by Craig Brinker
Monday evening’s concert at Dizzy's
Club Coca-Cola featured mallet percussionist/composer Erik Charlston’s diverse and well-rounded group, JazzBrasil, paying tribute to one of Brazil's
most interesting and eccentric musicians, Hermeto Pascoal. Even if Pascoal’s
name doesn't sound familiar, you might have heard the composer and
multi-instrumentalist on Miles Davis' Live-Evil, with Pascoal contributing three compositions.
JazzBrasil includes the classic jazz rhythm section of
drums, piano, and bass, augmented by two percussionists, Zé Maurício and Café, who
kept the audience entertained for much of the night with their seemingly
endless supply of instruments to be struck, stroked, or shaken. Rio de
Janeiro-born Maurício played passionately and unpretentiously with an unfading
grin. His tambourine solo during the encore, “Bebé,” was particularly engaging,
and the audience enthusiastically applauded his virtuosic effort. Ted Nash, a
talented wind player, and Charlston, playing both vibraphone and marimba,
rounded out the group.
Pascoal’s
haunting ballad, “Oz Guizos,” was a true standount, performed as a duet by Charlston and pianist Mark
Soskin, who overflowed with fresh ideas every time he was given the chance to
stretch out. The set did not consist exclusively of Pascoal tunes, however, and other
Brazilian composers—including Egberto Gismonti—were also represented. Gismonti's “A Fala da Paixão” (“Passion Talk”) was the one misstep of the night, with the
well-meaning musicians treading a bit to close to the world of smooth jazz to
be in good taste.
This group was best when engaged in up-tempo tunes with
winding melodies rooted in complex, earthy percussion. As the soloists danced
around the groove, pushing, pulling, and playing against the time
signature—their struggles made for compelling music.
Charlston’s original composition “Maracatu Blue”
best exemplified the evening’s blending of traditional Brazilian and post-bop
influences, superimposing a blues progression over a traditional maracatu
rhythm. During solos, the rhythmic pattern oscillated between the maracatu
pattern and straight-ahead bebop, depending on whether Charlston or Nash was
soloing.
With its combination of rhythmic complexity and harmonic invention,
this fusion of bebop and Brazil was a Carnaval for the ears. Those with a
predilection for either would do well to see the group at its next date.