Tanda of the week: Lucio Demare canta Horacio Quintana

Tanda of the week: Lucio Demare canta Horacio Quintana

I have returned to the classical reportoire last week, and continue in the same spirit today.

Transfers of Lucio Demare's work have been difficult to obtain in reasonable technical quality. TangoTunes released a few of them from vinyl, and there are CTA CDs that occasionally bubble up at the second-hand market (I have one). Perhaps the Tango Time Travel project will come with some? Oh, that would be so great!

I hadn't played Demare at milongas much before I got the CTA and TT transfers. Then I couldn't get enough of him. His lyricism is agitated, at times nervous, not as polished as Caló's - rougher, more street-wise. I love it.

Structure

1) Igual que un bandoneón (1945, D minor, 62 BPM)
2) Están sonando las ocho (1944, A minor/major, 65 BPM)
3) Corazón, no le digas a nadie (1944, E-flat major, 62 BPM)
4) Solamente ella (1944, G minor, 63 BPM)

Originally I picked a slightly different tanda from one of my 2019 sets but when I listened to it, I realized it's shit. This one nails it.

The format is lyrical-lyrical-upbeat-more lyrical while the original tanda was lyrical-upbeat-lyrical-upbeat. I don't like that format anymore, it lacks direction. Like I couldn't make up my mind.

This format clearly has a direction, with the inimitable Solamente ella driving the point home after Corazón, no le digas a nadie gave the dancers a brief respite.

Usage

This is serious stuff, not a casual tanda, and so it has to come at the right time. Spend some time preparing your dancers for it. Hypothetically speaking, I would put it after energetic instrumentals and follow it with happy valses, for example.


photo credit goes to Ava Sol

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