PATRICIO MORALES, La Tierra Canta

Truly a musical citizen of the world, Chilean born and bred acoustic classical guitarist Patricio Morales received guitar training at the Conservatory of Music at SUNY Purchase and Brooklyn College Conservatory, furthered his jazz studies at Seattle’s Cornish Institute and lived and worked in Switzerland and Italy for over 25 before moving to Red Hook, NY to become an educator at Marist College and Bard Conservatory of Music.

Featuring nine glorious, infectiously melodic and richly polyrhythmic originals composed early in his career, Morales’ new album La Tierra Canta takes him back to his organic magic and mystery of his South American roots with a poppin’ exotic ensemble of seven musicians from his native Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Peru and Brazil.

Among these, standout Brazilian accordionist and pianist Vitor Goncalves is such a prominent part of the action that many tracks feel more like full-fledged duets with some percussive ensemble support. While Morales’s nimble acoustic is always the lead voice, Goncalves’ dazzling, dancing accordion runs and elegant, jazzy piano solos that tracks like the lyrical, hypnotic, quick rhythm-shifting opener “La Tierra Canta,” the feisty/festive romp “Armando” and alternately moody and plucky “Tale of Tales“ (featuring an adventurous piano improvisation) take the tracks to another level.

Other standout tracks are the graceful, easy swaying (with a few rambunctious flare ups) “Rural Reflections,” the charming, whimsical folk-flavored romp “Papascal” and sensual ballad “Cancion Para Despedir a Emilia,” which taps into Morales’ many years as a film composer. The final track, the buoyant bossa flavored “Keep in Touch,” offers another delightful dance between Morales’ sensitive strings and Goncalves’ empowering accordion. If we take its title to heart, perhaps we can expect a return visit by Morales and his dynamic crew in the near future!