On Saturday, November 14th at 8:00 PM, the Vermont Jazz Center presents “A Tribute to Jobim,” a performance by three leading artists from Brazil, all of whom had direct connections with Antônio Carlos Jobim who is widely regarded as “one of the most important songwriters of the 20th century.” The VJC presents pianist/musical director, Grammy Award-winning Hélio Alves, Grammy Award-winning vocalist Maucha Adnet (who for 10 years sang with maestro Jobim) and Grammy Award-winning drummer, Duduka Da Fonseca. They will be supported by first-call bassist David Finck in an evening of beautiful Bossa Novas and exhilarating sambas.
To this day, Antônio Carlos Jobim’s compositions continue to serve as a musical bridge between Brazil and the United States. He is best known for penning How Insensitive and Wave but, by just scratching the surface of his tremendous compositional output, we discover other gems such as A Felicidade, Triste, Agua de Beber, Chega de Saudade, Aguas de Março just to name a few. The composer first became known through his association with the Brazilian intellectual, poet, bon vivant and diplomat Vinicius Moraes who hired the then little-known pianist to write music for his play/movie “Black Orpheus.”
Their successful collaboration evolved into an ongoing and fruitful friendship and working relationship. In 1958, Jobim began an association with the man he considered to be the originator of Bossa Nova: Joâo Gilberto. Together they fine-tuned the Bossa Nova sound and served as the hub of a growing Brazilian musical party/revolution. In 1962 American Jazz musicians Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd got wind of the sounds emanating from Rio and recorded their derivative—yet swinging—album Jazz Samba. Following its success Getz returned to the studio, this time with Jobim, Gilberto and a Brazilian rhythm section. Their version of The Girl from Ipanema, sung by Gilberto and his then-wife Astrud, was a huge success that kicked off a State side Bossa Nova craze. Jobim wrote many of the songs on Getz/Gilberto, which became one of the best-selling jazz albums of all time and earned 4 Grammy Awards.
Jobim passed away in 1994 but his legacy lives on. He is considered by Billboard Magazine to be one of the top Latin American composers of all time and posthumously won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. But more importantly his music lives on in the recordings and concerts of those who continue to interpret his brilliant compositions. For example, legendary instrumental jazz artists Joe Henderson and Fred Hersch have joined the ranks of jazz singers Eliane Elias, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald in releasing albums comprised only of Jobim’s compositions.
Jobim’s music has infused North American culture and many of his tunes have been welcomed into the cannon of jazz standards. The November 14th concert at the VJC offered by Brazilian-music experts will give listeners an opportunity to listen to Bossa, Samba and Brazilian styles played by true masters with authenticity and passion. A direct connection to Jobim permeates their renditions of his songs. Because they grew up surrounded by his music (two of the group’s members actually sang, performed and recorded with Jobim), this concert will serve as a vehicle for us to feel the real Bossa and Samba sound and experience a living, historical link to one of the most important movements of modern popular music.
In a recent telephone interview with the Vermont Jazz Center, pianist Hélio Alves discussed the repertoire of the quartet. He mentioned that, for their performance at the VJC on November 14th, they will focus on the music of Jobim but will also feature the “sounds that were surrounding him in order to give a representation of his environment.” The performance will include pieces from as early as the 1940s (called “pre-bossa” by Alves) that influenced a young Jobim including a composition by Dorival Caymmi and a choro composed by Pixinguinha. Hélio said that Jobim will be the “hook” that connects all the pieces that will be performed by the quartet. Other great Brazilian composer/performers likely to be represented in their repertoire that evening are Baden Powell, Vinicius Moraes, Gilberto Gil, Caetano Veloso and Toninho Horta.
The Musicians:
Vocalist Maucha Adnet was born in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. While recording for Polygram as a member of Céu da Boca, Maucha attracted the attention of Antônio Carlos Jobim who asked her to join his group Banda Nova. Adnet remained with Jobim’s ensemble for 10 years recording four CDs: Passarim, Antonio Brasileiro (Grammy Award Winner), Tom Jobim Inédito, and Rio Revisted (with Jobim and Gal “Costa). Maucha toured with Jobim throughout Brazil, the United States, Japan, Israel and Europe at Jazz Festivals and venues including Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. Her discography includes recordings with Brazilian legends such as Dorival Caymmi, Chico Buarque, Dori Caymmi, Caetano Veloso, Toninho Horta, Mario Adnet, Joyce, Nara Leão, Cesar Camargo Mariano as well as Charlie Byrd, Gil Goldstein, Emily Remler, Othelo Molineaux, Trio da Paz, Hampton and many others. She was the guest vocalist on Randy Brecker’s Grammy winning CD Into the Sun. Now living in New York City, Maucha performs regularly with her own band and as a guest artist with Claudio Roditi, Herbie Mann, Trio da Paz, Oscar Castro Neves, Eliane Elias, Mark Johnson, Slide Hampton, Randy Brecker and others. She has appeared with Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra at Alice Tully Hall.
The pianist of the quartet is Hélio Alves, a native of São Paulo, Brazil. He has received high praise as an in-demand sideman and has appeared on two Grammy Award-wining recordings: Brazilian Dreams with Paquito D’Rivera, and Obrigado Brazil with YoYo Ma. Alves has also recorded with Joe Henderson, Sadao Watanabe, John Pizzarelli, Slide Hampton, Airto Moreira & Flora Purim, Joyce, and Rosa Passos, Claudio Roditi, Romero Lubambo and many others. He combines the rhythmic complexity of modern Brazilian music with the edgy energy of contemporary jazz. A resident of NYC since the 1990s, Alves Helio has released four albums under his own name.
Drummer Duduka Da Fonseca was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1951. While still a youth living in Brazil, he performed and recorded with the top echelon of players including Toninho Horta, Claudio Roditi, Dom Salvador, João Donato, Nana Vasconcelos, Paulo Jobim, Milton Nascimento and Dori Caymmi. He moved to the U.S. with the dream of blending the musical cultures of Brazil and the US. “When I arrived in New York, it was a much different musical scene then today. Samba Jazz was not on the map at that time. I am very proud to be one of a few musicians who, in the late 1970’s, helped revive the Brazilian Jazz scene in New York City.” Soon after moving to New York Duduka formed the Brazilian Jazz All Stars, which featured artists Bob Mintzer, Randy Brecker, Eliane Elias, Romero Lubambo, Nilson Matta, Café and Gilherme Franco. He was a founding member and co-leader of Trio Da Paz and has appeared on over 200 albums. He has performed with Antonio Carlos Jobim, Astrud Gilberto, Gerry Mulligan, John Scofield, Wayne Shorter, Tom Harrell, Eddie Gomez, Rufus Reid, Lee Konitz, Herbie Mann, Jorge Dalto, Joe Henderson, Kenny Barron, Emily Remler, Nancy Wilson, Slide Hampton, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Gil Goldstein, Joanne Brackeen, Marc Johnson, George Mraz, John Patitucci, Renee Rosnes, Bill Charlap, Maucha Adnet, Phil Woods and many others. Duduka is the author of the bestseller instructional book and CD, Brazilian Rhythms for Drum-set with Amherst-based master-drummer Bob Weiner.
Bassist David Finck has played and recorded with Dizzy Gillespie, Aretha Franklin, Sinead O’Connor, Natalie Cole, Rod Stewart, Herbie Hancock, Ivan Lins, Al Jarreau, Tony Bennett, Paquito D’Rivera, George Michael, Rosemary Clooney and Andre Previn, to name just a few. Over the years, Finck has become one of the most sought-after musicians in Manhattan, equally revered for his work in jazz, popular, Brazilian and classical music. After studying at Eastman School of Music, Finck settled in New York City — he’d barely unpacked when he left the city to tour with Woody Herman and his Thundering Herd. Finck has played with those above-mentioned and many more. His discography lists more than 100 recordings including Platinum and Gold selling records with Rod Stewart, Natalie Cole, and Elton John. Maestro Andre Previn states: “I have worked with David Finck in many different circumstances and venues for a period of eight years, and in my opinion, there is no one who is as good a jazz bass player and collaborator.”
The Vermont Jazz Center will present an All-star Bossa and Samba experience at 8:00 PM on Saturday, November 14th – Maucha Adnet and a Tribute to Jobim. This group truly represents a deep connection to the origins of Bossa Nova and will honor one of its most important originators: Antônio Carlos Jobim. Each of the members of this quartet are leaders in their own right and three of them are Brazilians who have performed on Grammy Winning recordings. Maucha Adnet and “A Tribute to Jobim” will be performing at the Vermont Jazz Center on Saturday, November 14th at 8:00 PM. The VJC is especially grateful to Mary Ellen Copeland and Ed Anthes of Peach Press, Inc for their generous full sponsorship of this show and is thankful for ongoing support from the Vermont Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts. Hospitality for our artists is provided by the Hampton Inn of Brattleboro. VJC publicity is underwritten by the Brattleboro Reformer, WVPR, WVEW and WFCR.
Tickets for Maucha Adnet and “A Tribute to Jobim” are $20+ general admission, $15 for students with I.D. (contact VJC about educational discounts); available at In the Moment in Brattleboro, or online at www.vtjazz.org. Tickets can also be reserved by email at ginger@vtjazz.org, or by calling the Vermont Jazz Center ticket line: 802-254-9088, ext. 1. Handicapped access is available by calling the VJC.
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PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
Written by Eugene Uman (please credit)
Contact: eugene@vtjazz.org or 802 258 8822
Vermont Jazz Center Presents Samba-Jazz in “A Tribute to Jobim”
Short Summary
Who: Maucha Adnet, vocals; Hélio Alves, piano, David Finck, bass; Duduka Da Fonseca, drums
What: Bossa Nova, Samba and Choro (Samba-jazz) music – compositions written by or directly related to the life and music of the great composer Antônio Carlos Jobim
When: Saturday, November 14th, 2015 at 8:00 PM
Where: The Vermont Jazz Center, 72 Cotton Mill Hill, #222, Brattleboro, VT 05301
Tickets available: online at www.vtjazz.org, by email at ginger@vtjazz.org, by phone 802 254 9088, in person at In The Moment, Main St., Brattleboro, VT.
