ANTONIO ADOLFO - BruMa: Celebrating Milton Nascimento
AAM Music AAM 0714
Antonio Adolfo (piano); Jesse Sadoc (trumpet, flugelhorn); Marcelo Martins (alto flute, tenor sax); Danilo Sinna (alto sax); Rafael Rocha (trombone); Claudio Spiewak (guitar, acoustic guitar, percussion); Lula Galvão (guitar); Leo Amuedo (guitar); Jorge Helder (double bass); Rafael Barata (drums, percussion); Dada Costa (percussion)
No recording information
Milton Nascimento has been described as Brazil’s greatest living composer and his songs have been recorded by a wide range of artists including, Stan Getz, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Pat Metheny, Tony Bennett and Esperanza Spalding. I first came across his music through Wayne Shorter’s 1975 album Native Dancer, and artists such as George Duke and Flora Purim, both of whom have covered his songs. There is a joy and passion in Nascimento’s music that lifts the spirit and fills the heart. It’s a feeling I get whenever I hear, for example, Flora Purim singing From The Lonely Afternoons or Sarah Vaughn’s powerful interpretation of Nothing Will Be As It Was.
Brazilian pianist/composer/arranger Antonio Adolfo is a Latin star in his own right, and a long-time friend of Nascimento’s (they first met in 1967). BruMa consists of nine songs from Nascimento’s catalogue (on some songs, he is co-composer). Bruma means mist in Portuguese, but it’s also a portmanteau word formed from the first few letters of the Brazilian cities Brumadinho and Mariana, both of which have suffered similar environmental disasters - collapsing dams leading to huge floods and massive loss of life. Nascimento and other Brazilians have highlighted the disasters.
Adolfo has opted to do instrumental versions of all the songs, and his piano plays a mainly supportive role on this album – most of the solos are given up to trumpet, sax, trombone and guitar. That said, there are many examples of his splendid playing on this album – piano fans will not be disappointed. The opening number, the lively Fe Cega, Faca Amolda (Blind Faith, Sharp Knife), features a radical rearrangement, with the song reharmonized and performed at a faster tempo from the original. It features punchy horn lines; fine understated piano from Adolfo; a blazing tenor sax solo by Marcelo Martins, and a Wes Montgomery-inspired guitar solo from Claudio Spiewak.
The midtempo Nada Sera Como Antes (better known as Nothing Will Be As It Was) has the horn section taking on the vocalist’s role, with a middle section featuring alto sax, piano and trombone solos respectively. Nascimento’s wide range of musical styles is well covered on this album, from the Samba rhythmed Canção Do Sal (Salt Song) to Outubro (October), a beautiful ballad featuring piano and flugelhorn. The ballad Cais includes a fine solo by Jesse Sadoc on muted trumpet, while one of my all-time favourite Nascimento tunes, Caxanga, (Nascimento sings a superb version of it on the expanded edition of Duke’s 1979 album A Brazilian Love Affair) is as uplifting as ever, with energetic percussion, a spirited horn section and excellent soling by Danilo Sinna on alto sax and Lula Galvão on guitar. I suspect Mr Nascimento will be highly delighted with this heartfelt – and excellent - tribute from a friend.
Reviewed by George Cole
AAM Music AAM 0714
Antonio Adolfo (piano); Jesse Sadoc (trumpet, flugelhorn); Marcelo Martins (alto flute, tenor sax); Danilo Sinna (alto sax); Rafael Rocha (trombone); Claudio Spiewak (guitar, acoustic guitar, percussion); Lula Galvão (guitar); Leo Amuedo (guitar); Jorge Helder (double bass); Rafael Barata (drums, percussion); Dada Costa (percussion)
No recording information
Milton Nascimento has been described as Brazil’s greatest living composer and his songs have been recorded by a wide range of artists including, Stan Getz, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Pat Metheny, Tony Bennett and Esperanza Spalding. I first came across his music through Wayne Shorter’s 1975 album Native Dancer, and artists such as George Duke and Flora Purim, both of whom have covered his songs. There is a joy and passion in Nascimento’s music that lifts the spirit and fills the heart. It’s a feeling I get whenever I hear, for example, Flora Purim singing From The Lonely Afternoons or Sarah Vaughn’s powerful interpretation of Nothing Will Be As It Was.
Brazilian pianist/composer/arranger Antonio Adolfo is a Latin star in his own right, and a long-time friend of Nascimento’s (they first met in 1967). BruMa consists of nine songs from Nascimento’s catalogue (on some songs, he is co-composer). Bruma means mist in Portuguese, but it’s also a portmanteau word formed from the first few letters of the Brazilian cities Brumadinho and Mariana, both of which have suffered similar environmental disasters - collapsing dams leading to huge floods and massive loss of life. Nascimento and other Brazilians have highlighted the disasters.
Adolfo has opted to do instrumental versions of all the songs, and his piano plays a mainly supportive role on this album – most of the solos are given up to trumpet, sax, trombone and guitar. That said, there are many examples of his splendid playing on this album – piano fans will not be disappointed. The opening number, the lively Fe Cega, Faca Amolda (Blind Faith, Sharp Knife), features a radical rearrangement, with the song reharmonized and performed at a faster tempo from the original. It features punchy horn lines; fine understated piano from Adolfo; a blazing tenor sax solo by Marcelo Martins, and a Wes Montgomery-inspired guitar solo from Claudio Spiewak.
The midtempo Nada Sera Como Antes (better known as Nothing Will Be As It Was) has the horn section taking on the vocalist’s role, with a middle section featuring alto sax, piano and trombone solos respectively. Nascimento’s wide range of musical styles is well covered on this album, from the Samba rhythmed Canção Do Sal (Salt Song) to Outubro (October), a beautiful ballad featuring piano and flugelhorn. The ballad Cais includes a fine solo by Jesse Sadoc on muted trumpet, while one of my all-time favourite Nascimento tunes, Caxanga, (Nascimento sings a superb version of it on the expanded edition of Duke’s 1979 album A Brazilian Love Affair) is as uplifting as ever, with energetic percussion, a spirited horn section and excellent soling by Danilo Sinna on alto sax and Lula Galvão on guitar. I suspect Mr Nascimento will be highly delighted with this heartfelt – and excellent - tribute from a friend.
Reviewed by George Cole
