It’s one thing to have a prolific voice on the bass but in the case of the multi-talented Esperanza Spalding, she can equally captivate you with her vocal chops as well. That is readily apparent on her release “Esperanza”, a sparkling project that fuses Latin, Brazilian and World music rhythms in a jazz formula. Esperanza arrived at Berklee college with much fanfare and soon became one of their youngest teachers there. However the desire to record a project with her personal stamp clearly outweighed the classroom and it’s easy to see why. Her disc opens with the melancholy “Ponta De Areia”, a tune originally penned by Milton Nascimento. The original version was a folk flavored tune but Spalding transforms it into a dreamy melodic gem. “I Adore You” is energetic Latin jazz piece that showcases her scatting prowess over a gorgeous piano melody. “Cuerpo Y Alma” (Body And Soul) finds Esperanza swinging in a bebop 5/4 beat while singing in Spanish with impressive results. With a recording as strong as this, the buzz surrounding Esperanza clearly has merit. It will be exciting to watch her career evolve and experience the fruits of her recordings along the way.
