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Al compás del mundo - programa #145, 9-12-24, Argentinian folklore

 





Runlist - Al compás del mundo - programa #145, 9-12-24, Argentinian folklore

 

01 Los Rojas - Qué Lindo Es Estar De Vuelta

02 Coco Gomez - No Me Abraces Porque Lloro

03 Facundo Cabral - Señora de Juan Fernández

04 Horacio Guarany - Piel Morena

05 Eduardo Falu - Zamba de Vargas

06 José Larralde - Quimey Neuquén

07 Leda Valladares y María Elena Walsh - Chacarera de Tafi

08 Los Chalchaleros - Viene clareando

09 Erick Claros - Que No Te Olvida

10 Los Chaza - Cuando nada te debia

11 Jorge Cafrune - Baguala de Amaicha

12 Gustavo Patiño - Amores de primavera (huayno)

13 Mitote - Sol de los Andes

14 Canto 4 - Entre a Mi Pago Sin Golpear

15 Los Hermanos Abalos - La juguetona

16 Los Fronterizos - El quiaqueño

17 Dalmiro Cuellar y Orlando Rojas - Romanceros del Guadalquivir

18 Mercedes Sosa - Luna Tucumana

19 Los Cantores de Quilla Huasi - El Ventajao

20 Trio Gomez-Juárez-Gutiérrez - Una Chacarera

 


This is not a show for everybody. Your high school Spanish will not have prepared you for this. Not so much in terms of the language, though Argentinians have a most distinct accent and plenty of colloquial vocabulary and idioms. Rather, the music as a vehicle for poetry, pageantry, and protest strikes emotions those norteamericanos amongst us rarely suffer. Or have time for. Or can make a buck from. Argentinians take their music seriously and that sentiment can be felt throughout this playlist, even in a light-hearted ‘chacarera’ dance like that of Erick Claros, or tunes from the Northeast Andean region the likes of Mitote’s “Sol de los Andes”. I’m partial to that Andean sound and have included a disproportionate number of examples by Gustavo Patiño, Canto 4, Los Chaza, and one of the top voices of his generation, José Larralde. Other big names recognizable to any Argentinian (over 40) include Facundo Cabral, Horacio Guarany, Jorge Cafrune, Mercedes Sosa and groups renowned for their vocal harmonies like Los Chalchaleros and Los Fronterizos. There’s a certain gaucho (cowboy) aesthetic proudly worn by many – at least for their album covers and performances – with baggy white pants and shirt, tall black leather boots and a hand-woven poncho draped over the shoulder. Very traditional, very proud, and very Argentinian.

 

I have to admit there’s something else that has attracted me apart from the music and emotion it carries. I’ve been to Argentina and it felt quite different from the Mexico I’ve adopted and came to cherish. The people there look like me, many of European blood. And yet they speak Spanish, drink mate tea and sing along to music we gringos might look for on an old-timey variety show, since we don’t know any better. An interesting side note: many years ago, hosting an international music program on a progressive listener-sponsored radio station in the Midwest, I played a song by Mercedes Sosa, practically considered a saint by Argentinian and Latin American lovers of the ‘Nueva Cancion’ movement (a genre of protest and folk traditions revival). The Music Director of the station shared the opinion that to his ears, she sounded like a female Engelbert Humperdinck. That was on him.

 

Argentina holds one other major attraction for me: a passion for good red wine and fine, thick steaks. ‘Nuff said! Time to fire up the grill.



 

 

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