Review

Carlos Gardel
Por Una Cabeza:

Arranged by Wolfgang Birtel

Trombone and piano

Köln, , Germany
Publisher: Verlag Dohr
Date of Publication: 2019
URL: http://www.dohr.de

Score and solo part

Primary Genre: Solo Tenor Trombone - with piano

Wolfgang Birtel has brought arguably the most covertly famous tango to the trombone repertoire.  While many may not recognize it by name, a simple Google search for Por Una Cabeza will provide a list of cinematic appearances for Carlos Gardel’s tango from “Schindler’s List” to “Bad Santa.” Gardel himself can be heard singing this tango in the film “Tango Bar” (1935), shortly before his death.

The tango is typically a romantic, passionate genre with free-flowing melodies over steady rhythmic structures. In Por Una Cabeza, the written rhythmic structure should not be read literally, but more as a stylistic guide. As an example, when Gardel writes four sixteenth notes, the intent is focused on four notes in rapid succession rather than four evenly spaced notes within a single beat. In this perspective, tango music is more directed by the emotion of the piece rather than the ink on the page.

Birtel’s arrangement, transposed to D, appears structurally faithful to the original manuscript, choosing not to write musical interpretation into the melody’s rhythm. This decision provides the performer an opportunity to decide phrasing and pacing. While this lack of cumbersome notation is welcome, the opening register of the solo is not, opening on an F-sharp below the staff. Though well intentioned, it creates more problems than it solves. Fortunately, the register is corrected at the recap in measure 37.

In its original form, Por Una Cabeza offers little rest for the singer. To combat this problem for the trombonist, Birtel alternates the melody between soloist and accompanist throughout. Though it may not be necessary, this alteration invents collaborative opportunity and adds timbral interest. Less convincing is the octave displacement heard at the beginning of the refrain. With a shift to a minor tonality and the dramatic increase, dropping the melody one octave diminishes the intensity of the moment.

Por Una Cabeza is a great study piece to introduce younger trombonists to the tango style, thanks in part to its limited range, F-sharp to a1, and limited technical demands.