Sergio and Odair Assad Play Piazzolla

Sérgio & Odair Assad Play Piazzolla is a tribute album to Astor Piazzolla by a pair of Brazilian guitarists who, among other things, worked with the tango legend from time to time, debuting his "Tango Suite." The "Tango Suite" starts out the album, followed by the rousing "Escualo." A few light numbers follow, building up to the "Suite Troileana": the suite which originally inspired Sergio and Odair Assad to start playing Piazzolla's music. The album finishes up with "Bordel 1900," part of the History of Tango suite, and "Fracanapa." The music is performed in large part solely with the duo of guitars, though some percussion and a violin necessarily make appearances from song to song. It's a nice if somewhat bare rendition of the Piazzolla catalog. The guitars sit in an acoustic setting playing mostly off one another. It's a generally soft sound, pulling the lighter emotions carefully. Only in spurts do the Assads pick up the rhythms and dissonance that so define Piazzolla's work. When they do, it shines musically. Pick it up as a nice addition to the guitar fanatic's collection, but for sheer Piazzolla strength, pick up the pieces of Astor's catalog first.