Eliane Elias: Quietude

Brazilian-born pianist/vocalist and multi-Grammy-winning artist Eliane Elias returns to her musical roots on Quietude, her 31st album as leader and a follow up to her Grammy Award-winning album Mirror, Mirror (Candid Records, 2021), a duet with the late Chick Corea and Chucho Valdes. Recorded in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and in New York, on this album Elias shares eleven of her own personal favorite bossa nova songs showcasing her sultry Portuguese vocals and relegating her talents on the piano to a more supportive role, except on such tracks as "So'Tinha Que Ser Com Voce" and the shoulder-moving "Brigas Nunca Mais."

Recognized as the reigning Brazilian queen of the bossa nova, Elias features the music of some of the greats of the genre including compositions from Antonio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes, Haroldo Barbosa, Dorival Caymmi and singer and son Dori Caymmi. who shares the vocals with the songstress on "Saveiros." The album could not have been released at a more appropriate time for those aficionados of the genre, as 2022 marks the 60th anniversary of the Brazilian-tinged "Jazz Samba" (Verve Records, 1962) classic from Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd. While not a homage to that recording, the vocalist's own contribution to the popular Brazilian sound is quite obvious and immensely important.

The vocal program begins with the Carlos Lyra/Vinicius de Moraes' "Voce e Eu" (You and I) as the singer is well-accompanied by guitarist Lula Galvão and percussionist Emilio Martins with a delicate treatment of a love song. The sounds of love continue on another light number establishing the light theme of the album as warm and soft on the slow and brief Dorival Cammi "Marina."

In order to maintain the light texture throughout the recording, Elias took the opportunity to purposely record with friends Oscar Castro-Neves, Marcus Teixeira and Lula Galvao, three masters of the guitar. The intimate duet with Teixeira on "Eu Sambo Mesmo (I really Samba) is only one of the many gentle voices found on this album. All is not so quiet though. "Bolinha de Papel" (Little Paper Ball) features the singer and band on one of a few of the fast-tempo pieces of the set.

Two more gyrating tracks follow with the lively "Tim-Tim Por Tim-Time" featuring Paulo Braga on percussion and Castro-Neves on the acoustic guitar. The other uplifting and playful piece of the session is the delicious "Brigas Nunca Mais" (No More Fighting), highlighting the singer's talents on the piano. The finale tune returns the artist to the main theme of the album on a beautiful love ballad where she is joined by Dori Caymmi on vocals for a gorgeous ending to a gorgeous album of the finest in Brazilian love songs.

The quiet sounds of the quiet Brazilian genre are gracefully documented on Quietude, and Elaine Elias's alluring vocals serve as the perfect vehicle to convey the feelings of love, emotion and excitement captured quite elegantly here.