Minas in Media

At the vanguard of this innovative idiom were saxophonist Stan Getz, singer/songwriter/guitarist João Gilberto, Gilberto’s wife Astrud (who spent several years as a Main Line resident), and composer/singer/pianist Antônio Carlos “Tom” Jobim. The latter went on to perform with Frank Sinatra and eventually claimed the title as Brazil’s answer to George Gershwin (following Jobim’s death in 1994, Rio de Janeiro’s airport was renamed in his honor). Brazilian-born Sérgio Mendes drew his native music even more deeply into the American and European pop mainstreams.

For over three decades, a husband-and-wife duo, Patricia King-Haddad and Orlando Haddad, have performed this music. Known as Minas (named for Orlando’s native Minas Gerais, a diamond-producing state in southeastern Brazil), they have brilliantly perpetuated this heady musical concoction not only in Philly (where they have lived for more than 30 years), but also many other parts of the USA, Europe, and (yes!) even Brazil.

On this American Independence Day weekend evening, a crowd of several thousand, perhaps inspired by World Cup fever as well as gorgeous weather, turned up to drink in this seductive musical brew from South America. On this night, the duo was joined by four outstanding local musicians: trombonist Steve Tirpak, bassist Jim Stager, drummer Tom Cohen, and percussionist Zé Maurício.

Most of the repertoire came from the Haddads themselves, drawn from their numerous recordings. “Ash Wednesday March” was a minor-keyed march featuring Orlando’s whistling and Patricia’s mezzo-soprano vocalizing. “Sinal Verde” (“Green Light”) served as a musical illustration of driving in Rio, while Patricia’s “Only The Moon and The Stars” evoked an evening on Rio’s Copacabana. Originally composed in the hope of selling it as an ad jingle, “Café Forte” ("Strong Black Coffee") featured a rap with a refrain over a funky samba riff.

Orlando’s “Temporal” (“Storm”), which lived up to its title with frequently-shifting 7/4 and 7/8 rhythms punctuated by deep-voiced guitar chords, opened the second set. Patricia’s sunny “Bossa Nova Day,” the title track from Minas’s most recent CD, contrasted dramatically with “Temporal” as she accompanied herself with liquid piano lines.

A nod to the giants

The duo also delved into the Jobim songbook for the only deviations from their own compositions. The first of the Jobim songs was the well-known “Águas de Março” (“Waters of March”), which depicts the arrival of the fall rainy season in Brazil and the inexorable progress of nature. Jobim was also represented by two of his biggest North American hits, “Só Danço Samba” (“I Dance the Samba”) and the instantly recognizable “Garota de Ipanema” (“Girl from Ipanema,” a huge success for Getz/Gilberto). On the latter, Orlando sang the original Portuguese lyrics and Patricia the more familiar English words.

These compositions also clearly illustrated the band's jazz roots, offering the additional musicians the opportunity to stretch out with solos. Tirpak demonstrated the testosterone-fueled trombone technique inspired by that section of the Stan Kenton band, and Maurício communicated with his “talking drum.”