Vicente Greco

Vicente Greco (3 February 1888 – 5 October 1924) was an Argentine composer, conductor, and bandoneon player of tango music. He had a significant role in the spread of tango music from the suburbs into the cities, where it became very popular.

Life story He was born in Buenos Aires, the son of Genaro Greco and Victoria Santo, a couple of modest means who brought up Vicente and seven other children. His family's low income caused Vicente to work from a young age; his schooling was interrupted, and he instead became a newsboy in the streets of Buenos Aires. Some of his siblings were also musically-inclined. Vicente's musical career began around 1903 during his teens, when he played guitar, complemented by singing, for fun.

As a self-taught musician, he initially needed the help of fellow musicians to commit his music to paper. Among the venues where Greco played was the , in which, one evening in 1911, the tango "Rodríguez Peña" was premiered with a very warm reception by the audience, who followed their applause by carrying him on their shoulders victoriously along the street outside. Also in 1911, he was the first tango musician to be hired at the Armenonville, a musical cabaret that became one of the main centres of diffusion of the tango.

His tangos sold well; 22,000 copies of his first tango El morochito (written in 1905), were sold, "Rodríguez Peña" sold 12,000 copies, and "El flete" sold 6,000 copies in three months. Numbers such as "Rodríguez Peña", "La viruta" or El flete, were classics of the genre. The famous singer Carlos Gardel was his personal friend and a musical collaborator.

Greco's recording work began around 1910. He was accompanied by the same instrumentalists with whom he had already appeared at the Café El Estribo: Lorenzo Labissier (bandoneon), Domingo Greco (piano), Vicente Pecci (El Tano) (flute) and Palito Abatte or, on occasions, Francisco Canaro (violin).

Tangos by Greco

Alma porteña Argentina Ausencia Barba’e choclo Chicotazo Criollo viejo De raza El cuzquito El eléctrico El estribo El flete El garrotazo El mejicano El morochito (1905) El pangaré El pato de la Z El perverso El pibe Estoy penando Italianita Kiki La canota La gauchita La infanta La milonguera La paica La percanta está triste La regadera La viruta Los soñadores María Angélica Máscara dura Montaraz Muela careada Noche brava Ojos negros (1910) Pachequito Pobre corazoncito Popoff Pueyrredón ¡Qué nene! Racing Club Rodríguez Peña Saladillo Zazá