Dancing with Piazzolla: Welcome to the sophisticated world of the London Tango Quintet

Dancing with Piazzolla: Astor Piazzolla, Agustín Bardi, Pintín Castellanos, David Gordon, Horacio Salgán, Juan de Dios Filiberto, Enrique Delfino, Feliciano Brunelli, Gerardo Matos Rodríguez; London Tango Quintet; AWAL
27 February 2024

High musical values, a love of the genre and a sense of engagement that draws you in, welcome to the sophisticated world of the London Tango Quintet

Founded by violinist David Juritz in 2007, the London Tango Quintet brings together David Juritz - violin, Craig Ogden – guitar, Miloš Milivojević - accordion, David Gordon - piano and Richard Pryce – double bass, a striking line-up of musicians with backgrounds stretching from jazz to classical and beyond, linked by their love of tango. Dancing with Piazzolla is the ensemble's debut disc and features six tracks by Piazzolla alongside other tango classics and new pieces by the ensemble's keyboard player.

What strikes you on first listen to the disc is the high level of musicianship and the care that the players take of the music. There is spontaneity and freedom here, but also a sense the music being beautifully shaped. The way the five musicians interact is also profoundly enjoyable, you sense that this is a well established ensemble and despite some of the musician's classical backgrounds, there is improvisatory freedom.

We begin with the laid back sophistication of Piazzolla's Milonga del ángel, whilst Oblivion has an element of dark seduction to it along with complexities of texture which take the music well out of a typical Argentinian night-club. This is not down and dirty Piazzolla, it is sophisticated and highly musically literate. La muerte del ángel is sharp and edgy in its rhythms with nervous energy, whilst Resurrección del ángel is a return to the laid back and cool. Michelangelo '70 is all crisp excitement and motor rhythms, whilst Soledad is enjoyably laid back.

David Gordon's two items, Bebop Tango and Milonga de mis amigos virtuales both enjoyably work in more modern influences. Both are up tempo and engagingly jazz-inspired. I have to confess myself less familiar with the other works on the disc, though they are tango classics. Horacio Salgán's A Don Agustín Bardi has a period elegance to it whilst the others move between the pizzazz of Agustín Bardi's Gallo ciego and the toe tapping La puñalada by Pintín Castellanos to the period style of Enrique Delfino's Bélgica.

There will still be a place in my heart for Piazzolla played on an ensemble based around a bandoneon that gives you a real feel of the dark heart of the music, but this disc brings a mutual love of the genre together with superb musicianship and a sense of engagement that really draws you in.

Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992) - Milonga del ángel
Agustín Bardi (1884-1941) - Gallo ciego
Pintín Castellanos (1905-1983) - La puñalada
Astor Piazzolla - Oblivion
David Gordon - Bebop Tango
Horacio Salgán (1916-2016) - A Don Agustín Bardi
Astor Piazzolla - La muerte del ángel
Astor Piazzolla - Resurrección del ángel
David Gordon - Milonga de mis amigos virtuales
Juan de Dios Filiberto (1885-1964) - Quejas de bandoneón
Astor Piazzolla - Michelangelo '70
Astor Piazzolla - Soledad
Enrique Delfino (1895-1967) - Bélgica
Feliciano Brunelli (1903-1981) - Ilusión de mi vida
Gerardo Matos Rodríguez (1887-1948) - La cumparsita
London Tango Quintet (David Juritz, violin, Craig Ogden, guitar, Miloš Milivojević, accordion, David Gordon, piano, Richard Pryce, double bass)

Available online from Untuned Sky

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