From his youth, André Mehmari's musical sensibility has known no borders, flowing freely between the worlds of Chopin, Scott Joplin, and Ernesto Nazareth. Now a renowned pianist and composer, he has forged a language of tremendous expressive power from the resources of classical music, jazz, and Brazilian music. He deploys his instinct for composition not only in the writing of new works and arrangements, but also in interpretation as he understands a composer's intention, bringing its essence forward with clarity that often exceeds the original.

 

This skill is at the forefront of his trio recording, Na Esquina do Clube com o Sol Na Cabeça, devoted to the work of Clube de Esquina. Led by Milton Nascimento, this group of Brazilian artists blended ideas from pop. folk music, bossa nova, jazz, and classical avant-garde to create hymns honoring friendship and dialogue that are among the greatest treasures of Brazilian music.

 

There is something special about the sound of the piano trio that propels masters to another level. The trios of American pianists Keith Jarrett and Brad Mehldau -- to whom Mehmari is often likened -- provide evidence of this piano trio alchemy. Its power is now affirmed from a Brazilian perspective by Mehmari's trio.