Recorded one year after Pindorama, to all intents and purposes Cenas Brasileiras is a consequence of the same musical project. “It was recorded in something of a hurry to make good use of time Nenê was spending in Brazil. By the time we were rehearsing for a couple of dates, I looked up Gordo at Continental and asked him to put up the money for studio time so that we might record a new album”, recalls Rodolfo Stroeter, author of the easy-going xote ‘Pixote’ included on this LP.

“With the arrival of Nenê, the group began to sound increasingly more Brazilian. Not just because of the way we played, but also because of the way we composed”, the bass player remarks, recalling that one of the three compositions which Nenê introduced to the group when he came on board – ‘Canção para Lupicínio’, which is included in this edition as a bonus track – never made it onto the original LP for lack of space on the vinyl.

Paulo Bellinati cannot forget how hard it was to play the ‘Dança do Saci Pererê’, another one of the drummer’s compositions. “Nenê invented a few polyrhythms that gave us quite a bit of work. It took us weeks to get the arrangement right, because each one of us was playing a different rhythm. It was a very rewarding experience”, says the guitar player who adapted his suite for guitar called ‘Contatos’ for the original Pau Brasil line-up.

Nelson Ayres (who also contributed to two of the album’s tracks) notes that, even then, the group was especially concerned as to the form of arrangements and compositions. “Usually, we try to steer clear of the ‘famous’ theme-improvisation-theme jazz formula. But whenever you try to avoid that, you’re stuck with a big problem: how to create a special form for each composition. In ‘Veranico de Maio’ and ‘Flor do Mato’, I think we acquitted ourselves nicely. The formal solution is what gives the music its flavor”.

“Instead of repeated improvisations on a harmonic series, in keeping with traditional jazz practice, we created more open forms that allowed us to improvise more freely”, observes Roberto Sion, author of the lyrical ‘Cantilena’. “In parts, the music became totally free and we would be trying to respond to whatever the other guy was playing at that moment. We were attempting spontaneous dialogue”.