Julio de Caro
Julio de Caro
December 11, 1899 – March 11, 1980
In 1917, a group of teenagers attended the tango orchestra of Roberto Firpo at the Palais de Glace. One of them, the 17 year old Julio de Caro, was there without his father's permission. His father owned a successful music store in San Telmo, and was the city's best source for music, instruments, parts, and lessons. His father hated the tango. It was something for the lower classes, and he wanted his son to go to university.
Julio was pushed to the stage by his friends and Firpo's violinist handed him his instrument. Julio played a tango to a standing ovation. When his father found out, he was punished.
By the time he was 18, the conflict between father and son had grown to the point where Julio was thrown out of the house. Julio had no choice but to seek employment with tango orchestras.
Within a few years, his own orchestra was one of the most popular in the world, performing for the likes of Edward, the Prince of Wales.
In the 1930's de Caro experimented with a variety of instruments. His favorite was the Stroh violin.
Sources
Julio de Caro. (2017, September 26). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:23, December 7, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Julio_de_Caro&oldid=802536925
Julio De Caro - Biography. Todotango.com. Retrieved December 8, 2017, from http://www.todotango.com/english/artists/info/15/Julio-De-Caro
This is a violin with a cornet horn, and it was able to project sound above the rest of the orchestra. It gives many of his tangos a very unique sound.
After a 1935 world tour, de Caro was invited back to play at the famous Colón Theatre. A year later in the Teatro Opera, the orchestra performed "Evolution of the Tango" a history of tango music. An aging José De Caro attended one of these performances and was reunited with his son.
In 1977, Julio de Caro was honored by Argentina with a declaration of December 11 (his birthday - which he shared with Gardel) as "National Tango Day;" on that day, he received a standing ovation at Buenos Aires' Luna Park Arena, complete with a rousing Happy Birthday to You.
Julio de Caro died in the seaside resort city of Mar del Plata, on March 11, 1980, at age 80.