Ástor
Composer: Daniel Berg
Instrument: Mallet Ensemble
Level: Intermediate
Published: 2026
Price: €45.00
Item details
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Description +
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Ástor Piazzolla (1921–1992) was an Argentine tango composer and bandoneón player. His oeuvre revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed nuevo tango, incorporating elements from jazz and classical music.
A fantastic historic musical memory is the legendary concert at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1986, when the Piazzolla Quintet invited vibraphone master Gary Burton for a performance—please enjoy it on YouTube!
Jerker Johansson is, in my opinion, one of the finest arrangers of wind band music in the world. When he suggested that I adapt some of my pieces from Mallet Ensembles for wind band with mallets, he requested a slow middle movement. None of my existing slower works seemed to fit, so Jerker encouraged me to write something new. While driving to my next concert, inspiration struck: a slow tango—an Oblivion—in Piazzolla’s style.
Ástor is, of course, a homage to Piazzolla and exists in three versions: the first for a tango orchestra with vibraphone, the second for mallet ensemble, and finally the third for wind band with mallets in an arrangement by my friend Jerker. Please invite your friends for a tango!
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Instrumentation +
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Required Instruments
• Glockenspiel or Crotales with mallets and bow
• Vibraphone with 2 mallets and bow
• Vibraphone with 4 mallets
• Marimba 4 1/3
• Drum set and bow on cymbals
• 5 octave marimba or Contrabass
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About the composer +
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Daniel Berg is a Swedish composer, musician, and professor in classical percussion at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm and at the Academy of music and drama in Gothenburg.
In his passion to promote the marimba as a solo- and chamber music instrument, Daniel has worked intimately with a number of composers who have written original music for the instrument. This includes more than 300 world premier for solo and chamber works. Daniel Berg is a marimba artist of Bergerault and Elite Mallets.
As a composer Daniel has written a lot for solo marimba like Mistral (for Michael Burritt), Phoenix (for Robert van Sice) and Yán Jiâng (for the Taiwan World Percussion Competition). His music for percussion ensemble have been appreciated and often performed like Kroumata (for sextet) and Arctic Nights (for quintet) - all published by Edition Svitzer.
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Credits +
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Front Cover Graphics: Nicola Lee
Photo (Daniel Berg): Roschkov Media
Printed in Copenhagen, Denmark
Copyright © Edition SVITZER
www.editionsvitzer.com
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