From the streets of New Orleans and Rio de Janeiro comes a mixture of sounds and rhythms, swirling and blending, the result showing a strong connection between the Americas. The musicians deal with traditional jazz tunes as well as gospel and street beat infused with Brazilian rhythms such as partido alto and jongo.
RiOrleans is composed of New Orleans resident Ray Moore (woodwinds), and Rio de Janeiro residents Dario Galante (piano), Tony Botelho (bass) and Pascoal Meirelles (drums). RiOrleans has taken the stage in Brasília, Ouro Preto, São Paulo, and in Rio de Janeiro.
In October of 2006, the group toured SESCs in the state of São Paulo. Concerts were sold out in the three cities visited: Sorocaba, Araraquara, and São Paulo 'capital'. Zé Alexandre filled in for the ever-busy Tony Botelho, and did a super job. There are so many great musicians in Brasil, and I've been fortunate to play with many of them. In Rio, the group closed out the Eshc Café Jazz Festival in September, and played Espaço Bis in November.
In 2003 RiOrleans graced the programs of the 6th VISA Jazz & Blues Festival in Búzios, the 23rd Festival of Music of Londrina, and the Winter Music Festival of Campos de Jordão. Also in 2003, the Ray and the group were invited to appear on the nationally televised Brazilian late-night TV show "Programa do Jô" on which they performed "Tin Roof Blues" and "21 May" (from the Brasilliance! CD Minha Joia). And back in 2002, they were the special guests at the 1st annual Festival de Jazz do Ouro Preto, "Tudo É Jazz", where they received a standing ovation. They subsequently recorded their first CD, Paralelepípedo (Cobblestone), which was released in Brazil in 2003.
