Historical Café TortoniToday I go to the National Academy of Tango located in Avenida de Mayo located above historic Café Tortoni. I step in this historic Café built in 1858 by a French immigrant named Touan. The name was taken from an establishment in Paris where the intellectual elite used to meet.
After my ritual cafecito I wonder if this magnificent place harbors traces of tango history. I am watching an elderly man who seems to be part of the bohemian-elegant atmosphere of this place. I approach him and ask the inevitable question. He enjoys telling me his recollections of the 30s when intellectuals and artists gathered here: our poets Jorge Luis Borges, Alfonsina Storni, Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca, our painter Quinquela Martin, our tango singer Carlos Gardel, Italian dramaturge Luigi Pirandello and many more. I listen and woner how many times he must have told the same stories. This is live history! Borges, Gardel and Quinquela Martin are definitely associated with tango. Borges literary oeuvre includes lyrics for Piazzolla’s music. Gardel, well he needs no introduction. Quinquela Martin is indirectly and powerfully associated with the beginnings of tango. For more information about him see In Strangers’ Arms.
Wishing I had been part of those times, I climb the marble steps of the academy next door and loose myself among the objects and documents gathered within its walls.
Tags: Places
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