Cantaloupe Music Productions, Inc. / Cliff Korman and "The Brazilian Tinge"



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	pianist, arranger, composer, producer, educator

An accomplished jazz pianist and highly regarded educator who trained with Roland Hanna, Kenny Barron, and Ron Carter, Cliff Korman has developed numerous projects featuring Brazilian and American musicians for more than 20 years. He has performed as a soloist and co-leader in New York venues such as Birdland, Aaron Davis Hall, and Lincoln Center, and in Italy at the Cantar da Costa Festival of Brazilian Music and Culture. He toured with vocalist Astrud Gilberto from 1989-94, and for many years has participated in important Brazilian projects such as the "Tribute to Antonio Carlos Jobim" at Carnegie Hall and a two-piano production with Wagner Tiso and Milton Nascimento at the International Festival of MPB (Música Popular Brasileira) in São Paulo. He has recorded and performed with Toninho Horta, Wagner Tiso, Milton Nascimento, Leny Andrade, and Dori Caymmi. He appears on Gerry Mulligan's Brazilian record Paraiso. He has appeared nationally and internationally with Jon Lucien.
     Cliff is an arranger and co-producer for the Chesky label; among his projects for them were Chuck Mangione's "The Feeling's Back" and "Entre Amigos" which pairs Brazilian vocalist Rosa Passos with American bassist Ron Carter. He has taught courses in jazz piano, theory, and improvisation at Brazilian universities under a Fulbright lecture/research grant, and teaches a course on Popular Brazilian music history and performance practice at the Manhattan School of Music.
     Cliff co-leads a duo-project with the legendary Grammy Award winning saxophonist Paulo Moura, and the two of them have collaborated and performed together on a host of projects in Brazil, the United States and abroad. Their duo record "Mood Ingênuo: The Dream of Pixinguinha and Duke Ellington" (Jazzheads) represents one of the first cross-cultural explorations of jazz and choro. Their most recent record "Gafieira Dance Brasil" pays homage to the dance roots of the instrumental and improvisational tradition of Brazilian music.
     Cliff's newest release is the recording "Migrations" (Planet Arts), described below.

"The Brazilian Tinge"

"The Brazilian Tinge" is both the name of Cliff's ensemble and a commentary on his unique musical perspective. Unlike the genre commonly referred to as "Brazilian jazz", Cliff likens his perspective to the way "The Latin Tinge" is used to refer to the essential Afro-Cuban component of the American jazz vocabulary. Cliff has absorbed and synthesized his deep involvement in Brazilian music, and out of this has created his own style, combining well conceived arrangements with free-flowing improvisation, incorporating dialogue with solos, drawing on his vast familiarity with both the American and Brazilian instrumental repertoires.

"Migrations"

Cliff's latest project is his new CD "Migrations", just released on the Planet Arts label. The title and title tune, as well as the cover design, are inspired by the great Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado's photo exposition by that name, for which Cliff was invited to perform. From the liner notes, Cliff explains: "'Migrations' tapped into underlying currents of my forcibly displaced immigrant family: uprooting, survival, and transformation. . . double identity. . . aspects of my identity as a jazz player and the ways in which that manifests itself through Brazilian music."

The ensemble

"The Brazilian Tinge" ensemble is a fluid group of musicians with whom Cliff has performed and recorded over the years. Its members include musicians from both the United States and Brazil. The formation varies according to the event - whether concerts, festivals, cultural celebrations, or private events like corporate or private parties. Some of the "regulars" include Billy Drewes (clarinet, saxophone), Luis Bonilla (trombone), Rob Curto (accordion), Andy Eulau (bass), Henrique Cazes (cavaquinho), Marcello Gonçalves (7-string guitar), Vanderlei Pereira (drums), Café (percussion), Adriano Santos (drums), Leonardo Cioglia (bass), Beto Cazes (percussion).

Besides "The Brazilian Tinge," Cliff's projects include:

Paulo Moura and Cliff Korman Duo
Gafieira Dance Brasil

For more information about Cliff Korman, visit his web site.




• Folhas Secas • Wave • Saudade do Paulo • Brasilified • Triple Threat • Tarde de Chuva (duo with Paulo Moura) • Migrations (title track from new CD)

Cantaloupe Music Productions, Inc. Last Updated: 11/05/04
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