Egberto Gismonti with Naná Vasconcelos - Dança Das Cabeças (1977)

Egberto Gismonti's debut appearance on ECM was originally planned as a completely solo album, the travel costs imposed by the Brazilian government precluding a full band.  Shortly after arriving in Norway though, Gismonti had a chance encounter with Naná Vasconcelos, and their instant kinship is what elevates this album from just incredible music to something even more special.

The concept that the two musicians agreed on, according to Gismonti, was "two boys wandering through a dense, humid forest, full of insects and animals, keeping a 180-feet distance from each other".  This is evoked straight away in the atmospheric introduction (named Quarto Mundo, possibly even before the late Jon Hassell used the term "Fourth World"), with flutes and voices evoking Amazonian wildlife.  The album's first suite then focuses on Gismonti's stunning guitar playing and Vasconcelos' percussive versatility.  Six songs are ran together for the LP's first side, including two from Academia Da Danças (link below).

The first half of the side two suite is given over entirely to Gismonti's piano, in a gorgeous piece called Tango that casts him as a Brazilian Keith Jarrett.  A low rumbling gong reintroduces Vasconcelos for a more atmospheric interlude including voices and handclaps, then Gismonti briefly returns to guitar.  To finish, a rush of shaken bells from Vasconcelos leads in to the choppy piano coda.  Both musicians would go on to international renown from here, on ECM and elsewhere, and on Dança Das Cabeças they produced a lasting landmark in their careers from a fortunate chance meeting.

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pw: sgtg

Previously posted at SGTG: 
Academia Da Danças
Sol De Meio Dia 
Circense
Sanfona

Duas Vozes (with Naná Vasconcelos)
Dança Dos Escravos
In Montreal (with Charlie Haden) 

Egberto Gismonti & Nana Vasconcelos - Duas Vozes (1984)

ECM's two Brazilian masters came together for their second duo recording in June 1984, and started the album in a way that was certainly memorable.  It's probably one of the most avant-garde renderings of Ary Barroso's Aquarela Do Brasil ever attempted - see here for a more recognisable version.  This one only reveals itself about halfway through, and features a small amount of the lyrics at the end.

The rest of the material is mostly Gismonti's, and showcases his typically nimble multi-string guitar technique in both lightning fast runs and percussive attacks.  There's also a traditional tune, the atmospheric Tomarapeba, and the closing track is by Vasconcelos.  His percussive range is as striking as ever, adding up to an inspired collaboration.

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Egberto Gismonti at SGTG: 
Academia Da Danças
Sol De Meio Dia 
Circense
Sanfona
Dança Dos Escravos
In Montreal (with Charlie Haden) 

Pat Metheny Group - Offramp (1982)

The album that took the Pat Metheny Group to stardom was a new-sound album in more than one way.  Nana Vasconcelos, introduced on As Falls Wichita (see links below), returned to fill out the percussion sound with its Brazilian influence that would become more central to the PMG sound in the coming years.  Longtime bassist Steve Rodby also made his debut here, as did Pat's guitar synth.

That legendary Roland GR-300 sound makes its first appearance right from the start, in the brief opening track Baracole, over a nice thumping pulse from Vasconcelos.  Then it's straight into one of the most gorgeous mellow classics of this era, Are You Going With Me.  First led by Lyle Mays on a synth-harmonica sound, then by Pat on guitar synth, it's one of his sunny-day trips across the Midwest for the ages.  The Brazilian influence becomes even more explicit on Au Lait that closes out the album's first half, adding Vasconcelos' voice to the mix as Pat returns to clean guitar.

Side Two introduces more PMG classics to what is perhaps their quintessential album.  The upbeat Latin rhythm of Eighteen drives one of the most simply joyful pieces of music they ever recorded, and for maximum contrast the knottiest free jazz of the album comes next in the title track, devised as a tribute to Ornette Coleman.  Another tribute follows, this time a sweetly melodic one for James Taylor, before the album closes with the calm melancholy of The Bat Pt. II.  An utterly essential jazz fusion masterpiece from start to finish.

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Previously posted at SGTG:
First Circle
The Way Up
Pat Metheny at SGTG:
Watercolors
New Chautauqua 
As Falls Wichita (with Lyle Mays)
Song X (with Ornette Coleman)
and featuring Pat:
Dreams So Real
Shadows And Light
The Sound Of Summer Running

Egberto Gismonti - Sol De Meio Dia (1978)

Some classic ECM Gismonti in his second album for the label, to follow on from last Friday's post of Academia Da Danças.  Where that album was one of Gismonti's most sophisticated in its arrangements and production, Sol De Meio Dia (Midday Sun) is stripped down to the bare essentials, in keeping with his other ECM releases.  The two albums do, however, start with the same song.

The version of Palácio de Pinturas that opens Sol De Meio Dia is a sublime duet between Gismonti and Ralph Towner.  Towner's Oregon bandmate, and another ECM stalwart until his untimely death in 1984, Collin Walcott is up next, laying a bed of insistent tabla for Raga.  There's plenty of Nana Vasconcelos on board for this album too, until Gismonti takes a solo spotlight on piano for the utterly gorgeous Coração.

The second half of the album brings together four songs in the kind of suite typical of 70s Gismonti, and starts with one of his most enduring compositions, Café.  Later covered by Norma Winstone, here the melody line is taken by Jan Garbarek, foreshadowing the hugely successful Magico trio with Charlie Haden.  After no less than 12 minutes of this, and further sparring with Towner, the suite then furrows deeper into Gismonti's overall inspiration for Sol De Meio Dia: the time he'd spent with the peoples of the Xingu river region in the North of Brazil.  All in all, one of Gismonti's very best albums; can't recommend it enough.

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pw: sgtg

Previously posted at SGTG: 
Academia Da Danças
Circense
Sanfona
Dança Dos Escravos
In Montreal (with Charlie Haden)