Pedro Ricardo – Soprem Bons Ventos

· by Michel Labrecque

There is a lot of action in Portugal, musically. This first album by multi-instrumentalist and producer Pedro Ricardo is another illustration.

Beyond Fado, the traditional song with which we automatically associate Portugal, there is a multicultural youth that propels the country into the 21st century.

Soprem bons ventos (Good winds blow) is deeply colored with Portuguese folklore, but also Brazilian and Cape Verdean, passed through a jazz and (very discreetly) electronic mill.

Pedro Ricardo is Portuguese. He lives in Berlin and is as much a DJ as a musician. He plays all the instruments, except the drums. There is a lot of piano, guitars and other string instruments. And vocals.

It’s pretty rare that this happens, but the title track, which starts the album, is not the most interesting in my opinion. Our interest starts really at the second track, called “Tema 1”, a vocal theme that will repeat and develop several times throughout the album.

Then comes “Déhéba”, where folklore, jazz and groove are courting. Then comes “Ode ao Gato” (Ode to the Cat), the most straightforward jazz piece on the record.

Afterwards, the softness and the more intense moments will alternate. The most electronic piece is “A Marcha que o Monte Parou” (The March that the mountain stopped). It is as if these many short pieces form different movements of a large musical quilt.
Soprem bons ventes is a great calling card for Pedro Ricardo.

What will follow should only be more exciting.

Latest 360 Content

Festival du Monde Arabe 2024 | Malika Zarra, ‘the Jewel of Moroccan jazz’, who also draws on châabi, gnawa and Berber traditions.

Festival du Monde Arabe 2024 | Malika Zarra, ‘the Jewel of Moroccan jazz’, who also draws on châabi, gnawa and Berber traditions.

Cordâme – Déesses mythiques

Cordâme – Déesses mythiques

Bruce Liu – Tchaïkovsky : The Seasons

Bruce Liu – Tchaïkovsky : The Seasons

Laila Biali – Wintersongs

Laila Biali – Wintersongs

OktoEcho – Saimaniq Sivumut

OktoEcho – Saimaniq Sivumut

No Codes – Usual Suspects

No Codes – Usual Suspects

Christopher Whitley – Almost as Soft as Silence

Christopher Whitley – Almost as Soft as Silence

Zach Zoya in California | Still Sunny in Glendale but…

Zach Zoya in California | Still Sunny in Glendale but…

Angèle Dubeau on Her Forced Retirement as A Violinist

Angèle Dubeau on Her Forced Retirement as A Violinist

Gus Englehorn – One Eyed Jack Trilogy

Gus Englehorn – One Eyed Jack Trilogy

Brown Family | Greg Beaudin Talks About the 3rd Aalbum, Durags and Broken Hearts

Brown Family | Greg Beaudin Talks About the 3rd Aalbum, Durags and Broken Hearts

Festival du Monde Arabe 2024 | Creation of an opera about Sainte-Marine the Disguised, the 5th-century woman who lived as a monk

Festival du Monde Arabe 2024 | Creation of an opera about Sainte-Marine the Disguised, the 5th-century woman who lived as a monk

OSL | Rencontre(s) au sommet with Antoine Bareil and Adam Johnson

OSL | Rencontre(s) au sommet with Antoine Bareil and Adam Johnson

OSM | Sublime Sibelius !

OSM | Sublime Sibelius !

PHI Centre | Lia Kuri Talks and Sings about Mother, Mother Earth… Motherland

PHI Centre | Lia Kuri Talks and Sings about Mother, Mother Earth… Motherland

We Are Wolves | They’re Older, but… They’re Still Wolves!

We Are Wolves | They’re Older, but… They’re Still Wolves!

Malasartes | Cultural Blending According to Noubi

Malasartes | Cultural Blending According to Noubi

Malasartes | Kleyn Kabaret or how to revive and update Yiddish through music

Malasartes | Kleyn Kabaret or how to revive and update Yiddish through music

Annie Saumier talks about the OSM 2024 Competition

Annie Saumier talks about the OSM 2024 Competition

Pinnacle of Modern Choral Music at the Azrieli Music Prizes

Pinnacle of Modern Choral Music at the Azrieli Music Prizes

OSL | Antoine Bareil Plays Mendelssohn’s Famous Violin Concerto

OSL | Antoine Bareil Plays Mendelssohn’s Famous Violin Concerto

Arab World Festival of Montreal | Narcy and Omar Offendum: Two Decades of Friendship in Artistry

Arab World Festival of Montreal | Narcy and Omar Offendum: Two Decades of Friendship in Artistry

Örjan Sandred and the Stenhammar Quartet Reinvent Live Electronics

Örjan Sandred and the Stenhammar Quartet Reinvent Live Electronics

Subscribe to our newsletter