For the past decade, Dani Gurgel & Debora Gurgel have released 8 albums with their “Dani & Debora Gurgel Quarteto”, which was nicknamed “DDG4” by their Japanese fans. Their DDG4 has now been stretched into the DDG19 Big Band – the sum of DDG4, 5 saxophones, 4 trombones, 4 trumpets and 2 more flutes. With stunning arrangements by Debora Gurgel and Big Rabello’s contemporary music production, their original music is multiplied by 19 of Brazil’s finest musicians into a breathtaking record that fills one’s ears with delight. They fly through northeastern baião in “Rodopio” (dance-related word for “twirl”), fast-tempo sambas with empowering lyrics such as “Podicrê” (“you bet”), contemporary pieces with odd ostinati and leaping melodies as “36-47”, and a unique mixture on the triptych “Três Luas” (“three moons”). Debora’s encounter with Chick Corea is narrated on “Quiet Little Lady”, a samba jazz piece written as a tribute to her master, who used to refer to her as the “quiet little lady from Brazil who blew us away”. The blend of Brazil and contemporary jazz is celebrated on the multi-faceted “Sem Fronteiras” (“borderless”), a 7/8 piece that brings us in a voyage of Dani and Debora’s Brasilities throughout the entire world.
DDG19 also features the acclaimed Bay Area trombonist Natalie Cressman as a special guest on “Dá Licença”, a spirited samba from Dani’s first album that led to the beginning of the Gurgel-Cressman friendship over a decade ago, when Natalie played it on her graduation recital at Manhattan School of Music. They also welcome electric bass virtuoso Michael Pipoquinha to “Veredas”, composed especially for him and sharpened by Dani’s zesty scat singing interaction with Pipoquinha throughout the piece.