Bubu- The official biography

Original text in Spanish by: Felipe Abel Surkan, Viajero Inmóvil Records, with the direction of Daniel Andreoli.

Editing by: George Rossolatos, PQR- Disques plusqueréel.

The origins of Bubu date back to the beginning of 1973, a period of intense creative fermentation that was driven by the avant-garde ideal of the renowned Di Tella Institute in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a hallmark in literature, theater, plastic arts, and the progressive side of rock music.

The early band formation featured Carlos Noel Reyes, nick-named ‘Noelito’, violinist, and luthier, great-nephew of poet and Nobel Prize winner Pablo Neruda, Jorge ‘Monín’ Liechtenstein (later in Orion's Beethoven) on drums, and Daniel Andreoli on bass. Shortly thereafter, guitarist Sergio Blostein, an experienced performer initially with Nervio Trío and later with Zapenledomun (1969-1972), and flutist Ricardo La Civita joined the band, and expanded its musical horizon to new possibilities. Some of these musicians were already studying orchestration at the National Conservatory of Music, in tandem with their secondary education studies. At the same time, one more member joined Bubu, Guillermo ‘Wim’ Forstmann on saxophone. This initial line-up that was named Zion, featured Daniel Andreoli on bass, Wim Forstmann on tenor sax, Ricardo La Civita on transverse flute, Carlos Noel Reyes on violin, Jorge Liechtenstein on drums and Sergio Blostein on guitar (also responsible for the arrangement of the song Cortejo de un día Amarillo). They started out as an instrumental group, without vocals. From the very beginning, Andreoli and Forstmann emerged as band leaders, the former being in charge of the music, while the latter being responsible for the lyrics.

In their early steps, Bubu rehearsed in a room they rented in San Telmo. In order to cover the room’s hefty rental cost, they undertook they arranged and performed songs for its owner, Victor Aguayo (a Paraguayan music composer). As the band was particularly costly to maintain, Zion disbanded within a short period as of their formation. Nevertheless, some of the initial members continued to pursue their collective artistic vision, armed with confidence about the value of their prolific output.

After spending more than a year in search for new musicians who might be eager to join the project, Bubu was born. Although, at that time, most bands gave existentialist names to not-so-complex music, Bubu opted for accommodating their complex compositions under the umbrella of a prosaic name, also featuring a manifesto and a gigantic handmade puppet doll that became a defining prop in their live performances.

The new additions/replacements to the line-up included Eduardo ‘Fleke’ Folino on bass, Eduardo Rogatti on electric guitar, drummer Eduardo ‘Polo’ Carbella, flutist Cecilia Tenconi and violinist Sergio Polizzi, who joined forces with Andreoli, Wim, and Zavaleta. The latter was immensely energetic in live performances. The combination of strength of character as a singer with a humorous acting-out, and his mastery of scenography in a theatrical context endowed the band’s compositions with an unparalleled performative potential.

Stepping back from his initial role as bass-player, Daniel Andreoli decided to deepen his composition skills. After receiving a scholarship at the Collegium Musicum, he became the sole songwriter for the band in its new formation.

The orchestral co-ordinates had been clearly set, and the band’s developmental path was carved according to an unusual trajectory that demanded of the band members to execute the abstract guidelines that were composed by Andreoli, and channeled in a progressive rock/symphonic direction by Wim. This type of creative discipline is eminently reflected in Anabelas, a song that is at the same time testimony to Andreoli's obsession with King Crimson, Olivier Messian and Igor Stravinsky.

In the face of such multi-faceted compositions, Bubu established a unique dynamic during their rehearsals: the drums were allowed to waver in a free-jazz direction which was very useful when it came to punctuating the most intensely lyrical moments. Bass was rehearsed separately, then alongside the drums, and then in a plenary session with guitar. On the other side of the compositional fence, the sax, the violin and the flute developed their own trajectory. Ultimately, the two camps were assembled into one tantalizingly dialogical fusion.

Bubu's first formal performance took place on November 10, 1976, at the Teatro El Globo, in Buenos Aires. The 330 attendees in the fully packed hall included representatives from various musical genres. On this occasion, Anabelas was performed in its entirety, backed by a choir that was directed by Daniel Zucker, and included Alex Cavoti, Adriana Sica, Maqui Tenconi and Cecilia Frigerio.

At the end of 1976, the group’s second live performance was held at Teatro Estrellas, with a more elaborate stage-setting that was marked by surreal props, such as Miguel Zabaleta’s riding on a bicycle among the musicians, while wearing a helmet.

In January 1977, a series of shows took place at Teatro Estrellas, accompanied by Sergio Blostein (ex-Zion) who was still affiliated with the group in his capacity as musical advisor to Andreoli and who managed to arrange the first theme of the album (The Courtship).. One of the most memorable scenes from those performances concerns a character in a suit and tie with a suitcase full of money, played by Zavaleta, engaging in satirical interaction with a glamorously dressed woman.

As press coverage of Bubu’s performances had been very limited, Daniel Grinbank was recruited as the band’s manager. Subsequently, publicity began to skyrocket, while the live shows were embellished with more elaborate scenery, costumes, and lighting equipment. It became evident during the shows that Anabelas is an elusive girl who suffers from the vile persecution of a stubborn magician who insists on conquering her in any way, imaginable and unimaginable. Although little by little he loses his powers for the love of this girl, the sorcerer does not interrupt his stubborn efforts, until, finally, he conquers her, becoming the magician ... of finance.

In 1977, Bubu toured Argentina, along with Raúl Porchetto, Pastoral and Alas. The tour culminated on Christmas day at the Platense stadium, with a staggeringly volcanic version of Anabelas that was celebrated effervescently by the audience.

Despite having performed Anabelas live many times prior to entering the studio, the band members were experiencing a mounting discomfort due to the repeated postponements of the album’s recording. Ultimately, Anabelas was recorded between March and October 1977 at Emi Odeón's studio. As early as on the second day of the recordings, there was heated disagreement among some of the band members, prompting Miguel Zavaleta to leave the project after an irreparable clash with Wim Forstmann. Whereas Wim was keen on pursuing a more serious compositional path, Miguel appeared to be intent on highlighting the histrionic and humorous aspects, as performed later with his group Sweater. Zavaleta was replaced by Petty Guelache who became the main vocalist in Anabelas. Upon the recordings’ completion, Eduardo Folino, Eduardo Rogatti and Sergio Polizzi also left the band. Meanwhile, as the musicians were recording Bubu’s debut album, both Andreoli and Wim were working on new compositions.

Live performances during 1978 were scarce. Among the most memorable ones, the live-show that took place at Luna Park, on July 7, featured Daniel Andreoli on bass, in the absence of ‘Fleke’. The concert included Raúl Porchetto, the Zambomba Express (with Willy Gardi), Rodolfo Mederos and a trio with Rinaldo Rafanelli, Gustavo Bazterrica and Gonzalo Farrugia (with a project that was renamed Coral). Furthermore, the presentation of Anabelas in September 1978 at the Astral Theater was more than a box-office success, while attracting dithyrambic reviews that attained to position Bubu among the greatest revelations of that year.

With the addition of Daniel Goldberg on electric guitar, the return of Daniel Andreoli on bass, Cecilia Tenconi on flute, Wim Forstmann on sax and the voice of Petty Guelache, Bubu switched back to rehearsal mode. However, the initial enthusiasm had faded. When Anabelas was finally released at the end of 1978, the group had practically ceased to exist. Nevertheless, the band’s phenomenal performances kept it alive.

Carlos Felipe Gonzales (Tirito) cover design and graphics.

Two years later, in 1980, a revival attempt was made with Wim Forstmann on sax, Daniel Andreoli on bass, Petty Guelache on guitar/vocals, and Eduardo ‘Polo’ Corbella on drums who began rehearsing new songs. However, once again, Bubu were unable to maintain their integrity and disbanded anew. Subsequently, Daniel Andreoli decided to immigrate to Holland.

Many years later, in 2007, and as Anabelas had already become a holy grail among prog collectors worldwide, EMI Argentina reissued for the first time Anabelas on CD. Shortly thereafter, Andreoli returned to Argentina, armed with the intention to revive Bubu. Pursuant to various attempts at putting together a new line-up, including some of the former musicians, as well as new ones, in 2015 Andreoli succeeded in realizing the resurgence of Bubu. The band’s line-up featured wholly new instrumentalists who had not even been born when Anabelas was released, as a result of several of them having been summoned by his son (Ariel Andrioli), who is committed to producing shows for the Buenos Aires cultural scene. The new formation included Daniel Andreoli on bass, Juan Ignacio ‘Juani’ Varela on tenor sax, Federico Silva on electric guitar, Julián Bachmanovsky on drums, and Alvar Llusá Damiani on violin. Two guest musicians also joined in, Pablo Murgier on keyboards and Anibal Dominguez on flute. The band entered the Studio La Sonoteca in December 2015 to record their new compositions, culminating in the release of the EP Resplandor, on April 22, 2016. The EP included 3 new tracks, namely Radiance, Omer, (Put On The) Black Sky, and was released only in digital format.

Aiming for a second full album, Bubu reformed once again, with the addition of Camila González on transverse flute and piccolo, and Virginia ‘Maqui’ Tenconi (sister of the flutist Cecilia Tenconi) on keyboards and Chapman stick, who had been part of the choir in the band’s initial 70’s formation.

In an attempt to emulate and expand the stage-setting that became definitive of Bubu’s live performances, the band recruited the singer Jerónimo Romero, the session musicians Pedro Chalko on electric guitar, Manuel de la Cruz on percussion, Milena Klosewicz and Agustina Villafañe as the new choir.

With the ensemble reconstituted, Bubu celebrated their much coveted return after 38 years at the Teatro El Cubo, on July 7, 2016. During that unforgettable performance, part of which has been released for the first time in the bonus CD that is included in the vinyl reissue of Anabelas by PQR- Disques plusqueréel, they played the full side B of Anabelas \, the tracks from the EP Resplandor, as well as a couple of new compositions that would appear later on the second album. The live performance was a magnificent multi-artistic surreal spectacle, featuring actors, dancers, and various props. The show was also attended by Miguel Zavaleta.

From that point onwards, the band continued their live appearances, although they were focusing increasingly on completing the recordings for the second album at Casa Frida Studio. The album, entitled El Eco del Sol, was finally released on September 7, 2018, in digital format and on CD, with executive production by Ariel Andreoli in cooperation with Viajero Inmóvil Records. The album featured Daniel Andreoli on bass, Lucas Aguirre on vocals, Federico Silva on electric guitar, Julián Bachmanovsky on drums, Juani Varela on tenor sax, Alvar Llusá Damiani on violin, Emilio Tomás Ariza on flute and Manuel de la Cruz Zambrano on percussion. The choir was directed by Maqui Tenconi and comprised Oscar Amaya, Agostina Tudisco, Ana María Battezzati, Pablo Mancuso, Tina Haus, Abigail D’Angiolillo, Paula Liffschitz and Florencia Ailín Stefanelli.

El Eco del Sol follows the same eclectic pathway that was carved with Anabelas, while featuring evergreen compositions that withstand time, in line with the band’s artistic vision. The official presentation of the album took place on December 22, 2018 at the Asterion Theater, part of which is also included in the bonus CD that accompanies the Anabelas reissue by PQR- Disques plusqueréel.