Tangos

Kevin Whitehead looks at genre-bending new albums by Pablo Aslan and Sao Paulo Underground.

A live concert with Evan Lurie on piano, Alfredo Pedernera on bandoneon, and Jill Jaffe on violin. Lurie's music draws on the inspirations of the New Tango movement. Lurie is also a member of the the Lounge Lizards.

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new album of contemporary American music by pianist Ursula Oppens. It has music both commissioned and performed by Oppens. It's "Ursula Oppens Plays American Piano Music of Our Time" on the Music & Arts label.

Composer and bandoneon player Astor Piazzolla writes and performs what he calls "new tango," which is influenced by rock, jazz, and twentieth-century classical music. His intense, emotional music was at first deeply unpopular with tango traditionalists, who favored the older, dance-oriented sound.

Accordionist William Schimmel will perform several tangos.

Accordion player William Schimmel examines the stylistic nuances that distinguish the genre.

William Schimmel is the accordionist for the Tango Project, and disagrees with those who malign the instrument and the dance/music. Schimmel has written a tango mass for accordion, conducted and performed in the Joseph Papp production of the "Three-Penny Opera," and composed the musical "Kill." Schimmel lives in New York and commutes to Philadelphia where he is the dean of the New Power School of Music.