ESCUALO5 - Piazzolla: Tango Works (2021)

With his tango nuevo, Astor Piazzolla has been welcomed into the world of classical music in a way that no other ‘non-classical’ composer has experienced. His music is played in concert halls around the world, and has been arranged for the most varied forces: symphony orchestra, string quartet, brass ensemble, mandolin orchestra, harpsichord… Taking their name from Piazzolla’s Escualo (‘Shark’), written in 1979 for his Quinteto Tango Nuevo, the five musicians that make up ESCUALO5 have a different approach, replicating the formation that Piazzolla performed with for much of his career: bandoneon, violin, piano, guitar and double bass.
The aim isn’t to recreate Piazzolla’s own performances, however – based in Munich but hailing from respectively Brazil, Germany, Greece and Belarus, the members are soloists in their own right, bringing their individual talents as improvisers and arrangers to the recordings. The programme that ESCUALO5 have devised for their first album includes some much-loved as well as less familiar pieces for the quintet setup – Primavera Porteña, Soledad, Adiós Nonino, Fracanapa – as well as arrangements of Tango Suite and Histoire du Tango, originally for two guitars and flute and guitar, respectively.
Tracklist
1. 4 Estaciones Porteñas: No. 3, Primavera Porteña (5:20)
2. Soledad (7:11)
3. Tango Suite: No. 1, Allegro (4:28)
4. Tango Suite: No. 2, Andante (4:09)
5. Tango Suite: No. 3, Allegro (6:22)
6. Bandoneón, Guitarra y Bajo (4:23)
7. Adiós Nonino (8:35)
8. Fracanapa (3:26)
9. Histoire du tango: I. Bordel 1900 (4:00)
10. Histoire du tango: II. Café 1930 (6:53)
11. Histoire du tango: III. Night Club 1960 (5:21)
12. Histoire du tango: IV. Concert d'aujourd'hui (2:53)
13. Contrabajísimo (11:53)