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Luciana Souza: Cometa

By Katchie Cartwright
August 18, 2023
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Luciana Souza

vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Luciana Souza and

" data-original-title="" title="">Trio Corrente inhabit the deep intersections of Brazilian and jazz practices, a realm Souza's double-take Yemanj��-Lady Liberty garb suggests lies somewhere in the Atlantic (see the album cover). They share rarified air as Grammy winners, as composers and as performers. It seems inevitable that they would eventually collaborate. A fan of Trio Corrente since its inception (2001), Souza met drummer

Edu Ribeiro

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Edu Ribeiro on a teaching gig, then reconnected with him and pianist

Fabio Torres

piano
b.1971

" data-original-title="" title="">Fabio Torres on a record date in 2008, where they were side musicians. Torres invited her to join Trio Corrente for a Brazilian tour in 2022, deepening the relationship and leading her to propose a recording. Cometa is the happy result.

The album was recorded in S?o Paulo with producer

Larry Klein

guitar, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Larry Klein in the control room in Los Angeles. With just one rehearsal and two days of recording, they drew inspiration from

Elis Regina

vocals
b.1945

" data-original-title="" title="">Elis Regina and

Zimbo Trio

band / ensemble / orchestra

" data-original-title="" title="">Zimbo Trio in the mid 1960s, who frequently collaborated on new material for the Brazilian TV show No Fino da Bossa (including such songs as "Vem Balan?ar," written by Souza's parents, Walter Santos and Tereza Souza). For Regina and Zimbo Trio, time constraints resulted in a freewheeling air, rehearsal deficits compensated for by the fact that the four worked together regularly, sharpening their ability to create exceptional arrangements in the moment. Trio Corrente projects a similar quasi-telepathic communication thanks to their long association. Souza's work with the

Yellowjackets

band / ensemble / orchestra
b.1977

" data-original-title="" title="">Yellowjackets (Raising Our Voice, 2018) prepared her well for this encounter; she knew how to "come into a situation that's fully formed already and not disturb what works," as she put it.

The lead cut,

Dorival Caymmi

guitar and vocals
1914 - 2008

" data-original-title="" title="">Dorival Caymmi's "Voc�� J�� Foi �� Bahia" (Have You Been to Bahia Yet?), a perfect three-minute track, sets the tone. Souza's adroit arrangement, which opens with a series of call-and-response hits culminating in a rhythmic release into a samba groove in the second section, fits right into the trio's vibe, sounding very much of a piece with bassist

Paulo Paulelli

bass
b.1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Paulo Paulelli's arrangement of "Requebre Que Eu Dou um Doce," another Caymmi composition on the program. The Caymmi tunes also highlight Souza's virtuosity with a tongue-teasing text. The head is followed by a concise round of playful solos, beginning with her scat. The mood matches the musicians' desire to project "lightness and celebration." (See YouTube teaser, below.)

While the program features pieces by great Brazilian songwriters—Caymmi,

Ary Barroso

" data-original-title="" title="">Ary Barroso,

Djavan

guitar
b.1949

" data-original-title="" title="">Djavan,

Paulinho DaViola

various
b.1942

" data-original-title="" title="">Paulinho DaViola,

Antonio Carlos Jobim

piano
1927 - 1994

" data-original-title="" title="">Antonio Carlos Jobim—Souza wanted the ensemble to "meet as composers, too," each bringing in originals and arrangements. Along with the Caymmi arrangement, her contributions include an excellent arrangement of Barroso's "Pra Machucar Meu Cora??o" co-created with Torres, a poignant lyric for Ribeiro's lovely "Cometa," and her own "Bem Que Te Avisei" (Well I Warned You), a terrific tune with a wily lyric and a thirty-two bar AABA form, which seems destined to become a Brazilian jazz standard.

One hopes that Cometa becomes the first of many collaborations by Luciana Souza and Trio Corrente, with many opportunities—in Brazil, the US, and elsewhere—to hear these extraordinary musicians together live.

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Track Listing

Voc�� J�� Foi �� Bahia; Pra Machucar Meu Cora??o; Ventos do Norte; Sem Voc��; Rumo dos Ventos; Bai?o Joy; Bem Que Te Avisei; Quando Voc�� Vier; Requebre que Eu Dou um Doce; Cometa.

Personnel

Luciana Souza

vocals

Edu Ribeiro

drums

Fabio Torres

piano

Paulo Paulelli

bass

Trio Corrente

band / ensemble / orchestra

Album information

Title: Cometa | Year Released: 2023 | Record Label: Sunnyside Records

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