The Argentine tango, both in its traditional and “nuevo” incarnations, has flourished in Paris for many decades. It’s thriving in Brussels, too, if Christophe Delporte and his Astoria ensemble’s sizzling live recording of Piazzolla’s music is an accurate indication. Like his French counterpart, Richard Galliano, Delporte plays the more Gallic-sounding accordion rather than the reedier-sounding bandoneón (Piazzolla’s own instrument). And, like Galliano, Delporte’s interpretative style packs tremendous emotional heft. These performances are carefully considered and precisely executed, yet there’s nothing at all prettified about them. Delporte kick-starts Escualo, for example, with propulsive, crunching chords, and the momentum doesn’t let up for a moment. Indeed, Piazzolla’s debt to the Stravinsky of The Rite is made manifest in the piece’s closing section.

Delporte is backed by a crackerjack group of five string-players and a pianist. In the lyrical pieces, like the Milonga sin Palabras and the exquisitely melancholic Oblivion, the musicians keep the melodic lines taut while simultaneously allowing for stylistically appropriate applications of rubato. The strings’ intonation is consistently spot-on.

In terms of repertory, there are no surprises or rarities here. In fact, all 11 selections should be familiar to anyone interested this composer’s elusive art. But don’t let that stop you from hearing this remarkable disc. The potency and polish of Delporte and Astoria’s performances make this one of the best modern Piazzolla collections available – and the immediacy of the recorded sound only amplifies its impact.