Jazz Trio Conveys Carnival Happiness in Brazilian Jazz

Rio de Janeiro may be 6,294 miles from Los Angeles, but when bassist Octavio Bailly and fellow band members Claudio Slon and Liz Kinnon play their Brazilian jazz sounds, the land of the Carnival seems a whole lot closer.

Since late August the trio has been performing each weekend at La Ve Lee restaurant in Studio City, and owners Eddie and Dawn Arbi said the response has been so positive that the engagement has been extended through the end of the year.

Bailly, a musician for 30 years, said the nice thing about playing at La Ve Lee is that the group has the freedom “to play Brazilian music the way we want, the way we feel.” But he is hard-pressed for words when it comes to defining the music he plays so well.

“What is Brazilian jazz? I wish I knew,” he said. “It’s romantic. Or it can be something that brings the animal out. It’s energy. It’s excitement. With all the miseries in Brazil--the politics, the inflation--the people still have that happiness for the Carnival, and it comes through the music.”

The music is not merely a backdrop for dining. Conversation hushes noticeably during the trio’s performance, creating a concert-like atmosphere.

And the band is more than a bit pleased by the audience’s warm reaction. “I didn’t know it would be that intense,” Bailly said. “The audience’s response raises my responsibility. I feel like I have to give more. I respect the audience a great deal. If you do what you do with security, pleasure and happiness, so the reaction will come. I want to bring out the best in everybody, playing the music we love.”

At 54, Bailly’s musical career has taken him around the world a few times and given him the opportunity to play to a wide range of international audiences. Among the many noted musicians he has worked with are Sergio Mendes, Lou Rawls, Cannonball Adderley, Al Jarreau and Antonio Carlos Jobim, who in 1964 wrote the words and music for the renowned hit “The Girl From Ipanema.”

As a child growing up in Rio, Bailly began “fooling around” with the guitar when he was about 10, he said. He was an avid record collector--”The best teachers I ever had were records.” And although he likes everything he plays, he said, his first love remains the music of his homeland. “The most natural is Brazilian music,” he explained. “I was born with it. I grew up with it. The vibes are right there.”

Bailly got his first professional job as a bassist in the late 1950s, backing up a Brazilian vocalist. About the same time, he met Brazilian drummer Slon--and they have been friends ever since. After a series of jobs with Walter Wanderley, Jobim and Tamba Trio, among others, Bailly was invited to perform at Carnegie Hall in 1962, after which he recorded an album with Adderley.

During the ‘70s, Bailly and Slon recorded and toured with Mendes’ group Brazil ’77. Despite all the faraway lands they visited, both chose to make their permanent homes in Canoga Park about 18 years ago.

Bailly met Kinnon several years ago when she was performing in a local club with a group called Brazilian Winds. He was immediately impressed with her musical ability. A native of Redondo Beach, Kinnon, who has been a keyboardist for the past 16 years, became interested in Brazilian jazz about 4 years ago. What attracted her to the music were the “sophisticated harmonies and exciting rhythms,” she said.

And so, when Bailly decided to form a jazz group early this summer, he had people in mind for his colleagues. “Playing music is like a dialogue,” Bailly said. “It’s sharing dialogue. After a while you decide who to play with. It’s a very nice kind of communication.” Brazilian singer Flavia de Mello rounds out what Bailly calls his “compact group with a big sound.”

The Arbis, who 9 years ago took over the hamburger stand that used to be La Ve Lee feel they are in the vanguard when it comes to providing the San Fernando Valley with entertainment. “Brazilian music is the hottest thing in New York,” Dawn Arbi said. “There’s a positive energy from this music, and it’s pumping new blood into the place.”

Bailly feels it is important to constantly add new arrangements. “In music, the secret is not to let anything get old,” he said. “If I feel like it is happening for the first time, the people will feel it. The excitement, the newness, shows.” With this goal in mind, the group meets on a regular basis to rehearse--and they are happy to do so.

Talk of a possible record deal has been buzzing about La Ve Lee, Bailly said, but he doesn’t seem to care whether such a deal materializes.

For Bailly, creating music seems to be its own reward. The highlight? “I don’t know what a highlight has been in my career. A highlight can be for a second, for a minute, for an hour,” he said. “A highlight is what I feel when I’m there, playing music. I’ve had highlights in front of thousands of people, and I’ve had highlights playing in my garage.”