In 1979, ECM released Magico and Folk Songs, two gorgeous albums by the creative trio of saxophonist Jan Garbarek, guitarist/pianist Egberto Gismonti, and bassist Charlie Haden. Magico: Carta de Amor is a double-disc recorded live in 1981 in Munich which has been sitting in ECM's vaults until now. The recording features a seasoned band in full command of a shared musical language developed after an extended period touring together. It contrasts sharply with the work they issued as individual players during this era: Garbarek's Eventyr in 1980 and Paths and Prints in 1981, Gismonti's Frevo (1980), and Sanfona and En Familia (1981), and Haden's collaborations with Old and New Dreams, Ornette Coleman, and Pat Metheny. The material here features five iconic Gismonti compositions -- yet only "Palhaço" appears on this trio's studio albums. Haden’s 16-minute "La Pasionaria," a number closely associated with his Liberation Music Orchestra, is presented in a glorious trio version. It features intense, forceful playing by Garbarek which contrasts with Gismonti's spacious guitar playing. Garbarek's own "Spor," which also appeared on the trio's studio album Magico, is presented as a more elliptical group improvisation here. Haden's high-pitched bowing adds a tinge of the otherworldly, while Garbarek's voice is simultaneously emotive and icy. Gismonti's pianism is given an ample showcase on "Palhaço" and Haden's "All That Is Beautiful," the latter with lovely, ethereal soprano work from Garbarek. The bassist's "Two Folk Songs" is given an urgent, dark-tinged, exotic treatment thanks in no small part to Gismonti's virtuoso 12-string playing and Haden's elegant yet propulsive push at the melody articulated by Garbarek's soprano. It differs considerably from the version he presented on Metheny's 80/81. "Folk Song," from the trio's Folk Songs album, is a group improvisation based on a traditional hymn, but moves far afield with startling guitar effects and soprano soloing. Like Keith Jarrett's Sleeper, a live quartet date from 1979 that also saw the light of day from ECM in 2012, Magico: Carta de Amor is a musical treasure trove that features three players from three continents working in near-symbiotic dialogue, offering music that showcases compositional and improvisational mastery, yet transcends the limitations of genre classification.© Thom Jurek /TiVo

Though Italian guitarist and composer Antonio Forcione has been hailed as "the Jimi Hendrix of the acoustic guitar" and has been favorably compared to the brilliantly versatile Tommy Emmanuel, his work on this low-key, intimate dual date is for the most part more thoughtful, reflective and subdued. That's not to say it's not inspired. It's simply not designed to overwhelm. His opening compositions "Anna" and "If..." are sweet, soulful, and gracefully romantic, with legendary bassist Charlie Haden providing sensual accompaniment. Haden's three compositions range from the more rhythmic and lively "La Pasionaria" (on which the bassist all but dares Forcione to keep up via an increasingly inventive, swaying melody) to the moody "Silence" and the haunting, experimental "For Turiya," which features lengthy bass soloing that runs from subtle to thunderous. The lone outside tune is Fred Hersch's wistful "Child's Play," on which the tandem play an interesting, point-counterpoint melody-rhythm line. While well played and intricately performed, this type of date, focused more on craft than any sustainable energy, is best enjoyed by die-hard fans of the two artists.© Jonathan Widran /TiVo

The second recording by Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra utilizes a few alumni (the bassist/leader, trumpeters Don Cherry and Mike Mantler, tenor saxophonist Dewey Redman, drummer Paul Motian and pianist Carla Bley), along with other musicians who rose to prominence since the 1969 debut album (Jim Pepper and Steve Slagle on reeds, trombonist Gary Valante, guitarist Mick Goodrick, Sharon Freeman on French horn, and Jack Jeffers on tuba). As with the first set, the music mixes together some melodic but avant-garde explorations with revolutionary themes including songs from the Spanish Civil War, El Salvador, Portugal and Chile. "Too Late," a duet by Bley and Haden, serves as a change of pace. The music is quite credible and emotional, and has dated well.© Scott Yanow /TiVo

In 1979, ECM released Magico and Folk Songs, two gorgeous albums by the creative trio of saxophonist Jan Garbarek, guitarist/pianist Egberto Gismonti, and bassist Charlie Haden. Magico: Carta de Amor is a double-disc recorded live in 1981 in Munich which has been sitting in ECM's vaults until now. The recording features a seasoned band in full command of a shared musical language developed after an extended period touring together. It contrasts sharply with the work they issued as individual players during this era: Garbarek's Eventyr in 1980 and Paths and Prints in 1981, Gismonti's Frevo (1980), and Sanfona and En Familia (1981), and Haden's collaborations with Old and New Dreams, Ornette Coleman, and Pat Metheny. The material here features five iconic Gismonti compositions -- yet only "Palhaço" appears on this trio's studio albums. Haden’s 16-minute "La Pasionaria," a number closely associated with his Liberation Music Orchestra, is presented in a glorious trio version. It features intense, forceful playing by Garbarek which contrasts with Gismonti's spacious guitar playing. Garbarek's own "Spor," which also appeared on the trio's studio album Magico, is presented as a more elliptical group improvisation here. Haden's high-pitched bowing adds a tinge of the otherworldly, while Garbarek's voice is simultaneously emotive and icy. Gismonti's pianism is given an ample showcase on "Palhaço" and Haden's "All That Is Beautiful," the latter with lovely, ethereal soprano work from Garbarek. The bassist's "Two Folk Songs" is given an urgent, dark-tinged, exotic treatment thanks in no small part to Gismonti's virtuoso 12-string playing and Haden's elegant yet propulsive push at the melody articulated by Garbarek's soprano. It differs considerably from the version he presented on Metheny's 80/81. "Folk Song," from the trio's Folk Songs album, is a group improvisation based on a traditional hymn, but moves far afield with startling guitar effects and soprano soloing. Like Keith Jarrett's Sleeper, a live quartet date from 1979 that also saw the light of day from ECM in 2012, Magico: Carta de Amor is a musical treasure trove that features three players from three continents working in near-symbiotic dialogue, offering music that showcases compositional and improvisational mastery, yet transcends the limitations of genre classification.© Thom Jurek /TiVo

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This is billed as a live recording of Sarah Brightman, and at some level no doubt it is one. There are photos of Brightman under the footlights, and an accompanying DVD contains more details about the elaborate production that goes into a show of this kind. The final product, however, is nearly as much a result of studio work as with any of Brightman's studio releases. The end of each track captures a segment of audience applause, enthusiastic enough, and it is instructive that toward the end Brightman thanks the audience for its patience. Plainly not all was spontaneous. The live situation barely affects the features of Brightman's voice that have made her so successful, so distinctive, and so reviled in certain quarters. Indeed, she comes through in its full strangeness here, where there are limits on the subtlety of the instrumental accompaniment, which tends to alternate between hushed tones and full-on bombast. Like Brightman or not, her singing is far from monotonous. She's something like the female vocalists from ABBA, but with the advantage of vocal training, and if you step back from her voice and listen to it objectively, unimpeded by either fandom or animus, what you hear are weird sounds that just about nobody else could make. Listen to the opening track, Andrew Lloyd Webber's Pie Jesu, noting the almost crowing sound Brightman makes in her upper register on the lines beginning with "Qui tollis," and then again at the final little flourish. It's not a sound that would be pleasant on its own, but in the electronic environment within which Brightman works, even in a live situation, it stands out in the listener's mind. Brightman's choice of material is canny. It's noteworthy here for its pan-European base-covering -- Brightman sings in several languages, often within the course of the same number -- and its corresponding lack of influence from American pop. Brightman had a hand in several numbers, and her producer Frank Peterson shaped several others. This is Europop at its splashiest and most elaborate, inflected in a classical direction, and few people do that better or more distinctively than Sarah Brightman, "live" or not.© TiVo

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A couple years after battling breast cancer and releasing an album inspired by the experience, Vida Tóxica (2007), Luz Casal unveiled La Pasión, an album of boleros that pays tribute to Latin American songwriters of the mid-20th century. From the 1940s up until the 1970s, a lot of Spanish artists fled the right-wing authoritarian regime of Francisco Franco and crossed the Atlantic Ocean to Latin America. While not all of the songs featured on La Pasión are the work of Spanish refugees, they were all written during a period when Spaniards were coming in droves to countries like Argentina and Mexico, and these immigrants, many of them artists, brought their culture with them to the New World. Casal pays tribute to this era with La Pasión, an album of boleros written by René Touzet ("Con Mil Desengaños"), Maria Grever ("Alma Mia"), Eduardo Magallanes ("Historia de un Amor"), and others, many of whom are obscure. La Pasión was produced by Renaud Letang, a French hitmaker known for his work with Manu Chao, Alain Souchon, and Feist, among others, and the orchestral arrangements were conducted by Eumir Deodato, an industry stalwart who gives the album an air of majesty. Complementing the orchestral arrangements of Deodato are veteran percussionists Alex Acuña and Luis Conte, who supply the Latin rhythms that underscore these songs of romantic passion. The 11 songs of La Pasión are performed in a uniform style, and as all of the inclusions are classics to some degree, there isn't a dull moment on this album, which runs for less than 40 minutes. While it's difficult to single out particular highlights, given the consistent excellence of the album, there are a few songs that stand out, namely "Alma Mia," "Historia de un Amor," and "A Dónde Va Nuestro Amor." As for Casal herself, she sounds as divine as ever and fully at ease with these boleros. All things considered, La Pasión is such an impressive album release that one wishes Casal would release another in this style, a sequel perhaps.© Jason Birchmeier /TiVo