Ciranda

Márcio Faraco is a welcome addition to the ranks of contemporary bossa nova performers with a smooth, pleasant singing voice and excellent guitar skills. It is striking that he has had to exile himself from his native Brazil and spend years of apprenticeship in France with Didier Sustrac (who contributes background vocals and takes a co-writing credit on "Nostalgia") before being able to make this, his debut album, still based thousands of miles away from home. Those apparent disadvantages notwithstanding, Ciranda manages to evoke bossa nova masters like Antonio Carlos Jobim and João Gilberto while being somewhat more accessible to North American ears, if only because his music is less introspective and the frequent horn arrangements (by Faraco) and string charts (by producer Wagner Tiso) give the tracks a broader appeal. Chico Buarque steps in as a guest duet partner on the album-opening title track, which is a stamp of approval from Faraco's predecessors for an approach seemingly intended to open Brazilian music out to the world.