It is curious to believe that a myth like Carlos Gardel´s occured in this century. There are still around friends that visited him and witnesses of his artistic life. Still today in Buenos Aires the house in which he lived can be seen, and the theaters where he sang as well. However it seems as though Gardel is so eternal and comes from so far away, that the history of Buenos Aires cannot be conceived without him.

Maybe it is through this myth that built his voice and his talent, that still today, we continue to investigate his history, regarding doubts about his true date of birth and with anecdotes that are constantly renewed as time goes by. The undoubtfull is his prestigious voice, his creations and his never going old records.

The undoubtfull is the artist Gardel, the man with a frac and a top hat who conquered the world singing “Mi Buenos Aires Querido”.

The nationality and even the date of birth is still an opened discussion between historians and investigators who debate between two dates, december 11 of 1887 in the city of Tacuarembo, Uruguay, or december 11 of 1890, in Tolouse, France.

Fact is, that the eyes of this little boy named Carlos Romualdo Gardés, saw the city of Buenos Aires at the end of the 19th. century, with its growth of the Capital, its changing buildings and with the appereance of a Buenos Aires music, genuine: Tango. Since he was a little boy he was always fond of singing; in an interview he declared his goal was to sing popular music. During his early days as a singer, his models were the payadores, with their styles and songs. It was porbably Gabino Ezeiza, José Bettinoti, Arturo de Nava, who started Gardel in the Criollo way, demonstrating in this recordings of the year 1912, under Columbia´s seal and with his duets with Francisco Martino, Saúl Salinas and José Razzano. With Razzano he recorded LP´s as they satarted recording in 1917 until 1925.

It was precisely in the year 1917, that a very important fact occured in the history of our popular music. The poet Pascual Contursi with music of Samuel Castriota, composed the first tango song, titeled “my sad night”. This same song is later recorded by Gardel at the Odeon, becoming the first national tango singer. This fact stated a start in the appereance of national singers. Gardel invented a way of singing the Tango, he had no model to copy it from, he was the creator of a unique way that from 1920´s onwards, was copied by other singers.

Once he started recording his first songs (Flor de Fango, Milonguita, El Ramito), his popularity grew fast. Sambas, styles and Waltzes were not missing in his songs, first he sang along with José Ricardo, and then with one of his guitar trios, like Barbieri, Riverol and Aguilar. He also recorded some orchestra lyrics of Osvaldo Fresedo, Francisco Canaro, among others, with Rodolfo Baiggi and Antonio Rodio at the violin.

On October 1, 1924, Gardel opened in his acting on the radio, on different radio stations during those years. In the year 1926 he bought in stallments his first house in the Jean Jaures street, number735, in which he lived with his mother, Mrs. Berta Gardés. He was already known as the brunette from the Abasto, as he used to wander around the market of the Abasto in his early childhood.
During these years, Gardel travelled to Europe, visiting France and Spain, where he recorded for the company Odeón, in Paris and Barcelona.

1930´S : DECADE OF CINEMA AND FAME

Although Gardel had had contact with cinema when he costarted in “Flor de Durazno”, in 1917, his acting career only grew popular in the 1930´s, when he was proposed to participate in essays on cinema. We can see him in VIEJO SOMCKING, ROSA DE OTOÑO, MANO A MANO, YIRA YIRA, TENGO MIEDO, PADRINO PELAO, AÑORANZAS, CANCHERO, EL CARRETERO among others, where he performs with Francisco Canaro, Arturo da Nava, Enrique Santos Discepolo and Deledonio Flores.

In May 1931, he filmed in France “Luces de Buenos Aires”, followed by “Esperame”, “La casa es seria”, and “Melodía de Arrabal”. After this, as his popularity grew, more films came along, such as “The Tango in Broadway”, “El día que me quieras” and “Tango Bar”, where he perfromed with Mona Maris, Rosita Moreno, and Trini Ramos among others.

It was at this time of his life that he encountered and became friends with Alfredo Le Pera, the poet.

Along with Lepera, Gardel composed a series of songs, tangos and other genders which he sang all around the world, such as: “Silencio”, “Melodía de arrabal”, “Por una cabeza”, “Amores de estudiante”, “Caminito soleado”, “Guitarra mía”, among others.

Not only was Gardel famous as an actor but as a criollo singer of tangos, creator of a unique style which opened an own singing academy later on.

On June 24, 1935, in a fatal accident in Medellín, Colombia, Carlos Gardel died, and the myth was born. A myth created from admiration, of a voice and a smile which can overcome anything. Beyond a name, the word “Gardel” is an adjective, “You are Gardel”, “Go sing to Gardel”, “I feel Gardel”, common sentences pronounced in Argentina. His sounds are easily identified with Argentineans, he never lets us down, always smiling and singing better each day!

Gabriel Soria
Academic Director of the National Tango Academy