A Winning Friendship
— Two friends in college, Gabriel Santiago (7-string guitar) and Peter John Stoltzman (piano) maintained their musical affinity and friendship even after they both graduated from The University of Texas at Austin. After moving around these years and living in different states (Santiago is based in Austin; Stoltzman is in Denver), they have now reunited to release a brand new collaboration, Joy in Friends. Where the album comes short in time — why does good music have to end so soon? — it makes up abundantly in beautiful music.
Joy in Friends mixes the diverse paths these two musicians have tracked individually throughout the years. Stoltzman has been covering the US songbook ranging from Neil Young to Dave Brubeck and from Cindy Lauper to Thelonious Monk. On Santiago’s side, the Brazilian music repertoire has included classics from Dorival Caymmi, Luiz Gonzaga, Ivan Lins and Cartola, just to name a few. Both artists have also been very prolific with their own compositions. You can find, for example, two previous albums by Santiago here in MúsicaBrasileira.org, Momentum and Traveler, showing off his talents both as a performer and composer.
For this brand new album, the two friends mixed the best of both musical worlds with original compositions by each artist as well as classics from the North-American and Brazilian songbooks. The album is very refined, and the seven-string guitar/piano combination is a sure winner. We have heard previous and successful releases in the past with other artists, such as the albums by Cesar Camargo Mariano & Helio Delmiro and Cesar Camargo Mariano & Romero Lubambo. Santiago & Stoltzman are not far behind those great albums. Take a listen to “Tristeza de Nós Dois” for starters. Stoltzman’s piano solo is a delight and matched note for note with Santiago’s soulful and swinging guitar commanding performance. There is something utterly captivating about these artists performing this track. Their joy is clearly felt in the sound they produced. The same can be said about “How Deep Is the Ocean.” It is really a hard task to take a classic composition and give it a new reading as good as what these guys did here. Santiago adds two new compositions to the album, and the Stoltzman’s closing number gives the CD its title. With Rich Stein’s percussion in the last two tracks, Joy in Friends wraps up this quick and rewarding musical journey with a dynamic and vigorous composition. Both piano and guitar dazzle us with expert and vibrant solos.
Indeed it is a joy to have the talents of Gabriel Santiago and Peter John Stoltzman give us this beautiful release. A friendship celebration makes us listeners the real winners. As always, you can learn more about these artists by visiting their websites: Gabriel Santiago and Peter John Stoltzman.
ALBUM INFORMATION
Gabriel Santiago & Peter John Stoltzman
Joy in Friends
Independent (2018)
Time: 35’29”
Tracks:
- Imagine (John Lennon)
- Tristeza de Nós Dois (Durval Ferreira – Maurício Einhorn)
- Choro for Bárbara
- How Deep Is the Ocean (Irving Berlin)
- Clareanna 2 (Gabriel Santiago) – w/ Rich Stein
- Joy in Friends (Peter Stoltzman) – w/ Rich Stein
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