Fabrice Knecht Tango DJ
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These Tangos, Valses, and Milongas were recorded around the same time. Take a look to discover what else this orchestra—or others—may have recorded during the same week or even on the exact same day.
Bandoneón arrabalero is a Tango written by Pascual Contursi and composed by Bachicha.
“Bandoneón arrabalero” vividly captures the poignant sense of abandonment and companionship through the personification of a bandoneón, a type of concertina particularly popular in Argentina and Uruguay. Contursi portrays the bandoneón as an abandoned child, discovered and nurtured back to life, which mirrors his own emotional state of loneliness and sadness. The lyrics speak about finding the bandoneón, “like a boy abandoned by his mother,” and taking it into his room to care for it, finding solace in its melancholy sounds.
The bandoneón in the song symbolizes much more than a musical instrument—it becomes a beacon of shared suffering and mutual comfort. The depiction of the bandoneón as “viejo fueye desinflado” (old deflated bellows) enhances its symbolic resonance, emphasizing themes of wear and the passage of time. The setting, an unadorned house under the “light of a little streetlamp,” further instills a sense of desolation and gloom, setting the tone for a narrative of lifting oneself and others from despair.
Composed in 1967, during a time of significant social and cultural shifts in Argentina, “Bandoneón arrabalero” connects deeply with the heartstrings of the urban poor and the suburban inhabitants. It reflects a common narrative of rural-to-urban migration, portraying the suburban outskirts (“arrabales”) as sites of loneliness and abandonment but also of potential reconnection and emotional resurgence through music. The era, filled with both hope and despair, is captured poignantly in this piece through its melancholic yet comforting melody and lyrics.
Pascual Contursi is known for pioneering the ‘letra’ of Tangos, significantly contributing to the genre by introducing narrative and vocals to what was predominantly instrumental music.