Milonga sentimental

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Letra

I

Milonga pa’ recordarte.
Milonga sentimental.
Otros se quejan llorando
yo canto pa’ no llorar.
Tu amor se secó de golpe
nunca dijiste por qué.
Yo me consuelo pensando
que fue traición de mujer.

Estribillo

Varón, pa’ quererte mucho,
varón, pa’ desearte el bien,
varón, pa’ olvidar agravios
porque ya te perdoné.
Tal vez no lo sepas nunca,
tal vez no lo puedas creer,
tal vez te provoque risa
¡verme tirao a tus pies!

II

Es facil pegar un tajo
pa’ cobrar una traición
o jugar en una daga
la suerte de una pasión.
Pero no es fácil cortarse
los tientos de un metejón
cuando están bien amarrados
al palo del corazón.

III

Milonga que hizo tu ausencia.
Milonga de evocación.
Milonga para que nunca
la canten en tu balcón.
Pa’ que vuelvas con la noche
y te vayas con el sol.
Pa’ decirte que sí, a veces,
o pa’ gritarte que no.

Lyrics

I

A sentimental milonga,
Just to remember you by.
Others complain by crying;
I sing so that I don’t cry.
Your love dried up for some reason,
You never told me the tale.
I comfort myself by thinking
It was a woman’s betrayal.

Refrain

A man, one who really loves you,
A man, yes I am the one.
A man, who’ll forget you wronged me;
I forgive you what you’ve done.
Perhaps you will never know it,
Perhaps you will not believe,
Perhaps you’ll be laughing when you
See me lying at your feet.

II

It’s easy to get your vengeance
With the sharp blade of a knife,
Or, on a passing fancy,
To gamble on your life.
But when it’s loving that holds you
It’s hard to cut apart
The tentacles that so tightly
Are tied around your heart.

III

Milonga to bring back old mem’ries,
A song that your absence made.
You’ll never hear this milonga
Sung as a serenade.
You will come back in the nighttime
And with the sun you’ll go.
Sometimes a "yes" I’ll whisper
Or else I’ll shout a "no."

 

(1931)

Music by Sebastián Piana
Lyrics by Homero Manzi.
 

From 1920 to approximately 1955 the tango underwent significant transformations. During this period, known as "La Guardia Nueva" (the New Guard), three different types of tango appeared: tango milonga, tango romanza, and tango canción.

The tango milonga is often called milonga interchangeably with the latter, producing confusion between the terms. Other names given to the development of the tango during this period are "tango de corte milonga" or "milonga urbana".

Undoubtedly, Sebastián Piana was the pioneer of the tango milonga with his Milonga Sentimental, composed in 1931 with lyrics by Homero Manzi. It enriched the simple harmonies of the rural milonga and opened a whole range of rhythmic, melodic, and poetic possibilities. Many other composers followed his path: some of the most representative productions are La trampera (A. Troilo), La Puñalada (P. Castellanos), Nocturna (J. Plaza), and Taquito Militar (M. Mores).

A lot of tango milongas were performed in fast tempos, heavily marking the accents, giving them a solid rhythmic character. It is probable that this fact contributed to a popular confusion that describes the tango milonga as a "tango in a fast tempo". This representation fails to explain the existence of the slow tango milonga, like Sebastián Piana´s Milonga Triste (1936), or Astor Piazzolla´s Milonga del Angel, among many others. The confusion grew when some tango historians invented the term orquesta milonguera for orchestras that had a great sense of rhythm.