From Amazon.co.uk
This impressionistic score from Marcel Camus's 1958 cinematic retelling of the Greek myth of Orpheus was most Americans' introduction to the Brazilian musical style called bossa nova. As it became a nationwide craze that featured both Brazilian samba and U.S. cool-jazz participants, the names of
Black Orpheus composers Antonio Carlos Jobim and Luiz Bonfa became familiar far beyond the hi-fi set. Along with the haunting theme song, "Manha de Carnaval", and several Jobim compositions are the vibrant street sounds of the pre-Lenten festival Carnaval, which provides the backdrop to the tragic love story of Orpheus and Eurydice. The score is awash with percussive samba rhythms and the laughter and chanting of the annual festival melee. This is a great disc to play when the day needs a parade.
--Lois Maffeo