
Thanks Peter ! As beginners, this is exactly the kind of information we have been looking for. Didier & Martine
Bonjour,
Pour ma part, j’ajouterais deux orchestres contemporains…
1) Orquesta Color Tango avec par exemple le double album “Con estilo para bailar, volume 1 et 2” (Oriente Musik RIEN CD33)
2) Orquesta Tipica Imperial avec avec au choix l’album “La maquina tanguera” ou leur 2ème album “Ruidos molestos”.
Je trouve leur musique aussi dansante que celle des “Anciens”, mais souvent plus mélodieuse, sinon romantique !
Pour info, la Médiathèque a dans ses collections près de mille titres d’albums de tango, que les membres peuvent emprunter dans tous ses centres de prêt. En savoir plus : http://www.lamediatheque.be.
Des commentaires sur ses récentes acquisitions de CD de tango se trouvent sur son site, onglet “Découvrir / Le temps d’un tango”. Ou bien sur mon blog dans lequel j’ai en plus tenté d’écrire une petite histoire du tango ( http://letempsduntango.blogspot.com/ )
Roland