David Kraus: The Listening Room
Bravo Mi Corazón
Gary Gordon ~ soprano saxophoneBuy the Album
David Kraus ~ acoustic steel string guitar
Mark van Gulden ~ vibraphone
Jamie Masefield ~ mandolin
Clyde Stats ~ acoustic bass
The title of this piece "Bravo mi Corazon" is from Spanish and can be literally translated as "Brave My Heart." To try and explain why and how I choose titles for my music pieces is always a frustrating endeavor (as it probably is for most composers.) When song writers give titles to their work, the title usually comes right out of the lyrics they've penned. But instrumental music, being intrinsically more abstract in nature, creates different criteria for naming works because of the lack of a more concrete verbal language to draw from, which is then heard in the writer's song. For me a title comes from a feeling which creates an image internally, and finally I hear words in my mind that somehow give these feelings and images life. Of course it is really the music that makes whatever impressions are experienced by a listener, regardless of what it is called. But I think most people would agree that it is better to have titles with an image rather than Untitled No.1...Untitled No.2...etc.
The song at hand is the second tune on the CD which draws its rhythmic underpinning from the Brazilian samba. It is softer in feel than "Gone Today, Here Tomorrow", but the rhythm is also established from the very beginning by the finger picking on the the guitar, this time the steel string rather than the nylon, and the piece remains centered around this groove for the whole piece which is in cut-time or 2/2. It begins with the guitar alone picking on a two chord change between a Dmin/add9 chord with the ninth being the open first string, and a Bbadd9#11/Dbass with the #11 being the same open first string. This first string being played open is an ostinato tone which heard subtly throughout the tune and is what helps create the subtle sweet tensions of the harmonies. The tune is actually in the key of Dminor during this sequence as is the bridge which is built with these same two chords. The bass and vibraphone "kick in" together with strong hits on a 'D' note on the third and fourth time the two chord sequence is played. There is a stop at the end of the fourth Bbmaj chord where the bass falls on the root of the chord, and there is a sustained space over two bars. Then the band comes in and the song is on its way. The chord sequence changes as the tune moves to the key of Cmajor. Gary playing soprano sax takes the melody over Cmaj/add9 and Bb6/9#11 with the vibes and mandolin adding there own subtle rhythms to the groove. This two chord sequence is heard three times then moves down one-half step from Bbmaj to an Adominant7/alt. chord which pulls the song back into the key of Dminor, as A7 is the V7 chord of the new key, and the intro two chord sequence of Dmin and Bbmaj becomes the bridge. This is the song structure for the tune. The whole tune is repeated with the vibraphone "ghosting" the melody, meaning you can hear it played after each time the sax plays it as if the vibes are echoing what the sax just said. It's a nice musical effect. After the second melody repeat, a "stop-time" occurs and there is a wide open space in which you can hear guitar harmonics in a glissando, along with vibes, the bass, and the mandolin sustaining three chords, the first two for two bars each, and the last holding for a longer four bar count allowing for the feeling of anticipation as to what will come next. Then the band enters on the first Cmaj chord of the structure and the solos start right off with the steel string guitar taking the first solo. The vibes take the second solo, then the "stop-time" is repeated and the entire melody is played once more. And now something different and unexpected happens. After the final Bbmaj chord rings out over four bars, a soft space opens up with the guitar playing the two intro chords again which now repeat over and over to the ending. This is a wide space where the upright bass plays a beautiful improvised solo. Clyde did a great job here with lots of feeling, exactly what was needed. Mark's vibraphone is layered in with a repeating three note simple melodic figure for each chord. Then the mandolin is added and Jamie does these beautiful soft "feathering" tones (very fast soft picking on long held notes) with his own melodic figures which he improvises. The impression made by the four instruments together during this section is one of my favorite places on this entire CD. While the repeating sounds of my guitar picking and Mark's simple melodic figures hold a structure, Clyde freely solos, as Jamie sails over and through with his own statements but never getting in Clyde's way. It is very well done and this all happened spontaneously. This is why it's great to play with really accomplished artist, and so much fun:) The tune ends with a long, long fade out. It is the only song that does fade out on the CD, and though there was an ending, it just felt right to let it fade into some internal forever place inside. It also made for a nice place for the last tune to enter into, which is a slow jazz ballad. But you'll have to listen and read on that one to hear the transition. I hope you do:)
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