Martín Palmeri’s tango mass is inspired by his native Argentina’s traditional tango and in particular by Astor Piazzolla’s tango nuevo. Piazzolla developed a “new tango” intended no longer as dance music but for the concert stage; by incorporating contemporary forms and musical developments it gave rise to a complex genre of art music. The Misa a Buenos Aires premiered by the Orquesta Sinfónica de Cuba in 1996 demonstrates Palmeri’s impressive and equally entertaining talent for integrating stylistic features of the tango into his compositions. The textual basis of the work is the classical Catholic Ordinary of the Mass as it has been set to music for centuries. The scoring for mezzo-soprano, mixed choir, tango quartet, and string orchestra remains close to the authentic ensembles of the tango orchestras of Palmeri’s native country.