Estou Vivindo no Ceo

Galician singer Uxia is heard here on 12 cuts that borrow liberally from traditional songs and troubadour manuscripts. Her supple and wide-ranging voice is for the most part couched in tasteful and airy arrangements by Nacho Muñoz and Quico Comesaña. The mood shifts from earthy meditations ("Alala Das Mariñas") and jazz-tinged cuts ("Canto de Nadal") to buoyant hybrids taking in Armenian and Celtic elements ("Aquestas Noites Tan Longas"). The instrumentation duly reflects this variety, with keyboards, mandolin, harp, cello, violin, and bagpipes all figuring into the mix. Save for a few questionable synth touches and some heavy-handed sentiment (the chintzy side of world fusion rears its ugly head once more), this 1996 collection of Uxia performances comes off nicely and will appeal to listeners attune to a modern take on the disparate vocal and instrumental components running through Galician and other gypsy/traditional musical styles from Europe.