The Danzas Argentinas (Argentinean Dances) are a piano composition by Alberto Ginastera, one of the leading Latin American composers of the 20th century. Written in 1937, they are set of three dances, and they comprise his Opus 2. Motto: Spanish: En Unión y Libertad (English: In Union and Liberty) Anthem: Himno Nacional Argentino Capital Buenos Aires Largest city Buenos Aires Official language(s) Spanish Government Federal republic  - President Néstor Carlos Kirchner (PJ) Independence From Spain   - May Revolution 25 May 1810   - Declared 9 July 1816   - Recognized 1821... A contemporary dancer rehearsing in a dance studio Dance generally refers to human movement either used as a form of expression or presented in a social, spiritual or performance setting. ... Alberto Evaristo Ginastera (April 11, 1916 – June 25, 1983) was an Argentinian composer of classical music. ...

The first piece, Danza del viejo boyero (“Dance of the Old Shepherd”), immediately strikes the ear as being odd. The reason is as simple as it is strange: the left hand plays only black notes, while the right plays only white notes. Despite the seemingly unavoidable cacophany of that arrangement, Ginastera manages to frame a simple and charming melody through the use of rhythm and texture. The piece ends with a chord consisting of the open guitar strings (E-B-D-G-B-E). Perhaps as a result of his Spanish background, this was one of Ginastera’s favourite chords. Chord may mean: Chord (geometry), a line segment joining two points on a curve Chord (graph theory), an edge joining two not-adjacent nodes in a cycle Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously Chord (aviation), the distance between the front and back of a wing, measured in... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Danza de la moza donosa (“Dance of the Beautiful Maiden”) is a gentle dance in 6/8 time. A piquant melody meanders its way through the first section, constantly creating and releasing tension through the use of chromatic inflections. The second section introduces a new melody, more assured of itself than the first. The harmonisation of this section is based on the intervals of the fourth and fifth, which give the music a feeling of expansiveness. This sound, which Ginastera uses frequently, reflects the vastness of the Argentinean pampas (grasslands). The final section returns to the opening melody, but with a richer harmonisation based on thirds. The pampas (from Quechua for plain) are the fertile lowlands that extend across c. ...

With directions such as furiosamente (“furiously”), violente (“violent”), and salvaggio (“wild”), Ginastera left no doubt as to how the third dance, Danza del gaucho matrero (“Dance of the Arrogant Cowboy”), should be performed. Ginastera makes use of gratuitious dissonance in this piece, often using minor seconds to harmonise otherwise simple melodies. The structure is an approximate rondo (ABACDACD), and the thematic material alternates between chromatic passages (sections A and B) and highly tonal, melodic passages (C and D). The jubilant sound of the C section is achieved by harmonising every single melody note with a major chord, even if they are totally foreign to the tonic key. The D section, by contrast, does not use a single accidental; here, jubilance is expressed through the use of brisk tempo, strong rhythm, fortissimo, and a simple, majestic chord progression. As might be expected from the savageness of the rest of the piece, the coda is anything but subtle: ffff dynamics and a tremendous glissando bring the dance to a close. Dissonance has several meanings, all related to conflict or incongruity. ... Rondo, and its French equivalent rondeau, is a word that has been used in music in a number of ways, most often in reference to a musical form, but also in reference to a character-type that is distinct from the form. ... In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for time) is the speed or pace of a given piece. ... // Rhythm (Greek ρυθμός = tempo) is the variation of the duration of sounds or other events over time. ... Glissando (plural: glissandi) is a musical term that refers to either a continuous sliding from one pitch to another (a true glissando), or an incidental scale played while moving from one melodic note to another (an effective glissando). ...