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Piazzolla - Orchestral Works Volume 2

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Label: Chandos

Cat No: CHAN10419

Barcode: 0095115141922

Format: CD

Number of Discs: 1

Genre: Orchestral

Release Date: 1st May 2007

Works

Piazzolla, Astor

Bandoneon Concerto 'Aconcagua'
Mar del Plata 70
Sinfonietta Buenos Aires, op.15
The Four Seasons (Las Cuatro Estaciones Portenas)

Artists

Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen

Conductor

Gabriel Castagna

Works

Piazzolla, Astor

Bandoneon Concerto 'Aconcagua'
Mar del Plata 70
Sinfonietta Buenos Aires, op.15
The Four Seasons (Las Cuatro Estaciones Portenas)

Artists

Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen

Conductor

Gabriel Castagna

About

The Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla is best remembered for his tangos which in their orchestral form combine the raw energy of the dance with the brilliance of a master orchestrator. This CD series highlights the orchestral side of his œuvre, which not only brought tango onto the international scene but confirmed Piazzolla as of one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century in the Americas. His approach was daring and intellectually brilliant, combining the traits of the traditional tango with a fresh, original, and much more complex musical thinking, thus creating a completely new language for the music of Buenos Aires.

Like the first volume devoted to the symphonic music of Piazzolla, this second features several largely unfamiliar works, including three first recordings, and all four works confirm his innovative, colourful and distinctive style, drawing on infectious dance rhythms and traditional classical techniques.

Sinfonía Buenos Aires occupies without doubt an important place within the Argentine symphonic literature, for it is in this work that Piazzolla’s symphonic development of tango reached its high point. Written in 1951, it is the culmination of ten years of hard work exploring the possibilities of expanding the tango to larger formats, and the influence of Ginastera is clear in this most ‘serious’ of his classical compositions.

Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas, a tango homage to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, was written on his return from Paris, where he had been encouraged to develop his tango roots. This is tuneful, almost film score-like composition has a dark intensity as well as lyricism. The orchestral arrangement here receives its premiere recording.

Piazzolla was a virtuoso on the bandoneón, a relative of the accordion with a melancholic tone ideally suited to the mood of the tango. The Concerto for Bandoneón is seen by many as the creative summit of Piazzolla’s compositional achievements. The three movements summarise several aspects of Piazzolla’s mature style, which was steeped in the nationalist idiom, notably the use of exciting rhythmic patterns, but would frequently relax to allow a more reflective element to emerge. To permit the solo bandoneón the maximum opportunity for effective projection, Piazzolla eliminated all wind and brass instruments from the work’s orchestration.

All these ambitious works are idiomatically and enthusiastically played by the Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen under Gabriel Castagna, who is particularly well known for his interpretations of South American music.

Contains several premiere recordings, including Sinfonía Buenos Aires and Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas.