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| In her home country of Brazil (pop. 187 million), Alda Rezende is something of a household name; in her country of choice, New Zealand, she is a relative unknown.
Of course, ‘unknown’ is simply a relative thing. She is a veteran of Wellington’s jazz circuit, spicing |
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 | TravellerNot Rated
Released: 2008 |
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Click on one of the albums below for more info.
| | TravellerNot Rated
Released: 2008
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| In her home country of Brazil (pop. 187 million), Alda Rezende is something of a household name; in her country of choice, New Zealand, she is a relative unknown.
Of course, ‘unknown’ is simply a relative thing. She is a veteran of Wellington’s jazz circuit, spicing long-time collaborator Jonathan Crayford’s intricate rhythms with her samba-infused soul in regular gigs about-town. Electronica fans know her for the stand-out performance with award-winning producer The Nomad’s fourth album Step 4th.
More recently, Alda was a headliner for the Wellington International Jazz Festival, performing on opening night; and, of course, there’s the efforts on OE: Brazil, an entrée for New Zealand listeners of her syrupy voice and languid, sultry delivery.
Traveller is the new album by Alda Rezende, her first through Loop Recordings, having previously released the albums Samba Solto and Madrugada. Traveller tells a story of Alda’s path, her journey from the abundant and expansive continent of South America to the isles of Aotearoa. The title is also indicates the album’s nature itself – half Brazilian, half-Kiwi, as Alda suggests.
“I am a traveller, and this album is a traveller,” she says. “It was an album born from my experiences when I had this opportunity to return to Brazil and record with the people of my past and my friends of the future. We started this album in Brazil, recording guitars there and we brought those elements back to New Zealand to finish it here.
“It’s not really a Kiwi and it’s not really a Brazilian – it’s like a tourist or traveller.”
Jazzy, loungey, laid-back and breezy sounds, laid over subtle and gentle Brazilian bossanova rhythms, Traveller brought together the talents of two worlds – Jonathan Crayford and Brazilian guitar maestro Kristoff Silva, who recently placed runner-up in Brazil’s most prestigious music honour, the Visa Awards (of which Alda has been a previous finalist).
“Traveller is very much the mixture of Jonathan Crayford and Kristoff Silva, which is a very interesting combination,” she explains. “Both are brilliant musicians, they are both very original in their own ways. Kristoff is a very different sort of guitarist, very rich in harmony and very precise, and as well as Jonathan he’s a multi-instrumentalist.
“Traveller is the perfect name for the album. There are many references to the sea, and blues and greens and vistas, both in my tracks and the tracks that Jonathan has written with me. I think the vibe is a light and clear one, but still elegant and a bit smoky.”
After spending a lifetime of venturing, Alda has found her home in New Zealand. The experienced singer has set up her nest in New Zealand, with a young son born in the beauty of Piha, on Auckland’s west coast.
But it is her journey and her city of birth that influences her to this day.
“I come from Belo Horizonte, which means ‘beautiful horizon’ in Portuguese. No-one’s really heard of it outside Brazil because it’s not touristy, but it’s the third biggest city and one of the economic powers of our country. It is also a place for beautiful music.”
Famed for its gold, the state of Minais Gerais once pumped through 80 percent of the precious metal extracted from South America to Europe. As the river of gold flowed towards the glittering palaces of Europe, the return transaction was completed by a flood of culture. Orchestras, operas, cathedrals and artisans flocked to the New World, embedding a rich tapestry of culture that has flourished to this very day.
“Because it was such a rich place, a lot of music came from Europe, but with that a lot of slaves were brought from Africa to work the mines,” explains Alda. “With the slaves came rhythm and a different kind of spirit and this has formed the styles of music we have in Brazil.
“There is no singular Brazilian style though. We have hundreds of different rhythm; some are really contagious and energetic and some are really laid back. It’s so diverse and there’s such a rich variety of music, it’s sad that Brazil has been too incompetent to export it!”
But Traveller is a treasure that has emerged through the borders, across the seas; a slice of Brazilian musical gold to light up the New Zealand summer.
Phil Reed |
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