Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Pablo Ziegler: Quintet for New Tango

143

Pablo Ziegler: Quintet for New Tango

By

Sign in to view read count
Pablo Ziegler: Quintet for New Tango
I’m no expert on the tango, but I do know that to most partisans of that Argentinean music and dance, the words “tango” and “Astor Piazzolla” are practically inseparable. The inescapable question, following Piazzolla’s passing in July 1992, was, where does the tango go from here? The answer, says pianist Pablo Ziegler, a member of Piazzolla’s last quintet (1978–88), is onward and upward, using the foundation erected by Piazzolla as the launching pad for a fresh restatement of the music in which Jazz plays a more prominent role. This “nuevo tango” is exemplifed on Ziegler’s new RCA release, Quintet for New Tango, whose Jazz component is underscored by the presence on two tracks of poll–winning tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano. Ziegler, classically trained, as was Piazzolla, has deep Jazz roots as well, having once led a Jazz–fusion trio and transcribed works by Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington and others for local dance bands in Buenos Aires. Jazz improvisation, unheard of in tango before Piazzolla loosened things up, is being raised to another level by Ziegler’s quintet, whose members have far more freedom than before to express themselves within the music’s traditional parameters. At its core, however, the tango is, as it always has been, instantly recognizable as such — whatever the tempo or temperament, one would never mistake it for blues, bop or even bossa. Ziegler acknowledges and assimilates its strengths but doesn’t stop there, using them as building blocks for a fresh interpretation of the tango that honors the past while pointing toward the future. An ornate example of this forward–looking approach is the ballad “Muchacha de Boedo,” on which Lovano’s expressive tenor cloaks the music’s time–honored patterns in a luminous contemporary tapestry. Lovano’s other guest appearance, on the impulsive “Once Again . . . Milonga,” is similarly smooth and pleasurable. But what set the tango apart from other music are its slashing rhythms (sketched by bassist Hurtado and drummer Lopez) and captivating melodies (articulated by Ziegler, bandoneónist Castro and guitarist Sinesi). By putting those ingredients together in this colorful package and blending in a measure of contemporary Jazz, Ziegler has developed a winning formula. The new tango, it appears, is in every way as enchanting as the old.

Track listing: Conexión Porteña; Desde Otros Tiempos; Milongueta; Once Again . . . Milonga; Imágenes; Alrededor del Choclo; El Vals del Duende; Ritmico y Nostálgico; Astor’s Place; Muchacha de Boedo; Sandunga; Primavera Porteña (65:13).

Track Listing

Conexion Portena; Desde Otros Tiempos; Milongueta; Once Again...Milonga; Imagenes 676; Alrededor del Choclo; El Vals del Duende; Ritmico y Nostalgico; Astor's Place; Muchacha de Boedo; Sandunga; Primavera Portena.

Personnel

Pablo Ziegler (piano); Walter Castro (bandoneon); Enrique Sinesi (guitar) Horatio Hurtado (bass); Horacio Lopez (drums) and on tracks 4 & 10: Joe Lovano (Tenor sax); Hector del Curto (bandoneon); Claudio Ragazzi (guitar); Pablo Aslan (bass); Satoshi Takeishi (drums)

Album information

Title: Quintet For New Tango | Year Released: 2000 | Record Label: BMG

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Fiesta at Caroga
Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective
Fellowship
David Gibson
Immense Blue
Olie Brice / Rachel Musson / Mark Sanders

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.