Tango and counterpoints

After her album New Tango Songbook from 2014, Marcela Arroyo returns to her collaboration with violinist Andreas Engler and double bassist Daniel Schläppi, which had already come to fruition in 2009 with the joint CD Puerta Sur was reflected in the album. While this work provided delightful insights into Argentinian soundscapes, its successor Tres Mil Uno as stylistically broader; he dedicates himself not only to songs from Arroyo's homeland, but also to compositions of European provenance - such as the Tucholsky poem You, to him, which was originally created by Kolsimcha founder Michael Heitzler for Xavier Koller's literary adaptation Gripsholm (2000) was set to music.

In the arrangement by Arroyo, Engler and Schläppi, the piece exudes more than just a touch of melancholy and brings the world of the 1930s back to life in passing. Sometimes the violin is plucked, sometimes bowed with great tenderness, but the instrument always ensnares the singer's voice, which expresses humor as well as hope and despair of love. The three musicians are only too happy to explore other genres, but never lose sight of the tango. Preludio para el año 3001 from the pen of Horacio Ferrer (lyrics) and Astor Piazzolla (music) - whose oeuvre Arroyo raves about - is particularly appealing due to its graceful colors. Oblivion through the clash of smoky vocals and the melancholy sounds of double bass and violin.

The 15 songs are full of passion. However, the trio knows how to tame this passion when necessary, and although it never hides its flair for tango music, it repeatedly uses counterpoints from fado, klezmer or blues. Despite its stylistic diversity, the record never seems overloaded, on the contrary: the numbers are as purified as they are delicate. Arroyo, Engler and Schläppi use this to create charming and agile interplay, clever improvisations and show great expressiveness.