Vagabond Synth Nerd’s Journal Vol. 105 - Bossa Nova Jazz Songs and Classic Albums

Bossa Nova Jazz Part V

Following the previous article on the theme of Bossa Nova Jazz, here is the Jazz-like Bossa Nova Part V, which cuts through the recommended Bossa Nova music with jazz.

Jobim Jazz by Brazilian Musicians

In the last issue, we discussed what would happen if a jazz musician took up bossa nova.
This time, I would like to introduce a different approach to the bossa nova, that is, how Brazilian musicians add to Jobim's music and introduce some great recordings of bossa nova.
Naturally, there will be musicians with jazz skills, who have been influenced by Jobim and have played with him before.

Mario Adnet, a Brazilian musician with a spectacular career

Mario Adnet is a singer, guitarist, composer, arranger, and producer, who was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1957.
He has had an academic career, studying music theory in Brazil since the age of 16 and deepened his musical education by studying with pianists and composers in the United States and Austria.
Mario was invited by producer Robert Menescal in 1981 to work with many Brazilian musicians, including an arrangement and record production job at Polygram. Later, he was recognized by Antonio Carlos Jobim, and his arrangements were adopted by the Jobim Band.
As a guitarist, he has participated in many of Jobim's famous recordings and live shows, and is known as a key musical figure in the Jobim family.

■ Recommended album: Mario Adnet, “Plus Jobim Jazz” (2011)

Mario not only plays, sings, and composes music (which is enough...), but he also reflects the fruits of his advanced musical education in this album.
I couldn't understand at the time why Mario would make a Jobim jazz album with an orchestra. But there was a vast amount of musical knowledge behind it.

This album is a sequel to the album Jobim Jazz that was released in 2007.
It is an album that captures Jobim's important songs from the perspective of jazz, and the way it is approached is a work that only Mario, who knows Jobim’s music and has a high level of musical intelligence, could have done.
Mario's unique musical direction of using Jobim's music as the material and expressing it with a brass ensemble was a success.
On the other hand, the musical value of Antonio Carlos Jobim, which has been taken up by so many musicians, is also worthy of admiration.

Recommended Track: “Antigua”

This track is credited to Antonio Carlos Jobim's eternal classic album Wave.
The introduction with horns over gut guitar and piano backing shows respect for the classy Jobim music. Brass and piano play the A melody alternately, and the second chorus is sung by a different brass ensemble again, intersecting with the piano. One song doesn’t do the same thing in terms of arrangement. The intricate arrangement is reminiscent of a difficult puzzle, with the trumpet taking the lead in the chorus with the piano following.
The ad-lib solo part is a cross between piano and electric guitar– a dazzling show in Mario Adnet’s world.

Recommended Song: “Wave”

This is a well-known song by Jobim. In the beginning, a woodwind ensemble plays the chorus, a guitar and a brass ensemble play the introduction, a saxophone sings the A melody, and a flute ensemble takes charge of the second chorus. The sound heard is truly refreshing. The ensemble in the chorus, which is mainly woodwinds, also shows Mario's respect for the song “Wave”. The ad-lib solo was played by a saxophone. The drums faked a rhythmic fill in the middle of the song, which is very stylish!
Mario's arrangement reminds me of a watercolor painting in light colors.

When I think of the greasiness (not in a bad way) of the jazz bossa of the 60s, I feel as if I’m worlds apart. Mario's arrangement has the same airiness and stylishness of bossa nova. I think this is a good example of how music can change so much depending on how it is prepared.

■ Recommended album: Mario Adnet, Pedra Bonita (1993)

This album was my first exposure to Mario Adnet's music. As far as I listened to the album, I never dreamed that he had the ability to arrange an orchestra.
This is Mario Azine's masterpiece with guests Antonio Carlos Jobim, Ivan Lins, Joyce, Lisa Ono, and others.

Recommended track: “Malacangarilla”.

This track was recorded with Antonio Carlos Jobim, and from the second chorus, the arrangement is sung with numerous female vocals, which makes sense since Mario was the arranger for Jobim's later period.
It is a jazz approach to intentionally play out notes in the middle of the piano solo, which is rare in Jobim's piano solos, and then a passage of disafinado... This part is also from the jazz world and it gives us a glimpse of how the Brazilian side perceives jazz.

Musicians, albums, and recommendations featured in this issue

• Artist：Mario Azine, Antonio Carlos Jobim
• Albums：Jobim Jazz, Petra Bonita
• Songs: “Antigua”, “Wave”, “Malacangarria

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