Trem Caipira (1994)

"Trem Caipira is a deep dig into the Egberto Gismonti archive. Originally released in 1985 on EMI and reissued as the sixth CARMO release in 1992, it boasts Gismonti’s unusual arrangements of music by Heitor Villa-Lobos. And yet, despite being approved by the composer’s widow, Mindinha, and the participation of Orquestra Transarmônica D’Alma D’Omrac , the sounds are almost entirely produced by a bank of synthesizers and vocoder. How wonderful to hear Gismonti’s acoustic piano in “Bachiana No. 5,” which anchors relatively tasteful qualities! But then the flaccid horns and drum machine of “Desejo” take over, and all is once again lost.Having said all that, a few tracks work bizarrely well. These include “Cantiga” (from Bachiana No. 4) for its lively rhythms, chord changes, and a certain consistency of sound (not to mention the soprano saxophone of Nivaldo Ornelas) and “Preludio” (from Bachiana No. 4) for its harpsichord-like bite." (Tyran Grillo)