Carlos Gardel

Argentine composer Carlos Gardel (1890-1935).
Perhaps the most prominent figure in the history of tango. Although his birthplace is disputed, he lived in Argentina from childhood and acquired Argentine citizenship in 1923. He grew up in the Abasto neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, located near the Central Market of Fruit and Vegetables, an enormous art-deco styled building which today is a shopping mall. He attended Pio IX Industrial high-school located in the Almagro neighbourhood. He died in an airplane crash at the height of his career, becoming an archetypal tragic hero mourned throughout Latin America. For many, Gardel embodies the soul of the tango style that originated in the barrios of Buenos Aires and Montevideo at the end of the 19th century. He is commonly referred to as 'Carlitos', 'The King of Tango' and ironically 'El Mudo' (The Mute).