Tango
Often described as “the vertical expression of horizontal desire,” tango was by no means a well-respected dance in its early history. Created by the porteños (people of the port) dwelling in slums near the docks of Buenos Aires, tango symbolized the swelling number of disenfranchised immigrants and unemployed citizens, often former soldiers, during the latter half of the nineteenth century. The original tango ensembles included just violin, guitar, and flute, but by the turn of the century a button-box accordion, known as the bandoneón, was added. By the 1930s, the standard ensemble included two violins and two bandoneóns, to which were later added a piano and double bass; by the 1940s, the ensembles grew to include larger string sections. A variety of instrumentation has since followed, but the bandoneón has maintained a central role in both small and large ensembles, commonly referred to as orquesta típica, though it is often less prominent in larger ensembles.
