Rodrigo Lima

One of the most inventive artists to come along from Brazil in recent years, Rodrigo Lima is releasing his debut album as a leader, "Saga", a stunning 2-CD set that has the brilliant guitarist/composer/arranger working in modes that range from his Brazilian samba & bossa roots to chamber jazz, with lots of stops in between. Produced by Arnaldo DeSouteiro (João Gilberto, Luiz Bonfá, Deodato) for the Jazz Station Records (JSR) label, recorded in LA, NY, Rio and Curitiba, “Saga” features an all-star cast: Hubert Laws, Anat Cohen, Don Sebesky, Mike Mainieri, Hermeto Pascoal, Ithamara Koorax, Sammy Figueroa, Raul de Souza, Hugo Fattoruso, Joao Palma and Laudir de Oliveira, to name a few.

The cover pic is by the legendary photographer Pete Turner (John Coltrane, Quincy Jones, Ray Charles, Oscar Peterson, Weather Report), and the list of engineers includes the renowned Jay Messina (Miles Davis, John Lennon, Aerosmith and the Rolling Stones.) The repertoire brings songs based on several Brazilian rhythms such as choro (“Anat’s Song”), baião (“Brasileirão”), samba (“Samba da Mistura”) and bossa nova (“Altinho”), plus two tunes composed by Brazilian living genius Hermeto Pascoal specially to this album, some experimental adventures, and the 20-minute long “Brahms,” a loose jazz version of Johannes Brahms’ Symphony #3.

Lima plays acoustic guitar with a deftness that rivals some of his most notable Brazilian predecessors like Luiz Bonfa and Laurindo Almeida – and that includes some of the best bossa and choro talents as well, blended with the influence of Jim Hall and Pat Metheny. The range of settings in the album is varied, but extremely unified too, thanks to a coherent sense of production and presentation that really holds the listener’s interest throughout. In some songs, Lima’s vocal lines complement the mesmerizing melodies and the soulful guitar solos.

An intuitive guitar ace whose instincts and passions are balanced by his versatility and technical dexterity, Rodrigo Lima is also an actor with multiple awards for his work on Brazilian TV and movie productions, for which he often writes the soundtracks as well. He has also appeared as a member of singer Ithamara Koorax’s band on European and Asian tours. The rich musical diversity of Brazil, particularly the artistry of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Dorival Caymmi, Hermeto Pascoal, Baden Powell, Luiz Bonfa, Laurindo Almeida and Joao Gilberto, proved an undeniable influence on Lima’s solid musical background. His parents loved jazz, so he grew up listening to Bill Evans, Toots Thielemans, Chet Baker, Hubert Laws and literally any album arranged by Don Sebesky. His musical horizons are truly unlimited.

From Heitor Villa-Lobos to Oscar Castro-Neves to Luiz Bonfá, the guitar has a long and rich history in Brazilian music. Virtuoso guitarist Laurindo Almeida fused Brazilian rhythms with cool jazz when he teamed up with American alto saxophonist Bud Shank for their landmark “Brazilliance” sessions of 1953; the iconic João Gilberto took the fusion of Brazilian rhythms and cool jazz to the next level when he played the samba on his acoustic guitar and set off the bossa nova explosion in the late 1950s. And after all these years, the guitar continues to offer many possibilities for providers of Brazilian jazz.