ASTOR PIAZZOLLA — The Central Park Concert (1987) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

This powerful concert was recorded live in New York City on September 6, 1987. Piazzolla was playing with his best ensemble: a quintet consisting of himself on bandoneon, Pablo Ziegler on piano, Fernando Suarez Paz on violin, Horacio Malvicino on electric guitar, and Hector Console on bass. Piazzolla plays some of his finest material -- about half of Tango: Zero Hour surfaces, for example. Two of the most paradigmatic Piazzolla pieces show up too: "La Camorra," with its alternating moments of tense dance rhythms and creepy atmosphere, and "Verano Porteño," with its dancing-bear rhythms. The concert closes with "Concierto Para Quinteto," one of those long pieces that Piazzolla favored that visits many styles and moods -- almost many eras. It would be very easy to lose the thread on such an epic composition in live performance, but the quintet keeps it together admirably. The live recording is of surprisingly high quality; there is an appropriate echo and the balance is nearly perfect. The audience is completely unobtrusive -- inaudible except when they applaud. And the instruments are very clear, especially when the musicians coax those "zings" and "pops" out of them that Piazzolla loved. For someone new to his work, the "special effects" on this recording can be a revelation. There is also a wonderful spoken track, with Piazzolla talking about himself, the tango, and the mysterious bandoneon. This album is a wonderful place to start -- or finish -- with this charismatic composer of nuevo tango music. Kurt Keefner 
Tracklist
1 Verano Porteño 6:54
2 Lunfardo 5:56
3 Milonga Del Angel 6:32
4 Muerte Del Angel 3:20
5 Astor's Speech 2:20
6 La Camorra 4:27
7 Mumuki 9:09
8 Adios Nonino 8:12
9 Contra Bajissmo 10:10
10 Michelangelo 3:24
11 Concierto Para Quinteto 9:45
Credits
Bandoneon – Astor Piazzolla
Bass – Hector Console
Electric Guitar – Horacio Malvicino
 Piano – Pablo Ziegler
Violin – Fernando Suarez Paz

ASTOR PIZZOLLA | GARY BURTON - The New Tango (1987) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Recorded at the Montreux Festival of 1986, The New Tango is an album of collaboration between the undisputed leader of the nuevo tango movement, Astor Piazzolla, and American vibe master Gary Burton. All of the pieces on the album were written by Piazzolla over the course of some 40 years of work, along with one special composition, "Vibraphonissimo," written expressly for Burton's usage. Surprisingly enough -- given the virtuosity and coherence that one receives on the album -- there were a mere three rehearsals prior to the recorded performance. As the listener finds out, the vibraphone is perfectly suited to the tango; or at the very least, that Gary Burton is fully capable of the job. As with all of Piazzolla's albums, the chances of disappointment are quite slim, with a special amount of attention given here to details by all musicians involved. Any fan of the nuevo tango or Piazzolla will be pleased as usual. Fans of Gary Burton or jazz vibes may find the album surprisingly good as it shows the versatility of the vibraphonist. As Fernando Gonzalez once said, "this music knows many dialects. And listens. There are no lines drawn and no sides to defend. This is new tango."  Adam Greenberg 

Tracklist

1 Milonga Is Coming 12:07

2 Vibraphonissimo 6:36

3 Little Italy 1930 8:49

4 Nuevo Tango 5:38

5 Laura's Dream 11:56

6 Operation Tango 9:56

Credits

Bandoneon, Written-By – Astor Piazzolla

Bass – Hector Console

Guitar – Horacio Malvicino

Piano – Pablo Ziegler

Vibraphone, Mixed By – Gary Burton

Violin – Fernando Suárez Paz