In this eclectic concert, Maurice Cohn guides us from the streets of Buenos Aires to the foundations of the symphonic tradition, connecting music shaped by dance.

Astor Piazzolla’s Tangazo (Variations on Buenos Aires) opens the concert with a bold expansion of the tango into the symphonic form. As the music unfolds, an unspoken dialogue emerges between winds and strings, mirroring the subtle communication between dancers and giving the work a saccharine sense of tension.

Piazzolla’s Aconcagua, Concerto for Bandoneón follows, performed on accordion by Hanzhi Wang. Gifted his first bandoneón at just eight years old, Piazzolla would go on to redefine the instrument he was once reluctant to embrace. Here it takes center stage in a work that moves between driving intensity and lyricism, pushing beyond traditional tango into something more personal.

Rediscovered decades after its composition, Florence Price’s Andante Moderato offers a moment of contrast and reflection. Similar to Piazzolla, Price draws influence from the popular genres of her time, with folk-like melodies evocative of nostalgia. 

The program concludes with Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1 in C major. Written in 1800 when Beethoven was just 30 years old, the symphony subtly stretches the boundaries of the Classical tradition, signaling the emergence of a voice that would soon reshape the form entirely.