A review of OGRE’s great show last weekend in Switzerland. Also, it was an honour to play after the great Craig Taborn, and drummer Dave King (Bad Plus) was also around!
Maria João, a rainha da voz / Maria João, Queen of Voice
by Mauro Rossi, “Corriere del Ticino”
“Chiasso Jazz Festival: an excellent performance by the Portuguese singer in a new electronic environment
After Craig Taborn had set things in motion, the highlight of the evening was Portuguese singer Maria João, who proved that not only is she one of the world’s most talented contemporary vocalists, she is also a global artist, capable of constant reinvention and always willing to challenge herself and her incredible expressiveness. This time, electronic music was the new territory: supported by Ogre, a young quartet, Maria João set in motion a hurricane of performances for which the word “singing” is simply too reductive, such was the theatricality and emotional intensity that she expressed in each note and each scenic gesture, and such was her ability to shape her timbre to the synthetic dimension where she found herself.
The result was a hypnotic and engaging concert, where moments of great lyricism alternated with furious and surprising vocal evolutions, sudden and unexpected changes of register, and pleasant journeys through genres and styles, from Britney Spears to the Beatles, from baroque music to techno.”
Read Mauro Rossi’s full review at “Corriere del Ticino”
“Festival de Jazz de Chiasso: excelente desempenho de cantora portuguesa num ambiente electrónico inédito
Depois de Craig Taborn ter dado o mote ideal, a noite atingiu o seu pico com a portuguesa Maria João, que confirmou ser não só uma das vocalistas mais talentosas da cena contemporânea, mas também uma artista global, capaz de se reinventar constantemente, sempre dando à sua incrível expressividade novas oportunidades para superar. Desta vez, o território a explorar era a electrónica: apoiada pelo jovem quarteto Ogre, Maria João embarcou num turbilhão de interpretações para as quais é redutora a simples definição de “canto”, tal a teatralidade e intensidade emocional que foi capaz de expressar em cada nota e cada gesto cénico, e tal era a sua capacidade de moldar o seu timbre à dimensão sintética onde se encontrava. O resultado foi um espectáculo hipnótico e envolvente, que alternou sequências de grande lirismo com furiosas e rocambolescas evoluções vocais, mudanças repentinas e inesperadas de registo e saborosas viagens por vários géneros e estilos, de Britney Spears aos Beatles, do barroco ao techno.”