Ahead of his upcoming album release Buenos Aires on 26 April 2024, featuring arrangements for solo violin and string orchestra of Piazzolla’s music, violinist Tomás Cotik speaks about Astor Piazzolla’s musical style. The video features music from Cotik’s prior Naxos Piazzolla albums Tango Nuevo and Legacy, as well as some violin and violin and piano versions of the works from his upcoming album Buenos Aires  that features arrangements by Ken Selden for Violin and String Orchestra. 

Renowned for his pioneering work in Nuevo Tango, Piazzolla collaborated with diverse musicians, blending popular and classical influences into his precisely composed yet interpretively flexible pieces. While Nuevo Tango deviates from traditional dance floor tunes, it retains the playful essence of Canyengue, reflecting the colorful characters of Buenos Aires’ compadritos. Piazzolla’s compositions exhibit rhythmic complexity, harmonic innovation, and emotive melodies reminiscent of Italian opera, characterized by dissonance, polytonality, and jazz elements. 

Tomás Cotik currently resides in Madrid, Spain, holding a nine-month-long Fulbright research award during his sabbatical year as a violin professor at Portland State University in Oregon. His recording of Piazzolla ‘Buenos Aires’ is out on 26 April 2024 on Naxos.

Best of Technique

In The Best of Technique you’ll discover the top playing tips of the world’s leading string players and teachers. It’s packed full of exercises for students, plus examples from the standard repertoire to show you how to integrate the technique into your playing.

Masterclass

The Strad’s Masterclass series brings together the finest string players with some of the greatest string works ever written. Always one of our most popular sections, Masterclass has been an invaluable aid to aspiring soloists, chamber musicians and string teachers since the 1990s.

Calendars

American collector David L. Fulton amassed one of the 20th century’s finest collections of stringed instruments. This year’s calendar pays tribute to some of these priceless treasures, including Yehudi Menuhin’s celebrated ‘Lord Wilton’ Guarneri, the Carlo Bergonzi once played by Fritz Kreisler, and four instruments by Antonio Stradivari.