From the moment they walked onstage, the duo of guitarist Moises Borges and percussionist Dylan Moffitt recast the culture and energy of the program.

A Clevelander for decades, Borges remains a cheerful ambassador and unceasing source of Brazilian pride. For Saturday’s concert he brought a joyous program, principally taken from his latest album, Baiano, and supplemented by sambas, folk songs, and bossa novas by Janet de Almeida, Haroldo Barbosa, and Gilberto Gil.

Borges drew on his Baiano heritage (“a person from the state of Bahia in Brazil,” he clarified) as well as the rich and beautiful tapestry of his heavily African-influenced origin, contributing his own songs — the cantabile Pedir ao santo and rapid-fire Cora Coralina Coração — as well as others by fellow Brazilians Denis Brean and Gilberto Gil.

Dylan Moffitt played with bundled sticks on a cajon (chest), sometimes waving them in the air for subtle wisps of sound. Though a guest at Borges’ party, his contributions were as natural and convincing as if they came from a fellow Brazilian.

Pra que discutir com madame, by Janet de Almeida and Haroldo Barbosa, is a delightful tale in samba style about “a madame with a screw loose” — the point of which was not lost on us. There followed Eu vim da Bahia (“I Came from Bahia”), Gilberto Gil’s ballad extolling the virtues of Borges’ hometown, a place surely as modestly charming as the guitarist/singer himself.

Published on ClevelandClassical.com September 19, 2024

https://clevelandclassical.com/cleveland-classical-guitar-society-showcase-concert-sept-14/?fbclid=IwY2xjawFbMOpleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHd3eb8NxVnwZsmTJVqx-XnVJ2pZ58neBzFO3HgMYI2YJgochkAGTL2ss%204Q_aem_eY4GnUjEkmuU3mbol0iPjQ#more-116186