Moacir Santos
Coisas

THE REVIEW

Brasil Instrumental n.4

Moacir Santos doesn't seem very popular to me. People shake their heads when I mention his name. On the contrary, Moacir Santos is a well-known name among professionals of Brazilian music, many owe him a debt.

Born in '26 in the heart of the Pernambuco hinterland, in the forties, he moved to Rio de Janeiro, where he would become the first black person to conduct at Radio Nacional. In '67, seeing the direction the Brazilian record market was heading, he decided to live in the States, where he would record four more albums, three for Blue Note and one for Discovery. Recognized as one of the masters of harmonic innovation in Brazilian popular music, he was a professor to musicians of the caliber of Baden Powell, Paulo Moura, João Donato, Nara Leão, Roberto Menescal, Sérgio Mendes, among others.

"Coisas" is his first album, the only one recorded in Brazil. It was released in '65 by the small and courageous label "Forma" and it presents itself as intriguing from the first listen. It captivates with its refined and seemingly simple harmonics, that orderly freedom of expression which acquires a delicate taste, mixing elements of both Afro-Brazilian and Afro-American music. The trance of the solistic ego awakens to the call of ancient dances, the scent of bossanova refreshes the atmosphere of the new swing terreiro.

Moacir Santos; a name that deserves to be rediscovered. "Coisas" is a pleasure to listen to, especially for lovers of jazz and bossanova.

"Foi o último e o melhor disco de 'samba-jazz' feito no Brasil daquela época: uma obra-prima de música instrumental, com raízes ardentemente brasileiras e uma certa tintura jungle, ellingtoniana, que parece brotar dessas mesmas raízes. Seria fácil dizer que, em tais raízes, está a música ancestral negra."

Ruy Castro