1. Poema — Orquesta Social Tango

2. Buscándote — Orquesta Social Tango

3. Todo Es Amor — Romántica Milonguera

4. Bomboncito — Romántica Milonguera

Poema is an orphan. It’s a rubato piece with weight and drama, and it goes well with Fresedo’s Buscándote, but I couldn’t find golden-age companions to complete a tanda. Verdemar was too heavy. Caló was out because of the piano. Una Emoción didn’t fit in either version I knew.

The answer was to stop looking in the golden age. Two modern orchestras play in the same romantic style: Orquesta Social Tango (Poema and Buscándote) and Romántica Milonguera (Todo Es Amor and Bomboncito). The change of orchestra after the second song gives a clean seam in the middle.

I played this tanda at the Cyprus Tango Meeting, near the end of the afternoon milonga, as the moment when the story of tango arrives in the present. Svetlana my partner in crime, my toughest critic, approved.

Tanda curated by TDJ Ajit Bubber.