Programme Notes – Midnight in Buenos Aires

I have been excited and enchanted by the music of Latin America since I was a child, and I have a particular love for the Tango; a dance that has its roots in Argentina. In this work I have tried to capture the combination of darkness, violence, mystery and seductive passion that is all an intrinsic part of the Tango. The work lasts ten minutes and is in two parts: an opening Andante, which starts with menacing drumbeats and continues in a corrupt and decadent mood. The main Allegro starts in a fragmentary manner, before the trumpet states a ‘night club’ theme that has an important role through the whole section. There is a short quieter middle section before the return of the ‘night club’ melody leads to a triumphant climax and a return of the opening drumbeats, before the faster music has the final word. At one point in the Allegro, those with keen ears for inner harmony might spot a reference to Wagner’s ‘Tristan and Isolde’, totally in keeping with the Tango’s explicit eroticism.

‘Midnight in Buenos Aires’ was commissioned by the Harmonie St. Caecilia Blerick and their Principal Conductor Andreas Van Zoelen.