Search - Guilherme Monteiro :: Air

Artist's statement: Whenever I put on a record at home, I do it with the desire of altering the atmosphere of the room in a certain way. I look for a certain feeling the music gives me, and that s how I choose the record I want to listen to. That is what I tried to accomplish with Air . Despite having such different tracks, to have one definite color trough out the album. It is poetic and free, although it has a definite structure. The common thread here is a general feeling of emotionally charged music and a songlike feel in all the tunes, whether they are instrumental or vocal. About the album: 1. Peace? :
This piece was inspired by turmoil and how you can still find peace in the middle of it all, through meditation, prayer or songwriting. The band really captured the feeling of restlessness I had in mind when I wrote it. 2. Retrato De Um Forro:
Lila Downs was actually the one who first showed me this song by Luiz Gonzaga. I wanted to give it a different treatment. To mix up Northeastern Brazilian Forro with Afro-Peruvian Lando we used the Cajon, Congas and two Udus, which made the song light despite of its groovy nature. Jorge s Pifano (a traditional wooden flute) sends us back to the region of Cariri in Northeastern Brazil. The style in which I played the guitar is what I call jokingly, Bandolero Forro , a sort of Mexican inspired way of playing this very Brazilian style. Lila sings her heart out on this song, throwing some unexpected turns in a conversational improvisation with the Pifano on the final vamp. 3. Cruzada:
This is a popular song from the 70 s by Tavinho Moura. He is one of the most underrated composers of the XXth century, due, I think, to his unassuming character and lack of releases outside Brazil. I always wanted to play it because I knew it would work wonderfully in Jazz format. I just added an Intro/Outro to it. The guys did a great job making its tricky corners sound as smooth as a 4/4 song. 4. Longing For The Future:
It is ultimately a pop ballad disguised by its tempo changes. 5. Caraiva:
This song was written out of pure happiness. I was in Caraiva, which is a special place for me. It is a small fisherman s village in Brazil, where I was without a guitar for weeks until I met this really nice guy who would let me hang out at his place and play his old guitar. That s where I wrote this tune. Inspired by the sound of waves on the background and the joy of being reunited with an instrument. Jerome and I solo together, giving a kind of wavelike feel to the piece, rather than just pure blowing . 6. Joel:
Gilmar wrote this song for his son, Joel. He played the rhythm guitar and sang beautifully. For me it is an African-inspired song, but the way Yayo plays the Cajon brings us back to South America. It s worth it to notice that until the solo the only instruments being played are the two guitars and the Cajon, but still the sensation of fullness is of one of a full band. Jorge takes a nice alto flute solo at the end. 7. View From The Top Of A Mountain:
I wrote the music and lyrics of this song almost simultaneously. It s a bit dark and psychedelic. Chiara sang it like it was one of her own songs. She interpreted it with perfect emotion and precision, despite of the difficult parts and range of the melody. 8. Air:
A very interactive track, it reminds me of some of the late 60 s Blue Note albums as well as the CTI label from the early 70 s. Ben holds an ostinato bass line while everyone else interacts on the solo section. 9. Vento Sul:
I wrote this song when I was 20 years old. 10. Todo O Amor Do Mundo:
It is a simple song about love, romantic and universal.