Raúl Kaplún (November 11, 1910 - January 23, 1990) (born Israel Kaflún) was a well-known tango violinist, director and composer.

Biography

Raúl Kaplún was born in

Balvanera Balvanera is a Barrios of Buenos Aires, barrio or neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Origin of name and alternative names The official name, Balvanera, is the name of the ''parroquia'' (parish) centered around the church of ''Nuestra Seño ...

, Buenos Aires to an itinerant

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

hat salesman Leiser Finkel who had immigrated to Argentina from

Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...

. Kaplun was sent to the

cheder A ''cheder'' (, lit. 'room'; Yiddish pronunciation: ''khéyder'') is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language. History ''Cheders'' were widely found in Europe before the end of the 18th century. L ...

of the synagogue on Paso Street, as well as to study the violin from Marcos Sadoski. He later studied with José Fraga and later with the prestigious German . He was the author of ''Que solo estoy'', ''Canción de rango'', ''Una emoción'' and ''Solitario''. Kaplun refused to join the

Peronist Peronism, also known as justicialism, is an Argentine ideology and movement based on the ideas, doctrine and legacy of Juan Perón (1895–1974). It has been an influential movement in 20th- and 21st-century Argentine politics. Since 1946, Pe ...

party, and as a result his band was barred from the radio. He is buried in the in Buenos Aires. He was one of a group of prominent Jewish tango musicians, including Szymsia Bajour, Carlos Aguirre, Julio Jorge Nelson and Ismael Spitalnik.

References

Julio Nudler Julio Nudler (16 December 1941 – 27 July 2005) was an Argentine economic journalist. Nudler wrote for La Opinión, Clarín and La Razón before he became head of the economics section of Página/12 in 1990. In 2004 an article, in which he im ...

,''Tango judío. Del ghetto a la milonga'', Editorial Sudamericana, Buenos Aires 1998. * Ricardo Feierstein, ''Historia de los judíos argentinos'', Editorial Galerna, Buenos Aires, 2006 * ''From Tejano to Tango: Essays on Latin American Popular Music'' edited by Walter Aaron Clark, 2002
Biography

Video of Kaplun Orchestra

Video of Kaplun Orchestra

Video of Kaplun Orchestra playing 'Tierra Querida'
Argentine tango musicians Jewish Argentine musicians Argentine people of Polish-Jewish descent 1910 births 1990 deaths 20th-century violinists {{Argentina-bio-stub Tango musicians Argentine violinists Jewish violinists