Orquesta Típica Julio De Caro

n the late 1923 Julio De Caro split with the Juan Carlos Cobián orchestra and put together an aggregation to appear at the Café Colón on Avenida de Mayo 999 and on LOZ Radio Sudamérica. The members were five and, although his partners had not decided it, he took over the leadership of the group. Their names were: Julio and Emilio De Caro (violins), Francisco De Caro (piano), Pedro Maffia and Luis Petrucelli (bandoneons).



In 1924 he included Leopoldo Thompson on double bass. For the carnival balls he formed a giant orchestra to appear at the Salón L’Aiglon on Florida Street between Bartolomé Mitre and Cangallo (now Presidente Perón). It was lined up by: Julio, Emilio and Alberto De Caro, Esteban Rovati, Lorenzo Olivari, Bernardo Germino and Antonio Arcieri (violins); Pedro Maffia, Luis Petrucelli, Ricardo Brignolo, Luis D'Abbraccio, Ángel Danesi, Nicolás Primiani, Miguel Orlando and Luis Minervini (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro and Roberto Goyheneche (pianos), Leopoldo Thompson and Olindo Sinibaldi (string basses).

That year he signed with the Victor company and Manlio Francia replaced Emilio De Caro, only for recordings. He went back to the Café Colón. And for Christmas time he opened at the El Chantecler where Pedro Laurenz substituted for Luis Petrucelli (who only recorded the first track: “Todo corazón”). He used to appear, also, at the Vogues Club and at Ciro´s, both located in the salons of the old Palais de Glace, and at the Café Richmond on Suipacha Street.

In 1925 he began to play the horn-violin (Stroh violin). The bass player Hugo Baralis (Senior) replaced Leopoldo Thompson. Soon thereafter Olindo Sinibaldi replaced the latter and he later is replaced by Enrique Krauss. The personnel of the sextet was then: Julio and Emilio De Caro (violins), Francisco De Caro (piano), Pedro Maffia and Pedro Laurenz (bandoneons) and Enrique Krauss (double bass).

In 1926 he appeared in Uruguay and then Pedro Laurenz became lead bandoneon because Maffia quit and Armando Blasco was the second. For the carnival balls Manlio Francia and Antonio Arcieri (violins) and Enrique Pollet and Antonio Romano (bandoneons) were added. In 1927 the estribillista (refrain singer) Félix Gutiérrez joined them.

In 1929 he headed the cast of the brand-new Brunswick label. The members of the sextet were Julio De Caro and José Nieso (violins); Pedro Laurenz and Armando Blasco (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro (piano) and Vicente Sciarretta (double bass). While they were hired by Brunswick, the refrain singers Teófilo Ibáñez, Lito Bayardo (who did not succeed in recording), Luis Díaz and Juan Lauga passed through the ranks of the aggregation.

Between 1930 and 1931 he appeared on one of the three stage boxes of the Cine Real and, at the carnival celebrations, at the Teatro Cervantes. On March 4 the orchestra traveled to Europe, appearing in Italy and France. They played the background music for “Luces de Buenos Aires”, a film in which Carlos Gardel was starred. On their comeback to Buenos Aires the singer Juan Carlos Marambio Catán joined them but he did not cut any recording.

In 1932 De Caro put together an aggregation to appear at the Cine-Teatro Astor on 746 Corrientes Street with: Vicente Tagliacozzo, José Nieso, Simón Reznik, Samy Friedenthal and the leader (violins); Pedro Laurenz, Armando Blasco, Calixto Sallago, Aníbal Troilo and Alejandro Blasco (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro and José María Rizzuti (pianos); Vicente and José Sciarretta (double basses) and another vocalist who neither cut any recording: Antonio Rodríguez Lesende.



In 1934 he came back to the Victor label. The members of the orchestra were: Julio De Caro, Luis Gutiérrez del Barrio and Mauricio Saiovich (violins); Carlos Marcucci, Gabriel Clausi, Félix Lipesker and Romualdo Marcucci (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro (piano) Francisco De Lorenzo (double bass). By the end of that year the singer Juan Carlos Otero joined them.

In 1935 he switched to the Odeon company. And in 1936 he formed the Orquesta Melódica Internacional with the addition of brass, woodwinds and percussion and assigned the charts writing to Julio Rosenberg and to Alejandro Gutiérrez del Barrio. Its line-up was: Julio De Caro, José Nieso, Cayetano Puglisi, Luis Gutiérrez del Barrio, Manlio Francia (violins); Carlos Marcucci, Alfredo Cordisco, Calixto Sallago and Pedro Belluati (bandoneons); Julio Perceval (organ), Francisco De Caro and Julio Rosenberg (pianos). The sisters Lidia Desmond and Violeta Desmond collaborated in a recording session and for some live performances Edmundo Rivero was summoned.

After a poll organized by the Sintonía magazine the quintet Los Virtuosos was put together. They were the winners as best instrumentalists according to the readers’ poll: Julio De Caro and Elvino Vardaro (violins), Ciriaco Ortiz and Carlos Marcucci (bandoneons) and Francisco De Caro (piano). They cut four tracks in 1936.

In 1937 he appeared in Viña del Mar (Chile). As the symphony orchestra did not receive a wide public acclaim, in 1939, De Caro came back to his traditional style. The refrain singer (estribillista) would be again Luis Díaz and there would be a new inclusion –for a short time-, an emcee to announce the orchestra: Osvaldo J. Calvo.



Between 1940 and 1942 the recordings continued and the aggregation had two new singers: Héctor Farrel and Agustín Volpe. Roberto Quiroga also recorded two numbers.

In 1943 he returned to the Victor label with the following orchestra: Bernardo Weber, José Nieso, Manlio Francia, Bernardo “Tito” Sevilla and the leader (violins); Carlos Marcucci, Alfredo Cordisco, Calixto Sallago and Pedro Belluati (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro (piano) and Juan José Fantín (double bass). The singer Carlos Viván recorded two pieces.

In 1949, again in Odeon he returned to the recording studios. The members of the group were: Julio De Caro, Bernardo Weber, José Nieso, Manlio Francia, Pedro Sapochnik, Luis Cuervo (violins); Carlos Marcucci, Roberto Di Filippo, Ángel Genta, Pedro Belluati and Alfredo Marcucci (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro (piano); Juan José Fantín (double bass) with the singers Roberto Medina, Roberto Taibo and the actress Fanny Navarro for only one number.

In 1950 Ángel Ramos took the seat as lead bandoneon replacing Roberto Di Filippo.

In 1952 he switched to the Pathé label. The players in his orchestra were: Hugo Baralis (Junior), José Nieso, Manlio Francia, Bernardo Sevilla, Luis Cuervo and Norberto Bernasconi (violins); Carlos Marcucci, Juan Miguel Rodríguez, Ángel Genta, Pedro Belluati and Alfredo Marcucci (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro (piano) and Alfredo Sciarretta (double bass), the vocalist was Orlando Verri.

In 1953 his brilliant career peaked with which turned out to be his last orchestra: Hugo Baralis (Junior), José Nieso, Juan Miguel Álvarez Cuervo, Norberto Bernasconi, Abraham Neiburg and the leader (violins); Carlos Marcucci, Alberto Garralda, Marcos Madrigal, Mario Demarco, Alfredo Marcucci and Arturo Penón (bandoneons); Francisco De Caro (piano) and Ramón de la Plaza (double bass).

From 1924 to August 5, 1953 maestro De Caro, with his orchestras, left 420 recordings for us, without counting the 4 recorded by the Los Virtuosos. The first of them, “Todo corazón”, was for the Victor label; the last one, “Derecho viejo”, for the Pathé company.