‘A cry for freedom with music’. This is how António Pedro Neves, known as 'AP', one of the great names in Portuguese jazz, describes the unprecedented concert ’25 April in Jazz’ that will take place at the Paços do Concelho in Vila Nova Famalicão, precisely on the day that 50 years of freedom are celebrated in Portugal.
The unique show, performed by the Eixo do Jazz Ensemble and inspired by songs by José Mário Branco, Sérgio Godinho and Zeca Afonso, is scheduled for 25 April at 4pm and is free to attend.
‘The word “freedom” has everything to do with the way I conceived the arrangements and how I thought them up (...) I tried not to distort the original songs, but to give them a new guise, based on improvisation and solos, around the theme of freedom,’ explained AP during one of the group's rehearsals.
It will be ‘a very moving concert, because it marks the 50th anniversary of a very important date for the Portuguese (...) I believe it will touch the hearts of those who are attending,’ emphasised the artistic director of the Eixo do Jazz Ensemble, Diego Alonso.
The Eixo do Jazz Ensemble is a Portuguese-Galician fusion made up of nine artists, including: AP, on guitar; Clara Lacerda, on piano; Teresinha Sarmento and Joana Raquel Alhau, on vocals; Diego Alonso, on tenor saxophone; Rafael Gomes, on baritone saxophone; João Pedro Dias, on trumpet; Yudit Almeida, on double bass; and Gonçalo Ribeiro, on drums.
The concert will be preceded by a recitation of the poem ‘As Portas que Abril Abriu’ by Ary dos Santos, by António Sousa, followed by a tribute to Ivo Machado, who will recite a poem of his own, accompanied on guitar by Famalicense musician Tiago Machado.
Throughout the show, images of the April Revolution in Famalicão and the country will be projected by Whale's Mouth (Nuno Meneses and Gabriela Almeida).
Famalicão is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 25 April Revolution with a rich and diverse cultural programme that began last November. The municipal programme was developed by the Municipality of Famalicão, through the Honour and Scientific Committee of the municipal celebrations, in conjunction with the national committee, and can be consulted on the municipality's official website, at www.famalicao.pt.