Not since violinist Niccolo Paganini woke the world up during the turn of the 19th Century has a set of Caprices been so wonderfully stimulating. This time around, it’s Hamilton De Holanda, the maestro of the 10 string mandolin who sets the stage afire. What he does on these two discs is mix solos, duos and trios with an assortment of compatriots, resulting in a mix of short but sweet originals that rotate between sublime, stupendous, stimulating and stunningly sensuous. Solo tunes like “First,” “Bachiano” “East” and “Last” mix subtlety and warmth, yet there is always an underlying technical prowess that makes you feel you’re in the presence of a master. Gabriel Grossi brings in a harmonica for a rich “Sky Caprice’ and an accordion duet with Bebe Kramer on “Waltz Caprice” glides along the dance floor with a rose between your teeth. Trios with Andre Vasconcellos/b and Thiago Da Serrinha/perc during “Chocolate,” “Carmo” and “Raphael” are bon bons of joy, while the mxing of strings with Rafael Dos Anjos/g and Rogerio Caetano/7-str g on “Choro” and “Luperce” respectively are mating calls between nylon and steel strings. The buoyant intimacy between the musicians here is like a collection of timed checkers matches, with each player trying to move, hop over or castle as quickly as possible. A joy of life!
Adventure Music