DIANNE REEVES

Winner of the 2015 Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album, “Beautiful Life” showcases Dianne’s sublime gifts in what is a melding of R&B, Latin and pop elements within the framework of 21st Century jazz. “At its essence,” says Reeves, “Life is beautiful, and I wanted to celebrate that which is too often overlooked.”
“Beautiful Life” features singularly memorable covers of Bob Marley’s “Waiting in Vain,” Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams,” Marvin Gaye’s “I Want You” and Ani DiFranco’s self-empowering “32 Flavors.” The rest of the twelve tracks cover a spectrum from jazz to soul, along with  two new songs, “Cold” and “Satiated”, which are emotionally volcanic. Produced by Terri Lyne Carrington, Beautiful Life features an all-star cast including bassists Esperanza Spalding and Richard Bona, vocalists Gregory Porter and Lalah Hathaway, pianists Robert Glasper and Gerald Clayton and Reeves’ cousin and frequent longtime collaborator, the late great George Duke.

Dianne Reeves has been one of the top singers in jazz ever since the late ’80s. A logical successor toDinah Washington and Carmen McRae (although even she can’t reach the impossible heights of Ellaand Sarah Vaughan), Reeves is a superior interpreter of lyrics and a skilled scat singer. She was a talented vocalist with an attractive voice even as a teenager when she sang and recorded with her high school band. She was encouraged by Clark Terry, who had her perform with him while she was a college student at the University of Colorado.
There have been many times when Reeves has explored music beyond jazz. She did session work in Los Angeles starting in 1976, toured with Caldera, worked with Sergio Mendes in 1981, and toured with Harry Belafonte between 1983 and 1986. Reeves began recording as a leader in 1982 and became a regular at major jazz festivals. Her earlier recordings tended to be quite eclectic and many of her live performances have included original, African-inspired folk music (which is often autobiographical), world music, and pop.

After signing with Blue Note in 1987, however, and particularly since 1994, Reeves has found her place in jazz, recording several classic albums along the way, most notablyI Remember, The Grand Encounter, The Calling: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan, and A Little Moonlight. In 2005, she appeared onscreen singing ’50s standards in the George Clooney film Good Night, And Good Luck. When You Know was released in 2008. Reeves left Blue Note in 2009. After touring and an extended break, she eventually signed with Concord and began working on a new record produced by Terri Lynne Carrington. The pair enlisted an all-star cast including Esperanza Spalding, Sheila E, Robert Glasper, and George Duke (who passed away shortly after the album was completed). Beautiful Life was released just in time for Valentine’s Day, 2014.

 

 

Romero Lubambo

Dianne Reeves’ extraordinary talent is accompanied by Romero Lubambo’s guitar.
In 1985, Romero Lubambo came to the United States, and brought with him a new sound in Brazilian jazz guitar.

Romero’s guitar playing unites the styles and rhythms of his native Brazilian musical heritage with his fluency in the American jazz tradition to form a distinctive new sound.

From the cool, sophisticated rhythms of his native Brazil to hard bop, Romero is a  guitarist who’s comfortable in any musical setting. He is an uncommonly gifted soloist and musical improviser with  a steady stream of unpredictably creative musical thoughts and the virtuosity to deliver them  ever so tastefully.

After arriving in New York City, Romero quickly established himself as a “first call” session and touring guitarist who was in demand not only for his authentic Brazilian sound, but also for his command with a variety of styles.

Lubambo has performed and recorded with many outstanding artists, including Dianne Reeves, Michael Brecker, Yo-Yo Ma, Kathleen Battle, Diana Krall, Herbie Mann, Wynton Marsalis, Gal Costa, Kurt Elling, Kenny Barron, Luciana Souza, Cyro Baptista, Sergio and Odair Assad, Ivan Lins, Grover Washington Jr., Vernon Reid, Flora Purim and Airto, Paquito D’Rivera, Harry Belafonte, Larry Coryell, Gato Barbieri, Leny Andrade, James Carter, Paula Robison, Dave Weckl, Jason Miles, and Cesar Camargo Mariano… among many others.

He has also established himself as a composer and performer on his own critically acclaimed recording projects as well as on those of Trio Da Paz, a Brazilian jazz trio Lubambo formed with Nilson Matta and Duduka da Fonseca.

Romero Lubambo is considered by critics to be “the best practitioner of his craft in the world today… the guitarist’s facility, creativity and energy are in a class all their own.”

Traduzione di Chiara Voltini