Milton Nascimento; Older, Slower, and Still Great

I had the privilege to watch a Milton Nascimento performance at Seattle’s Jazz Alley. The aging Brazilian icon is slower, but his voice and music are as captivating as always.

Aging Brazilian Still a Great Performer with Limited Mobility

Milton Nascimento’s voice remains as mesmerizing as ever. During the evening, he showcased his full vocal range, including his trademark falsettos. During one song around the middle of the show, he held a falsetto for what seemed an eternity. In doing this, Milton demonstrated that age has not altered his singing capabilities one bit.

Age, however, has taken a toll on his physical mobility. It was noticeable that the 68-year old Milton Nascimento moved very tentatively. He had to be guided by his son to the stage and out of it. Within the stage he didn’t move very much and his son. Once again, his son, who acts as the band’s stage manager, came between the appropriate songs to either take-off or put-on Milton’s guitar, so that he wouldn’t have to move much.

During the show Milton Nascimento spoke only sporadically. He briefly greeted the audience as he entered the stage to start the show. After that, he mentioned the song he was about to play few times . Besides that, he took a minute to address the audience a couple of times during the evening. One time he mentioned how much he loves working at night, as he has been doing since his early teenage years. Another time, he talked about a song he dedicated to his mother.

Milton Nascimento did his talking mostly in English, although at one point, when at a lost for the right word, he joked about his (poor) English speaking skills. With the evident presence of Brazilians in the audience, he eventually started responding using a few short phrases in Portuguese.

To give you a taste of his performance, check this wonderful recent video of Milton Nascimento performing with Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, and Esperanza Spalding.

Milton Nascimento Provided a Wonderful Musical Experience

The songs of Milton Nascimento are so unique, and his singing so beautiful, that it’s a real pleasure to witness a live performance of this Brazilian legend of Latin music. With his usual sunglasses always on, he moved from one song to the next without too much of a pause. His music spanned samba, bossa nova, and a fusion of these with other rhythms which makes his music “uncategorizable”.

And really, who cares to categorize such beautiful music? Milton Nascimento also allowed his band, composed of piano/keyboard, bass, drums, and electric guitar players, to each have their solo moments. As can be expected, all of them are very capable musicians.

A performance by an artist like Milton Nascimento is best appreciated, in my opinion, in a small, intimate venue like Dimitrious’ Jazz Alley rather than at a large concert hall. The sold-out Jazz Alley provided the ambiance for Milton to pour his heart out in every song, and for the audience to absorb every bit of it.