Anniversary,
Celebrating Astor Piazzolla's 100th Anniversary
Today marks the 100th anniversary of Astor Piazzolla's birth. Born in Mar del Plata, Argentina on March 11th 1921, Piazzolla and his family moved to New York in 1925 to try their fortune in the big city. This time in New York undoubtedtly helped to establish Piazzolla's musical influences, as he grew up around jazz, listened to old nostalgic tangos by Carlos Gardel, and after his father gave him a bandoneon for his ninth birthday, studied with a teacher who introduced him to classical music. After returning to Argentina in 1937, Piazzolla soon moved to Buenos Aires where he took lessons in piano and harmony with Alberto Ginastera, an esteemed classical composer of the 20th-century.
In 1946 he begun his own 'tipica' band, which played nothing but tangos. Here he played his own arrangements, started using triple rhythms, and experimenting in bold harmonies. His innovations unfortunately met with little success at this time, and the group disbanded. Undeterred, in the 1950s he travelled to Europe to study conducting with Hermann Scherchen, where he also met Nadia Boulanger, a famous composition teacher in Paris. She helped him realise his distinctive compositional style of the tango, with influences of classical and jazz music.
Once back in Buenos Aires, Piazzolla formed his first octet in 1955. By using what he had learned from Ginastera and Boulanger, and borrowing jazz phrasings, his tangos took on a new life. This caused a stir with conservative tango players initially, but with his distinctively modern form his new quintet went on to achieve recognition and fame for their revolutionary tango nuevo style. From the 1960s until his death in 1992, his success continued to grow, and in 1995 his family received the Konex Honour Award, recognising Piazzolla as the most important musician of the decade in Argentina.
To celebrate this anniversary, in collaboration with Boosey & Hawkes, we are offering 25% off selected Piazzolla titles until the end of March. You can view the full details of the special offer here.
Piazzolla 100th Birthday - 25% off
Twenty-five tangos by the revolutionary tango musician and composer Astor Piazzolla, arranged for violin and piano. These crowd-pleasing tangos borrow from classical, jazz, and Latin traditions. The collection includes Piazzolla's most famous tangos, Libertango and Oblivion.
Also available for flute, clarinet, alto saxophone, trumpet, and cello.
Available Format: Sheet Music
Fourteen works By Astor Piazolla transcribed for guitar by Francesco Russo including Adiós Nonino, Milonga del ángel, Oblivion, Verano Porteño, Yo Soy Maria, and more.
Also available for solo piano.
Available Format: Sheet Music
Fourteen of Astor Piazzolla's most famous tangos are now playable for budding instrumentalists in this collection featuring solo arrangements and great-sounding demonstration and backing tracks available online for download or streaming.
Also available for flute, alto saxophone, trumpet, violin, viola, and cello.
Available Format: Sheet Music & Audio
The Best of Astor Piazzolla songbook includes sixteen pieces by Piazzolla, including Ave Maria, Balada Para Un Loco, Oblivion, Yo Soy Maria, and more.
Available Format: Sheet Music
Forty tangos by the revolutionary tango musician and composer Astor Piazzolla, arranged for solo piano. These crowd-pleasing tangos borrow from classical, jazz, and Latin traditions. The collection includes Piazzolla's most famous tangos, Libertango and Oblivion.
Available Format: Sheet Music
Thrilling tangos and other characteristic pieces by Argentinian master of tango nuevo, Astor Piazzolla. From the streets and bars of Buenos Aires, imbued with the down-at-heel elegance of the city’s grand houses, comes this famous Vuelvo al sur together with other pieces by the composer in the same genre.
Also available for trumpet, violin, guitar, piano, flute, accordion, clarinet, and violin.
Available Format: Sheet Music/CD
This collection contains fourteen great tangos and other characteristic pieces by the master of the Argentine Tango Nuevo, Astor Piazzolla. Easy to moderately difficult arrangements for clarinet and piano.
Also available for trumpet, alto saxophone, piano, flute, accordion, and violin.
Available Format: Sheet Music/CD
More Popular and Bestselling Piazzolla Publications
One of the most famous compositions by the tango composer, the Histoire Du Tango was originally written for flute and guitar, and is often played in different combinations, including violin substituted for the flute, or the harp substituted for the guitar,
Other instrumental and ensemble options available here.
Available Format: Sheet Music
Piazzolla's six Tango Etudes for either solo flute or violin.
Other instrumental and ensemble options are available here.
Available Format: Sheet Music
The most famous pieces by Astor Piazzolla in easy arrangements for musicians of all levels. Includes an MP3 CD with full performances and play-along tracks for complete and highly satisfying solo performances.
Available Format: Sheet Music/CD
Baltazar Benitez' extremely popular transcriptions of these Piazzolla classics. Includes Primavera Porteña (Tango), Verano Porteño (Tango), Milonga del Angel (Milonga), and Muerte del Angel (Tango)
Available Format: Sheet Music
The solo violin part to one of Piazzolla's most popular and beloved works. In 1965, Piazzolla began writing Cuatro Estraciones Portenas, a homage to both the tango and Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, and completed the work in 1970.
Full score also available here.
Available Format: Sheet Music
Ellena Taylor - Sheet Music and Books Manager
