EGBERTO GISMONTI — Dança Das Cabeças (review)

EGBERTO GISMONTI — Dança Das Cabeças album cover

Album · 1977 · World Fusion

5/5 · 2025-01-04
Moshkiae

DANCA DAS CABECAS Egberto Gismonti 1977 With Nana Vasconcelos

It is, sometimes, difficult to explain to anyone what something is ... you try to find words, and they are not exactly there. This is the feeling you get when listening to this album. I would recommend not looking for it because it is this or that ... because what you will hear will likely be very different.

The album has 2 sides, both long pieces, that have some divisions in them as there are individual titles for them, however, my way of listening to this is to take the first few seconds of the opening of this album, and forget anything else ... close your eyes, and let the images fly.

You start out with the feeling that you are in a rain forest and that you are hearing this and that, and a soft guitar just coming along, and eventually becoming the focus of the piece. But there are some touches here that are really neat ... those by percussionist Nana Vasconcelos as if he was the one creating all the animal sounds to help with the image of the whole thing.

The second side of the album is basically the same thing, but done on piano, and it is just as far out and neat. According to the album, it has 4 parts, though I have to suggeest that hearing this, I do not seem to notice the parts ... you just trip along with the music, the same as the firt side of the album, which has 6 parts listed, however, the CD only shows Side 1 and Side 2 as two long pieces, which I think are better suited, so we don't think we have to listen to this song or that song. Some themes, come back, in the acoustic piece on the guitar, but in general, the listening feel is hard to describe. I tend to consider it ... welcome to my living room, or in this case rain forest and here we go ... nothing else. We don't always here a piano within this context, but it is like it was out there in the middle of the jungle, and like the guitar on side one ... wow ... it fits, and you can't help just closing your eyes and follow it.

It is a really beautiful album, and one that in many ways broke the mold at ECM, since considering this jazz is an incredible stretch, but the freedom and movement of the work, suggests something else ... and the only word to describe it is ... the beauty of it all!

It is listed, often as "World Music", and I think that it is given that simply because it can not be described well enough to define it ... but what it really is, is by far one of the prettiest free form albums you will ever hear, and on an 8-string guitar, on side one and simply just a piano on side two with Nana Vasconcelos accompanying the whole thing.

A fabulous album, and one of the many that Egberto Gismonti went on to do ... and create something different for a lot of folks to listen to ... a very impressive player and his technique is exquisite and his touches are about the clarity of the notes, and not exactly following something musical ... I kinda like to think of this as improvisational material that is music, but will not adhere to anything musical that we can consider.

An ECM album that should be in everyone's collection. There aren't many albums that are so different and exquisite as this one is ... again, a fabulous work, and a beautiful listen. And very special!