Encanto

Brazilian music legend Sergio Mendes spins his remarkable magic on his newest recording, a bona fide classic! This is a kaleidoscopic album that underscores the maestro's ear for addictive melodies, as well as his ability to cast incredibly talented singers and musicians from all over the world
Customer Review: a review for Brasil '66 fans
It's been around 40 years since Mendes reached an artistic and commercial peak with several classic albums that successfully mixed bossa nova, jazz, and pop music. Those albums still sound fresh today, thanks to the terrific songs, latin rhythms and some sparkling arrangements. Since then, Mendes has experimented with mixing his Brazilian sound with folk rock, funk, dance music, hip hop, and on "Encanto," some r&b. As someone who prefers the work he did with Brasil '66 to anything more recent, to my ears the album is pleasant though generally forgettable with the exception of a few wonderful tracks. Unsurprisingly the best tracks are those with strong melodies by Antonio Carlos Jobim, in particular "Somewhere in the Hills" and "Dreamer," both of which are direct descendants of the sound of Brasil '66. "Dreamer" includes both Herb Alpert and Lani Hall, who sounds remarkably like she did when she was fronting Brasil '66. This is a genuinely stunning track and easily the best on the album. Natalie Cole sings "Somewhere in the Hills" which is appropriately jazzy and is one of Jobim's strongest melodies. Other Jobim tracks include "Waters of March" which Mendes has covered several times in the past. It's a singer's song, and sounds a little rhythmically stiff here, as it has in his previous efforts. "Morning in Rio" is also good, with a more Brazilian styled melody and a nice trombone solo. The rest of the CD is listenable, but not such that I ever want to hear most of it again. "The Look of Love" is an unnecessary remake of a good song. What made the original great was a sensational big band arrangement which has been dropped in favor of a hip hop arrangement. I liked the Brazilian styled funk of "Odo-ya" and the mellow "Catavento" with Mendes' wife on lead vocals. On the other hand, "Funky Bahia" and "Lugar Comum," the latter of which features an Italian rapper doing a little snippet of "Volare," are disposable pop/hip hop songs. If I could get into Mendes' head, I would try to convince him do an album of Jobim and Marcos Valle songs with Herb Alpert and Lani Hall and a small jazz/bossa combo. It might not sell a million copies, but it would be an artistic triumph. If you're an unreconstructed fan of Brasil '66 as I am, I can recommend this with reservations. You might be better off just downloading a handful of tracks. But "Dreamer" should not be missed.
Customer Review: Summery and enchanting.
"Encanto" follows the highly acclaimed 2006 collaboration with will.i.am Timeless and with this latest release, Sergio takes us even deeper into Brazil, having recorded all the basic tracks in Rio and Bahia and finally finishing up in in California, where the studio band included Alphonso Johnson. For "Encanto" (in Spanish for Enchantment), Mendes has also enlisted the formidable and enchantingly diverse talents of an array of guest musicians who hail from the world over. Latin superstar Juanes from Colombia and multi-talented Carlinhos Brown & Vanessa da Mata from Brazil jostle alongside the foremost Japanese pop group Dreams Come True, Belgium's Zap Mama and Italian rapper Jovanotti. This international cast is completed by the American stars Fergie, Siedah Garrett and Herb Alpert who is accompanied by his wife, original Brasil '66 singer, Lani Hall. Old smoothie Mendes gets jiggy on a selection of bossa-favourites with a raft of guest stars including the ubiquitous Will.i.am and Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas, Natalie Cole and Herb Alpert et all... This new album essentially is a cross between Mendes' soft, salsa-tinged melodies and modern day R'n'B. The opening track, "The Look of Love" with rap/vocals by Fergie, is a deliciously moreish funky-fusion, and for the first third or so, the combination of Sergio's Rhodes with the hip-hopped production style is terrific. Perhaps this new version of Burt Bacharach's "The Look Of Love", which Mendes had originally transposed to bossa nova heaven in 1967 is the boldest track on "Encanto". This new interpretation, produced by Black Eyed Peas will.i.am, preserves the alluring melody of the original while bringing the song into the new millennium with crisp drum programming and a sexy rap by Fergie. Then it goes all smooth jazz on you. Not bad, though. Whether you are a Sergio Mendes fan especially the earlier stuff, Brasil 66, Equinox, etc or a Black Eyed Peas fan, or indeed R&B then there's something on this album to please everyone. I'd say for such a challenging album there are only a couple of songs that are just to heavy hip hop for me. The rest is a joy to listen to, if you are open minded about remixes and love to see what Sergio has been up to. This album is a grower. The more I listen to it, the better it gets. You will like it. Picks of the album: "The Look of Love", "Waters Of March", "Dreamer", and "Somewhere In The Hills (O Morro Nao Tem Vez)". Equinox Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - Greatest Hits The Very Best of Sergio Mendes & Brazil 66

This may sound simple but you simply must take lessons and if possible take two or even three a week if you can; especially at the start.

Why do we recommend you take so many lessons each week? Salsa music is complicated, may beats interwoven, and it takes time to tune your ears and feet to the rhythms.

By taking so many lessons at the beginning it reinforces what you are learning and will pay big dividends later on in the learning process.

When starting to learn Salsa its better to join a group lesson; private lessons are great for working on specific parts of your dancing but you will not get them most out of them until you have the basics down.

When joining a group lesson pick one for your level; its better to under estimate your ability than over estimate it.

There is nothing more off putting then arriving at your first lesson and find yourself out of your depth; surrounded by come dancing contestants!

Some tips on choosing the right group to learn with.

1) A class that runs for 6 to 10 weeks at least once a week.
2) The lessons are progressive; this is where you build up each week on the moves learned.

In your firs couple of months you should look too:

2 progressive classes each week

1 night out practice session at a club or event

1 private lesson after approx 5 weeks or more not essential but great to work on specifics.

Your First Lesson

Well done you have made it to your first class. May be you have come on your own or brought a dance partner. One thing we can guaranty is that you are feeling nervous.

You are worried that you have no rhythm, that you have two left feet which are on backwards. Most of all you are worried about falling flat on your face not able to dance Salsa.

As this is a beginners class look around you will see every one is looking and feeling exactly the same. You are not alone.

Remember its about having fun Its not a competition.

Here are some basic rules about lessons you should stick to what ever your level.

1. Find a teacher that suits you, its not one size fits all. There are many Salsa teachers and many ways to teach Salsa each person needs different things to enable them to learn. If your first teacher dose not do it for you find another. Your learning so get the most out of it by having a teacher and class that suits you.

2. Stay focused on what is being taught. This may sound a little simple but if you only have an hour to learn why waste it on chatting; you can do that after at the bar.

There are 1000s of distractions in class, your partner, other class members, that new cute dance partner that your about to dance with. Remember youre paying to learn Salsa; get your moneys worth.

3. Swap partner during the lesson. Yes thats right dance with different people. You may have come with a friend or significant other and want to dance with them. If the instructor is asking you to rotate your partners join in.

Why do this? it will speed up the learning process and get you used to dancing with different people; you will be doing this in the clubs. The major benefit is learning to lead and read a lead; by changing partners it will teach you to make the connection with your dance partner which will make your Salsa experiences much more pleasurable.

4. Face the same way as the instructor you are trying to follow. This will simply help you pick up the moves they are teaching much quicker. Sounds simple but you will be amazed out how many people dont do this.

5. Count out loud yes in the classes count out loud this is the one thing you should do all the time in class. I stress do this in the class so you dont have to do it in the Salsa club where it would not be accepted.

Both you and your partner should do this in the classes. Dancing in time to the rhythm is the most important part of dancing salsa. The simplest of moves or sequences look amazing when danced in time with the music.

6. Write down the move or sequence. Give your self time at the end of the class to write down what you have learnt. You will quickly develop a short hand for the different turns and moves that make up a sequence.

Dont ever stop doing this at what ever level you are at. I bet your instructor writes down the new sequences they learn. Again a very simple idea but it will speed up your learning no end.

Ok here is something that you need to understand it will take approximately 2 months to start find you feet. Some people are quicker but every one has that moment of enlightenment eventually when they feel the Salsa rhythm in their sole and the feet begin to follow.

We have said this before its about having fun not competing.

Lee has been dancing salsa for over 3 years and enjoys travelling all over the world to learn more about salsa dancing. He is the webmaster for http://youcansalsa.co.uk a Cuban Salsa dance website.

Did you find these tips useful? If you would like to find out more about Salsa dancing please visit http://youcansalsa.co.uk and discover how you can learn to dance salsa and be a hit on the dance floor!

latin cds