Last July, pianist-composer-arranger Ricardo Bacelar
jetted from his home in Brazil to Miami, the place he calls “the center of
Latin music in the world,” where he gathered an ensemble of Latin American
musicians to honor the roots of Brazilian music while incorporating each
musician’s unique culture on a jazz-centered album. An ambitious vision that he
conceived with an international view with the project’s producer, Cesar Lemos
(Ricky Martin, Paulina Rubio), the 15-track “Sebastiana” drops March 30 from
Bacelar Productions. Preceding the sprawling set list of hallmark Brazilian
reinterpretations and originals written or co-written by Bacelar is the
ethereal “Nothing Will Be As It Was,” featuring two Americans - vocalist Maye
Osorio and pedal steel guitarist Steve Hinson - on the multi-format crossover
radio single portrayed in a striking animated video (http://bit.ly/2EUf7VL).
Bacelar and
Lemos had never worked together prior to “Sebastiana.” They authored a pair of
tunes for the disc, “Suco Verde” and “Sernambetiba, 1992,” the latter being a
swoon-inducer graced by Lemos’ celestial vocalizations on the track named for
the street where the two friends first met and shared an apartment 25 years
ago. The Brazilian duo’s comprehensive approach for the contemporary jazz and
trippy fusion session included inviting musicians from Cuba, Argentina, Venezuela,
Colombia, Peru and the U.S. to play on the date. The collective employed
uniquely Latin American rhythms and instruments on the lushly-layered tracks
such as vallenato (a Colombian rhythm performed using a diatonic accordion and
vallenato box), sangueo (a Venezuelan rhythm constructed of cumaco and mina
drums), bomba (a Puerto Rican genre originating in the West Indies and derived
from the west coast of Africa using drums made from barrels), timba (an
energizing Cuban rhythm), the Andean charango (a stringed instrument part of
the lute family), and the bandoneon, a concertina with roots in Argentina.
“When I
recorded the album, I wanted to pay homage to Brazilian music presenting the
distinct performances of Latin American musicians, who put elements of their
own cultures into the fusion of influences, giving a lot of personality to the
work. I wanted to make a Brazilian music record for the international market,
inserting other elements to add another point of view and extol the importance
of this special repertoire,” said Bacelar. “Jazz is the language of
improvisation and communication. The fusion of elements of cultures and
influences in a recording turns the music into a transmission vehicle of
knowledge.”
Along with
the two new Bacelar-Lemos tunes and three stirring solo piano pieces from
Bacelar – “River of Emotions,” “Parts of Me” and “The Best Years” –
“Sebastiana” revisits songs from Brazilian composers Gilberto Gil, Ivan Lins,
Flora Purim, Luiz Gonzaga, Lo Borges, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Milton Nascimento,
Ronald Bastos, Tom Jobim, Vinicius de Moraes, Victor Martins and Jose Roberto
Bertrami, and were given sparkling arrangements by Bacelar. The record includes
vocal drops of the late Jackson do Pandeiro, an influential Brazilian
percussionist and singer, adding character and cultural impact to the
offering.
In the 1980s
and 90s, Bacelar was a member of the popular Brazilian rock band Hanoi Hanoi
before dramatically changing musical directions to release his intimate solo
debut, “In Natura,” in 2001. Preoccupied with his work as a lawyer focused on
the staunch defense of copyrights and intellectual properties, he didn’t
release another album until 2016’s “Concerto Para Moviola,” a concert DVD and CD
recorded live with an eight-piece band. For more information, please visit
http://ricardobacelar.com.br.
“Sebastiana”
contains the following songs:
“A Volta da
Asa Branca”
“Suco Verde”
“Nothing
Will Be As It Was”
“River of
Emotions”
“Menina Baiana”
“Somewhere
in the Hills”
“Partido
Alto”
“Parts of
Me”
“Sambadouro”
“Oh Mana
Deixa Eu Ir (Caico Cantiga)”
“Sebastiana”
“Depois dos
Temporais”
“Vento de
Maio”
“Sernambetiba,
1992”
“The Best
Years”
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