Piazzolla: The Songs

If Piazzolla's talent for heart-breaking melody-writing permeates all of his music, many of his most timeless and unforgettable tunes are to be found in his songs, which number more than a hundred.

Some of these were the fruits of collaborations with some of Argentina's most famous contemporary poets, such as Horacio Ferrer and Jorge Luis Borges, whilst others such as 'Oblivion' and 'Ave María' evolved into vocal works from instrumental pieces originally composed for film. In this programme we showcase songs representing a variety of Piazzolla's favourite lyricists and singers, including those originally performed by Amelita Baltar, José Angles Trelles, Eladia Blázquez, Roberto Goyeneche, Edmundo Rivero, Héctor de Rosas, Jairo, and Piazzolla's most beloved singer of all: Milva. Also included is Piazzolla's one foray into classical lied, the vocalise, 'Milonga sin palabras' ('Milonga without words'), which is paired with a selection of art songs by other Argentine composers inspired by the tango, and Ariel Ramírez' haunting 'Alfonsina y el mar'.

The programme is brought to life by two of Argentina's most formidable singers, soprano Jaquelina Livieri and Argentine tenor, Leonardo Pastore - both also featured artists in the British TangOpera project. Bringing both the technical prowess of their opera training to the tango, and the passion of tango to the concert hall, they offer a dynamic take on songs which also represent fusions of these two worlds. They are joined by pianist and leading Argentine vocal accompanist, Tomás Ballícora.

Astor Piazzolla: 'Vuelvo al sur' (arr. H. Malagoli) | 'El mundo de los dos' | 'Alguien le dice al tango' | 'Siempre se vuelve a Buenos Aires' (arr. H. Glaisher) | 'Los pájaros perdidos' | 'Chiquilín de Bachín' | 'Libertango' | 'Adiós Nonino' | 'Oblivion' ('J'oublie') | 'Ave María' | 'Milonga sin palabras' | 'Milonga del trovador' 

Carlos Guastavino: 'Milonga de dos hermanos'

Alberto Ginastera: 'Canción al árbol del olvido'

Ariel Ramírez: 'Alfonsina y el mar' (arr. H. Glaisher)

Jaquelina Livieri: soprano

Leonardo Pastore: tenor

Tomás Ballícora: piano

Jaquelina Livieri is a multi-international-award-winning opera singer widely considered the finest young lyric coloratura soprano in Argentina. Since graduating from the Instituto Superior de Arte at the Teatro Colón, her career has taken her to perform the main operatic roles of her repertoire at the most important opera houses in Latin America, including Violetta in La Traviata at the Teatro Colón; participating in concert together with Erwin Schrott at the Ljubljana Festival; and accompanying the tenor Josep Carreras on his farewell tour, 'A Life in Music'.

'An extraordinary tenor whose heart beats to the tango.' (Echoes Magazine)

Leonardo Pastore is a unique voice amongst Argentina’s great tenors whose longstanding dual career in the opera and tango worlds has allowed him to cultivate an authoritative and compelling vocal fusion of the two genres. His 2016 CD, 'Gardel Original', is a ground-breaking project which faithfully reconstructs the original arrangements of Gardel’s songs for the very first time, produced by León Gieco and nominated for a Latin Grammy. His first teacher was Héctor de Rosas (one of Astor Piazzolla’s favourite collaborators) and his singing has also been lauded by the likes of Plácido Domingo, Alfredo Kraus, Diego Flórez and Teresa Berganza.

Tomás Ballícora is one of Argentina's most eminent pianists in the field of vocal accompaniment, having performed across all of Argentina's major venues and festivals with the cream of Argentina's lyric talent, including regular appearances at the Salón Dorado of the Teatro Colón. A committed promotor of Argentina's art-song heritage and an experienced event producer, he has also been proactive in organising events celebrating Argentina's most important vocal repertoire.

Presented by ILAMS as part of Echoes Festival 2021 in collaboration with the Instituto Cervantes, with the kind support of the Embassy of Argentina

SNEAK PEEK! Jaquelina Livieri and Tomás Ballícora perform 'Vidalita Op. 45, No. 3' by Alberto Williams