Piazzolla, The Years of the Shark (Argentina | 2018 | 90 minutes | d: Daniel Rosenfeld)
*MONDAY, MAY 27 1:30 PM | AMC Pacific Place
THURSDAY, MAY 30 9:30 PM | SIFF Cinema Uptown
FRIDAY, MAY 31 9:00 PM | Kirkland Performance Center
Astor Piazzolla, the legendary Argentinian composer, changed the structure and spirit of the tango with his singular musicianship and vision. Piazzolla's compositions are influential worldwide for their masterful incorporation of both jazz and classical music into the tango. For this, predictably enough, he was treated equally as heretic and genius, although he soon gained a dedicated international following. Piazzolla's instrument of choice was the bandoneon, a relative of the accordion traditional in tango ensembles, which both connected him directly to the tango tradition while allowing him room for harmonic and rhythmic experimentation.
These balances are well explored in the 2018 documentary Piazzolla, The Years of the Shark, which screens as part of SIFF's Face the Music series. The film is directed by Piazzolla's son, Daniel Rosenfeld, and explores the great musician and performer through previously unseen audio and video footage that comprised his private archive. Thus the film both tries to reconstruct and deconstruct the persona of the charismatic Piazzolla, as guided through the complicated relationship between father and son. Arguably, however, the strongest impression made on the viewer is that of the specific power and Itenergy of Piazzolla's music, much of which will be unfamiliar to American audiences. The rhythms of Piazzolla's tango carry the documentary, imbuing the archival footage with life and spirit.
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