There was a time when doing something
experimental in
tango could not only result in bad reviews from music critics who didn't understand what you were doing -- it could also result in bodily harm. The late
Astor Piazzolla, often hailed as the
Charlie Parker of
tango, was literally beaten up in the streets of Buenos Aires by opponents who disliked his vision of
tango (which was a major departure from the old-school
tango of
Carlos Gardel,
Carlos Di Sarli,
Anibal Troilo and
Hugo del Carril). But these days,
Piazzolla-minded
tango is very much the norm -- and
tango enthusiasts are unlikely to resort to fisticuffs even if an artist does something expansive that they don't comprehend. The word "expansive" easily applies to
Quadro Nuevo, a European
tango-oriented quartet that takes a lot of chances on their 2006 recording
Tango Bitter Sweet. This 69-minute CD has a strong
Piazzolla influence, which is hardly unusual in the 21st century; the tiny, insignificant minority of people who still consider
Piazzolla a musical heretic are like the tiny, insignificant minority of people who still believe that
Dixieland is the only legitimate form of
jazz. What makes
Tango Bitter Sweet unusual is the way
Quadro Nuevo combines that
Piazzolla influence with so many non-
tango influences; during the course of the album, elements of
Piazzolla are blended with everything from Brazilian
samba to French chanson to Italian and Mediterranean
folk to
jazz. One of the selections, in fact, is an intriguing arrangement of
Sidney Bechet's
"Petite Fleur" -- and there are plenty of other songs on this disc that originated outside of
tango but receive a
tango makeover, including
Michel Legrand's
"The Windmills of Your Mind" and
Rezso Seress'
"Gloomy Sunday" (a Hungarian gem that found its way to
jazz after receiving English lyrics and being recorded by
Artie Shaw and
Billie Holiday in the early '40s). But
Tango Bitter Sweet, for all its risk-taking, is ultimately a very charming and accessible album. The solos are quite lyrical, and
Tango Bitter Sweet is happily recommended to anyone who is seeking something fresh from
tango. ~ Alex Henderson
![Rodrigo y Gabriela [Deluxe Edition]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0880882292829_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "Rodrigo y Gabriela [Deluxe Edition]")
