Francesita

‘Francesita’ is one of several pieces on this fine double album composed by Enrique Delfino, the now near-forgotten pioneer of tango canción (tango song), and which bear names referring to ‘les blanches’ – white European women abducted to live and die in the brothels of 1920s Argentina. These songs have been revived by Louise Jallu, an award-winning young French exponent of the bandoneón. After a stay in Buenos Aires, Jallu embarked on several artistic ventures, including forming a quartet, with whom she recorded the second half of this almost entirely instrumental release. Shorn of piano, violin and double bass accompaniment, the first half spotlights her thrilling and dramatic solo interpretations of the ‘violent melancholy of a tango,’ interspersed with those augmented by guest musicians. Several pieces appear on both CDs, and three versions of her composition ‘à Gennevilliers’ invite us to compare the theatricality of the quartet against the spare tension of her solo rendition and the jazzier version with double bass and electric guitar.

At only 23 years old, Louise Jallu displays a genuine mature talent that promises much for the future.