Search - Titina :: Titina Canta B. Leza

A landmark Cape Verdean album re-mastered and re-packaged to celebrate its 25th anniversary.In the island town of Mindelo, Cape Verde, a little girl called Titina used to wake each morning to follow the smell of fresh cornbread and coffee which would lead her to her neighbor's house and the entrancing music that emanated from within. There the four-year-old would intently watch and listen to B. Leza, the great Cape Verdean composer, poet and activist (1905-1958), as he worked. Soon he began teaching her how to sing his songs. So began a life of music for Titina. She started recording songs by many of the country's best composers from the age of 15, but it was not until 1988, when she was 42, that she felt ready to record an entire album of songs by her mentor, B. Leza, working with multi-instrumentalist and arranger Paulinho Vieira.Immediately applauded as a classic by her Cape Verdean contemporaries, the resultant LP, Titina Canta B. Leza, sold out many pressings. However, it has been unavailable for many years now, so we are delighted to present this definitive new edition. It has been 25 years since Titina recorded these songs, and in this span of time the islands of Cape Verde have become much better known around the world, not just for their sunny climate but especially for their music, thanks to artists such as Titina, Paulinho Vieira, their friend and sometime-collaborator Cesaria Evora, and the master they all admired and loved, B. Leza.''Yes, the music is on...and there go the people again to the small bay...sit calm, listen to the waves and look at the last minutes of the sun diving away...because the working day is gone and another night of sweet serenade is about to come...''