Maria Bethânia is an expressive singer with a massive audience. Her romantic style coexists with a dramatic feel that blossoms in her live presentations, such as this one. An eclectic artist in regards to her repertoire, she may mix old-time strong values of Brazilian with the current fashionable composer, with critical results in her most recent releases, but always enchanting her fans, as can be heard through the enthusiastic applause. In this album she didn't go that far, and all compositions are good, even if they come from the brega Roberto Carlos; "Detalhes" is a beautiful song, after all. Supported by competent musicians and by the composer/pianist/arranger Cristóvão Bastos, she also explores the old classics Ary Barroso, João de Barro, Paulo Vanzolini, and Chiquinha Gonzaga, together with contemporaries Milton Nascimento, her brother Caetano Veloso, Gonzaguinha, and Chico Buarque, revisiting songs already associated with her interpretation in a whole integrated by her charisma and highly personal singing.
© Alvaro Neder /TiVo