Oscar Herrero

Oscar Luis Herrero, nicknamed Cacho, was born in the Palermo neighborhood of Buenos Aires into a household that valued music, particularly tango. Sources disagree on the precise birth date: most accounts, including the biography by Abel Palermo on Todo Tango, give 5 July 1921, while some Wikipedia entries and Wikidata list 4 July 1921.^[1][4][5] His musician father taught him theory and solfège, while his brothers—one a violinist, the other a bandoneonist—introduced him to the instruments. He settled on the violin and refined his technique with his brother Fernando and later with the Rosario violinist Emilio Cantore.^[1][2]

At sixteen, in 1937, he debuted in the orchestra formed by the Herrero brothers, which performed at local venues and neighborhood gatherings; a photograph of that early group survives.^[1][3] Shortly afterward he formed the Quinteto Catano-Herrero and then joined a quartet organized by pianist Armando Cupo. In 1940 Pedro Maffia summoned him to his orchestra. The following year he played with the Uruguayan Romeo Gentile on LR2 Radio Argentina. In 1942 he joined Emilio Orlando’s violin section and appeared on the successful Ronda de Ases program broadcast on LR1 Radio El Mundo, later known under other titles and originating from both studios and the Teatro Casino.^[1][2]

Late in 1943 a decisive choice arose. Alfredo Gobbi offered him a place in his rising orchestra, yet at the same moment Enrique Camerano, first violin of Osvaldo Pugliese, invited him to occupy the second violin desk alongside Julio Carrasco and Jaime Tursky. Herrero accepted Pugliese’s offer, having already given his word to Camerano. When he informed Gobbi, the bandleader became furious and, according to Herrero’s later recollection, even attempted to strike him; the two reconciled only years afterward.^[1][3] The decision proved lasting: Herrero remained with Pugliese for twenty-five years.^[1]

For the first fifteen years the string section included Camerano, Herrero, Carrasco (later joined by Emilio Balcarce after Tursky’s departure), violist Francisco Sammartino and bassist Aniceto Rossi. In 1958 Camerano retired; Pugliese appointed Herrero first violin and added a cello to strengthen the lower register. Herrero later described Camerano’s sound and vibrato as unique, noting that while Camerano was not a pure virtuoso he was an artist who created a style, comparable in that respect to Gobbi. Herrero himself acknowledged the weight of the responsibility: the orchestra had to sound at its best, and he contributed through tenacity and practice until he was accepted.^[3]

In late 1956 Herrero composed the instrumental tango he titled Nochero soy. Osvaldo Ruggiero wrote the orchestral arrangement and added a final variation. The piece was recorded (on 28 November 1956 according to discographic sources) and remained in the orchestra’s book for years, winning wide public acceptance. Before the 1959 tours to the Soviet Union and China, the orchestra gave a private concert at the Teatro Nacional in honor of the visiting Soviet-Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian; through an interpreter Khachaturian singled out Nochero soy as a “little work of art.”^[3] Herrero also collaborated with the poet Elizardo Martínez Vilas (Marvil) on vocal tangos such as Descorazonado, El mate amargo and Porque no te tengo más, which Pugliese recorded with Alberto Morán.^[1][2]

The orchestra’s life was marked by both artistic rewards and political difficulties. Tours included Russia and China in 1959 and Japan in 1965; long periods without work resulted from political persecution. Herrero spoke of learning music, tango and life beside Pugliese, and of enjoying the conductor’s friendship while serving eleven years as first violin.^[3] In 1948 the orchestra appeared in the film Mis cinco hijos.^[1][2]

By the mid-1960s tango faced economic crisis. In 1965, after the Japan tour, Pugliese himself suggested forming a smaller sextet in the manner of Julio De Caro as a practical response, yet the idea was not realized at the time. In 1966 the orchestra suspended activity because of the conductor’s illness. In October 1968 six of its members—bandoneonists Osvaldo Ruggiero and Víctor Lavallén, violinists Emilio Balcarce and Oscar Herrero, pianist Julián Plaza (who moved from bandoneon to piano), bassist Alcides Rossi and singer Jorge Maciel—founded the Sexteto Tango. They debuted at the Caño 14 venue and recorded their first long-playing album, Presentación del Sexteto Tango, for RCA Victor, containing instrumentals such as La bordona, Adiós Bardi, Milonga del novecientos, Danzarín, Quinto año nacional and Amurado, plus vocal numbers by Maciel including Sentimiento gaucho and Frente a una copa.^[1][6]

For a period the musicians continued in both ensembles before parting on amicable terms. The Sexteto Tango developed a distinctive sound rooted in Pugliese’s aesthetic yet not a copy of it: a synthesis of forward-looking arrangements with respect for the essential structures of tango. Four of its members—Ruggiero, Plaza, Lavallén and Balcarce—also served as arrangers and composers. The group recorded eleven long-playing albums (ten for RCA Victor and one in Japan for Columbia), appeared on television, toured internationally (Japan, China, the Soviet Union, France and countries of the Americas) and performed at the Teatro Colón in 1974. It remained active until 1991, the year Herrero withdrew from musical activity; the ensemble received Konex Awards diplomas of merit in 1985 and 1995.^[1][6][7] Herrero also appeared with the Sexteto in the 1975 film Solamente ella.^[1][2]

His compositional output, though not large, is regarded by musicians as representative of modern tango writing: the instrumentals Nochero soy (1956) and Quejumbroso (1959) stand out. In the monument to Osvaldo Pugliese erected in Villa Crespo, the violinist figure is modeled on Herrero’s features (third from the right).^[2] He died in Buenos Aires on 23 February 1999 at the age of seventy-seven.^[1][4]

Early life and first orchestras

Raised in Palermo in a musical family, Herrero received his first instruction from his father and brothers before specializing on violin under Emilio Cantore. The 1937 debut with the Herrero brothers’ orchestra at age sixteen marked the beginning of a professional path that quickly led through the Quinteto Catano-Herrero, Armando Cupo’s quartet, Pedro Maffia in 1940, Romeo Gentile on Radio Argentina in 1941, and Emilio Orlando on the Ronda de Ases program in 1942.^[1][2] These early experiences placed him among rising ensembles of the 1940s and prepared him for the decisive choice that followed.

Twenty-five years with Osvaldo Pugliese

Joining at the end of 1943 as second violin, Herrero remained until 1968, becoming first violin after Enrique Camerano’s retirement in 1958. The string section evolved with the addition of Emilio Balcarce, Francisco Sammartino and, later, a cello. Herrero described the tenure as both hazardous and rewarding, emphasizing Pugliese’s conviction as innovator and person, and the friendships formed amid political interruptions and international tours to Russia, China and Japan.^[1][3] His own composition Nochero soy, arranged by Ruggiero, became a lasting part of the repertoire and received unexpected praise from Khachaturian in 1959.^[3]

Sexteto Tango and later career

The October 1968 formation of the Sexteto Tango realized, in practical terms, an idea Pugliese had voiced in 1965. Debuting at Caño 14 and recording Presentación del Sexteto Tango for RCA, the group forged an original style that respected tango’s foundations while employing modern arranging techniques. Herrero continued with the ensemble until 1991, participating in its eleven albums, international tours, television appearances and the 1974 Teatro Colón concert, as well as the 1975 film Solamente ella.^[1][6][7]

Compositions and style

Herrero’s principal instrumental works, Nochero soy and Quejumbroso, are cited by musicians as characteristic of modern tango composition. His collaborations with Marvil produced vocal pieces recorded by Pugliese with Alberto Morán. As a violinist he inherited and adapted the expressive demands of the Pugliese string section, stressing tenacity over pure virtuosity and acknowledging the unique sound of his predecessor Camerano.^[1][3]