Featuring violinist Regina Carter - to many ourselves included the most gifted swing-jazz violinist just about anywhere given her significant role on for example Wynton classic Blood on the Fields (Columbia, 1997) - here in a very different idiom along with the vocal sung in Spanish by the Chilean jazz singer Claudia Acuña long since in her prime on Victor Jara's 'Manifiesto'. The song is new in our top 1 luv track-of-the-day spot where we select an outstanding track from any new or upcoming album for regular close attention and frequent replay.
The protest song by Jara (Víctor Lidio Jara Martínez) who was a Chilean political activist tortured and killed by the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet is from the 1974 album of the same name. The key line finds Jara have his own protagonist speak of his ''song'' however broadly you wish to interpret the word as finding a purpose and cites as presiding inspiration ''Violeta'' - Violeta Parra who pioneered the wave of nueva canción chilena in the 1950s and 1960s - significantly in the lyric.
Drawn from Duo out on the Ropeadope label in September the performance has a very serious quasi-classical resounding concert hall demeanour to it and yet is far from clinical in its effect. The conversational aspect between Carter and Acuña as the duo navigate the plangent melody is very striking.
Duo in addition to Carter includes a who's who of top players in duo with the great singer who include piano icon Fred Hersch, bass great Christian McBride, superb guitarist Russell Malone and the master pianist Kenny Barron among its personnel.
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