Osvaldo Pugliese documentary
Osvaldo Pugliese is a name that is synonymous with Tango. Even a rank beginner will quickly learn about his name and be mesmerised by the drama he brings to the dance floor. His music (both his compositions as well that played in his unique style) is probably one of the most favourite in the milongas of Buenos Aires and all over the world.
Recently I bought a documentary featuring the maestro, which is part of a series produced by Solo Tango on some of the major figures in the history of Tango. Right from the first video I received, I was blown away by the really amazing original footages of the best orchestras of the yester-years, which are definitely worth the cost of the video. for the Pugliese video, just picture this: on stage in Teatre Colón, 10 bandoneons passionately blasting the tunes of La Yumba, the Maestro Pugliese calmly stroking the keyboards at the piano. By the way, Teatre Colón is Buenos Aires’ huge performing arts theatre and is the second largest performing arts theatre in the southern hemisphere, second only to the Sydney Opera House in Australia. In addition, there is a rare footage of on-stage presence of Piazzolla and Pugliese together in Holland.
As a postscript, it’s in fact a piece of good fortune that I managed to find the original music from both the concert at Teatre Colón in 1985 and a part of the concert in Holland (featuring Pugliese with Piazzolla). Why only a part? I have only Volume 1 of the original 2-album series, and it contains only the Piazzolla portion of the concert and the joint La Yumba with the 2 giants of Tango music. This is (or was since the site is not functioning any more) only available online from allofmp3.com (Shot down by DRM advocates…) as far as I know.
Some illegal samples can be seen here. First, “La Yumba”
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Hey, it seems you can still get the series through Danza y Movimiento, which is a German based online music store.
http://www.danzaymovimiento.com/shop/product_info.php?products_id=67761831539&PHPSESSID=7&pid=200&pid=200&language=en&pid=200
BTW, which DVD you bought?
Hi Royce,
Thanks for the tip! I may consider getting Volume 2 if I am in a buying binge again, because for me the site you mentioned is a little on the expensive side (everything in Euro). As for the Los Capos del Tango series, I have the D’Arienzo (DVD), Troilo (DVD) and Pugliese (VHS).
Thanks! So that’s the Los Capos del Tango series, then I will consider to get the Pugliese one.
Actually, there’s a CD of Pugliese’s concert on 26 Dec 1985 at Teatro Colon and it’s still available – http://www.tangostore.com/cds-1169-En-Vivo-En-El-Colon-Vol-1-Y-2-Osvaldo-Pugliese
Yes. I highly recommend the Los Capos del Tango series and hopefully Solo Tango will produce more in future on other orchestras that I like.
As for the concert at Teatro Colon, I have already bought the CD during the “fire sale” of The tangocatalogue before they changed management. The sound quality is not the best since this was recorded live but you do get a sense of the atmosphere.
So finally did you get the Piazzolla & Pugliese Finally together Vol. 2?
Frankly I had to consult my list of music on this blog to jog my memory! 🙂 However, it seems that I never got beyond Volume 1, and MP3 version only. I will also create a list of videos that I have soon, to make it easier to recall in future!
Hehe… then let’s exchange. 🙂 Finally together with your Pugliese VHS.