FEIJOADA
The title alludes to a rich Brazilian stew and its subtitle reads A hot piece for So Percussion. It was written for a reading session with So Percussion, the internationally acclaimed percussion quartet who visited Luther College, and it is meant to sound like a party piece. It takes its rhythmic patterns from Brazilian samba and Dominico-Haitian gagá. While writing it, the question was how much can I take away traditional musical contexts and instrumentation while still maintaining the essence of the music? The resulting sound is something very distant from the tradition, but it is now an intense experiment which exudes flavor. Its unique instrumentation comes from Paul Lansky’s “Springs” and includes bongos, congas, toms, flowerpots, glass bottles, woods, metals, glockenspiel and crotales. The actual stew is prepared for special family celebrations and it is made out of black beans, sausages, pork chops, bacon and other tasty ingredients. Interestingly, in the Dominican Republic, there is a stew called Sancocho de habichuelas which uses similar ingredients. Both the concept and the resulting sound is an homage to the rich cultures of these countries. I’m grateful for Congahead’s contribution on YouTube, showcasing the wonderful Brazilian talents of Fabiano Salek, Guilherme and Gustavo Oliveira, Bernardo Aguiar, Boka Reis and Pandeiro Repique Duo, which taught me samba and heavily influenced this piece. Xiomara Fortuna and her band for teaching me gagá. This piece is characterized by the use of quotations from these phenomenal musicians.