Wanna Learn About Leadership? The Answer is Tango
Juan D’Arienzo1 was born on December 14th 1900, at the heart of Congreso neighborhood, in the bustling Buenos Aires of the beginning of the 20th century. A violinist and a talented composer, he would eventually become a renowned tango orchestra leader, earning his nickname “El Rey del Compás” (The King of Beat). I would get to know and appreciate D’Arienzo’s music through my dad, who would also get it from his dad: that’s how tango (still) typically passes through generations in a family from Buenos Aires, just like your football team: by inheritance. My grandfather Alberto was a tango lover, and a prolific vinyl collector. Back in the 1940s, he would hang around with tango ensembles, making good friends with musicians.
On a surge of homesickness, I started to search for material from D’Arienzo (which is unfortunately scarce), and managed to find some gems, notably:
And a performance of one of the most recognizable tangos ever: “La Cumparsita2”:
If you watch closely these two videos, something interesting stands out. When you think about an orchestra director, you probably think about the guy in a tuxedo, standing on a platform located at a distance from the performers, brandishing a little stick to the solemn delight of a somewhat patrician audience. But this is different, because this is tango, and tango is not about solemnity nor forms, but about intensity and closeness. Juan D’Arienzo stands right next to the musicians, holding no stick but vigorously waving his hands to encourage them, guide them through the dry staccatos, without stopping for a second having a big smile on his face (check the hysterical laugh at 0:30 in the first video); he is totally into it, as the band is. Bit unorthodox from a music theory perspective? Perhaps. Makes you want to go grab a bandoneón3? Absolutely. Juan gathers all the looks without tarnishing the band’s prominence. There is such chemistry going on there, you can literally hear the cohesion in the music. In the second video, at some point he even grabs a violin and joins the ride.
If you are trying to visualize or get to the core of what leadership is, search no more. No course or book will describe it better than this cinematic example; leading means precisely what you see there.
It means to encourage and uplift those who are on the line because, without them, there is no music. It means being joyful and close but not too close to break their flow. It means helping them give the best they can, while knowing at all times that it is their diverse skill sets combined what creates the richer sound: one person alone is just a tone whereas only a team can create chords; every team has a unique timbre. Moreover, a proper leader is always ready to roll up sleeves and, if needed, grab an instrument and play along, absorbing the scrutiny, rejecting the credit. Turns out, it takes many to tango.
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Oh yeah, and I also composed and recorded a tango4 some years ago, because well, you have to walk the talk, don’t ya?
Bandoneón is a type of concertina typically used in most tango ensembles.
This is called “Niebla en el Botánico” which means “Foggy Botánico”. This refers to Jardín Botánico, an iconic park next to where I used to live in Buenos Aires. This recording is from circa 2012, and its low-fi spirit comes from the fact it was recorded in my living room with very cheap equipment and instruments.