Luíz Americano - Clarinet Choro (2)

Luiz Americano (1900-1960) is regarded one of the Brazilian masters of clarinet choro. Alvaro Neder writes about Americano in a career profile in AMG:

Luís Americano was a virtuoso of clarinet and a fundamental composer in the genre of choro. His classics are present in every self-respecting choro discography, and he has been re-recorded extensively by choro interpreters worldwide. Son of band conductor Jorge Americano, Luís began his musical studies on clarinet and saxophone very early. He joined the Army as a musician and was transferred to Rio in 1921. He was discharged the next year, when he became a professional musician, playing in nightclubs and dances. Americano joined the most important orchestras of those times, such as with Simon Boutman and Romeu Silva. He began to record in the '20s for Odeon and worked for American drummer and bandleader Gordon Stretton, with whom he toured Argentina in 1928. He stayed there, joining the Adolfo Carabelli Orchestra. In 1930, he came back to Rio, where he joined Rádio Mayrink Veiga's orchestra and formed the American Jazz Orchestra, which recorded for Victor. In 1932, he began to write great choro hits that firmly established him as a major composer (such as "É do Que há"), along with his exceptional capabilities as a clarinetist. In the same year, he joined Grupo da Guarda Velha. In 1936, he formed Trio Carioca with Radamés Gnattali (piano), Luciano Perrone (drums) to play American standards in the choro idiom. In August 1940, he was one of the talents chosen by Pixinguinha for Stokowski's recordings representing Latin America, where he interpreted his "Intrigas no Buteco do Padilha," "Tocando pra Você," and "Luís Americano no Lido" (Native Brazilian Music, Vol. 2 and Columbia album Luis Americano: Tocanda Pra Você). In 1950, Americano joined Rádio Nacional as a supporting musician with its varied ensembles and orchestras, where he worked and composed until his death.

Sound-clips available here

Jo

Mike Marshall & Choro Famoso - Segunda Vez

Mike Marshall

Mike Marshall (b.1957) is an American mandolin player and multi-instrumentalist. He has performed and recorded with many musicians in a variety of styles, including bluegrass, classical, jazz and Brazilian music. In addition to several instruments within the mandolin family, Marshall also plays the guitar and violin. - Mike Marshall is also a partner in the music label, Adventure Music, which is dedicated to releasing music from Brazil.  Adventure Music has released Serenata, a duet recording  with pianist Jovino Santos Neto featuring the compositions of Hermeto Pascoal (2003), Brazil Duets (2005) featuring various musicians, New Words (Novas Palavras) (2006) a co-work with Hamilton de Holanda and further the debut recording by Mike Marshall & Choro Famoso (2004). Recently the second CD by Marshall and Choro Famoso also was released by Adventure Music, Segunda Vez, which is shown below.

CD front: Segunda Vez, Adventure Music, AM 1090 2 (2014)

Choro Famoso is: Mike Marshall ( mandolin), Andy Connell (clarinet, soprano sax), Colin Walker (7-string guitar) and Brian Rice (pandeiro). 

Choro Famoso

The new CD has seventeen tracks and the repertoire consists of both classic and modern choro compositions. There is classic pieces by famous Brazilian chorões such as Ernesto Nazareth, Pixinguinha, Nelson Alves, Luiz Americano, Jacob do Bandolim, Waldir Azevedo, Heitor Avena de Castro, Orlando Silveira, Esmeraldinho Salles and K-Ximbinho. The more contemporary choro repertoire is represented by music composed by Moacir Santos, Mauricio Carrilho, and Guinga. The performance by the Choro Famoso quartet is excellent, well balanced and with a convincing and deep understanding of the spirit of choro in both the classic and modern examples of choro featured at the disc. Highly recommended! - The CD has extensive notes about the music and is available for purchase here 

Choro Famoso in live performance

To give you an impression of Mike Marshall and Choro Famoso in live performance, I'll insert two uploaded video fragments from a concert recorded in 2010. Here is first the quartet's version of a choro titled 'Luis Americano Na Pre 3'

To end this small review, here's Choro Famoso's rendition of 'Evocação de Jacob' by H.Avena de Castro

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Jo
choromusic.blogspot@gmail.com

Nailor Proveta: Brasileiro Saxofone

Nailor Proveta (Nailor Aparecido Azevedo, b 1961) is a highly estimated Brasilian reed player, composer, arranger and director, who has conducted a career in Brazil both as a sought after instrumentalist and as a founder and leader of the São Paulo based big band Banda Mantiqueira excelling in updated versions of Brasilian music. Proveta has a high place among the best musicians of Brazil. He learned the musical notes before he could write the letters of the alphabet, and at 6 years of age, he was already playing the clarinet. As mentioned, he is the leader and arranger of the big band Banda Mantiqueira, formed in 1991 and nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Performance in 1998 and again in 2006. Proveta has been playing with some of the best artists in Brazil and also with international artists, such as Joe Williams, Anita O’Day, Bobby Short, Benny Carter, Natalie Cole, Ray Conniff,a.o.. Proveta has also been working intensively in recording studios as a player and arranger and has participated in hundreds of recordings of the most important Brazilians artists.- Musically, Proveta is deeply rooted in choro and the traditional styles of Brasilian music, and to give you an impression of Proveta performing in this context here is a live recording from a oncert arranged by Instrumental SESC Brasil. Nailor Proveta's quintet features Carlos Roberto (piano), Edimilson Capelupi (7 string acoustic guitar), Cléber Almeida (percussion), Jericó (trompet and flugel horn) and Proveta (clarinet and sax), the tune played is "Cochichando", a classic choro by Pixinguinha



Proveta released his first solo cd in 2006, "Tocando para o Interior" featuring arrangements of traditional Brasilian music styles, last year his secound solo issue, "Brasileiro Saxofone" (Acari Discos), was released.

The disc is a result of a project conducted by Proveta. For a long time he has cherished the idea of dedicating a whole album to the saxophone and its story in Brazil. The cd is a result of the project that also has included workshops and concerts to share information and experience with other musicians and a public interested in learning more about the instrument's role in Brasilian popular music. The repertoire of the disc ranges from nineteenth century pioneers such as Anacleto de Medeiros (1866-1907) to contemporary composers such as Christovão Bastos, Mauricio Carrilhos and Proveta himself and includes also a handful of great twentieth century musicians such as: Pixinguinha, Radamés Gnattali, César Guerra-Peixe, as well as a few others specially linked to the saxophone: Moacir Santos, K-Ximbinho, Luis Americano and Ratinho. A website devoted to the project (- both in Portuguese and English) is available clicking here , here you can also read more about the single tracks of the cd and listen to sound clips including two unissued compositions.

The saxophone in contemporary music is mostly connected with jazz and the great American performers of the instrument, however, the instrument has a story outside this field in compositonal/erudite music and popular music as well, and if you are looking for examples of the instrument's importance and story in Brazil, the cd by Nailor Proveta is a great source featuring arrangements of music of high quality challenging a jazz infected ear to take the advantage of a closer listening. The cd is highly recommended as an example of the serious work being maintained by great musicians to preserve and relive an important field of the rich Brasilian music tradition. - Below is inserted an example of the music at the disc from a live presentation at a concert last year at the IX Festival de Música de Ourinhos. Proveta (sax) is accompanied by Mauricio Carrilho ( ac.7 string guitar) and Paulo Aragão (guitar) and the piece performed is a composition by Radamés Gnattali, "Caminho da saudade"



Jo