Magos Herrera – Aire (Sunnyside Records, 2023)
Magos Herrera, a renowned Mexican jazz singer and composer, released her new album, Aire, on May 5th via Sunnyside Records. The album features twelve songs, including new compositions commissioned by Chamber Music America’s New Jazz Works, as well as classic Latin American pieces such as “Alfonsina y el Mar” and “Gracias a la Vida.” According to Herrera, the album represents “a celebration of our humanity and the healing power of music,” transforming the grief, fears, and loneliness of the pandemic into a luminous collection of songs.
Except for “Passarinhadeira” and “Samba em Preludio,” where she collaborates with a voice and guitar duo and an octet, respectively, Herrera sings over a musical canvas provided by her jazz trio, augmented by a 21-piece orchestra under the artistic direction of Eric and Colin Jacobsen. The arrangements on the album are by three long-time collaborators of Herrera, including Venezuelan multi-instrumentalist Gonzalo Grau; Brazilian cellist, arranger, and conductor Jaques Morelenbaum; and Argentine pianist and composer Diego Schissi.
In Aire, Herrera sings in Spanish, Portuguese, and English and incorporates various musical traditions, reflecting her life as a musician immigrant in New York. She is joined by guest musicians, including Ingrid Jensen and Brazilian singer and composer Dori Caymmi. In “Healer,” one of the album’s centerpieces, Herrera pays tribute to the late Maria Sabina, a legendary Mexican chamana, and celebrates “music as a healer, music as a place where we can come together, find our deepest selves, and heal.”
Buy Aire.
Author: Claudia Taylor
