Leo Alves Vieira

Brazilian composer/video artist Leo Alves Vieira has the kind of imagination that invests everyday materials with a magical hyper-reality. On his five-track free download, Chamber Works, his good-natured creativity gets full play on "Estilhacos," an acoustmatic work whose source materials are motifs played on distorted guitar, flute, cymbal and electric drill. The call-and-response interplay of melodic/rhythmic cells is engrossing, as the fragments "talk" to one another in an extraordinarily evolving conversation of varying densities. "Primeira Loopada" is improvisation-based, with 4/4 drum beats underpinning screechy/honky clarinet interruptions that eventually coalesce as a three-part chorale that bears a striking resemblance to a flock of geese. One-minute "O Bicho," for voices, violin and an accordion-ish instrument, was composed for animator Flávia Alfinito's theatrically released animation. "Demasia or Obsession" is a strange piece; Vieira overdubs his voice as individual voices up to choir thickness and processes them to give the entire piece a hallucinogenic ambience. "Piano 1" starts with what appears to be a melody being practiced, only to develop into a strong line harmonized with jazzy embellishments. Available as a free download, this deserves repeated listens.