A year-end bouquet from Dois no Choro The flute-guitar duo releases Asa Branca. Daniella Thompson 2 December 2008 Julie Koidin & Paulinho Garcia I go a long way back with Dois no Choro. A review of their second CD, Juntos, was the very first article I published in Daniella Thompson on Brazil almost seven years ago. Seventeen months earlier, in September 2000, I reviewed their debut album, Carinhoso, in Saudades do Brasil. Having established as their common turf a repertoire of choro, vocal MPB, and hispanic songs, flutist Julie Koidin and guitarist/vocalist Paulinho Garcia continue in the same vein in their latest release, Asa Branca. In this, their third album, the duo is joined by three musician friends whose mandolin, accordion, and percussion lend richer textures to the arrangements. The musical genres may be disparate, but they follow each other in cohesive succession thanks to the chamber treatment they are given. The choros include classics by Jacob do Bandolim, Pixinguinha, Abel Ferreira, Mário Alves da Conceição, and Zequinha de Abreu. Among the Brazilian vocal tunes are the baião “Asa Branca”; Hermeto Pascoal’s “Chorinho pra Ele”; Sivuca and Chico Buarque’s lovely French-influenced waltz “João e Maria”; and the 1928 canção “Você,” which Fagner was famously accused of plagiarizing from Hekel Tavares and Nair Mesquita and renaming “Penas do Tiê.” Paulinho sings three tunes in Spanish: “Soneto a Mama” by the contemporary Catalan singer-songwriter Joan Manuel Serrat, the haunting Argentine song “Chiquilin de Bachin,” and the tango warhorse “Caminito.” A sure-footed album from a seasoned pair of musicians, Asa Branca is bound to please. Listen to audio samples. Dois no Choro: Asa Branca (Laughing Buddha Music LBP99-2015; 2008) 59:20 min. 01. Asa Branca (Luiz Gonzaga/Humberto Teixeira) 02. Chorinho pra Ele (Hermeto Pascoal) 03. Santa Morena (Jacob Pick Bittencourt) 04. Soneto a Mama (Joan Manuel Serrat) 05. Cochichando (Pixinguinha/João de Barro/Alberto Ribero) 06. João e Maria (Sivuca/Chico Buarque) 07. Noites Cariocas (Jacob Pick Bittencourt) 08. Chorando Baixinho (Abel Ferreira) 09. Teu Beijo (Mário Alves da Conceição) 10. Chiquilin de Bachin (Astor Piazzolla/Horacio Ferrer) 11. Você [Penas do Tiê] (Hekel Tavares/Nair Mesquita) 12. Vou Vivendo (Pixinguinha/Benedito Lacerda) 13. Caminito (Juan de Dios Filiberto/Gabino Coria Peñaloza) 14. Tico Tico no Fubá (Zequinha de Abreu) Musicians Paulinho Garcia, voice & guitar Juie Koidin, flute & alto flute Heitor Garcia, percussion Julien Labro, accordion, accordina & bandoneon Linda Binder, mandolin   Copyright © 2008 Daniella Thompson. All rights reserved.