TangoMundo CD Launch “Piazzolla Unleashed: Reclaiming the Edge”

Raw, urban, and unapologetic, Piazzolla Unleashed: Reclaiming the Edge dives headfirst into the street-smart soundworld of Astor Piazzolla; the outlaw genius who tore tango apart and rebuilt it with jazz fire, rock attitude, and Bach-level craft. This is Buenos Aires after dark: gritty, volatile, and electrically alive.

TangoMundo brings to the stage Piazzolla repertoire rarely heard internationally, drawing from across his restless, rule-breaking career. From the midnight heartbeat of Buenos Aires Hora Cero to the smoky elegance of S’il Vous Plaît from his Paris years, and the hard-edged cool of Reunión Cumbre from his legendary collaboration with Gerry Mulligan, this program goes well beyond the greatest hits. TangoMundo also play intimate, lesser-known gems such as Tanti Anni Prima and songs such as Jacinto Chiclana and Los Pájaros Perdidos, revealing the intense poetry at the heart of Piazzolla’s music.

The program also unleashes works from Piazzolla’s later Electronic Octet and Nonet periods alongside iconic pieces like Libertango and Oblivion; music driven by a fierce appetite for experimentation and a visceral connection with the audience. Like music legends such as Ellington, Prokofiev or Mozart before him, Piazzolla was a composer-performer who lived in the moment, constantly reinventing his sound and daring listeners to follow.

These original arrangements are crafted especially for TangoMundo by Argentine tango scholar and composer Guillermo Anad (Académico Correspondiente, National Academy of Tango, Buenos Aires), who also performs on viola. He is joined by cabaret powerhouse Faye Bendrups (piano and voice) and acclaimed Australian accordionist Anthony Schulz, forming a trio that delivers Piazzolla’s music with grit, elegance, and ferocious heart.

Piazzolla Unleashed is not nostalgia. It’s the music that changed Tango forever.

Daniel Piazzolla, Buenos Aires: “The great achievement of TangoMundo is to mix classical and
popular nuances of my father’s music using an unexpected combination of only three instruments:
viola, accordion and piano. This is a novel and entirely Piazzollean approach”.

Ignacio Frechero, Argentine Consul, Vancouver: “It was a privilege, and a very moving moment for
us, to witness such a performance live. The three of you truly touched our hearts with your
interpretations. It is not common to be so far from our country and, at the same time, feel it so
close. You made that possible. Thank you again!”.

TangoMundo
Guillermo Anad: Music Director, Arranger, Viola
Faye Bendrups: Piano, voice
Anthony Schulz: Accordion, piano