Search - Viva Brasil :: Festa

Twelve years after their self-titled debut "Viva Brasil", the band recorded a second album at legendary Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California. In that time, a few new members from the Flora Purim-Airto circle were added to the line-up. Most notable is Marcos Silva, a masterful Brasilian keyboardist whose own successful solo albums with his band Intersection on the Concord Jazz Label most evidently influenced the new and well honed Brasilian Jazz sound of Viva Brasil nineties recording, FESTA. The concept of Festa was to capture exactly that-a "Festa" meaning, a "party." It was apparent to their fans that the energy of their live shows had to be captured on tape. Unlike Festas predecessor, the self titled "Viva Brasil", this album consists mainly of hand selected Brasilian songs that Viva Brasil craftfully rearranged and worked out through countless performances, eventually making them creations with the Viva Brasil signature. The tightness and ease of the bands playing is evident on every single track. Familiar songs like Joao Boscos "Coisa Feita" and Filos "Perfume de Cebola" stay true to their Brasilian spirit, but are enhanced by new harmonic treatments and modern brasilian drumming. Often the songs begin sparsely and gradually build up in intensity, taking the listener on a climactic ride that proves as irresistible at live concerts. Noteworthy are the flawless solos and comping of pianist Marcos Silva, his tasteful colorings weaving in and out of Claudios silky vocal passages. Of course, original songs like the upbeat "Ele E Carioca" showcase the rapid development of the band in both songwriting and performance. "Getaway", true to its melancholic bossa nova core, literally paints the perfect sunset, if only for our ears. Had the band remained in Brasil, one can only wonder as to where its chapter in the annals of modern Brasilian music might be found. Unreleased in California in the early nineties, the fresh and unaltered release of FESTA (7BR 3984 26695-2) today gives us the chance to hear for the first time, the exciting next phase of Viva Brasil. Surely an album deserving a page among the Brasilian Jazz greats.