.___________________________________________________________________________. |========================-==-..:.::. SOUNDz .::.:..-==-=====================| | ___________/_ _______ /\ |\/\/| _\___________ | : |_ /_ _( )_ \/ .---. _|____//> __ /\ _\ _| : . | __ / | |____ | |___\_ | /_____\ \ \/ \ __ | . ! | /___/_ | ___ | | | || \ | \/ |_ \ _\___\ | ! . | \ ! \ / | | | || \| \ | \ / | . <>!_______ \ / | | | || \ \ | |\ \ _______!<> ==\-----. \ \ \ | )_( || \ \ \| |_\ \ / .-----/zNr .==/\ /___\ |_ _| || \ \ \ /___\ /\dS! :=/ |'-------'/_________\! |\ \_________/ \= /____/\_________|===================='-\-'=\________|=====|_________/\____\ ___\/_______________________________/_\___________________________\/___ //// // // // // // // // // / \ \ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\\\ /// // // // // // // // // / /\\ \ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\\ /___/___/___/___/___/___/___/___/___/_//\\\_\___\___\___\___\___\___\___\___\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \ \\_// / // // // // // // // // \\\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \ \\/ / // // // // // // // /// \\\___\___\___\___\___\___\___\___\___\ \ /___/___/___/___/___/___/___/___/// . ------------------------------------\ /-------------------------------- . : \ : | / \ | | | | | | R E L E A S E D E T A I L S >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> | | ----------------------------- <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< | | | | Amaro_Freitas-Sankofa-(FARO225)-WEB-2021-SOUNDz | | --------------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | Artist______________ Amaro Freitas | | Title_______________ Sankofa | | Label_______________ Far Out Recordings / FARO225 | | Genre_______________ Jazz | | Year________________ 2021 | | Release Date________ 2021-07-16 | | Street Date_________ 2021-06-25 | | Source______________ WEB | | Encoder_____________ MP3 / LAME | | Quality_____________ CBR 320kbps 44.1kHz | | Size________________ 103.9MiB | | Playtime____________ 0:45:14 | | URL_________________ https://amazon.com/dp/B09233G2GL/ | | | | | | 1. Sankofa 07:12 | | 2. Ayeye 06:16 | | 3. Baquaqua 04:02 | | 4. Vila Bela 04:44 | | 5. Cazumba 08:09 | | 6. Batucada 03:00 | | 7. Malakoff 06:59 | | 8. Nascimento 04:52 | | | | | | R E L E A S E N O T E S >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> | | ------------------------- <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< | | | | | | From the slums of Recife in Brazil's North-East to international jazz | | icon, Amaro Freitas has worked tirelessly to become the artist he is | | today. Gaining international attention for "an approach to the | | keyboard so unique that it's startling" (Downbeat), his debut and | | sophomore albums Sangue Negro (2016) and Rasif (2018) arrived on a | | wave of instant acclaim. His new album Sankofa - a spiritual quest | | into the forgotten stories, ancient philosophies and inspirational | | figures of Black Brazil - is his most stunning and sincere work to | | date. | | | | But for Amaro Freitas, work isn't just playing the piano, his art | | delves far deeper than music theory and practice. Explaining the | | impetus behind Sankofa, Amaro elucidates the imperative behind his | | music: | | | | "I worked to try to understand my ancestors, my place, my history, as | | a black man. Brazil didn't tell us the truth about Brazil. The | | history of black people before slavery is rich with ancient | | philosophies. By understanding the history and the strength of our | | people, one can start to understand where our desires, dreams and | | wishes come from." | | | | Sankofa is an Adinkra symbol depicting a backward-facing bird. After | | stumbling upon the symbol on a robe at an African fair in Harlem, New | | York - perhaps auspicious considering it's the home of some of the | | great jazz pianists like Monk and Tatum, it sparked a curiosity in | | Amaro. He soon came to understand what it represents, and it became | | the foundational concept for his new album: | | | | "The symbol of the mystical bird, which flies with its head back, | | teaches us the possibility of going back to our roots, in order to | | realize our potential to move forward. With this album I want to | | bring a memory of who we are and pay homage to neighborhoods, names, | | characters, places, words and symbols that come from our ancestors. I | | want to celebrate where we come from." | | | | With the help of Jean Elton (bass) and Hugo Medeiros (drums), who | | have formed the Amaro Freitas Trio since the very beginning, Amaro | | employs intricate rhythmic patterns and time-signature variations as | | if reimagining the ancient designs of his ancestors, and every track | | is imbued with a message or a story Amaro is compelled to tell. | | | | 'Baquaqua' highlights the seldom told story of the West African | | Mahommah Gardo Baquaqua, who was brought to Brazil as a slave but | | escaped to New York in 1847 where he learned to read and write. His | | autobiography was published by the American abolitionist Samuel Moore | | and now stands as the only known document about the slave trade | | written by a former Brazilian slave. | | | | The delicate 'Vila Bela' takes its name after an area near the | | Bolivian border, in Brazil's Mato Grosso region, where the 18th | | century Quilombola queen Tereza de Benguela led the the black and | | indigenous community in resisting slavery for two decades. | | | | 'Nascimento' is a warmhearted tribute to the great star of Minas | | Gerais, who Amaro sees as a talisman of contemporary Black Brazilian | | culture. Having recently collaborated on a joint EP with Milton | | Nascimento and rapper Criolo, Amaro recalls: "It was an unforgettable | | experience. Milton is love, lightness, art, and memory." | | | | 'Ayeye', Sankofa's most joyful moment, means celebration in Yoruba | | and features gorgeous, fluttering piano, shuffling hi-hats and a | | stuttering bass groove, at times sounding as much like a D'Angelo or | | Alicia Keys hit as it does Bill Evans or Thelonious Monk. | | | | Named after a mythical bull from the tropical region of Maranhao, | | 'Cazumba' represents the interdependence of all living things. A jazz | | rock pulse represents a noisy urban city port, and as the track | | develops it's as if the group moves out into the tranquility of the | | rainforest river. Inspired by the sounds of nature, from crickets to | | birds and flowing water, it's a call to respect and protect Brazil's | | stunning natural beauty. | | | | These people, places and stories are Amaro's jumping off point. "I | | start from these theories, from these ideas, but then emotion pours | | into the notes, it's my interpretation of this knowledge turned into | | music." Among Amaro's influences are the evangelical church, his | | hometown Recife, funk music, samba, maracatu and frevo. But like the | | Sankofa bird, while looking back, Amaro's music is fundamentally | | contemporary music. "It's a continuation, it connects with people | | today and it represents what is happening in 2021." | | | | Like all Amaro's albums, Sankofa has taken around two years to make, | | with the trio spending eight hours a day, four days a week in the | | studio. "We treasure the creative process. We know it takes time to | | reach a different place, and then it takes time to understand that | | place, to translate it. When we want to leave our comfort zone, the | | most important factors are time, dedication, discipline and wisdom. | | Months pass and ideas start falling into place. Time is the most | | important thing. We cannot make it to where we want to be without it. | | So, I also want to transmit this message to future generations: Let's | | slow down, let's give ourselves more time, let's do deeper things. | | Let's stop swimming in the surface, let's dive." | | | | | | Amaro Freitas - piano | | Hugo Medeiros - drums and percussion | | Jean Elton - double bass | | | | Produced by Amaro Freitas. | | Recorded and mixed by Vinicius Aquino @ Studio Carranca, Recife, | | Brazil. | | Mastered by Arthur Joly @ RECO Studio. | | | | | | YOU KNOW YOU HAVE TO BUY THIS SHIT IF YOU LIKE IT RIGHT?! | | | | | | . . | | |\/\/| | | |____| | |------------------------------=---=-======-=---=-------------------------| |===/\===============================SOUNDz==========================/\===| '--/__\--------------------------=-2013-2021-=----------------------/__\--'