Labyrinths

The album consists of Zarvos´ own unique blend of music and musicians from such diverse backgrounds as jazz, Brazilian and classical music and counts with an ensemble formed of Marcelo Zarvos on piano, Peter Epstein on soprano saxophone, Dorothy Lawson on cello, Mauro Refosco on marimba and percussion, Renato Brasa on drums and special guest Brazilian virtuoso guitarist Romero Lubambo.

"... dare to lose yourself in his Labyrinth. You might just hear the most beautiful music you could possibly imagine! "
Bossa Magazine

"...extraordinary...breathtaking... haunting, uncategorizable, truly his own blend..."
Fred Bouchard (writer)

Composer notes:

1) Rondo Baião: The baião has been for a long time one of my favorite rhythms in Brazilian music, and certainly the one I have the earliest childhood memories from being in the countryside of Sao Paulo and Mato Grosso and listening to the "forr—" groups playing in festivals. The piece is in rondo form, ( ABACADA coda), which is also originally a dance form found in both western and non western cultures .

2) Labyrinths: There is a quote by argentinean writer Jorge Luis Borges that puts it beautifully : "Who knows but that we may see it tonight in the labyrinth of dreams and tomorrow not even know that we saw it ". The piece also borrows from the idea of a labyrinth on a harmonic level, with progressions that move by thirds rather than fourths thus dividing an octave in three or four symmetrical parts and much like when you enter a labyrinth, you can move equally back and forth and arrive at the same point again and again.

3) Caraíva: Caraíva is a city in the coast of Bahia where I spent some time last year. Since there were no roads to speak of, I would hitchhike from beach to beach with the fishermen in their "traineiras", and the main theme of the piece was inspired by the long movements up and down the waves that these old boats did while in open sea. This piece features the great brazilian guitarist Romero Lubambo as soloist.

4) Chance Meeting ( to B.G.): This is by far the most stylized piece in the album and is an homage to the great tradition of Bossa Nova composers from Brazil. The piece is in song form, and once again features Romero Lubambo on guitar. This composition is dedicated to the great brazilian singer and friend Bebel Gilberto (B.G.).

5) Lament: The inspiration for this piece comes from a very different part of the world, Greece, the land of my ancestors before their immigration to Brazil in the beginning of this century. The piece has a lamenting quality to it that I´ve often associated with that part of the world. It is also the most open and improvised of the pieces in the album, with extended piano and saxophone improvisations.

6) The Comfort of Strangers: I borrowed the title and idea for this piece from a book by writer Ian McKewan. The piece is somewhat derived of a fugue form, with the saxophone stating the main theme (subject) followed by the cello, against which the saxophone plays the counter - subject. Each new entrance of the subject and counter subject is stated a major third apart, (A, Db, F, Db, A) and where in a typical baroque fugue there would be developmental episodes there are instead improvisations, first on the saxophone and then on the piano.

7) Ghost Child: The first rhythmic pattern heard on this piece are that of a rattle and marimba playing the Tokoe pattern, (originally used as a female rite of passage into puberty) from the Ewe people of Ghana in West Africa. The relationship between african and brazilian music is obvious, with the African influence brought by the slaves having formed the basis of Brazilian popular music. The piece alternates between the african pattern and the more laid back samba feel from Brazil. The form of this piece is loosely based on a sonata allegro form, again with the development section being substituted by piano and saxophone improvisations.

8) Lu´s Rag: Ragtime and stride piano have fascinated me since for being so indigenous to the piano and where also some of the first styles of music I played as a child, even before any of the standard classical repertoire. The piece is built on the initial left hand theme played in 10th on the piano with a counter theme being added to it later in the piece.

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