The Sound of Places is Earth Talk’s second record; a CD where they reveal the inspiration induced by the magic of various places they have visited through the years. They obviously absorbed the energy that emanated from those planetary terrains, as well as their implicit sounds, whispers, wind and images. In this context Earth Talk joins together a collection of memories, wrapped up with a rare kind of lyrical romanticism that, nevertheless, highlights some of the irreverent and savage qualities that belong to those landscapes. With this in mind, these compositions search for new structures, contexts, as well as textures, to serve as thematic and improvisational material. Consequently we are in the presence of demanding music that offers a worthy reward for those willing to listen. Considering the Portuguese scene, this CD standout due to the sheer quality of the writing, as well as the high standard of the players themselves. Pedro Madaleno studied in the US with a grant to the Berklee School of Music, Boston and at the New School of Social Research (Jazz Program), in New York. During 5 years he studied with Lee Konitz, Jim Hall, John Abercrombie, and Karl Berger. During this period he also studied with John Scofield, Kenny Werner, Attila Zoller, Ted Dunbar, Harold Danko, Mark Helias and Hal Galper. Amongst his colleagues where Brad Meldhau, Chris Potter, Roy Hargrove, Peter Bernstein, and Larry Goldings, just to name a few. As a composer, between 1987 and 1990, he studied extensively with Aydin Esen, Kenny Werner, Anthony Davis and Karl Berger; playing with the latter in the Lisbon Jazz Festival in 1990 and with Lee Konitz at the cities Hot Club during five consecutive nights. His professional activities in Portugal include teaching at the Hot Club Portugal School since 1990, where he teaches Harmony, Gamela Taki, Electric Jazz, the Art of Trio and Composition. Since 1986 he has written over 300 compositions for his groups, including several solo pieces, videos, background music, as well as music for dance… In 2002 he was the chosen Portuguese composer to present a new piece at the Porto Jazz Festival, commissioned by the City of Porto. Wolfgang Fuhr, from Colonia, is an excellent german Saxophonist, a veteran that exhibits a vast curriculum, including various published CD’s. He is gifted with a fresh sound, a superb articulation, making him the perfect partner for this kind of venue, where both a more classical, as well as an ‘avantgarde’ approach are required. Nelson Cascais is nowadays very much in demand, in the Portuguese scene. His versatility and dedication to the music make him worthy of that reputation. His growth has been noteworthy specially considering that much of it was acquired on the road. Nowadays he is one of the main contributors to the jazz scene in Portugal. Dejan Terzic, from Nuremberga, is another great musician, a powerful and emotive drummer. Today he is considered one of the 3 drummer most in demand, in his country. He works with such musicians as Paolo Fresu, Dusko Goykovic, Antonio Farao and the NDR Big Band, just to name a few. In these recording he does not simply participate as a member of the rhythm section, instead he is a sculptor of the spaces and landscapes here described.