Carsten Pieper
This Bandcamp Friday came announcing 3 new albums by the incredible MoonJune Records. They are all very welcome but not to overload myself with too much new music I have to get them step by step, starting with this "flamenco fusion" album by Uruguyan guitar master Beledo and this impresive band. The 3 precursor songs sound very promising!
Favorite track: Flotando en el vacio.
pfm2007
The first track is lush and beautiful. Beledo is an amazing gift to us with his guitar (and everything else he plays) and composition. Quite an ensemble assembled here. I was fortunate to see Carles & Jorge with Chick Corea in Touchstone in the day at the NYC Blue Note, which was special. This recording will leave you wanting more. I'm really looking forward to the full album release. Leo, the cover art! well done.
Frank Hardlic
This album is a colourful jazz masterpiece by all categories of musicianship, composition, and production. Highest recommendation
Favorite track: De tardecita.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Purchasable with gift card
Download available in 24-bit/96kHz.
$9USD or more
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
BELEDO, Flotando en vacio (CD)
Includes instant download, 24 bit WAV, FLAC, ALAC or MP3-320)
USA BUYERS, please read:.
Shipping cost for the U.S. only is $17.50 for one CD, but if you order more CDs, there will be no additional shipping costs for any additional CDs. .
1CD shipping => $17.5
2/3/4/5/6 CDs shipping => $17.5
USA shipping is with UPS.
USA executive presidential order is not allowing shipment of small packages at the favorable price to USA only, while the shipping cost for the rest of the world is 3 to 4 times less.
Includes unlimited streaming of Flotando en el vacio
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Download available in 24-bit/96kHz.
ships out within 1 day
Purchasable with gift card
$12.50USDor more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
BELEDO, Flotando en el vacio (2LP, 150 grams).
Includes HD Download 24bit in multiple formats: WAV, ALAC, WAV, MP3-320
Ships around December 1st, 2024.
Includes unlimited streaming of Flotando en el vacio
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Join
now to receive all the new
music
MoonJune Records releases,
including this album
and 200 back-catalog items,
delivered instantly to you via the Bandcamp app for iOS and Android.
You’ll also get access to
supporter-only
exclusives.
Learn more.
It was really a wonderful surprise when Leonardo told me that he wanted me to record an album with Carles Benavent and Jorge Pardo. Leonardo always comes up with ideas that make my head spin for a good reason. It was almost too good to be true.
After pinching myself to make sure I was not dreaming I had to navigate through the idea and figure out what kind of material I would bring to the table. Carles and Jorge participated on Paco de Lucia’s “Solo Quiero Caminar” which is one of the best albums ever made and Carles and Paco duo “Monasterio de sal” is not only an extremely difficult song but it is one of the most impressive compositions ever written. That said, I knew that my album had to be completely different than that but my extreme desire for excellency would find a common ground where these exceptional musicians would feel comfortable using their amazing skills over my compositions. On top of that, we were going to have the incredible amazing Asaf Sirkis on drums who can jazz and rock hard but has an incredible vast knowledge of diverse ethnic music from around the world. We could not go wrong.
With all of that in mind I started writing and “Candombesque” came out on the piano, loyal to my Uruguayan roots, and “From Within” on the guitar that has a definite hint of flamenco in the chord changes. Little that I knew that Jorge Pardo would play so masterfully over it and I would have the time of my life exchanging solos with him in the studio, oh my God.
This album also created the right opportunity to integrate my contemporary tango composition “Rauleando” dedicated to the master of Uruguayan tango, Raúl Jaurena. I was fortunate to have played it with him in the context of a tango ensemble before he passed away. A lovely soul and a superb musician.
I also decided to use the composition “Flotando en el vacío” that was part of the repertoire of my beloved Uruguayan band Siddhartha (1977-1982). Because I was a student of the Conservatorio Universitario I got to attend a composition workshop with Héctor Tosar, composer, pianist, conductor, educator and one of the biggest icons in the history of the music in Uruguay. I presented to him the piano score of “Flotando en el vacío” and he played it like he already knew it, with the left hand riffs and the quartal harmonies on the right hand, wow. He pointed out that the main descending progression was definitely resembling flamenco music, which made me immediately realize that though my intention was writing Jazz-Rock, my young impulses were bringing out the kind of music that was coming from my veins and my ancestry. That is why I decided to include this tune in this project.
Leonardo and I had a few months to brainstorm and being able to develop all the ideas so that we could have the results we wanted. Leonardo asked me to come up with “Djelem Djelem”, a real anthem of the Romanian Gypsies. There are different versions of it and the original is a really slow and heart wrenching ballad with its incredible content. I wanted to have that heartfelt melody but I found my own way with the harmony and through the rhythm of bulerías. Carles was extremely helpful giving it the ultimate shape in the studio. When you get to work with musicians of this caliber you are safe because they are giving you more than 100% and their 100% is really big. This is the only tune that I recorded with a flamenco guitar and I just used it to play behind everybody.
Those were all the pre-written compositions, but we already anticipated that we were going to have improvisational sessions where we would have the great Gary Husband on piano and keyboards. From those sessions we brought “De tardecita”, “Es prohibeix blasfemar”, and “Rodeados”.
We were all at La Casamurada, a magical little castle made into a wonderful studio owned by the masterful engineer Jesus Rovira in Banyeres del Penedès, Tarragona, Spain. Gary was there recording a duo with Markus Reuter, also for Moonjune of course, and we had an unforgettable few days all together with Leonardo, Asaf, Carles, and Jorge from breakfast, dinner, and late night hangs by the pool. I’ll never forget the first night when Carles and Jorge arrived and we were chatting. Carles was telling me all about recording “Monasterio de sal” with Paco and Jorge was mentioning many incredible anecdotes. I could not control my deep emotions of being there with them. My eyes were crying with joy. Also it was sweet to get to spend time with Gary Husband who recorded on one of my previous albums “Dreamland Mechanism”. He was also touring with Allan Holdsworth and also with Soft Machine at times that I was opening for them with my band. Also it was so lovely to be on the road with Asaf Sirkis an exquisite human being now a member of Soft Machine that I was fortunate enough to go on tour as a member. All thanks to Leonardo of course.
Going back to this album that I am so proud of, I recorded the basic tracks of “Flotando en el vacío”, “Rauleando” and “Candombesque” on the acoustic piano at the session and then I overdubbed my electric guitar, but “From Within” and the rest of the tunes are played completely spontaneously at the session.
For sure I am leaving many things not addressed about the music and all of the incredible experiences around the making of this album. I hope you can sit down and enjoy it as much as we did making it. Cheers!
Special guests:
GARY HUSBAND - Fender Rhodes electric piano, Mimi Moog (tracks 3.5.8)
RAMÓN ECHEGARAY - candombe percussion (track 6)
Composed by Beledo (tracks 2,4,6,7), Beledo Pardo Benevaet Sirkis Husband (tracks 3,5,8).
‘Djelem, Djelem' is a Romani traditional song from Balkans.
Tracks 1,2,4,6,7 are arranged and produced by Beledo.
Tracks are instantaneous improvisational compositions by Beledo Pardo Benevant Sirkis Husband
Produced by Beledo and Leonard Pavkovic.
Executive production by Leonardo Pavkovic
Rearranging the traditional Balkan Romani son ‘Djelem Djelem; was Leonardo Pavkovic idea, his tribute to the Romani music of his native )now defunct) Yugoslavia, and his tribute to the Gitano music in general.
The song Flotando en el vacío (Floating in Space) was from one of Beledo’s early Uruguayan bands called Siddhartha (1977-1983).
The song Rauleando is inspired by and dedicated to the Uruguayan Tango Master and beautiful soul Raúl Jaurena.
Beledo uses Kiesel, Carvin and Godin guitars, Ernie Ball strings, D’Addario strings, Fractal AX8 pedalboard, Carvin Mach 100 power amp, QSC power amp, Marshall speaker cabinets.
AI Images bu Ainardo. Arytwork and layout by Leonardo Pavkovic.
All photos by Borislav Kresojevic.,
Recorded by Jesus Rovira on September 6 & 7, 2021 at La Casa Murada Studio, Banyeres del Penedes, Catalunya, Spain.
Mixed by Jesus Rovira on July 6 & 7, 2022 at La Casa Murada Studio, Banyeres del Penedes, Catalunya, Spain.
Mastered by Mark Wingfield in December of 2023 at Heron Island Studio, Cambridgeshire, England.
NYC based duo: Sasha Markovic & Kana Kamitsubo - this most special of occasions is perfectly accentuated by a host of guest contributors; Beledo, Dewa Budjana, Marko Djordjevic. Beledo
Recorded during the simakDialog's 2013 tour culminating with the gig at Orion Studios in Baltimore.On this 2cd the Indonesian psych-ethno-jazz band offers their own brand of inspired & spirited music Beledo
Dwiki Dharamwan is top musician from Indonesia and on this album he is accompanied by Jimmy Haslip, Chad Wackerman, Dewa Budjana, Tohpati and Jerry Goodman. Progressive jazz-rock-fusion at its best. Beledo
supported by 259 fans who also own “Flotando en el vacio”
Another impressive album released by MoonJune Records. Sid Smith' liner notes describe things very well! Based on Mark Winfield's composition, initially explored in a trio setting and later on enhanced by the skillful bass playing of Tony Levin and Percy Jones (well, great playing by everyone, but what else could we expect?). Carsten Pieper
The feted group further refines their brand of modern jazz, mixed with elements of psychedelic rock, ambient, and electronic music. Bandcamp New & Notable Nov 4, 2025
