Jazz infused with Afro-Cuban, Brazilian, and Uruguayan rhythms with fresh harmonic movement and unusual melodies.

Lee Tomboulian is the leader of Circo, composer, accordionist and pianist. A highly versatile pianist, Lee has played with Kenny Wheeler, Benny Golson, Nat Adderley, Pharoah Sanders, Eddie Harris and Andrea Bocelli, to name a few. He

Jazz infused with Afro-Cuban, Brazilian, and Uruguayan rhythms with fresh harmonic movement and unusual melodies.

Lee Tomboulian is the leader of Circo, composer, accordionist and pianist. A highly versatile pianist, Lee has played with Kenny Wheeler, Benny Golson, Nat Adderley, Pharoah Sanders, Eddie Harris and Andrea Bocelli, to name a few. He has attended the Naropa Institute and UNT where he played with the world-famous One O'Clock Lab Band (Lab 1997). He taught jazz piano and improvisation at Lawrence University Conservatory of Music for six years.

Elizabeth Tomboulian sings in Portuguese on this release, as well as scat on Lee's melodies that soar into the stratosphere. She sings Brazilian standards in a smoky alto that has been likened to Astrud Gilberto. She plays keys, guitar and percussion.

The heart of the band, native Uruguayan percussionist Ricardo Bozas, played with Eduardo Mateo, Vinicius De Moraes (co-writer of "Girl from Ipanema"), and also the UNT One O'Clock Lab Band. He sounds like a whole samba school, covering surdo, repinique, whistles, etc. all at once.

Ricardo and polyrhythmic genius Dennis Durick (Joe McBride, Cafe Noir, Quartet Out, Brouhaha) on drums drive the Circo rhythm machine.

Brian Warthen is one of the busiest bass players in the DFW area, performing and recording in a wide range of musical styles from Jazz to Pop, Country, R&B and especially Latin music. In addition to his live performing schedule Brian does sessions and also writes and arranges music for bands and solo artists, and has a full-time job in church music ministry. All that, and he also finished mixing the new release, Return to Whenever!

Pete Brewer, flutist and saxophonist, has his own mainstream jazz recordings and toured with Woody Herman's Thundering Herd. His solos have a different personality on each instrument he plays. Check out his website at www.petebrewerjazz.com.

North American jazz harmonies meet South American rhythms and soaring melodies to create this new and energetic sound. CD produced by Hugo Fattoruso, grammy-winning musical director with Milton Nascimento.

Circo is an elegant yet robust sythesis of North American, Uruguayan and Brazilian jazz. Influenced by an eclectic array of jazz greats from

North American jazz harmonies meet South American rhythms and soaring melodies to create this new and energetic sound. CD produced by Hugo Fattoruso, grammy-winning musical director with Milton Nascimento.

Circo is an elegant yet robust sythesis of North American, Uruguayan and Brazilian jazz. Influenced by an eclectic array of jazz greats from both sides of the Equator, the compositions are truly original.

The band, consisting of sax, vocals, accordion or piano, bass, percussionist and drums has been together since 1995. Lee Tomboulian is the mastermind behind the group, the accordion-wielding auteur. Raised on Mozart, Harry Belafonte and Spike Jones, Lee as a world-class mainstream jazz pianist accompanied Nat Adderley, Pharoah Sanders and Eddie Harris. He attended the Naropa Institute and UNT where he was the pianist for the world-famous One O'Clock Lab Band (1997).

The native Uruguayan percussionist Ricardo Bozas, who also played with the One O'Clock, and Vinicius De Moraes (co-writer of "Girl from Ipanema"), is the heart of the band. He sounds like a whole samba school going by, sometimes covering surdo, conga and small toys all at once. Ricardo together with polyrhythmic wonder-boy Dennis Durick on drums drive the Circo rhythm machine to an all new planet, the Circo planet!

Pete Brewer, mad flutist and saxophonist, has his own mainstream jazz recordings and is the first-call A-team guy on the Dallas jazz scene. His solos have a distinctive character with a different personality on each instrument he plays, which vary in this group from tenor, alto and soprano saxes to flute.

Betty Tomboulian sings in English, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese, as well as scat on Lee's impossible melodies that sometimes soar into the stratosphere. She sings Brazilian standards in a smoky alto that has been likened to Astrud Gilberto (Mark Marymont, Arkansas Gazette). She plays keys, guitar, and percussion.

Producer Hugo Fattoruso (the Maestro) played keyboards and accordion and was musical director for Milton Nascimento's Grammy winning CD "Nascimento", and has recorded extensively in South America with Chico Buarque, Trio Fattoruso, Milton Nascimento, Ruben Rada, to name a few. His first outing in the U. S. was with Uruguayan jazz fusion group OPA backing up Airto Moreira back in the seventies. People who love beautiful music should check out his CDs "Homework," "Trio Fattoruso" and "Candombe" on Big World Music www.bigworldmusic.com.