Trio Esperança – De Bach à Jobim - (DRY CD 36952) Street Date May 18, 2010
One of Brazil’s oldest and most popular acapella singing groups, Trio Esperança was founded in Rio de Janeiro in 1958 by the preteen siblings Mário, Regina and Eva (Evinha) Correia José Maria. Beginning their long and distinguished recording career in 1963 with the album Nós Somos o Sucesso, the group sang in the modern jovem guarda (young guard) style influenced by the British and American rock and roll of the day. As the members matured their repertoire came to include the more sophisticated sounds of their country -- bossa nova and MPB (musica popular Brasileira). Today the group, featuring Eva Correa, Mariza Correa and Regina Correa, covers an ever widening stylistic territory, singing in English, Spanish and French, in addition to their native Portuguese, adding music from throughout the Americas and Europe to a songbook that is truly international in character and outreach.
Long popular on their native continent and in Europe, Trio Esperança now brings its beautiful music to listeners in the United States with its first release to be widely distributed in this country. De Bach à Jobim, as its title asserts, is an expansive musical expedition that includes uniquely personal interpretations of titles ranging from the classical, popular and jazz canons. Joining the three Correia José Maria singers on selected tracks are auspicious guests including guitarist/vocalist Marcio Faraco, percussionists Silvano Michelino and Inor Sotolongo, accordionist Marc Berthoumieux, pianist/producer Gérard Gambus and the strings of the Budapest Symphonic Orchestra, to make this one of the best recordings by the group in the more than half a century since its inception.
De Bach à Jobim begins appropriately with Eva Correa’s “Caminho Da Razão” (roughly road to reason), an adaptation of J.S. Bach’s Aria (from the 3rd Suite for Cello) arranged by the singer’s husband, pianist/producer Gérard Gambus. Opening with a chorus of the “heavenly choir” of the three sisters’ voices sans instrumental accompaniment, the vocalists’ sound is then buoyed by the Brazilian guitar of Marcio Faraco. The addition of strings from the Budapest Symphonic Orchestra emphasizes the “religious experience” of the song.
The group reaches back to its Brazilian roots on the classic “Upa Neguinho.” The popular Edú Lobo/Gianfrancesco Guarnieri piece, well known for its numerous recordings by Brazilian and American artists, from Sergio Mendes and Elis Regina to Herbie Mann and Renee Rosnes, is given a fresh treatment by the Trio in its inventive acapella style, featuring appealing three part harmony and onamonapeic beats that give it a strong rhythmic drive that recalls the best work of Bobby McFerrin.
Antonio Carlos Jobim’s “Desafinado” begins with a similarly nuanced treatment by the sisters sans accompaniment before being joined by Faraco and Gambus on guitar and piano, respectively. The trio’s performance exhibits the abilities of the group at its greatest heights in a rendition of the classic bossa nova that stands out with the very best of its many, many versions. The beautifully waltzing “A Rosa (Rancho Das Flores)” by Vinícius de Moraes, another Brazilian classic, is again arranged by Gambus in the context of a Bach composition – this time the master’s “Cantata BMV 147.” Faraco’s guitar and the accordion of Marc Berthoumieux, as well as the Budapest strings augment the trio’s voices, to give this inventive interpretation a truly old warm charm.
The group’s reading of two popular Beatles pieces penned by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, returns the trio to its early jovem guarda sound for which it first gained widespread attention. “Penny Lane” features the singers’ Portuguese lyricising prominently accompanied by the Budapest Orchestra, accenting the beautiful simplicity of the melody. “Blackbird” is sung through acapella style in the original English without any instrumental backing, demonstrating the group’s facility to creatively interpret music on its own, even in a foreign language.
Returning to the rich Jobim songbook for “Samba Do Avião” the group displays its facility with its country’s national dance idiom with Marcio Faraco’s Brazilian guitar contributing to the authentic flavor of the master composer’s terse ode to aviation. “Cantiga (Caico)” showcases the trio in a recitation of the beautiful original lyric accompanying the Heitor Villa Lobos melody by Teca Calazans, with additional words taken from the great Milton Nascimento’s memorable interpretation of the piece. The subtle accompaniment of the Budapest string ensemble lends greatly to the composition’s warm emotion.
The trio once again reaches deep into the roots of Brazil’s popular music in its rendition of the classic chorinho “Odeon.” The pre-samba form, with its pleasantly rhythmic melody proves to be the perfect vehicle for the trio’s appealing vocal stylings enhanced here by Faraco’s guitar. Chico Buarque’s “Joana Francesca” is a contemporary classic of Brazilian popular music. The melancholy mood of the song is emphasized by the sister’s delicate reading of the lyric and furthered by the intermittent accompaniment of Garbus’ piano and Berthoumieux’s accordion.
Percussionists Silvano Michelino and Inor Sotolongo initiate the primal AfroBrazilian tone of “Uma Gota Do Mar” (a drop of the sea) that begins the piece. The ensuing contrast of earthy drums with the ethereal strings of the Budapest Orchestra sets the mood of the union of “heaven meets earth” that is further evinced in the sister’s singing. The disc ends with the trio’s beautiful reading of Renato Teixeira’s “Romaria.” Well known for its recordings by Elis Regina and Maria Bethânia, this version by the trio accompanied by Garbus on piano is a worthy addition to the song’s auspicious discography.
With 14 Gold Records in Brazil and hundreds of thousands of albums sold internationally over a career spanning five decades, Trio Esperança has proven to be one of the most versatile singing groups in music history, equally skilled at interpreting jazz, classical and pop music. Long popular in South America and Europe, the group has recently developed a cult following in the American rock world after being covered recently by Indie Pop band Belle and Sebastian. Now with De Bach à Jobim they are poised to bring their inventive sounds to a wider audience in the United States for the enjoyment of this country’s many eclectic music lovers.
Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services
e-Mail: jazzpromo@earthlink.net
0 Comments:
Post a Comment