In October 2006 the Erling Kroner NEW MUSIC ORCHESTRA presented La Mariposa Tango Project with Laura Hansen – vocal and Carlos Morera – bandoneón - for the first time. The Argentine tango singer with the Danish-sounding name was brought to my attention by long-time friend and compinche, lyricist and music-aficionado Finn Nielsen. On the initiative of Finn and Lars Thorborg of Copenhagen JazzHouse the duo was brought to Denmark for a short, introductory tour. The concerts presented the EKNMO La Mariposa Tango Project in a string of new compositions and arrangements by myself and Niels Gerhardt, written especially for the event, and most notably premiered a new work, dedicated to Laura Hansen, by Finn Nielsen and myself, STRADA ANFOSA, the title song of this album.

In November 2007 the EKNMO La Mariposa Tango Project toured Denmark again to great acclaim. Finn and I had written yet another tango for Laura, LATINATE LAMENTS, and Niels Gerhardt wrote a new, instrumental tango entitled CONTRA EL VIENTO. We would very much have liked to go into the studio to record the project, however that proved financially impossible. But wanting some kind of documentation of the event, we in the last minute asked Mik Neumann to ‘run a reference tape’ of the final concert at the JazzHouse. Mik should have been our sound engineer for the tour, but couldn’t make it, so he suggested Lasse Dideriksen, who did a great job. Luckily Mik could find time to record us, so he set up his gear in the minute dressing room of the JazzHouse. I told the musicians to disregard the recording aspects and play to the audience, since all we were trying to do was getting a possible demo recording of the event. To really, seriously do a live recording, we would have needed more time to set up the band, sound check etcetera, but we literally came off the bus into the JazzHouse. Listening back to the tapes at a later date, we realized that Mik had captured a gem of a concert, and the sound was much better than what was to be expected, so we decided to try and see if we could get a CD out of the material. It was hard work at the mixing console trying to overcome the inherent deficiencies - monitor-feeds, distortions of the vocal- and other mikes, general leaks and the like. Also the JazzHouse, which is a fine venue, is just a little too compact, sound-wise, making it very difficult for the vocalist to hear herself clearly when the band is ‘shouting’. So this is far from a perfect recording, but Mik has captured the essence of Laura’s voice and the band’s sound. And here it is, La Mariposa Tango Project, the recording that never was. Enjoy!

STRADA ANFOSA, subtitled Song for Laura, is a poem in three parts by Finn Nielsen that I set to music. It is Finn’s personal tribute to Laura, whom we see as the modern tango singer, who, in her voice and interpretations, captures both the historical essence and the future of the tango. Cross-references to the jazz idiom and the American Songbook, and the past, present and future of the Argentines and their music, abound. Laura and her husband, Carlos, are latter day exponents of the exilados, living, as they do, in Barcelona. Lars Tormod starts the proceedings with his excellent tanguero arco bass with Carlos making colors by slapping the bandoneón with his palms and stroking the teclas (keys) of his bellows instrument with the nails of his fingers. Then Laura enters, accompanied by Carlos, and eventually the whole band comes in. Young Peter Marott plays a fiery solo on trumpet, followed by the sinewy tenor of Jan Harbeck, who is left hanging in a Gonzalves-esque solo cadenza that segues into Laura’s restatement of the song, before she concludes with a recitation over the band.

ESCUALO, one of Astor Piazzolla’s most fiery compositions, is about shark fishing. Astor had a summer residence in Punta del Este, Uruguay, where he loved going shark fishing. He likened mastering the bandoneón to fighting a shark (escualo). Upon hearing our arrangement Carlos wanted to start it off like the Troesma on his bandoneón. He wanted it so bad that the trombone section graciously let him have the first four bars solo. My arrangement is based upon Astor’s long time friend and cello player José Bragato’s arrangement for violin, cello and piano. I have re-scored the wonderful violin solo, as performed by ‘el Indio’ Fernando Suárez Paz, for the saxes led by Pernille Bévort’s soprano and Jan zum Vohrde’s flute, which takes over, when the lead gets out of the soprano range. Jan plays a magnificent flute solo and Pernille solos on soprano after the violin/sax chorus before we recap the theme getting into the ending, which climaxes with unison soprano and tenor depicting the final struggle of the shark before it is finally brought in. Triumph!

EL DIA QUE ME QUIERAS brings Laura back into the limelight to perform one of the most beloved classical tangos, arranged by Niels Gerhardt, based on Carlos Morera’s suggestions. Carlos sets the very subdued mood, the band eases in. I grab my trombone with one hand, while conducting with the other, somehow manage putting the beret over the bell to play a unison line with Pernille’s soprano over the band, and then Laura is on for a beautiful rendition of the lovely song in the original form of Carlos Gardel. A short band interlude delivers me for a solo, soon to be joined by Laura reciting. Carlos restates the melody freely and brings Laura back in for the conclusion of the song.

CONTRA EL VIENTO was written by Niels Gerhardt, especially for this project. “We need a new tango for the band, write us one!” I demanded shortly before the tour, knowing full well he had never written a tango in his life – and that he was going to come up with something very special. ‘Against the Wind’ was promptly morphed into ‘Contra el viento’. It is very Gerhardt, and Nino Rota has not lived in vain. Peter Marott is up for yet another fierce solo, followed by the divine Marie Louise Schmidt on piano, who, without ever having heard it, quotes my Tango de oscuridad, dedicated to Jorge Luis Borges. This just proves what great ears and imagination can do. Magnificent, as is her playing throughout.

HEARTBREAK MILONGA dates back to 1983. Finn set lyrics to my music, and it was originally performed by singer Lei Aloha Moe and the Danish Radio Light Symphony Orchestra conducted by me in 1984. Inspired by Piazzolla’s mournful milongas it is very much its own. Laura sings the wide-ranging song with great command and intense feeling, gently caressed by Ed Epstein’s haunting baritone. Marie Louise is back for a beautiful solo that segues into one just as delightful by Ed, the gentle giant. Laura comes back in what could be considered the bridge of the song, and takes it out with a new ending.

LATINATE LAMENTS, subtitled Tango desesperado, was written especially for this second tour with Laura. Finn wanted to unearth new aspects of Laura and of the new tango to come. “Things to Come,” said Dizzy Gillespie. Lo que vendrá said Astor Piazzolla. So Finn wrote this new poem, again in three parts, further out than ever, and I panicked! Standing on the shoulders of Strada Anfosa and reaching for the moon? With Finn’s lyrics one can’t just compose some nice, melodic lines. His phraseology is so unorthodox and has so much life of its own that it decides where the musical lines go, not the composer. It’s searching, throwing away, frantically looking for where the lyrics demand to move, the inherent rhythm and color of the words - with no escape. Somehow I made it, how I don’t really know, but the result fascinates me. I start it off on my open horn with a hidden hint to Gil Evans’ version of Where Flamingos Fly. Laura enters and again references fly, in the lyrics as in the music. Finn wanted the first soloist to be me on the beret-muted trombone. After a while I’m joined by Morten Højring’s guitar, with the band kicking us to deliver Laura for the second verse. This time Finn moves from English to castellano (Argentine Spanish) seamlessly as he pleases, bringing the patron saint of Argentina, la Virgen de Luján, into play. Carlos plays a beautiful interlude before I make a short statement about playas abandonadas and Laura is back in with the third and last verse – en un tango desesperado.

BALADA PARA UN LOCO, Piazzolla’s and Ferrer’s hymn to madness concludes this CD as it did the concert. Laura recites the introduction over Marie Louise’s waltzing piano. “The afternoons in Buenos Aires have this . . . whazzmacallit? . . . y’know? “ It is arranged by Niels Gerhardt and scored for four trombones, so I step back to lead the bones and conduct with the slide. Gerhardt utilizes his favorite nine-tone scales to emphasize the madness that abound, loco, loco, loco. This very theatrical piece has some beautiful lyrics by Astor’s long time collaborator and friend Horacio Ferrer. Un poema y un trombón. And trombón rhymes with corazón. I know of no other language where trombone and heart actually rhyme! The trombone solo is handled by my favorite trombone player, our lead man, Calle Lindberg. What sound, what feeling, what heart. ¡Trombón – Corazón! - indeed! Harbeck is back in for yet another solo over the band’s backing until Laura re-enters and concludes the song and the show in Piazzolla’s bravura way. “¡Todos locos, loco él y loca yo - - - - !”

We have carefully chosen the songs from the evening’s concert that survived the hazards of this impromptu live recording. Sadly one of Laura’s most beautiful performances (of Piazzolla’s Oblivión, sung in French) had to be omitted due to a faulty microphone. Instrumental songs, previously recorded on our Tango Jalousie and all that Jazz (Calibrated cali028) were also omitted, causing a bunch of our great soloists not to be heard enough here – or at all. Like altoist Kasper Wagner, master trumpeter Mårten Lundgren, guitarist Morten Højring and our drummer Dennis Drud.

We hope that this record will help putting Laura Hansen’s name on the tango firmament where it belongs. And close your eyes over my day.

Erling Kroner, Copenhagen, May 13, 2008