CD Review: Frank Herzberg Trio's 'Handmade'

Frank Herzberg Trio
Handmade
FH Studio

The Brazilian trio is composed of Frank Herzberg, Alexandre Zamith, and Ze Eduardo Nazario. The trio performs jazzy compositions with lush percussion, sweeping piano melodies, and classical bass. "Don't Talk Crazy," "A Xepa," and "The Trio" are the most musical compositions with all of the instrumentation working together to create a jazz ensemble sound indicative of a North American-based lounge club. Though, traditional Brazilian sounds are kept to a minimum. The wholly instrumental effort contains three separate tracks devoted exclusively to each instrument, which are aptly-titled: "The Drums," "The Bass," and "The Piano." The lack of vocals make the songs brighten with excellent displays of musicianship. The punchy rhythms and melodies eloquently coalesce between the laid-back atmosphere of the percussion on some tracks with the rousing structures of others. Anyone with an interest in jazz, instrumental music, and neo-classical will love the natural feel of Handmade. ~ Matthew Forss