Amaro Freitas

GATEFOLD DIGIPACK EDITION

What drives Amaro Freitas in life is experience. In 2020 the pianist, who hails from the Northeastern Brazilian coastal city of Recife, was drawn to Manaus, located in the Amazon basin, some 4600 kilometers to the west. His experience in that lush wilderness led him into a new realm of musical creation, one rooted in magic and possibility and tempered by a sense of stewardship for the earth’s bounties and a connection to the Sateré Mawé indigenous community. Crucial to the experience for Freitas was the maintenance of a true exchange of knowledge. According to Freitas, in the resulting album, Y’Y (pronounced: eey-eh, eey-eh), he pays “homage to the forest, especially the Amazon Forest, and the rivers of Northern Brazil: a call to live, feel, respect, and care for nature, recognizing it as our ancestor.”

He continues, “It is also a warning about the need to be aware of the impact we cause, based on the concepts of civilization and modernity that keep us away from this connection, and its importance for the balance of life on the planet.” In addition to serving as a call to nature, Y’Y expresses lessons Freitas learned in the Amazon about the incandescent power of enchanted spirits who intervene on behalf of the community in times of struggle.

While Side A of Y’Y serves as an expression of connection to the earth and to the ancestors, Side B serves as proof of connections between the global Black avant-jazz community. Shabaka Hutchings hails from the rich scene in London, harpist Brandee Younger comes from the legendary New York City jazz scene, bassist Aniel Someillan is of Cuban descent, while guitarist Jeff Parker and drummer Hamid Drake come from the deep well of avant garde jazz in Chicago. This album is an artful conversation between those traditions, rooted in the unique sounds and rituals found in Afro-Brazilian and Indigenous cultures. With Y’Y, Freitas further codifies his fresh, “decolonized” interpretation of Brazilian jazz, one that may well shatter preconceived notions of what jazz can be.

PERSONNEL
Performed by Amaro Freitas with:
Hamid Drake - drums on “Encantados”
Shabaka Hutchings - flute on “Y’Y” and “Encantados”
Jeff Parker - guitar on “Mar de Cirandeiras”
Aniel Someillan - bass on “Encantados”
Brandee Younger - harp on “Gloriosa”

Recorded at Carranca Studio in Recife, Brazil, and Maxine Studio in Milan, Italy.
Additional recording in Los Angeles, CA, and Brooklyn, NY

TRACKLIST

01. Mapinguari (Encantado Da Mata)
02. Uiara (Encantada Da Água) - Vida E Cura
03. Viva Naná
04. Dança Dos Martelos
05. Sonho Ancestral06. Y'Y
07. Mar De Cirandeiras
08. Gloriosa
09. Encantados