Orquesta Típica Pedro Laurenz

n 1934 he appeared at the café Los 36 Billares, by that time on 965 Corrientes Street. Pedro Laurenz, Armando Blasco and Alejandro Blasco (bandoneons), Samy Friedenthal and José Nieso (violins), Osvaldo Pugliese (piano) and Vicente Sciarretta (double bass).

1935. They continued at the same café and appearances on LR5 Radio Excelsior were added. Laurenz, Armando and Alejandro Blasco (bandoneons), Alfredo Gobbi, Samy Friedenthal and Francisco Orefice (violins), Armando Federico (piano) and Vicente Sciarretta (double bass). Throughout this year there were two other changes of personnel: Héctor Gentile for Alejandro Blasco (bandoneon), Pedro Terrón for Sciarretta (double bass) and the inclusion of his first vocalist, Rodolfo Martínez, member of the well-remembered Martínez-Ledesma duo.

1936. Confitería Richmond on Suipacha 450, Excelsior and Stentor radio stations. Mauricio Mise replaced Gobbi (violin) and Héctor Farrel (vocalist). By the end of the year there was an important exodus. The Polish violinist Bernardo Allemany arrived in the country looking for musicians in order to put together an orchestra and play tangos in Europe. Héctor Gentile, Armando Federico and Pedro Terrón quit. The new aggregation was lined up with: Laurenz, Armando Blasco and Héctor Presas (aka Cachito) (bandoneons), Mauricio Mise, Francisco Orefice and Samy Friedenthal (violins), Héctor Grané (piano) and Alberto Celenza (double bass).

1937. Presas and Friedenthal quit and Miguel Jurado and Rolando Gavioli (bandoneons) joined the group. Also the violinists Milo Dojman and Jacobo Dojman (the latter only for a few appearances) passed through its ranks.

1938. Héctor Farrel quit and was replaced by Juan Carlos Casas.

1939. Armando Blasco split with the orchestra and is replaced by Ángel Domínguez. The orchestra is lined up with: Laurenz, Miguel Jurado, Rolando Gavioli, Ángel Domínguez (bandoneons), Mauricio Mise, Francisco Orefice and Milo Dojman (violins), Héctor Grané (piano) and Alberto Celenza (double bass).

1940. It appeared on LR3 Radio Belgrano. Laurenz, Ángel Domínguez, Armando Brunini and Rolando Gavioli (bandoneons), Mauricio Mise, Milo Dojman, Francisco Orefice (violins), Héctor Grané (piano and arrangements), Alberto Celenza (double bass) and Juan Carlos Casas (vocalist).

1941. Martín Podestá (vocalist) joined the orchestra.

1942. Alberto Del Campo substituted for Juan Carlos Casas. Later Alberto Fuentes joined them and recorded only one track.



1943. Alberto Podestá joined them and they appeared on LR3 Radio Belgrano and at the Dancing Ocean on 279 25 de Mayo Street, with another entrance on 286 Leandro Alem Avenue. The players were: Laurenz, Armando Brunini, Ángel Domínguez and Rolando Gavioli (bandoneons), Mauricio Mise, Milo Dojman, Francisco Orefice and again Samy Friedenthal (violins), Héctor Grané (piano), Alberto Celenza (double bass) and Alberto Podestá on vocals.

1944. Carlos Bermúdez and Jorge Linares (vocalists) are added. Benito Calvá replaced Rolando Gavioli (bandoneon). The others members remained.

1945. Alberto Podestá quit. They kept appearing on Radio Belgrano and at the Bar Ebro on 1262 Corrientes Street. Personnel: Laurenz, Ricardo Pedevilla, Armando Brunini and Benito Calvá (bandoneons), Mauricio Mise, Milo Dojman and Francisco Orefice (violins), Carlos Parodi (piano), Alberto Celenza (double bass) and Bermúdez with Linares (vocalists). Mario Soto (announcer) and Cayetano Cámara (arranger) are added.

1946. Carlos Bermúdez and Jorge Linares left and the singer Héctor Juncal was included.

1947. They appeared in Montevideo: Laurenz, Atilio Cresta, Rodolfo Nerone and Orlando Ponzoni (bandoneons), Mauricio Mise, Francisco Orefice, Croti, Samuel Duga (violins), Héctor Grané (piano), Alberto Celenza (double basso) and Alfredo Del Río and Jorge Durán (vocalists).

In Buenos Aires they appeared at the Marabú and at La Enramada on 4399 Santa Fe Avenue. Others players were Abelardo Alfonsín, Guaita, Del Bono.

In 1950 for some months Jorge Dragone replaced Héctor Grané.
1951. It appeared on LR3 Radio Belgrano.

In September 1953 he decided to put an end to the work of his orchestra. One of his last outfits was lined up by: Laurenz, Luis Pereyra, someone known as Pato (bandoneons), Finito Raúl Domínguez, Samuel Duga, Croti, Viola and Raúl Terré (violins), Nerón Ferrazzano (cello), Oscar Podestá (piano), Agustín Furchi (double bass) and Alfredo Del Río and Héctor De Rosas (vocalists).

Another orchestra put together to appear at the Casino of Mar del Plata: Laurenz, Ernesto Baffa, Luis Maggiolo, Luis Pereyra (bandoneons), Alfonso Bernava, Zito Klosman, José Votti, David Aszenmil (violins), Miguel Nijensohn (piano), Antonio Furchi (double bass) and Carlos Rivero (vocalist).

Much later, in 1967, he put together a quintet to cut some recordings of his own numbers for the Microfón label. Laurenz (bandoneon), Eduardo Walczak (violin), Rubén Ruiz (electric guitar), José Colángelo (piano) and the former bandoneon player, Luis Pereyra (double bass).

Finally, a concert at the Carnegie Hall of New York on May 16, 1970 where he played with a quartet: Pedro Laurenz (bandoneon), Osvaldo Potenza (piano), Fernando Suárez Paz (violin) and Julio Rodolfo (double bass and vocalist).

Excerpted from his book El tango, el bandoneón y sus intérpretes, Volume 3, second part.