Orquesta Típica Victor

Historical background

The Orquesta Típica Victor (OTV) was a "house orchestra", set up in 1925 by the Victor label to compete with Odeon's exclusive stars (Francisco Canaro, Roberto Firpo, Carlos Gardel): unlike a regular orchestra, the OTV never performed in public, only in the studio, drawing its musicians from artists under contract to the label. Successively led by bandoneon player Luis Petrucelli, then Adolfo Carabelli (who ran his own orchestra with the same musicians at the same time), then Federico Scorticati, and finally pianist Mario Maurano, the OTV recorded 449 numbers, nearly all before 1941 — by which point the whole idea of a house orchestra had become obsolete.

Violinist Elvino Vardaro, an OTV member, worked alongside bandoneon player Ciriaco Ortiz, who separately recorded 34 titles with the same musicians under the name Orquesta Típica Los Provincianos — versions Michael Lavocah often considers more accomplished than those released under the OTV name itself.

Source: Michael Lavocah, Tango Masters: Tango Stories, Musical Secrets, chapitre 21 « OTV and the house orchestras: Orquesta Tipica Sony, anyone? ».