Episode 13

The Pain and Passion of Discovery – A Tango DJ's Dilemma

Do you know how tango DJs suffer? Let me take you behind the scenes of the DJ booth—where the magic begins, but also where the heartaches lie.

Sometimes, you stumble upon a hidden gem. A track so beautiful it makes your heart race… but then, reality hits—the sound quality is beyond salvation.

Take, for example:  

• 𝑬𝒅𝒈𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒐 𝑫𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒐 – 𝑬𝒍 𝑴𝒊 𝑱𝒂𝒓𝒅í𝒏 (1931)  

• 𝑬𝒅𝒈𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒐 𝑫𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒐 – 𝑳á𝒈𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒔 (1930)  

These tracks are bursting with emotion and musical charm, but their audio fidelity is—frankly—painful. DJs often spend hours, even days, experimenting with all kinds of audio cleanup tools. Sometimes it works; sometimes it doesn’t. Even when you get something "decent," it might only be suitable for a cozy local milonga—not quite enough for a big marathon or festival, where sound quality is non-negotiable.

That’s why DJs are always on the lookout for restored versions by professionals. If you're not already familiar with 𝑻𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒐𝑻𝒖𝒏𝒆𝒔 (https://tangotunes.com/en/), it's a treasure trove of carefully restored high-quality tracks from original shellac and vinyl recordings. If you're lucky, you might just find your long-lost favorite track, revived and ready for the dance floor.

Then there's another type of dilemma: what do you do when a track is musically excellent, but not entirely danceable from start to finish?

Take this one:  

• 𝑬𝒅𝒈𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒐 𝑫𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒐 – 𝑼𝒏𝒂 𝑳𝒖𝒛 𝒆𝒏 𝑻𝒖𝒔 𝑶𝒋𝒐𝒔 (1934)  

This vals is charming and romantic, but it comes with baggage. The intro? About 30 seconds of what feels like a completely different composition. That part can be trimmed. But then—just when you're in love with it—it drifts again near the end (listen from 2:38 onward). You can’t really cut it without an awkward, premature ending. The only way out is a fade, which, while smooth, robs the track of a powerful closing and weakens the dancer’s emotional payoff.

These are the kinds of decisions DJs quietly wrestle with. The balance between beauty and usability. Between the emotional pull of a piece and the practicalities of a dance floor.

Behind every tanda you dance to, there’s often a story—a choice, a compromise, a little bit of heartbreak… and a whole lot of love for the music.

#tango, #TangoArgentino, #tangodancer, #milonga, #milonguero, #tangodj