The first time I heard Carlos Gardel was in my maternal grandmother’s voice. She enjoyed singing, and used her beautiful, light soprano voice mostly to entertain herself while doing chores. From her I learned “Soledad”, one of Gardel’s most famous tangos which we kept calling “our song” throughout her life.
Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Voces de Bronce
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About the album
The first time I heard Carlos Gardel was in my maternal grandmother’s voice. She enjoyed singing, and used her beautiful, light soprano voice mostly to entertain herself while doing chores. From her I learned “Soledad”, one of Gardel’s most famous tangos which we kept calling “our song” throughout her life. On my father’s side, my grandparents were recognized tango dancers, a regular presence in the local and regional milongas and dance competitions. They heard every tango orchestra and singer worth their salt from the late 40’s to the 60’s, and, later in their lives, they would become members of different tango appreciation societies as the genre became less socially relevant.
Gardel was an unavoidable figure in my life, and the love of tango, one of the most valued parts of my family inheritance. I even became, at 8 years of age, the youngest audience member when the Mercedes Gardel Society hosted a projection of Gardel’s movie “Mi Buenos Aires Querido” in the local library. Yet my personal connection with Gardel and his tango has always been somewhat indirect: a profound but distant fascination but never an active engagement. The subjects of its lyrics, the music’s general spirit, and the sensibility which informs it has always seemed foreign to me. A sensation which the arbitrary distinction between the tango cosmopolitanism and the folklore’s rustic characterization – too prevalent even today in Argentina — would only deepen.
I felt as though I needed to choose between one or the other. I therefore decided on the music closest to my experience, which admittedly had little to do with amorous conquests or the existential anguish of the valiant Buenos Aires’ men. Eventually I moved to Europe and kept my musical heritage for myself while exploring those of the Iberian Middle Ages, as well as the Renaissance and Early Baroque periods of the Ibero-American empires. Through them I developed my own musical method to bring together historical sources into convincing musical performances.
My interests soon moved from just amassing musical pieces to researching the networks, institutions and communities that made their transmission and survival across the centuries possible. Most importantly, I was fascinated by the role played by subjective matters of taste in the transmission of certain repertoires between different communities, leading some composers to become legends, others to be forgotten. Soon I began to look back at my country’s own historical repertoire with the same curiosity, bringing me back to Gardel’s unavoidable figure. I was less interested in his tango legend but in the actual living historical figure and the undeniable role played by the communities and repertoires of the “canto criollo” which defined him as an artist.
Tracklist click to play/pause
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Amargura ('El Floridense')
3:30
3:30
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
En vano, en vano...!
2:21
2:21
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Estilo criollo, Op. 8 No. 4
2:07
2:07
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Gorjeos ('La Mariposa')
3:52
3:52
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Entre colores
2:22
2:22
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Canción agreste ('El Milongón')
2:56
2:56
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Jonatan Alvarado, Sophia Patsi & Jessica Denys
El pañuelo de seda
3:40
3:40
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
El alma del payador
2:44
2:44
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
El sueño
3:07
3:07
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
La vida del carretero
3:12
3:12
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
La cordobesa
2:22
2:22
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Aires criollos No. 2
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I. La porteñita (Zamba)
1:05
1:05
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II. Recuerdos (Estilo clásico)
2:01
2:01
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Jonatan Alvarado, Sophia Patsi & Jessica Denys
Vidalita ('Flor Marchita')
4:10
4:10
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Jonatan Alvarado, Juan Vizán & Jessica Denys
Claveles mendocinos
3:06
3:06
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Chinita linda
2:04
2:04
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
El Pericón
2:18
2:18
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
El gato
2:44
2:44
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Jonatan Alvarado, Juan Vizán & Jessica Denys
El triunfo
2:28
2:28
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Un bailongo (Milonga)
3:20
3:20
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Joaquina (Tango)
2:34
2:34
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Jonatan Alvarado & Jessica Denys
Mi noche triste (Tango-canción)
3:18
3:18
More information
| Label | TRPTK |
|---|---|
| Genre(s) | World Music |
| Artist(s) | Jessica Denys Jonatan Alvarado Juan Vizán Sophia Patsi |
| Composer(s) | Aguilar, José María Alais, Juan Begamino, Juan Cepeda, Andrés Compoamor, Manuel Corsini, Ignacio De Nava, Arturo Gardel, Carlos Greco, Ángel Martino, Francisco Munilla, Diego Pardo, Mario Pelaia, Alfredo Podestá, Antonio Razzano, José Ricardo, José Ríos, Ambrosio Saldías, José Antonio Tapia, Cristino |
| Recording location(s) | Galaxy Studios, Mol (BE) |
| Recording date(s) | June 2022 |
| Cat. No. | TTK 0099 |
|---|---|
| Release date |
April 21st, 2023 |
| Additional links |
Tech specs
| Microphones | Josephson C617 w/ Gefell MK221 capsules (main) |
|---|---|
| Microphone preamps | Crookwood MultiPre |
| AD/DA conversion | Merging Technologies Hapi |
| Recording resolution | DSD 11.2MHz 1bit |
| Mastering resolution | PCM 352.8kHz 64bit |
| Monitoring (recording) | KEF LS50 |
| Monitoring (mastering) | KEF Blade Two |
| Cabling | Furutech custom microphone cables |
"Beautiful and poetic repertoire from a time when love and sorrow were sung in nature metaphors."
Joost Galema, NRC
"The impression this recital made on me is that of great authenticity, although it is rather difficult to interpret. In my experience, however, it is exactly what it is: an impression, enhanced by this warm but also bright tenor and his extremely colorful guitar playing, together with the no less colorful Belgian guitarist Jessica Denis and the eloquent vocal contributions of Sophia Patsi and Juan Vizán. [...] And again, the brilliant recording strikes again, as if TRPTK has the patent on that."
Aart van der Wal, Opus Klassiek
"It was immersive from the beginning, and it really shows. There is an absolute perfect amount of musical information in the surround and height channels for this type of music. Sure, this is subjective. A case could be made to put the instruments in a more adventurous immersive placement, but I love the way Voces de Bronce was recorded and mixed. It just feels like real life."
Chris Connaker, Audiophile Style
"‘Voces de Bronze’ is an extraordinarily rich album that will certainly give a new impetus to the revaluation of Argentine folk music. A genre that is too little highlighted in Europe and the rest of the world."
Yung Lie, Alpha Audio
