Zambassa across Danmark, Cuba and Brazil
In the last 20 years, Walter Steffen Nielsen has visited Cuba several times. He has made friends there as well as Cuban friendships in Denmark. He has also taken lessons in Cuban flute style in Havana.
All these new acquaintances with Cuban music style have led to further musical collaborations and recordings, now singles from the upcoming new album. These recordings include, of course, Cuban-inspired compositions. Ernesto Manuitt is an exceptional Venezuelan /Cuban singer who lives in Denmark. He takes on the vocals for the Cuban-inspired songs and, together with the Cuban Bassist Yasser Pino as arranger and co-composer and Yohan Ramon on percussion.
Also, in the new Zambassa are Carsten Kær on piano, Rasmus Lund on drums, and Nielsen on flute and harmonica. In addition, as a session musician in the new recordings, the outstanding Mathias Heise plays the harmonica on the songs Cachaca and O Som do Amor.
Besides his connections with Cuba, Nielsen has also been in contact with a Brazilian music journalist, musician, singer, and songwriter, Fabrizio Gloria. Gloria, who lives in São Paolo, introduced the incredibly talented singer Taís Helena Pinho to Nielsen. As a result, the two have written Portuguese lyrics for two of Nielsen’s compositions, with Taís Helena Pinho recording the lead vocals on the Brazilian-inspired songs.