Sometimes Things Can Be Gained in Translation

The jazz world has known about Ivan Lins for years. Nearly two decades ago, his song “Dinorah, Dinorah” was prominently positioned in George Benson’s million-selling “Give Me the Night.” His songs have also been covered by Nancy Wilson--via a classic rendering of “The Island”--Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Lee Ritenour and dozens of others.

Since most of the Brazilian’s material has generally been rendered in Portuguese rather than English, the appeal of his songs for jazz artists obviously has a lot to do with the nature of his music (lyrics have most commonly been provided by Vitor Martins). And with good cause. Lins’ songs are almost instantly recognizable for their unexpected shifts in harmony and the lovely, intertwining way in which his melodies soar through the chords.

But Lins, 55, is quick to point out that his songs all flow from the spontaneous energizing that takes place when a melody first comes into his mind.

“I’m crazy about melodies,” he says. “People always talk about my harmonies and my chords, and I love them. But the fundamental thing in my music is the melodies. It’s the way I compose my songs--playing and singing. I take a small tape recorder with me everywhere, always close to me, so that if I have an inspiration I can always just sing it.”

In an effort to give those melodies the widespread distribution they have never quite received in this country, Telarc is releasing next week “A Love Affair: The Music of Ivan Lins,” an album of 11 Lins songs, eight with English lyrics. The remaining three consist of an instrumental version of “Camaleao” (Chameleon) by Grover Washington Jr., guitarist Peter Washington with “Elis (Leva E Traz)” and Lins himself singing, in Portuguese, his “Somos Todos Iquais Nesta Note.”

Equally important, in terms of the album’s potential reach into the pop music market, the Lins numbers are sung by Sting, Vanessa Williams, Chaka Khan, Brenda Russell, Lisa Fischer and James “D Train” Williams. Also present are jazz singers Dianne Reeves and Freddy Cole and the vocal group the New York Voices.

Most of the songs have never been sung in English before. “She Walks This Earth” (Soberana Rosa), performed by Sting, has never been recorded.

Lins recognizes the difficulty of translating songs conceived with the lyric flow and metaphoric sensitivity of Portuguese into English.

“They are such different languages,” he says, “with very different realities between the two countries. So sometimes I prefer the American lyricist to just maintain the spirit of the words, maybe the theme, but writing freely about it. Because most translations are very square, especially when they follow exactly the translation even when there’s not a good word to match the original.

“I like Brenda Russell’s words [present here in “She Walks the Earth” and “You Moved Me to This”]. She follows the theme, but she writes from her own perspective. And I like Will Jennings’ words for ‘I’m Not Alone,’ and Paul Williams’ lyrics for ‘Love Dance’ . . . are my favorite.”

Despite the English lyrics, despite producer Jason Miles’ occasional use of determinedly pop-style settings, the lovely, tropical colorations of Lins’ songs are still present. Interestingly, they generate some surprisingly sensitive playing from, among others, White, whose acoustic guitar work on “Elis (Leva E Traz)” is filled with buoyant samba-based swing.

Dave Koz’s tender solo on “Love Dance” reveals a sensitive musicality not always present in the alto saxophonist’s more commercially oriented outings. Cole’s rendering of one of Lins’ most sensitive pieces, “Who Loves You” (“Anjo De Mim” in the original) provides a tantalizing sample of what his older brother, Nat King Cole, might have done with Lins’ songs. And Williams’ stunning reading of “Love Dance” has all the qualities of a crossover pop hit.

Lins is delighted with the album on all counts, as he should be.

“I have always been accustomed to listening to other artists’ recordings of my songs with a blend of Brazilian and jazz attitudes,” he says. “Rarely had my songs been conceived in American pop versions. This is a contemporary American vision of my music.”

* Lins will be performing in Torrance, at El Camino College’s Marsee Auditorium, on a program titled “Brazil Night” on Oct. 13. Information: (310) 329-5342.

Festival Track: There’s still time to drive up the coast to one of the country’s most amiable music events, the Monterey Jazz Festival, which kicks off its 43rd annual installment today with three nights and two days of music by 550 musicians on six different stages.

Opening-night performances feature, among others, the Bill Frisell Quartet, Dianne Reeves, Richard Bona, the Sherman Irby Trio and Claudia Acun~a. Saturday’s headliners include a lineup of major jazz trumpeters--Roy Hargrove, Nicholas Payton and Dave Douglas--with Frisell returning with a septet. And on Sunday, Frisell--surely the hardest-working performer at the event--appears in a duo with drummer Paul Motian; other spotlight acts include Brad Mehldau, a “Hammond B-3 Blowout” featuring Larry Goldings and Dr. Lonnie Smith, and the Matt Wilson Quartet, the Larry Willis Trio and Prime (Peter Donald, Abraham Laboriel and Tom Ranier). Ticket information: (925) 275-9255.

Monk Winners: The winners have been announced in the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Afro-Latin Jazz Hand Drum Competition. The $20,000 first prize went to Cuban-born Pedro Martinez, who moved to the U.S. two years ago after performing and recording with the group Oba-Ilu. The $10,000 second prize was won by Colombian-born Samuel Torres, who has performed with Arturo Sandoval, and who now lives in Miami. The third prize of $5,000 was awarded, amazingly, to 10-year-old Camilo Ernesto Molina Gaetan of New York City. The youngest performer in the 14-year history of the competition, Gaetan already has performed with Tito Puente and David Sanchez and recorded with Eddie Palmieri.

Smooth Sounds: Concord Records is moving into the smooth-jazz market via a joint venture partnership with Peak Records. The connection provides Concord with product from such high-performance Peak acts as the Rippingtons (featuring Russ Freeman), singer Miki Howard, saxophonist Eric Marienthal and the group Dotsero. Peak, which was founded in 1994 by Freeman and manager Andi Howard, will now operate--for the first time in its history--as its own entity, with Concord providing distribution and assistance in marketing and promotion. Initial Peak releases, via Concord, will include new CDs by the Rippingtons and Dotsero in October, with new product from Howard and Marienthal in 2001.

In Print: “Kind of Blue: The Making of the Miles Davis Masterpiece” by Ashley Kahn (Da Capo Press) will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about the recording session that produced the best-selling jazz album of all time.

“Bebop” (Miller Freeman Books), by Times contributor Scott Yanow, is the second in a series of music guides, “Third Ear--The Essential Listening Companion,” that kicked off with Yanow’s “Swing.” Like the previous book, it examines a specific stylistic area--bop, in this case--via a series of informative essays and biographies as well as reviews and ratings of more than 1,600 recordings.