Camarada @ The San Diego Museum of Art
Poetics of the Arrabal: Opera and Tango
Saturday, October 4, 2026
6:30 PM PDT
The Camarada Tango Quartet + tango singers Gabriela Bojórquez & Martin de León
cross-border collaboration with Ópera Explicita
from the streets of Buenos Aires to the heart
Born in the neighborhoods and outskirts—the arrabales—of Buenos Aires, tango has long been a music of memory, longing, and human experience.
Poéticas del Arrabal: Opera and Tango explores this expressive world through the music of Astor Piazzolla in arrangements by Andrés Martín. Performed by the Camarada Tango Quartet together with singers Gabriela Bojórquez and Martín de León, the program brings together the intimacy of chamber music, the dramatic language of opera, and the distinctive voice of tango.
Gabriela Bojórquez is one of the representative voices of Tijuana's musical life and a singer with a close connection to audiences throughout the region. Argentine-born Martín de León, now based in Tijuana, brings a broad artistic career rooted in both opera and the Argentine popular song tradition.
From the aching nostalgia of Oblivion and Adiós Nonino to the theatrical brilliance of Yo soy María and Balada para un loco, this program celebrates characters who dream boldly, love deeply, and live passionately. Featuring Andrés Martín’s evocative arrangements and instrumental works alongside Piazzolla’s masterpieces, this cross-border collaboration invites audiences to experience tango not only as music, but as poetry—alive with emotion, storytelling, and the enduring spirit of the Americas.
Mario Montenegro, Artistic Direction
All music by Astor Piazzolla (1921–1992), arranged by Andrés Martín
Featuring:
Gabriela Bojórquez, mezzo-soprano
Martín del León, tenor
and The Camarada Tango Quartet
Beth Ross Buckley, flute
David Buckley, violin
Andrés Martín, double bass & composer
Dana Burnett, piano
The San Diego Museum of Art
1450 El Prado, San Diego, CA, United States
6:00 PM Doors Open
6:30 PM Concert Begins
VIP Seating: $70
General Admission Seating: $50
Kindly underwritten by Zoraida & Gary Payne