Samba

Anna Salleh: A Beautiful Voice From Brazil

Brazilian music has a unique and simple beauty. Here is how singer Anna Salleh’s profile starts at her site:

Singer/guitarist Anna Salleh (pronounced ‘Sah-lay’) has been fast developing a reputation as one of Sydney’s finest exponents of Brazilian jazz and other crossover music styles. From honey-smooth bossa and ballads, and irrepressible samba, to playful swing, cool jazz and enchanting choro, she includes surprise favourites all in the mix. Songs of beauty, sorrow, irreverence and joy.

about-anna-salleh-BrazilAnna cut her teeth performing in acappella groups, jazz bands and improvised theatre in Sydney, Kuala Lumpur and Edinburgh. But in 2010, she rediscovered the beauty of Brazilian music that first captured her imagination as a child. She spent three months in Rio de Janeiro performing with local musicians, and seeking out the wisdom of elders to deepen her understanding of Brazilian music. (Continue Reading…)

Wikipedia, if it has a fault, it is that it provides too much information. (Along the same lines, someone once said of the pitcher Tommy John, who apparently was a motormouth: “If you ask him what time it is, he’ll tell you how the watch was made.”) Usually, the first paragraph does the job. Here is the site’s take on Brazilian music, which goes beyond samba:

The music of Brazil encompasses various regional music styles influenced y AfricanEuropean and Amerindian forms. After 500 years of history, Brazilian music developed some unique and original styles such as sambabossa novaMPBRAPsertanejoBrazilian rockpagodetropicaliachoromaracatufrevoforróaxé,brega, and others. Samba has become the best known form of Brazilian music worldwide, especially because of the country’s carnival, although bossa nova, which had Antônio Carlos Jobim as one of its most acclaimed composers and performers, have received much attention abroad since the 1950s, when the song “Desafinado“, interpreted by João Gilberto, was first released. Instrumental music is also largely practiced in Brazil, with styles ranging from classical to popular andjazz influenced forms, featuring composers like Heitor Villa-eLobosPixinguinha and Hermeto Pascoal. The country also has a growing community of modern/experimental composition, including electroacoustic music. (Continue Reading…)

Above is “Manhã de Carnaval,” which is from the fabulous 1959 movie Black Opheus. I found it by accident and think it’s great. Below is “O Homem Falou.”

Our New Things: Links to Music Sites and Info on Analog Tech and Vinyl

TDMB has focused on music and musicians. We will continue to do that, of course. We're also expanding our coverage to include vinyl and analog equipment.

More specifically, we'll look at this huge and interesting world from the perspective of music lovers who want a better experience, not committed non-audiophiles.

Check out is some of what we've written so far:

-- Assessing the Value of Vinyl Records: An Overview

-- 7 Quick Tips on Optimizing Your Turntable Cartridge

-- Why Vinyl Records Continue to Thrive

-- Finding the Best Amplifier

-- Finding the Best Phono Preamp

-- What Speakers Do I Need for My Turntable?

Check out more articles on analog equipment and vinyl.

The site also is home to The Internet Music Mapping Project, an effort to list and describe as many music-related sites as possible.

Our Music

--A Tribe Called Quest to The Dick Hyman Trio (In other words, A to H)

--Indigo Girls to Queen Ida (I to Q)

--Radiohead to ZZ Top (R to Z)

Reading Music

The stories of the great bands and musicians are fascinating. Musicians as a group are brilliant, but often troubled. The combination of creativity and drama makes for great reading.

Here are some books to check out.

Duke Ellington brought class, sophistication and style to jazz which, until that point, was proudly unpolished and raucous. His story is profound. The author, Terry Teachout, also wrote "Pops," the acclaimed bio of Louis Armstrong. Click here or on the image.

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What else is there to say? Here is the story behind every song written by The Beatles. Click here or on the image.

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The Grateful Dead don't get enough credit for the profound nature of its lyrics. Many of the band's songs are driven by a deep and literate Americana ("I'm Uncle Sam/That's who I am/Been hidin' out/In a rock and roll band" and "Majordomo Billy Bojangles/Sit down and have a drink with me/What's this about Alabama/Keeps comin' back to me?").

David Dodd's exhaustive study tells the story, song by song. Click here or on the image.

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