Guitar Solo: Universo Musical de Egberto Gismonti

Daniel Murray, a highly regarded Brazilian guitarist, has here put together a well-balanced tribute to the legendary Egberto Gismonti – a carioca guitarist, pianist and composer with a career spanning five decades. A pianist first, Gismonti approached the guitar in a unique way, developing instruments with more than six strings and creating highly polyphonic textures, with multiple clear melodic voices emanating from the instrument. Murray does a fine job emulating this. He also pays respect to Gismonti's use of extended techniques and atonality, adding a touch of contemporary-classical style.

Murray's sparkling technical virtuosity is undeniable. ‘Frevo’ especially presents perfectly executed contrapuntal lines, all of which are effusively rhythmic and played with audible emotion. Brazilian music aficionados who put on ‘Maracatu’ or ‘Choro’ are unlikely to hear what they might expect, but Gismonti's stylised interpretation of these genres are fascinating and Murray does them great justice.