NICOLA STILO & TONINHO HORTA: Duets

Nicola Stilo & Toninho Horta

Duets

© 2005 Adventure Music (823421102029)

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Italian flutist nicola stilo and brazilian guitarist toninho horta each bring the fruits of their impressive musical careers to blossom on "duets" the highly anticipated u.s. debut of this out- of-print 1999 recording.

notes

Brazilian guitarist Toninho Horta and Italian flutust Nicola Stilo each bring
the fruits of their impressive musical careers to blossom on "Duets", the
highly anticipated US debut of this out-of-print 1999 recording. Best known
for his work with the legendary Chet Baker, Nicola Stilo has, in the course
of his 30 year-long career, performed and recorded with a panoply of the
world's most popular jazz and pop artists, and has also earned considerable
critical acclaim for his own musical projects. Guitarist, arranger, songwriter
and sparkling instrumentalist, Toninho Horta has performed with with such
legendary Brazilian musicians as Milton Nascimento, Airto Moreira and Flora
Purim, Gal Costa and Elis Regina and has recorded more than 10 solo albums.
"Duets" captures these two stellar musicians in an intimate setting, performing both original material as well as some true standards.

TONINHO'S BIO:


They were a group of childhood friends, all raised together in the land-locked, mountainous, mineral rich Brazilizan state of Minas Gerais. The first name that sprang to international attention - and stays there as the foremost current ambassador of Brazilian song - is Milton Nascimento. Joining him are songwriters Beto Guedes and Lo Borges, poets Ronaldo Bastos and Fernando Brant, and a slew of instrumentalists like Wagner Tiso and Robertinho Silva. And at the side of all of them is a musician who appears on more albums than most anyone in all Brazil, as arranger, as song- writer, as sparkling instrumentalist - Toninho Horta. Toninho Horta is, quite simply, a master whose harmonic sensibility, whose fantastically inventive chording, whose unfailing musicality have made him a session player and a arranger in constant demand for well over two decades. To hear him play live is to be stunned by the alternately lyrical and rythmic lines he is capable of, and at the ability of a musician to think so originally, so complexly on his feet. As a writer, Toninho's musicality has produced standards that top the list of the best-loved songs in Brazil. His story is somewhat typical of the artists of his generation. Like all Brazilians, he grew up with the music of his region everywhere about him: the folkloric traditions of former slaves, the religious music of a deeply religious land, a glorious tradition in samba, and as a youth at a time of worldwide flux, he grew with an ever widening exposure to foreign forms. He and his minas friends were first introduced to American jazz in the 1950's, cool jazz, like that played by Chet Baker (whose phrasing as a singer and instrumentalist made a tremendous impression) and Miles davis, or by richly harmonic masters like Duke Elington. Then came the rock and roll of a later generation - especially a group cited by nearly every Brazilian of the time, The Beatles, with their allembracing concept album and adventouresome musical vision. This varied exposure filtered through some of the most singular musical sensibilities in Brazil, and the the loosely knit clutch of musicians came to be known as the Corner Club, or in Portuguese, the Clube da Esquinha. Toninho Horta was born into a musical family in the capital of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, in 1948. His mother taught him guitar and his uncle a composer and multi-instrumentalist, provided guidance. His successes came early, with a first composition, written when he was only thirteen, beung picked up by local bands, and a later one, "Litoral", becoming an instant standard for its twenty-year-old composer. Given his early recognition as a guitarist to watch, Toninho appeared in the bands of many of Brazil's greatest singers. he even fronted Milton Nascimento's first appearance in Rio, in 1970. since that time he has played with and arranged for Maria Bethania, Elis Regina, Gal Costa and many others.

The embodiment of wholeness and harmony carries a nylonstring guitar and a plane ticket. But when you see him, don't ask for his lead sheets, because guitarist Toninho Horta looks to his country, cradled between the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn, and his people for the natural lessons of music. Lessons without metronomes and videos. It may be a long flight from his homeland of Minas Gerais in Brazil, but the sound of his voice and his music proves he really hasn't left. Toninho Horta grew up with the bosa nova and studied the works of Brazilian folk guitarists until, at the age of 13, he composed his own song, "Flor Que Cheirava Saudade". Formative lessons from his older brother would eventually help him ride the jazz tide with such artists as Joe Pass and Delmar Brown, Gary Peacock, and Billy Higgins. In a short time, absorbing the world of music, he was invited to perform with Milton Nascimento and some of Brazil's most popular artists. In 1976, he recorded with Nasciment along with the famed musical duo of Airto Moreira and Flora Purim, gaining widespread recognition in the Brazilian music industry and the momentum to undertake projects abroad. Following his first self titled release, Terra dos Passaros, Horta's interests expanded to include the countercultural rock music of Jimi Hendrix, Simon and Garfunkel and Led Zeppelin. Somewhere in this haze of time, a bit of American music spirit slipped into his bloodstream, and to this day he still has flashbacks.


NICOLA'S BIO:


Flute, piano, composition. He was born in Italy in 1956. His musical career started in 1974 with the Dodi Moscati's folk group and in the 1975 he joined the "Folk Magic Band", a Jazz group with whom he gained recognition as a flautist on the Italian Jazz scene. Up until the end of 1979 he worked as a soloist with various groups and was a member of Lilian Terry's "Jazz Samba Workshop". In 1980 he met Chet Baker and from 1980 to '1985 they performed together world-wide and recorded a number of albums. During this period he was also working with his own group and as side-man with Enrico Rava, Maurizio Giammarco, Rita Marcotulli, Tommaso Vittorini's "Grande Elenco Musicisti" and many others. From June '85 to July '86 he lived and worked in Brazil where he performed with his own band (Teco Cardoso, Guillerme Vergueiro, Sizao Machado, Bobby Wyatt ) both live and on television. He also performed with Helio Delmiro, Mauricio Heinorn, Ricky Pantoja, Zimbo Trio, Mou Brasil, and Nivaldo Ornellas. He was "Special Guest" at the "Festival of Instrumental Music" in Salvador, Bahia where he also held a seminary on "Improvisation" organized by I.C.B.A. (German Cultural Institute ). After leaving Brazil, Nicola Stilo again worked intensely with Chet Baker until Baker's death in May 1988. Since 1989 Stilo has been working mostly on his own musical projects :Duos with pianist Luca Flores and with pianist Guillerme Vergueiro, a Trio with Manù Roche (drums) and Francesco Puglisi (el., ac. bass)and a quintet with the guitarist Fabio Zeppetella. In 1994 he recorded "Flute Connection" together with the flautist Stefano Benini and toured in Holland with his band. In 1995 he recorded "Errata Corrige" ,his first album as leader. Since January 1997 Nicola Stilo is leading a new band :"The Golden Age Trio" with Pietro Ciancaglini on bass and Michele Rabbia) on drums) Special guests of the "trio" had been : Alessandro Di Puccio, Michele Ascolese. For the last ten years Stilo has been working intensively also as a soloist, mainly in Italy, playing alongside many of Italy's best musicians such as Paolo Birro, Sandro Gibellini, Flavio Boltro, Roberto Rossi and others. In August 1998 and January 1999 Stilo performed in "duo" with Toninho Horta .Two differents tours and two different cd's: one just as duo titled "Duets" and another with a large band and mostly original tunes titled "Vira Vida". Since 1985 Stilo has run various workshops and since 1995 has taught Jazz Harmony and Improvisation at S.P.M.T. (Testaccio's Popular School of Music) in Rome Nicola Stilo has also performed and/or recorded with the following artists: Musicians: Aldo Romano, Philippe Catharine, George Brown, Michel Graillier, Franco D'Andrea, Riccardo Del Frà, Richie Beirach, Alain Jeanmarie, Karl Ratzer, Roberto Gatto, Danilo Rea, Dennis Luxion, Al Levitt, Enrico Pierannunzi, Furio Di Castri, Massimo Urbani, Larry Porter, Slide Hampton, Buddy De Franco, Bruno Marini, Kirk Lightsey, Sal Nistico, Fulvio Sisti, Stefano Bollani, Dusko Goykovic, Giovanni Tommaso, Stephan Belmondo, Jack Pelzer, Eric Lelan, Claudio Roditi, Barbara Casini. Dancers: Bob Curtis, Roberta Garrison. Poets: Maurizio Guercini, Gianluca Manzi. Stilo has also worked for various musicians from the world of "Pop" such as Mimmo Locasciulli, Jim Porto, Tullio De Piscopo, Gianni Morandi, Nino Bonocore and others.

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  • La Flauta de Nicola
    author: Marco Mondragon

    Se asiste a una audición inigualable. La flauta de NICOLA es de Maravilla al mejor estilo Brasileño.

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