Lomuto with four different singers.

Tango tanda for dancing, Francisco Lomuto with four different singers.

++Timestamps++
Start 00:00
Tutorial 00:27
Íntimas 05:03
San Telmo 07:50
Nostalgias 10:54
Muñequita 13:57

Francisco Lomuto was born in 1893 as the eldest of 10 children in the barrio of Parque Patricios, Buenos Aires. His parents were immigrants from Naples, Italy.His father Victor played the violin. And his mother, Rosalia Narducci played the piano – she also taught Francisco.

In the 1910s, Francisco Lomuto composed several tangos that were recorded by Francisco Canaro, Roberto Firpo, and Eduardo Arolas. Carlos Gardel recorded his tango ‘Muñequita’ in 1920. Before starting his own orchestra, Lomuto first joined the orchestra of his friend Francisco Canaro, to learn the trade. In 1923 Lomuto started his first own orchestra, playing tango and jazz.Lomuto’s style was influenced by Canaro and the guardia vieja.

Although his orchestra was quite successful, he was always a bit overshadowed by Francisco Canaro. And to this day, Lomuto’s tangos are often overlooked. Nevertheless, Lomuto has his own specific quality. He’s not an innovator or virtuoso, but rock steady, and in general his sound is a bit heavier than Canaro’s orchestra.

In my early days as a tango DJ, I played Lomuto’s tangos regularly. Then he kind of fell off my radar, but lately I rediscovered his tangos. For this tanda of the week, I’ve selected 4 tangos from the 1930’s, with various singers. A bit uncommon, but I feel they do go well together, and this tanda may serve as a nice introduction to Lomuto’s work in case you don’t know him.

The first track of the tanda is ‘Íntimas’, recorded in 1931. Music written by Alfonso Lacueva and lyrics by Ricardo Brignolo. Lomuto recorded this tango three times, but this is the best known version, with singer Fernando Díaz.Fernando Díaz recorded some 170 tracks with Lomuto between 1931 and 1943. ‘Intimas’ is one of the oldest tracks so far in our tanda of the week series, it combines a steady rhythm with a lovely romantic melody.

The second track is ‘San Telmo’, recorded in 1932. Music written by Gerardo Matos Rodríguez – yes, the one who also wrote ‘La Cumparsita’ – and lyrics by Ivo Pelay. ‘San Telmo’ is sung by singer, pianist and composer Carlos José Pérez, or as we know him: Charlo. It’s one of those nostalgic tangos about the old neighbourhood of one’s youth, in this case the cobbled streets of the San Telmo barrio.

Next is ‘Nostalgias’, recorded in 1936, with singer Jorge Omar. Music written by Juan Carlos Cobián, and lyrics by Enrique Cadícamo. One of Lomuto’s best in my opinion. This is where nostalgia meets dark melancholy: “In my sad solitude I shall see the dead rose of my youth fall”. There are many recorded versions of 'Nostalgias'. By Lomuto, Caló, Fresedo, Piazzolla, Hugo Díaz, and various modern orchestras. But Lomuto’s recording remains the best for dancing.

The final track of the tanda is ‘Muñequita’, recorded in 1931. Music written by Francisco Lomuto himself, lyrics by Adolfo Carlos Herschel. It’s the tango composed by Lomuto that Carlos Gardel had recorded back in 1920, but Lomuto also recorded it three times himself. This version of 'Muñequita' is sung by Alberto Hilarion Acuña and Fernando Díaz. At first I had planned it as the second song of the tanda, but the end of ‘Muñequita’ works pretty well as a grand finale – so it became the final track.

And that’s the Francisco Lomuto Tanda of the Week:
1. Íntimas 1931
2. San Telmo 1932
3. Nostalgias 1936
4. Muñequita 1931

Enjoy!

Thanks:
www.tangoarchive.com
www.todotango.com
www.tangosalbardo.blogspot.com
www.tangodecoder.wordpress.com
www.agadu.org
Michael Lavocah, Jens Ingo tango DJ
FB pages about tango music like: Archivo Documental Del Tango, Tango Time Machine, Tango y Cultura, Con el tango en las venas, José Maria Otero, Pablo Dario Taboada, TDJ Laura Petroni, TDJ Alessandro Grillo, TDJ La Morocha, Gloria and Eduardo Arquimbau, Xavier Mulet, Carlos Gorrindo, Mercedes Garcia Blesa, Carlos Gardel, el tango y nuestro Buenos Aires querido and many others.
Tangolyrics translations: Derrick del Pillar, www.tangopoetryproject.com, tangotranslations.org and others.

#tangomusictutorials #tandaoftheweek #tanda #lomuto #losamigostango

Please note: We do not own the music in this video. Songs are included for educational purposes only. You can buy them from various providers (like TangoTunes, iTunes etc.) or stream them on Spotify.