Piazzolla Surprises Again!
Kurt Harding | Boerne TX | 10/04/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"No matter how many times Astor Piazzolla records a song for an album, it invariably ends up with a different feel from one recorded previously. Though the title cut is not advertised as a new version, it essentially is one. Percussion is stronger and the song has a "live" feel to it. It is one of the epic pieces in the Piazzolla repertoire. Invierno Porteno and Primavera Portena are likewise Piazzolla classics and are here advertised as new versions. And how! Piazzolla surprises once again shining a new light on these venerable standards. The next six songs on the album feature Piazzolla bandoneon solos. Only a couple were familiar. These cuts have the feel of film music. The rest of the album is quite good, filled with mostly unfamiliar material. If you are a true Piazzolla believer, then it behooves you to find a place on your CD stand for this album, you won't be disappointed.
2009 update:
The original review was for the Japanese import, which at the time was the only way you could get this on CD. That import actually has four more bonus tracks than the Edicion Critica reissue on which I will comment here.
If you already own the Japanese import, why get the Edicion Critica? Simple: Better sound quality due to better technology. According to the liner notes (all in Spanish), this album was recorded at the end of 1970 and published in 1971 as were the three bonus tracks not included on the original vinyl album. One of the ideas behind the Edicion Critica series is to make each album a snapshot of Piazzolla's ever-changing formations at a certain point in time. Hence there are four fewer tracks than on the original Japanese import version.
Piazzolla's own comments (also in Spanish), which are part of the original liner notes, state that he composed Concierto Para Quinteto in honor of all the great friends and musicians who had been with him during the ten previous years and who had suffered with him the slings and arrows of incomprehending and hostile critics. He notes that without quality musicians to interpret him, his music would be a disaster. As it so happens, the title cut turns out to be one of his signature pieces.
If you avoided this recording in the past because of the high price of the import, now is the time to add it to your collection."
Track Listings (17) - Disc #1
