Heinrich von Kalnein & Meretrio - Live at the Bird's Eye (2023) [Hi-Res]

"This new album is very special to me because it shows a beautiful blend of Brazilian music and European jazz in a very organic way. We have been developing the sound of this quartet since 2015 with my meretrio and Heinrich, and it's great to see the evolution of this band crystallizing with this new live album!"

Emiliano Sampaio, February 2023

Emiliano Sampaio tells us, "I had organized this almost three-week European tour for the quartet for the spring of 2020, as well as a trip to Brazil in August. We had our first production going at the time, freshly released the year before (NAT 47618 "Passagem") and were in a pretty good mood. Then the Corona virus, like all the others, threw a spanner in the works. Last year we were finally able to catch up on a whole series of concerts; in addition, we had the pleasure of a four-week stay in Australia in October!

During the spring concerts we had a three-day guest performance at "the bird's eye" jazz club in Basel; three evenings with three different formations. One of them was again the quartet with Heinrich and this evening we recorded live. The club has its very own acoustics, which the long-time manager, Swiss bassist Stefan Kurmann, had thought about for a long time together with international acoustic professionals. Everything is amplified, but you have the feeling as a musician as well as in the audience that the sound is completely natural. I think you can feel that very nicely in our recordings, too!

Again, the music comes from Gustavo, Heinrich and myself. Luis always has such the perspective of the critical listener and his input during the rehearsal phase is essential. Within the trio, Gustavo and I are quickly satisfied and it's good to have a critical mind in the band! This time there are clearly more influences especially from North Brazilian music, which you can hear well especially in Gustavo's tracks. "Baque" for example is such a rhythm. But also pieces like "Entrelinhas", where Heinrich plays a fantastic tenor solo, or my "Lamentos Sertanejos" show this well. Heinrich uses his flutes a lot with us, which I particularly like. His piece "Beauty" is my favorite in this regard. I myself am now also using my trombone in this band for the first time, and the sound I achieve with Heinrich, for example with the soprano in "Berlin" or also with the alto flute in "Sexto Andar" is super and really very special! This year, especially in autumn, there will be a whole series of very nice concerts again, which I am very much looking forward to. It's nice that we get to present our music live!"

"This CD is the second manifestation of my ongoing collaboration with my friend Emiliano Sampaio and his incredible Meretrio, which has been going on for almost 20 years now. Each time we meet, our music becomes more colorful and varied, an ongoing journey into a new musical terrain full of exciting rhythms and beguiling melodies. I hope you, the listener, enjoy the music as much as I do!"

Heinrich von Kalnein, January 2023