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Lido Pimienta: La Belleza review – Gregorian chant meets dembow rhythm in a work of remarkable depth
Inspired by the music of Luboš Fiser and Catholic requiem mass, the instrumentals are deft and surprising, but Pimienta’s captivating, flawless vocals steal the show
Photograph: ANTI-Inspired by Catholic requiem mass music and the luscious harpsichord folk of Czech composer Luboš Fiser’s score to 1970 film Valerie and Her Week of Wonders, Pimienta and producer Owen Pallett began writing and arranging for the 60-piece Medellín Philharmonic Orchestra during the Covid lockdowns. While the instrumentals are deftly arranged and often surprising, it’s Pimienta’s agile, flawless vocals that steal the show: effortlessly doubling the yearning trumpet melodies of requiem mass music on Overturn, performing a sweet, soaring falsetto at the end of Ahora, powerfully leaping through glissandos on the harp-plucking of Mango and layering poignant, full-throated harmonies on closer Busca La Luz. A new compilation of unreleased music from Cameroonian musicologist Francis Bebey, Trésor Magnétique (Africa Seven), is an Afrofuturist treasure trove, blending everything from drum machines with mbira melody to breathy pygmy flutes with synth buzz, confounding genre definitions from the 1970s onwards.
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