Ricardo Malerba

Ricardo Francisco Malerba, who also used the pseudonym Luz Demar, was born in Buenos Aires on 24 August 1905 and died there on 29 June 1974.^[7][8] He began professionally with a neighborhood cinema ensemble in which he played bandoneon while his brothers Alfredo (piano) and Carlos (violin) completed the family group; they earned one peso a day.^[7] In 1927 (some accounts give 1928) the three brothers joined the orchestra that poet-composer Cátulo Castillo assembled for a European tour. Fellow members included Miguel Caló and singer Roberto Maida. The group performed extensively in Spain—debuting at Barcelona’s Teatro Empire and Excelsior cabaret—and cut several sides for Odeon. The official tour ended in 1930, but the Malerba brothers remained in Europe, working in Portugal.^[7][8]

In 1931 Carlos fell ill in Portugal and died in Bilbao. Ricardo then played a season in France with the orchestra of Juan Bautista Deambroggio (Bachicha). Alfredo returned earlier to Buenos Aires, where he accompanied and later married the singer Libertad Lamarque. On his own return Ricardo formed an orchestra with pianist Nicolás Vaccaro that featured Francisco Fiorentino as vocalist; the group appeared at the Tabarís cabaret and on Radio La Voz del Aire.^[7][8]

Through the intercession of his sister-in-law Libertad Lamarque, Malerba obtained a contract at Radio Belgrano on the condition that he play rhythmic, D’Arienzo-style tango. He debuted with his own orchestra on 1 March 1938 and remained associated with the station for more than twenty years. The classic lineup featured Dante Smurra (piano and principal arranger, also Malerba’s brother-in-law), bandoneonists Atilio Cresta, Ricardo Pedevilla, Rodolfo (or Carlos) Carlomagno and Benito Calver, violinists Alfredo Lattero, Ernesto Gianni, Francisco Sanmartino and José López, and double-bassist Francisco De Vivo.^[7][8] Gradually the orchestra moderated the initial high-speed drive into a swinging, danceable pulse that dancers accepted and listeners found agreeable.

The singer most closely identified with the orchestra was Orlando Medina. Other vocalists included Jorge Rico, Antonio Maida, Carlos Barrios, Alberto Tagle, Alberto Sánchez, Roberto del Solar, Carlos Bernal, and Tucho Pavón.^[7] Between 1941 and 1945 Malerba recorded thirty sides for Odeon, the majority with Medina. Stand-out titles from this period include Gitana rusa, Remembranza, and Magdalena (Medina) and Medianoche and Una copa más (Maida). Eight further Odeon sides were cut between March 1956 and January 1957, followed by five titles for Music Hall in 1957.^[7][8]

The orchestra appeared in several films. In La vida de Carlos Gardel (Hugo del Carril, Delia Garcés) it performed Noches de Montmartre. In Cita en la frontera it accompanied Libertad Lamarque in all her numbers. In the 1940 film Confesión the orchestra played Las cuarenta, a piece later censored under Peronism.^[8] In 1952 the group traveled to Porto Alegre, performing in luxury hotels and on the regional radio-television network, then undertook a lengthy tour of Brazil.^[7][8]

As a composer Malerba is remembered especially for the tangos Violín (with Smurra / Horacio Sanguinetti), La piba de los jazmines (with Smurra / Julio Navarrine), Embrujamiento (with Smurra / Manuel Ferradás Campos), and Taruchito, the milonga Mariana (with Francisco Caso / Homero Manzi), and the valses Aristocracia and Cuando florezcan las rosas.^[8] The orchestra’s combination of solid sectional sound, rhythmic swing, and accessible danceability secured it a lasting place in the milonga repertoire long after the golden-age peak, even though it never achieved the commercial dominance of the largest ensembles of the 1940s.

Early career and European years

Malerba and his brothers Alfredo and Carlos first worked in neighborhood cinema theaters, earning one peso a day.^[7] In 1927–28 they joined Cátulo Castillo’s orchestra for a European tour that also included Miguel Caló and Roberto Maida. After extensive work in Spain and Odeon recordings, the tour formally ended in 1930, but the Malerbas stayed on. Carlos died in Bilbao in 1931; Ricardo then played a season in France with Bachicha’s orchestra while Alfredo returned to Buenos Aires and later married Libertad Lamarque.^[7][8]

Return to Argentina and Radio Belgrano

Back in Buenos Aires, Malerba formed a group with Nicolás Vaccaro and singer Francisco Fiorentino that played the Tabarís cabaret and Radio La Voz del Aire.^[7] Through Libertad Lamarque he secured a Radio Belgrano contract requiring a rhythmic, D’Arienzo-like style and debuted his own orchestra on 1 March 1938, remaining at the station for over twenty years. Arrangements were largely by pianist Dante Smurra. The orchestra’s characteristic sound combined quality sectional balance with a swinging, danceable pulse that was less accelerated than pure D’Arienzo but highly acceptable to dancers.^[7][8]

Recordings and principal singers

Thirty sides were cut for Odeon between 1941 and 1945, mostly with Orlando Medina. Memorable titles include Gitana rusa, Remembranza, Magdalena (Medina) and Medianoche, Una copa más (Antonio Maida).^[7][8] Eight additional Odeon titles appeared in 1956–57 and five for Music Hall in 1957. Other singers who recorded or performed with the orchestra were Jorge Rico, Carlos Barrios, Alberto Tagle, Alberto Sánchez, Roberto del Solar, Carlos Bernal, and Tucho Pavón.

Films, Brazil, and compositional legacy

The orchestra appeared in La vida de Carlos Gardel (performing Noches de Montmartre), Cita en la frontera (accompanying Libertad Lamarque), and Confesión (1940, Las cuarenta, later censored).^[8] In 1952 it played luxury hotels and regional radio-television in Porto Alegre before a long Brazilian tour.^[7] Malerba’s own compositions that entered the standard repertoire include Embrujamiento, La piba de los jazmines, Violín, Mariana, Aristocracia, and Cuando florezcan las rosas, several written with Smurra.^[8]