Samuel Castriota (November 2, 1885 – July 8, 1932) was an Argentinian

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

, guitarist and composer. He is the composer of the

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

'' Mi noche triste'', among other works. Born in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, Castriota spent his childhood in the nearby town of San Miguel where he learned to play the guitar "by ear" that is without reading music. He returned to Buenos Aires at age 16 and began performing in small ensembles while also learning to play the piano. He won a major prize in the lottery, and moved away from music toward establishing a hairdressing business. Eventually, however, he returned to his musical hobby and played piano in a trio that included himself, Vicente Loduca on

bandoneon The bandoneon (or bandonion, es, bandoneón) is a type of concertina particularly popular in Argentina and Uruguay. It is a typical instrument in most tango ensembles. As with other members of the concertina family, the bandoneon is held be ...

and

Francisco Canaro Francisco Canaro (November 26, 1888 – December 14, 1964) was a Uruguayan violinist and tango orchestra leader. Canaro was born in San José de Mayo, Uruguay, in 1888. His parents were Italian immigrants, and later, when he was less than 10 y ...

on violin. In the middle of the first decade of the twentieth century, Castriota released an instrumental tango, and Pascual Contursi provided lyrics. Carlos Gardel brought the names of Castriota and Contursi to public attention. Contursi had added lyrics to tangos composed by other artists, but not with the success that came from the collaboration with Castriota on ''Mi noche triste''. Castriota continued to direct his orchestra, alternating as pianist, and composing new pieces. However, those new pieces never came close to having the impact of ''Mi noche triste''. He died in Buenos Aires on July 8, 1932.

Compositions

*''A la vejez'' (In old age) *''A Trípoli'' *''Atorrante'' (letra de Juan Andrés Bruno) *''Buen ejemplo'' (Good example) *''Campero'' (Camper) *''Chica moderna'' (Modern girl) *''¡Cómo brilla!'' (How bright!) *''Como quiera'' (However you want) *''Como una flor'' (Like a flower) *''Con su china'' *''Cordobesita'' *''Cotorrita'' *''Despechando'' *''Dolor de ausencia'' (letra de Carlos R. De Paoli) *''Don Florencio'' *''El arroyito'' (The creek) *''El botonazo'' *''El ciruja de Sorrento'' *''El gaucho'' (The cowboy) *''El gorrión'' (Sparrow) *''El loco de los inventos'' (The crazy inventions) *''El señuelo'' (The lure) *''Flor de cardo'' (Thistle) *''Francia'' (France) *''Inesita'' *''Jardín de las rosas'' *''La cotorrita'' (The parrot) *''La mañanita'' *''La parroquiana'' (The parishioner) *''La piba del norte'' *''La yerra'' *''Las margaritas'' (Daisies) *''Lamento del corazón'' *''Mi coronel'' (Colonel) *''Mi noche alegre'' (My cheerful night) *''Mi noche triste'' (My sad night) *''Mi querida'' (My dear) *''Nido de amor'' (Love nest) *''Notas lejanas'' *''Patio olvidado'' *''Picardía'' (Craftiness) *''Puerto Belgrano'' *''Rebelde'' (Rebel) *''Reja de mis amores'' *''Reliquias camperas'' *''Sentate hermano (Bebé conmigo)'' *''¿Te acordás, Rafaela?'' (Do you remember, Rafaela?) *''Una sonrisa'' (A smile) *''Vieja milonga''

External links

Samuel Castriota
at todotango.com
Samuel Castriota
at tango.info 1885 births 1932 deaths Argentine musicians People from Buenos Aires Tango musicians {{Argentina-musician-stub