Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Daniel Hugo Piazzolla, Guardian of Astor’s Legacy and Octeto Electrónico Veteran, Dies at 80

A key figure in the Octeto Electrónico, he later served as the family’s quiet steward of Astor Piazzolla’s archive.

Overview

  • Fundación Piazzolla confirmed his December 26 death at age 80 from complications of long‑standing emphysema, also described as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
  • He played synthesizers and percussion in the Octeto Electrónico during 1976–77 and took on organizational duties, including during the group’s 1977 European tour.
  • His custodial work included organizing the 1996 Astortango tribute that reunited Octeto members with Chick Corea and Gary Burton and releasing the album Piazzolla por Piazzolla.
  • He collaborated on the 2018 documentary Piazzolla, los años del tiburón and had been preparing an autobiographical memoir that remained unpublished at his death.
  • After a rupture following the Octeto’s dissolution in 1978, he reconciled with his father shortly before Astor’s 1992 passing, and his son Daniel “Pipi” Piazzolla posted a public farewell on Instagram.