The Story of Tango

The tango, in Montevideo

The tango is one of the musical souls of Montevideo, born at the end of the nineteenth century in the basin of the Rio de la Plata, that the town shares with Buenos Aires. The Montevideo audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this dance and this music become universal, the figure of Carlos Gardel and La Cumparsita, the most famous tango of the world, composed in Uruguay.

The music born on the banks of the Rio de la Plata

If the tango is today associated throughout the world with Buenos Aires, it must not be forgotten that it was born on the two banks of the Rio de la Plata, and that Montevideo fully claims its paternity. This music and this dance came into being at the end of the nineteenth century in the working-class and port districts, there where European immigrants, descendants of Africans and local populations mingled. From this mixing was born a new genre, melancholic and sensual, carried by the sound of the bandoneon, where the nostalgia of the exiles and the life of the suburbs mingle. Uruguay can take pride in two major glories of the tango. The first is Carlos Gardel, the most famous tango singer of all time, whose voice and recordings are today inscribed in the Memory of the World register of Unesco; his birth is claimed at once by France, Uruguay and Argentina, but Montevideo devotes a true cult to him. The second is La Cumparsita, doubtless the most famous and the most played tango in the world, composed in Montevideo in 1917 by the young Gerardo Matos Rodríguez. Today, the tango continues to live in the milongas, these balls where you dance, in the cafés and during the festivals of the town. A shared heritage inscribed by Unesco, it remains one of the cultural prides of Uruguay. A music of the soul and a heritage of the Rio de la Plata, the tango is a fine stop of the discovery of Montevideo.

What to see

Here you discover one of the musical souls of Montevideo, born at the end of the nineteenth century in the port districts of the Rio de la Plata, from the mixing of European immigrants, descendants of Africans and local populations; Uruguay takes pride in Carlos Gardel, the most famous tango singer inscribed in the Memory of the World, and in La Cumparsita, the most played tango in the world, composed in Montevideo in 1917. The tango is a cultural pride of Montevideo. It is a fine stop, to be experienced in the milongas.

Practical information

The tango is experienced in Montevideo in the milongas, the cafés and during the festivals, especially in the ciudad vieja and the central districts. The balls and shows follow their own hours; it is best to enquire about the programme, which varies according to the seasons. It is a living part of the culture of the town.

Was the tango born in Montevideo or in Buenos Aires?

The tango was born on the two banks of the Rio de la Plata, at the end of the nineteenth century, and Montevideo fully claims its paternity alongside Buenos Aires; Uruguay takes pride notably in Carlos Gardel, the most famous tango singer, and in La Cumparsita, the most played tango in the world, composed in Montevideo in 1917.

What is La Cumparsita?

Doubtless the most famous and the most played tango in the world, composed in Montevideo in 1917 by the young Gerardo Matos Rodríguez; it makes the pride of Uruguay, that claims with it a major role in the history of the tango, born on the two banks of the Rio de la Plata.