Elza Soares:

 The Woman at the End of the World review – Brazil's samba queen still rules 

Barbican London Jazz Festival

13 November 2016 / 19:30

The unmistakable queen of Brazilian music performs her new album The Woman at the End of the World, with special guests to be announced.

Ushering in a new wave of Brazilian music while honouring its history, Elza Soares has been a defining presence in Brazilian music since the 50s. Her husky voice took her from the favela to the clubs to the recording studio with a run of seminal albums in the 60s and 70s which made her one of Brazil's most celebrated singers. Despite a life of as many tragedies as triumphs, Soares has used her platform to give a voice to people on the margins of society, becoming a voice for Brazil’s oppressed women and Black, gay and working class communities.

On her latest album Soares has teamed up with the cream of São Paulo's avant-garde musicians (including Kiko Dinucci, Marcel Cabral and Rodrigo Campos from Meta Meta/Passo Torto), singing, screaming and spitting tales of a life in Brazil that is anything but a tropical paradise. The Woman at the End of the World walks a tightrope between Post-Rock and Post-Samba, a contemporary classic set of apocalyptic, 'dirty' Samba songs, breaking new musical ground and confronting the reality of 21st century Brazil.

Opening the concert Mercury Prize nominee Eska puts her soulful Jazz vocals over percussive electronics and world sounds.

'Elza is the Queen of Brazil' - Gilles Peterson

‘A daring, experimental album . . . magnificent’ The Sunday Times