Mariano Mores

Mariano Alberto Martínez, later known as Mariano Mores, was born on 18 February 1918 in the San Telmo neighborhood of Buenos Aires, the eldest of seven children in a family of tango dancers and musicians. His parents competed in tango contests, and his grandfather, a flautist and band director, insisted that the boy study music with the aim of becoming a classical concert pianist. The family moved to Tres Arroyos around 1925, where Mores began formal piano lessons at age seven on an instrument purchased specifically for him; early teachers initially doubted his aptitude. By 1927 the family had returned to Buenos Aires, settling first in Flores, where a neighbor taught him piano successfully, and then in Lanús Oeste, where he studied at the D’Andrea conservatory under Amelia Faguada de Alcami, completing theory, solfège, and harmony within a year. In 1929 the family relocated to Spain, the homeland of his grandparents. There Mores received a scholarship to study classical piano at the University of Salamanca and performed as a child prodigy under the nickname “Lolo el compositor relámpago” for his rapid improvisation skills. The approach of the Spanish Civil War prompted the family’s return to Argentina around 1935–1936. The death of Carlos Gardel in 1935, which Mores later recalled learning about through his father’s purchase of a record, sparked his serious interest in tango, particularly the works Gardel created with Alfredo Le Pera. Shortly after the return, Mores’s father died, leaving the teenager to help support the family. In 1936, while riding a tram along Corrientes, he saw a sign at the Bar Vicente (near the Café Germinal) seeking a pianist able to play international music, sight-read, and transpose. He auditioned and was hired at three pesos fifty per day. At the same time he enrolled at the Primera Academia Argentina de Interpretación directed by the lyricist Luis Rubistein, later becoming a teacher there. Through Rubistein and the academy he met the sisters Margot and Mirna (Myrna) Moragues, who performed as Las Hermanas Mores. Mores joined them as pianist, forming the Trío Mores; the public began calling him Marianito Mores, and he eventually adopted the surname permanently. He married Myrna, who largely retired from professional singing after the wedding. During this period he also transcribed melodies for Rodolfo Sciammarella, who could not write music, and collaborated with Rubistein on songs such as “Gitana,” later recorded by the tenor Tito Schipa. Mores’s first major success as a composer was the tango “Cuartito azul” (1939), with lyrics by Mario Battistella. The title and inspiration came from a small room he rented on Terrada (approximately 2400 or 2410) in Villa del Parque so he could live near Myrna; he painted the walls with lime mixed with blue laundry bleach that flaked and required frequent repainting. The melody began as an introduction or arrangement for “La cumparsita.” Ignacio Corsini recorded it on 17 March 1939, and the piece quickly established Mores’s reputation. Sciammarella introduced him to Ivo Pelay, partner of Francisco Canaro. Mores joined Canaro’s orchestra in 1939, debuting at the Teatro Nacional on Corrientes, and remained for a decade until 1948. He served as pianist, made arrangements, and directed the chorus. Canaro became a key artistic mentor. These years were Mores’s most productive as a composer. With José María Contursi he wrote “En esta tarde gris” (1941) and “Gricel” (1942). With Enrique Santos Discépolo he produced “Uno” (1943), “Sin palabras” (1946), and “Cafetín de Buenos Aires” (1948). Discépolo reportedly told him he would no longer write music himself. “Uno” was premiered during the 1943 Carnival season at Luna Park. Mores also co-composed “Adiós pampa mía” (1945) with Canaro, lyrics by Ivo Pelay, a work that blended tango with folk elements of the pampa and became one of the most internationally circulated tangos. He contributed music to the 1938 film Senderos de fe (or Senderos de Santa Fe). After leaving Canaro in 1948, Mores formed his own ensembles. He debuted a large orchestra at the Teatro Presidente Alvear. Influenced by arranger Martín Darré, he pursued a “tango sinfónico” or “orquesta de corte sinfónico,” expanding beyond the classic típica of bandoneons, violins, and piano to include percussion, harp, choir, and later electric guitar, organ, bass, and synthesizers. He called one early formation the Orquesta de Cámara del Tango or Orquesta Lírica Popular (established around 1950). In the 1960s this evolved into the more compact Sexteto Rítmico Moderno. Mores never labeled his groups “típicas.” Singers associated with his orchestras included his brother Enrique (as Enrique Lucero), Mario Ponce de León, Aldo Campoamor, Carlos Acuña, Miguel Montero, Hugo Marcel, and later his son Nito Mores. He appeared in the 1949 films Corrientes, calle de ensueños (in which “Cafetín de Buenos Aires” featured) and La doctora quiere tangos with Mirtha Legrand, and starred in the 1953 film La voz de mi ciudad. In 1952 he premiered the milonga “Taquito militar” at the Teatro Colón during the Peronist era, an event that symbolized the temporary opening of the elite theater to popular music. The piece, whose opening four notes evoke the heel-taps of traditional tango shoes derived from military boots, had been improvised earlier at the Ministry of War; it was dedicated in connection with General Franklin Lucero and later appeared in La voz de mi ciudad. Mores recorded it in 1952 on IFMA/Mercurio as his first disc with his own orchestra. The performance at the Colón and Mores’s broader project of fusing classical and popular resources aligned with Peronist cultural policies, though it drew criticism from some traditionalists who found his large, theatrical, and sometimes “estridente” style unsuitable for pure listening or dancing. After the 1955 coup, state support for such experiments diminished, yet Mores continued independently for decades, producing musical revues such as Buenas noches Buenos Aires (1963), Buenos Aires canta al mundo (1966), and Yo canto a mi Argentina (1973), appearing on television (including M ama a M in 1957 and La familia Mores in 1967), and touring internationally. Family members frequently participated: wife Myrna, son Nito (who died in 1984), daughter Silvia, and later grandson Gabriel. He accumulated more than 300 recordings. In later years he received the Premio Konex de Platino in 1985 as the best tango composer in history, additional Konex mentions, and was voted “mejor compositor de tango del siglo” in a 2000 popular poll; “Taquito militar” was similarly voted best milonga of the century. He continued performing into advanced age, with a final major stage appearance around 2012–2013 in which he passed the baton to his grandson. Mores died on 13 April 2016 in Buenos Aires at age 98 and was buried in the Cementerio de Olivos; his body lay in state at the Teatro Colón in accordance with his wishes. His catalog remains among the most recorded and internationally recognized in tango, bridging the golden age of the 1940s with later theatrical and symphonic presentations of the genre.

Early life and formation

Born Mariano Alberto Martínez on 18 February 1918 in San Telmo, Mores grew up in a household steeped in tango and classical music. After early piano study in Tres Arroyos and Buenos Aires, the family’s 1929 move to Spain allowed him advanced classical training at the University of Salamanca, where his improvisational gifts earned him the nickname “Lolo el compositor relámpago.” The return to Argentina in the mid-1930s, coinciding with Gardel’s death, redirected him toward popular music. His 1936 employment at the Bar Vicente on Corrientes and studies at Rubistein’s academy brought him into professional circles, including the Moragues sisters with whom he formed the Trío Mores and from whom he took his artistic surname after marrying Myrna. These years also saw his first compositional efforts, including work for Sciammarella and the 1938 film score for Senderos de fe.

Years with Francisco Canaro and major compositions

From 1939 to 1948 Mores served as pianist, arranger, and chorus director in Francisco Canaro’s orchestra, debuting at the Teatro Nacional on Corrientes. Canaro acted as an artistic father figure. During this decade Mores produced the core of his lasting catalog: “Cuartito azul” (1939, lyrics Battistella), inspired by the blue-painted room he rented near his future wife and first recorded by Ignacio Corsini on 17 March 1939; “En esta tarde gris” and “Gricel” with José María Contursi; the landmark “Uno” (1943) with Enrique Santos Discépolo, premiered at Luna Park during Carnival; “Sin palabras” and “Cafetín de Buenos Aires” also with Discépolo; and the collaborative “Adiós pampa mía” (1945) with Canaro and Ivo Pelay. These works combined melodic accessibility with sophisticated harmonic language and achieved both commercial success and critical stature within the golden age of tango.

Own orchestras, style, and Teatro Colón

After leaving Canaro in 1948, Mores formed large ensembles that deliberately moved beyond the traditional orquesta típica. Working with arranger Martín Darré, he developed what he termed an orquesta lírica popular or orquesta de cámara del tango, incorporating percussion, harp, choir, and later electric instruments and synthesizers. The formation debuted at the Teatro Presidente Alvear and evolved in the 1960s into the Sexteto Rítmico Moderno (piano, bandoneon, electric guitar, organ, bass, percussion). His sound was theatrical and expansive, suited to stage shows, film, and television rather than the intimate dance floor preferred by some traditionalists. The 1952 premiere of the milonga “Taquito militar” at the Teatro Colón marked a high point of his ambition to bring popular music into elite concert venues during the Peronist period. The piece’s rhythmic opening, evoking heel-taps, and its later widespread recordings by other orchestras (including Troilo and Canaro’s Quinteto Pirincho) cemented its place among the most performed milongas.

Films, later career, family, and legacy

Mores appeared in several films, including Corrientes, calle de ensueños and La doctora quiere tangos (both 1949) and La voz de mi ciudad (1953), for which he composed and performed. He produced large-scale musical revues that mixed tango, dance, theater, and humor, and starred in television series. Family members—wife Myrna, brother Enrique Lucero, son Nito Mores (d. 1984), daughter Silvia, and grandson Gabriel—frequently performed with him, creating the public image of “la familia Mores.” He recorded more than 300 sides. Honors included the 1985 Premio Konex de Platino for the best tango composer in history and the 2000 popular designation as best tango composer of the century (with “Taquito militar” as best milonga). He remained active into his nineties, giving international concerts and a final major performance in which he handed direction to his grandson. Upon his death in 2016 his remains were honored at the Teatro Colón. His melodies continue to be arranged for everything from string quartets to large orchestras and remain staples of both traditional and contemporary tango repertoires.