Viva!

The first work of singer/songwriter/arranger Anna Toledo, a young artist who has honed her skills in bars of Curitiba (Paraná), presents a wide sample of her varied musical interests in a live recorded album. The biggest merit of the record is the preference for straightforward arrangements, almost completely acoustic, where fashionable gimmicks are conspicuously absent, which would make it hard for someone to discover solely by listening that it was recorded in 2001. This approach draws the attention of the listener to her voice, which can be a risky challenge for the singer. In fact, her vibrato and good intonation hold up to the scrutiny, but her personal style still needs to be developed. A few Armstrong stereotypes (in Herbert Vianna's blues, "Une Chanson Triste") detract from her otherwise sober delivery, better expressed in the sensitive interpretation of "Samba e Amor" (Chico Buarque), in the ingenuity of Humberto Teixeira's sertanejo song "Benzim," or in the tongue-in-cheek approach to "Você Só...Mente" (Noel Rosa/Francisco Alves).