Ricardo Silveira & Roberto Taufic: Atlanticos

What do you get when two top-flight studio guitarists grab their acoustic axes and get together to bask in the glow of Brazilian music? The answer is the resplendent Atlanticos.

Ricardo Silveira is a Brazilian-born-and-based, Berklee-trained guitarist who's recorded hundreds of sessions, backing everybody from flautist Herbie Mann to Brazilian icons like Gilberto Gil and Milton Nascimento. His partner on this record is Honduran-born Roberto Taufic, who at the age of five made his way to Brazil, started playing guitar, and never looked back. By the time Taufic was seventeen, he was already making a name for himself in the Brazilian studio scene.

Both men got together for a couple days at a studio in Rio De Janeiro in January of 2012 to record the predictably charming Atlanticos, a clean-and-clear session that conjures myriad moods, yet remains wholly consistent in its sonic architecture. The album is predominantly made up of original material, with six of the nine tracks credited to one or both of the guitarists, but they throw in a pair of nods to Brazilian composer/guitarist/vocalist Dori Caymmi ("Amazon" and "Voce Nao Sabe Amar") and a sparkling take on a Henry Mancini classic ("Moon River") to keep things interesting.

Much of this material can technically fall under the "ambling" heading, but Silveira and Taufic never invite slumber with their playing. The music they make can be calm ("Her Eyes") and haunting ("Reflexoes"), but they also bring excitement into the picture ("Tinha Uma Dona Ali"). They also aren't averse to odd-metered excursions ("Cats") and they prove capable of delivering music that speaks with a sense of longing and wonder ("Amazon").

Silveira and Taufic manage to make their mark here by doing what they do best: grabbing their guitars and getting down to the business of making beautiful music.

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