Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places: Yiddish Tango is Fusion of Klezmer and Argentinian Tango

The Argentinian Tango emerged from the slums of Buenos Aires, but over the years it absorbed other musical strains as immigrants from other countries came to Argentina. 

Jews from Eastern Europe have been immigrating to Argentina and they brought with them klezmer music that has fused with the tango to create a unique music and dance form...the Yiddish Tango.

As Elizabeth Lee writes in The Jewish Voice,

For Argentine-born Gustavo Bulgach, tango is music with an attitude.
“Tango means the blues. Tango is not just tango - it means - it’s an attitude that you want to express.  In every language, in Yiddish, in Spanish - in whatever language - Tango represents that kind of attitude of losing or having your heart broken by life,” Bulgach says.

Bulgach is the band leader of the Yiddish Tango Club, a group that fuses a form of Jewish dance music known as "klezmer" with Argentine tango.

“Tango is not only Argentinian. It’s a loop from Europe also. It’s like something dramatic, and it’s the count…maybe one, two, three,” says vocalist Divina Gloria.

The band pays tribute to the music of the Jewish immigrants in Argentina.  Bulgach is Jewish, and his family emigrated to Argentina from Russia.  Jewish vocalist Divina Gloria’s family came from Poland.  Yiddish tango evokes memories of her own childhood in Argentina.

Enjoy!

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