In collaboration with the 'Piazzolla 100' celebrations held at the Centro Cultural Kirchner (CCK) in Buenos Aires, Argentina's premier arts complex, we present this homage to Piazzolla's most emblematic ensemble: his first Quintet of 1960, comprising bandoneon, violin, electric guitar, piano and double bass, reincarnated here by the Quinteto Astor Piazzolla. Piazzolla formed the ensemble on his return to Argentina following a two-year stay in New York, and it would remain his preferred format in forging the Nuevo Tango he developed during the ensuing decade. The first recording undertaken by the ensemble was the LP Piazzolla interpreta a Piazzolla of 1961, featuring Szymzia Bajour on violin, Jaime Gosis on the piano, Horacio Malvicino on electric guitar and Kicho Díaz on double bass, in addition to Astor on bandoneon. The release included a new work that would eventually become a classic: Adiós Nonino. Piazzolla eventually left Argentina for Europe once more, setting aside the Quintet until 1978, when he revived the group and toured with them through 1988. It was the ensemble which witnessed his fame escalating throughout the world. The repertoire of his second Quintet was nurtured on the Nuevo Tango of the 60s and the fresh, experimental compositions Piazzolla had been working on, some of which later became his masterpieces.

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Astor Piazzolla Decarísimo | Todo Buenos Aires | Romance del diablo | Los poseídos | Fuga y misterio | La mufa | Tango del diablo | Revirado | Milonga del ángel | Michelangelo 70 | La muerte del ángel

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Pablo Mainetti bandoneon

Nicolás Guerschberg piano

Serdar Geldymuradov violin 

Daniel Falasca double bass

Armando de la Vega guitar

Julián Vat musical director

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What better ensemble to bring Piazzolla's first Quintet back to life than the Quinteto Astor Piazzolla, originally created by Piazzolla's widow, Laura Escalada, in 1998 as part of the initiatives of her Astor Piazzolla Foundation. Going for 20 years and counting, this Quintet are now Latin Grammy winners (Best Tango Album of 2019) and enjoy a busy  schedule touring worldwide. Known for their degree of virtuosic skill and rich artistic interpretation, the Quintet have made it their mission to faithfully preserve the legacy of Piazzolla's sound and performance practices, reviving the classics as well as lesser-known works that haven’t had the chance of being heard around the world, allowing old and new audiences to get both a nostalgic and fresh take on Piazzolla’s work. In recent years, the group has released four LPs: Revolucionario, Fugata, En 3×4 and Triunfal.

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Organised by ILAMS as part of Echoes Festival 2021 in collaboration with the Instituto Cervantes, the CCK, and the Argentine Ministry of Culture, with the kind support of the Embassy of Argentina