Harvey
Wainapel Amigos Brasileiros volume 2 Saxophonist and clarinetist Harvey
Wainapel has been dividing his time between Berkeley and Brazil for nearly 15
years now, and in the course of his expansive Brazilian travels he's forged
deep musical friendships with an array of that country's notable composers and
instrumentalists. Many of them were showcased on Wainapel's gorgeous 2007
travelogue Amigos Brasileiros, and many more are in the spotlight on its follow-up,
Amigos Brasileiros Vol. 2. The new disc will be released by Wainapel's
JazzMission Records on September 2.
"I've
been pretty ambitious with both of these CDs, but I'm still just scratching the
surface," Wainapel says. "There are so many traditions and styles
that are very localized and not commercial, so you won't hear them on the
radio."
The
sessions took place in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, and Recife,
Brazil; one track featuring carioca pianist and U.S. resident Weber Iago
("Palavras de Menina") was recorded in Washington state. Rhythms such
as xote, caboclinho, maracatú, baião, frevo, marcha, and choro infuse
intoxicating compositions by Léa Freire ("Mamulengo"), Spok
("Nilinho na Aldeia"), Wilson Lopes ("Árvore"), and Marco César/João
Lyra ("Triunfando"). The leader contributes "Nas Ruas de
Perdizes," a composition selected as a semi-finalist for the 2010 Curitiba
Choro Festival (and the only entry by a non-Brazilian).
In many
ways Amigos Brasileiros Vol. 2 serves as a savvy on-the-ground survey of the
contemporary Brazilian scene, a thoughtfully curated guide to musicians'
musicians in a nation bound together by sound. Instrumental music is
overshadowed in Brazil by vocal music, which means many of the Amigos
Brasileiros players and composers are unsung at home. "I wanted to reflect
what's happening now with the people I meet," says Wainapel, "and
they were kind enough to include me on their scene. There's so much creative
energy down there. You never get to the end of it."
Equally
adept on clarinets and saxophones, Wainapel (pronounced wine-apple) has also
collaborated with some of jazz's most acclaimed musicians over the past three
decades, including pianists Kenny Barron and McCoy Tyner, tenor saxophonists
Joe Henderson and Joe Lovano, and drummer Billy Hart. It was while living in
New York City, in 1979, that he first contracted his fever for Brazilian music.
He landed a weekly gig playing in a large Brazilian jazz ensemble led by Thiago
de Melo, which also included drummer Duduka da Fonseca, Wainapel's onetime
Berklee classmate Claudio Roditi, and pianist Marcos Silva. The fever became an
obsession.
"It's
led me to making these annual trips," says the saxophonist, a native of
upstate Ellenville, New York, "though I play jazz there too. Brazilians
love jazz, so it's 50/50. The Brazilian side injects a lot of emotion into my
playing, and it opened up my concept of melody and harmony." Wainapel has
gone on to tour internationally with Airto Moreira and Flora Purim, and perform
in the U.S. and Brazil with such top figures as composer Guinga, guitar
virtuoso Paulo Bellinati, and master pianists Jovino Santos Neto and Nelson
Ayres.
Wainapel
relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1982 and quickly became an in-demand
player. He made his recording debut as a leader in 1994 with At Home/On the
Road, followed by Ambrosia: The Music of Kenny Barron (1996) and The Hang
(1998), with Barron at the piano. Wainapel's first full recording of Brazilian
music was 2004's New Choros of Brazil, a duo album with guitarist Paulo
Bellinati that focused on previously unrecorded choros by masters like Sérgio
Assad, Guinga, and Dori Caymmi.
The
saxophonist is planning a special series of shows to celebrate the release of
Amigos Brasileiros Vol. 2. He'll be appearing 9/4 at Kuumbwa, Santa Cruz, and
9/5 at the California Jazz Conservatory (formerly the Jazzschool), Berkeley,
with special guests Vitor Gonçalves on piano (Hermeto Pascoal, Maria Bethânia,
Anat Cohen) and Cleber Almeida on drums and percussion (Hamilton de Holanda,
Banda Mantiqueira), plus bassist Scott Thompson and percussionist Brian Rice. He'll
also be performing as a duo with Gonçalves 9/10 at Sonoma State University (1-3
pm) and 9/12 at Old Siskiyou Barn, Ashland, Oregon.
Wainapel
and carioca vocalist (and longtime California resident) Claudia Villela are
scheduled to appear together at the Monterey Jazz Festival 9/19. In
October, Wainapel will head to the Northwest for additional CD release gigs
with pianist and frequent collaborator Jovino Santos Neto and his group: 10/6
at Rhythm & Rye, Olympia (also featuring Filó Machado) and 10/7 The Royal
Room, Seattle. And then
the saxophonist will pack his bags for another temporada in Brazil, staying for
most of the remainder of 2014.
"Time
to start working on Volume 3!" says Wainapel.
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