# Gerardo Matos Rodríguez — La Cumparsita

Gerardo Matos Rodríguez’s La Cumparsita (1916) is No. 1 in our Tango ranking. The full verdict, and where to hear it.

- **Released:** 1916
- **On one list:** Tango
- **Updated:** 2026-08-30
- **Artist:** [Gerardo Matos Rodríguez](https://waxonia.com/artist/gerardo-matos-rodriguez/)
- **Canonical page:** https://waxonia.com/track/gerardo-matos-rodriguez--la-cumparsita/

## What we say

### No. 1 in [Tango](https://waxonia.com/genre/tango/)

Written by a Uruguayan student and now the tune every tango evening ends with, everywhere on earth. Its authorship was litigated for decades, which is very much in the spirit of the thing.

## Analysis

8 sections, the first drop of 2 at 1:05, 28% of the way in.

- **Tempo:** 117.5 BPM — holds throughout
- **Dynamic range:** 6.2 dB — moderate range, typical of a modern master
- **Length:** 3:49

- `0:00` A · **intro**, instrumental — opens the record below its own average energy — playing: bass, other
- `0:18` B · **peak** (bar 9), instrumental — sits at the top of this record's range — playing: vocals, other
- `0:33` B · **steady** (bar 16), instrumental — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: other
- `2:09` A · **breakdown** (bar 63), instrumental — energy falling away mid-record, percussion thinning — playing: bass, other
- `2:26` C · **steady** (bar 72), instrumental — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: other
- `2:42` D · **lift** (bar 79), instrumental — a short rise that does not resolve — a fill or a transition, not a build — playing: other
- `3:17` A · **breakdown** (bar 97), instrumental — energy falling away mid-record, percussion thinning — playing: other
- `3:32` C · **steady** (bar 104), instrumental — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: other

**Drops** at 1:05 (bar 32), 2:12 (bar 65). A drop is a moment, not a stretch.

**What is playing.** Separated into parts by a source-separation model, so each lane is the instrument it names.

- **drums:** the drum kit, separated from the mix
- **bass:** the bass part, separated from the mix
- **vocals:** the voice, separated from the mix
- **other:** everything else — synths, guitars, keys, strings

Measured from the YouTube master on 2026-08-29. Section labels describe how the energy
moves, not musical form. Anything we were not confident enough to state is omitted
rather than hedged.

## Listen

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Gerardo%20Matos%20Rodr%C3%ADguez%20La%20Cumparsita) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=Dvx4u4Zd7zQ)

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Hand-curated by Waxonia. We host no audio; all links point to streaming platforms.