1. Belgian/Argentinian tango band
It is (almost) a rule that there are musicians who – despite the talent they had – did not get the recognition they deserved. In Argentina, the best example of this was Eduardo Rovira, a key avant-garde tango composer often mistakenly considered to be “the other Astor Piazzolla. ” The Belgian ensemble SONICO, created in Brussels in 2015, is the only group (globally) dedicated to recovering & performing the music of Eduardo Rovira.
Originally a quartet, SONICO has now become a multinational 10-member ensemble, one of the few modern tango orchestras in Europe. The group has not only distinguished itself for its approach to historically informed performance in tango music, but also for its archival research work: the transcriptions carried out by SONICO have recovered both lost and unreleased repertoire. The systematic recovery of these contemporary classics, combined with the instrumental and stylistic perfection of SONICO’s musicians, is something that did not previously exist in tango music.

Thanks to SONICO, there has been an important re-evaluation of Rovira’s key contributions to modern tango. Although Rovira was a contemporary of Piazzolla, his musical path developed in another direction; he managed to be radically original. Unfortunately, Rovira died of a heart attack at the age of 55 in 1980. Despite creating very personal music rich in ideas, his music fell into obscurity after his death.

In August 2018, SONICO’s first album Eduardo Rovira: La Otra Vanguardia, the first album exclusively dedicated to the work of Eduardo Rovira since his death in 1980, was released at the Tango Festival BA (Argentina), during SONICO’s first tour to Latin America. The group’s second album, Eduardo Rovira: Inédito e Inconcluso was released in March 2020. The result of a major research effort, this album was based on manuscripts and never-before edited or released material recorded by Rovira in 1976.

SONICO has developed a strong artistic relationship with the choreographer Lisi Estarás (Les Ballets C de la B/ Alain Platel), resulting in the dance creation MY HEART IS THE MUSCLE THAT WE LIKE TO WORK OUT, which premiered at De Grote Post (Ostend). This project was also presented at Les Plateaux (2020 edition) in Paris and programmed at the Royal Flemish Theater (Koninklijke Vlaamse Schouwburg).

In March 2021, SONICO paid tribute to the 100th anniversary of Astor Piazzolla’s birth at the Klara festival / BOZAR, Center for Fine Arts Brussels. This concert, broadcast on Belgian public television, was the most watched of the entire festival. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, SONICO was able to undertake a second Latin American tour (Ecuador and Colombia) in September 2021, in order to present Eduardo Rovira: Inédito e Inconcluso.

This tour was followed by the release of SONICO’s third album, Piazzolla-Rovira: The Edge of Tango, launched with a live concert at the Minardschouwburg (Ghent) and broadcast all over Latin America by the Film & Arts Channel. This album not only recovered lost material (Piazzolla burned the scores; Rovira’s original scores were damaged by a flood), but also presented, for the first time together, the music of the Octeto Buenos Aires (Piazzolla) and the Octeto La Plata (Rovira), key groups at the forefront of modern tango. Piazzolla-Rovira: The Edge of Tango was presented by a Benelux tour of more than 40 concerts between October 2021 and June 2023.

In September 2022, SONICO took part of A BIGGER THING, a creation of the choreographer Lisi Estarás and the season-opening production at the Opera Ballet van Vlaanderen Ghent. This creation with 60 dancers was the first staging of the ballet “Tango Buenos Aires” by Eduardo Rovira. For this production, SONICO collaborated with the musicians from the Opera Ballet van Vlaanderen Orchestra. After this production, SONICO returned to Argentina and traveled to Brazil for the first time on their third Latin American tour.

During the upcoming season SONICO will release their fourth studio album, entitled Five, six, seven, eight… The Edge of Tango vol.2, at BOZAR Center for Fine Arts Brussels on 19th Januari 2024. The concert will be followed by a Benelux tour, where SONICO will perform in a number of the most renowned festivals and concert halls including Ode Gand (De Bijloke), Iedereen Klassiek (Concertgebouw Bruges), De Roma Antwerp and the Philharmonie Luxembourg.

The musicians adding their unique musical perspective to this highly difficult repertoire include: Lysandre Donoso (FR/CL) bandoneon; Carmela Delgado (FR/SP) bandoneon; Stephen Meyer (USA/BE) violin; Daniel Hurtado Jiménez (SP) violin; Kaat Verheyen (BE) violin; Bartosz Korus (POL) viola; Guillaume Lagravière (FR/BE) cello; Alejandro Schwarz (AR/FR) electric guitar; Ariel Eberstein (AR/BE) double bass; Ivo De Greef (BE) piano

Instead of trying to create a controversy between Piazzolla and Rovira, SONICO wants to share the wonderful period known as avant-garde tango with the public. Although Eduardo Rovira and Astor Piazzolla employed different approaches to renewing tango music, they both worked tirelessly to free the music from traditionalism. Their actions had lasting effects on the history of the genre and even today we can consider their creations to be some of the most interesting music ever produced in Argentina. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.