VOYAGE TO VERA CRUZ This is beautiful and delicate work, and my gratitude goes to Douglas Lora, with whom I partnered to do this CD - and to Claudio Spiewak, who recorded, mixed, edited, and mastered the sessions. Douglas and I had wanted to do an album together for a couple of years but we actually did most of the work during his last three weeks in Miami, just before he moved back to São Paulo. We knew that, once he left South Florida, it would be difficult for him to come back for a long period of time. Now that the Brasil Guitar Duo won the 2006 Concert Artists Guild International Competition, he and Joao Luiz have a very busy schedule. (Douglas is half of the Duo, the other half is João Luiz) . We worked non-stop for two weeks on the songs (his and mine) and then took them to Claudio Spiewak's - and we spent the third week in the recording studio. I am very glad that we accomplished what we set out to do. Douglas's work is absolutely beautiful and mine... well, this is my voyage to Vera Cruz... :-) and only the heart can take me there. The CD flows naturally like an ebb tide that softens the wake of Portuguese and Spanish ships. The songs evoke memories of our Iberian heritage - with a pinch of Moorish flavor (after all, the Moors occupied Spain for over 700 years), and another little pinch of indigenous sounds. It's quiet and introspective; tranquil, intimate. It offers the soul the kind of gentle reconciliation it needs - it's raw nourishment for spirit and mind. The insert carries all Portuguese lyrics and their English translations. BUY IT at www.cdbaby.com/maguinha