Julio de Caro (December 11, 1899March 11, 1980) was an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

composer, musician, and conductor prominent in the

Tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...

genre.

Life and work

His father opened a conservatory in the

San Telmo San Telmo ("Saint Pedro González Telmo") is the oldest ''Barrios of Buenos Aires, barrio'' (neighborhood) of Buenos Aires, Argentina. A well-preserved area of the Argentine metropolis, it hosts some of its oldest buildings. One of the birthplace ...

district, in 1913, soon becoming one of the city's best known sources for music, instruments, parts, and lessons. He and his brother,

Francisco Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Meaning of the name Francisco In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco (name), Paco". Francis of Assisi, San Francisco de A ...

, were both taught the

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

and

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

, respectively; though their father ultimately granted them their wish to exchange instruments (a third brother, Emilio, learned the violin). Against his father's wishes, Julio obtained a spot as a second violinist at the Lorea Theatre for a 1915 performance of a

zarzuela () is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name o ...

. Despite his father's punishment and objections, the brothers began attending Buenos Aires' popular

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...

recitals. Some of these early influences included bandleaders Eduardo Arolas, Juan Carlos Cobián, and Roberto Firpo. At his friends' prompting, de Caro rose to the stage during a tango performance at the

Palais de Glace The Palais de Glace () is a rumeno style Belle Époque building in the Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Located at 1430 Posadas street, it was modelled on the Théâtre du Rond-Point, Palais des Glaces in ...

, an elegant multi-purpose venue, in 1917. Granted an instrument by Firpo's violinist, de Caro's performance elicited a standing ovation, as well as Eduardo Arolas' offer for a permanent spot in his orchestra. The elder de Caro (who disdained popular music generally) resisted it, and the talented young musician resorted to stealth to join Arolas' orchestra, for which he wrote his first tango, ''Mon beguin''. Eventually, his father forced the 18-year-old out of the house, a drastic move that pushed Francisco to join his brother. The two traveled with Arolas' orchestra, a success in both Argentina and neighboring

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

. The brothers contributed greatly to its fortunes, composing - among other standards in tango: ''Mala pinta'' (''Shady Look''), ''Mi encanto'' (''My Charm''), ''Pura labia'' (''All Words''), ''Don Antonio'', ''A palada'' (''In Spades''), ''Era buena la paisana'' (''She Was a Good Country Girl''), ''Percanta arrepentida'' (''Lamentful girl''), ''Bizcochito'' (''Lil' Biscuit''), ''Gringuita'' (''Blondie'') y ''La cañada'' (''The Brook''). A business disagreement led de Caro and pianist José María Rizzuti to leave Arolas' group in 1919. They formed a

quartet In music, a quartet (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers. Classical String quartet In classical music, one of the most common combinations of four instruments in chamber music is the string quartet. String quar ...

with bandoneonist Pedro Maffia and violinist José Rosito, with whom they performed to acclaim at a café facing the Argentine Supreme Court. The group separated in 1920, however, and de Caro and Rizzuti joined bandleader Osvaldo Fresedo, with whom they would tour in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. De Caro relocated to

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, where he married and joined Minotto Di Cicco's orchestra (1922). He was then reunited with Maffia in Buenos Aires under Juan Carlos Cobián's direction, in 1923. His marriage ended, shortly afterwards. Cobián's decision to follow a love interest to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

led to the de Caro brothers' being reunited in need of a band, at the end of 1923. Their success at a high society New Year's Eve ball led to lucrative contracts in popular downtown cafés and for a new medium:

radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...

. The Julio de Caro Orchestra later received a recording contract from

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...

and, in April 1925, performed for Edward, the Prince of Wales. U.S.

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

bandleader

Paul Whiteman Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American Jazz bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist. As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 193 ...

introduced de Caro to the

Stroh violin The Stroh violin or Stroviol is a type of String instrument, stringed musical instrument that is mechanically amplified by a metal resonator and horn attached to its body. The name Stroviol refers to a violin, but other instruments have been mo ...

, later that year. The device (a violin with a

cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. There is also a soprano cor ...

horn at one end) had been invented for radio performances for its ability to project sound above the rest of the orchestra, and the conductor soon found it an indispensable tool. The renowned bandleader composed numerous pieces in honor of some of the prominent figures in Argentine life that attended his performances, notably chief surgeon Enrique Finochietto and President

Marcelo Torcuato de Alvear Máximo Marcelo Torcuato de Alvear y Pacheco (4 October 1868 – 23 March 1942) served as president of Argentina between from 1922 to 1928. His period of government coincided precisely with the end of the Post-war, postwar world crisis, w ...

The orchestra toured

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

by invitation, in 1931. They performed at

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionPalais de la Méditerranée, for Prince Umberto di Savoia, for the Rothschilds' galas, and for

Paramount Studios Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production and distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount Global. It is the sixth-oldest film studio i ...

in the making of '' Luces de Buenos Aires'' (one of several the studio made, starring Carlos Gardel). The orchestra remained successful in Argentina, debuting at the nation's leading

opera house An opera house is a theater building used for performances of opera. Like many theaters, it usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, backstage facilities for costumes and building sets, as well as offices for the institut ...

, the Colón Theatre, in 1935, and at the Teatro Opera (1936), where they presented a comprehensive "Evolution of the Tango" - leading listeners through its development from 1870, onwards. A surprise visit by the brothers' aging parents following one of these performances led to the family's reconciliation. His orchestra continued its prominence among tango fans for years, introducing young talent such as vocalist Edmundo Rivero (a consular figure in tango), for instance. His audiences later declining, Julio de Caro retired from his orchestra in 1954, however. He remarried in 1959 and returned to a recording studio only in 1975, collaborating with author Ernesto Sábato, composer Ben Molar, composer and arranger Luis Stazo and others to make ''Los 14 de Julio de Caro'' (''Julio de Caro's 14''). He was honored by the national government with a declaration of December 11 (his birthday - which he shared with Gardel) as "National Tango Day;" on that day in 1977, he received a standing ovation at

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

' Luna Park Arena, complete with a rousing ''

Happy Birthday to You "Happy Birthday to You", or simply "Happy Birthday", is a song traditionally sung to celebrate a person's birthday. According to the 1998 ''Guinness World Records'', it is the most recognized song in the English language, followed by "For He' ...

''. Julio de Caro died in the seaside resort city of

Mar del Plata Mar del Plata is a city on the coast of the Argentine Sea, Atlantic Ocean, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the seat of General Pueyrredón Partido, General Pueyrredón district. Mar del Plata is the second largest city in Buenos Aires ...

, on March 11, 1980, at age 80. He was interred at Buenos Aires' Chacarita Cemetery, beside his brother, Francisco. Other notable relatives include his cousin, the poet Julia de Caro (July 11, 1917 - June 26, 2009) and his grand-niece, the American fencer Natalie Julia Vie (b. April 19, 1986).

References

External links

Julio de Caro recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...

.
Julio de Caro
on todotango.com
Julio de Caro
on tango.info * {{DEFAULTSORT:Caro, Julio de 1899 births 1980 deaths Argentine composers Argentine male conductors (music) Argentine tango musicians Argentine people of Italian descent Burials at La Chacarita Cemetery Musicians from Buenos Aires 20th-century Argentine conductors (music) 20th-century Argentine composers 20th-century Argentine violinists