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Alex Kautz: Where We Begin

By Katchie Cartwright
June 28, 2024
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Born and raised in S?o Paulo, drummer

Alex Kautz

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Alex Kautz moved to Mexico City with his parents in 1996. His sound world growing up included his parents' MPB (m��sica popular brasileira), bossa nova and samba, along with North American rock and a bit of classical music.

Jack DeJohnette

drums
b.1942

" data-original-title="" title="">Jack DeJohnette's New Directions (ECM, 1978)—with

Lester Bowie

trumpet
1941 - 1999

" data-original-title="" title="">Lester Bowie,

Eddie Gomez

bass
b.1944

" data-original-title="" title="">Eddie Gomez and

John Abercrombie

guitar
1944 - 2017

" data-original-title="" title="">John Abercrombie—turned his head toward jazz in a big way.

Chick Corea

piano
1941 - 2021

" data-original-title="" title="">Chick Corea's Return to Forever (Light as a Feather, Polydor, 1973) caught his ear as well, with

Airto Moreira

percussion
b.1941

" data-original-title="" title="">Airto Moreira and

Flora Purim

vocals
b.1942

" data-original-title="" title="">Flora Purim inspiring him to dig further into his own musical culture, including Afro-Brazilian genres.

After graduating from Berklee College and Manhattan School of Music, Kautz's goal was to become a first-call session drummer, a dream that became a reality in New York, where he has lived since the early 2000s, working with, among others,

Tim Ries

saxophone

" data-original-title="" title="">Tim Ries,

Steve Wilson

saxophone
b.1961

" data-original-title="" title="">Steve Wilson,

Victor Prieto

accordion

" data-original-title="" title="">Victor Prieto,

Lionel Loueke

guitar
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Lionel Loueke and a host of Brazilian jazz players, including

Leny Andrade

b.1943

" data-original-title="" title="">Leny Andrade,

Nilson Matta

bass, acoustic
b.1949

" data-original-title="" title="">Nilson Matta,

Gili Lopes

bass, acoustic
b.1983

" data-original-title="" title="">Gili Lopes,

Vinicius Gomes

guitar
b.1985

" data-original-title="" title="">Vinicius Gomes and

Livio Almeida

saxophone

" data-original-title="" title="">Livio Almeida. With guitarist

Fabio Gouvea

guitar

" data-original-title="" title="">Fabio Gouvea and bassist

Felipe Brisola

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Felipe Brisola, Kautz founded Trio Afora (meaning Brazilians away from home), a collaborative ensemble conceived while touring in India. They released an invigorating first project in New York in 2017 (Afora, self-produced). As Brisola described it, the group "has its base in Brazilian music, but we try to keep our eyes and ears open about what is going on in jazz and world music."

With Where We Begin—his debut as a leader—Kautz reveals his personal musical voice, one shaped by his Brazilian upbringing as well as his experiences in the multi-cultural world of jazz. His band is comprised of noted fellow Brazilian New Yorkers guitarist

Chico Pinheiro

guitar

" data-original-title="" title="">Chico Pinheiro and pianist

Helio Alves

piano
b.1966

" data-original-title="" title="">Helio Alves, along with bassist

Joe Martin

bass
b.1970

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Martin, saxophonist

John Ellis

saxophone, tenor
b.1974

" data-original-title="" title="">John Ellis and—in a guest spot—celebrated Mexican jazz singer

Magos Herrera

vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Magos Herrera.

The album opens with a delightful version of

Lyle Mays

keyboards
1953 - 2020

" data-original-title="" title="">Lyle Mays' "Chorinho" (Lyle Mays, Street Dreams, Geffen, 1988), Mays' nod to Brazilian choro. In Kautz's rendering, the Brazilian roots are revitalized and the piece is updated with a sensibility that extends beyond Brazil's borders. The effect is understated but evident—especially at the top of the tune—achieved through artful instrumentation and shifting instrumental roles. Ellis eschews the jazzier sound of a saxophone in favor of the clarinet, Kautz simulates pandeiro timbres and patterns on his drum kit and Pinheiro's guitar is more prominent in the mix than (the jazzier sound of) Fender Rhodes. As the song progresses, however, Kautz and Martin move the rhythm section further into a samba direction, with Alves' keys still recalling the historical link with Mays. The result is a singular Brazilian choro-jazz-samba style with the kind of soloing and ensemble interaction one would expect from a contemporary jazz group (see YouTube, bottom of this page).

"Elvin da Bahia" closes the album with an equally compelling performance. One of three tunes penned by Kautz (with "Mira Eso" and "Within"), the title is a play on

Joao Gilberto

vocals
1931 - 2019

" data-original-title="" title="">Joao Gilberto's "Eu Vim da Bahia" (I come from Bahia) and the song's ambiance is subtly reminiscent of Gilberto's gentle sound. The form is classic jazz (AABA), though, and the feel is more

Elvin Jones

drums
1927 - 2004

" data-original-title="" title="">Elvin Jones, with a triple subdivision of the beat, melodic phrases gracefully draped over meters in five and three and Martin and Ellis contributing strong solos on bass and saxophone.

Herrera, with whom Kautz has had a long and fruitful relationship, makes a quietly thrilling cameo appearance singing

Chico Buarque

guitar and vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Chico Buarque's mysterious "A Ostra e o Vento" (The Oyster and the Wind) from the soundtrack for Walter Lima Jr.'s award-winning film of the same name (Ravinia, 1997). The trio matches the hushed drama of Herrera's interpretation with a superbly expressive ebb and flow of collective energy. Like the wind in Buarque's lyric, it makes the heart swing ("p?e o cora??o a balan?ar").

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Chorinho; Bebe; Mira Eso; Within; Milonga Gris; A Ostra e o Vento; Mamulengo; Elvin da Bahia.

Personnel

Alex Kautz

drums

Chico Pinheiro

guitar

Helio Alves

piano

Joe Martin

bass

John Ellis

saxophone, tenor

Magos Herrera

vocals

Additional Instrumentation

Helio Alves: Fender Rhodes; John Ellis: clarinet.

Album information

Title: Where We Begin | Year Released: 2024 | Record Label: Sunnyside Records

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