Sebastian Munoz - Andares (2026) [Hi-Res]

Sébastián Muñoz, tenor and soprano saxophones / Mona Faruel, vocals / César Aouillé, electric guitar, 12-string guitar / Thomas Salvatore, piano / Lucas Dorado, vibraphone, marimba / Gabriel Gorr, double bass / Ananda Brandáo, drums

Sébastián Muñoz, born in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, arrived in Paris at the age of eighteen to pursue his musical studies at the IMEP (Institut Supérieur de Musique et de Pédagogie). Active on the Parisian music scene, he regularly performs in iconic clubs such as Le Baiser Salé and Sunset Sunside; he and his band will be at Le Duc des Lombards on March 17th to present their new album to the public. For his first album as a leader, he is accompanied by guitarist César Aouillé and pianist Thomas Salvatore, with whom he also co-founded Who Parked the Car, winner of the 2025 Made in New York Jazz Competition, judged by Mike Stern, Lenny White, and Randy Brecker. The double bass is played by Gabriel Torr, who also performs in a trio with KLT, a group that also released the album Beauty of Change in 2024.

A delightful surprise on this album is the presence of Mona Faruel, a singer and composer trained at the Paris Conservatory, influenced by artists such as Joni Mitchell. Faruel blends her voice with the tenor and soprano saxophone, expressing the full range of emotions and adding a sensitive touch to the arrangements.

The rhythm section is infused with South American influences by Lucas Dorado, a vibraphonist born in Switzerland to an Argentinian father. He pursued his musical studies in Lausanne, Berlin, and Copenhagen, and has performed at festivals and Parisian clubs such as the New Morning and Sunset Sunside, as well as in prestigious venues like the Berlin Philharmonie. In 2025, he released his first album as a leader, El Sueño, a tribute to the Argentinian people. On drums is Ananda Brandáo, a French-Brazilian artist who graduated from the CMDL and was admitted to the Royal Academy of Music in London in 2023. She is active on the Parisian music scene (Sunset, Baiser Salé), is a substitute for Anne Paceo in Rhoda Scott's Lady All Star, and leads the quartet Ninanda, winner of the 2024 Rezzo Talent Competition at the Jazz à Vienne Festival.

In Spanish, "Andares" means walks (from "andar," to walk), which can also be understood here as artistic approaches, ways of understanding composition explored by Sébastián Muñoz on this debut album, produced with the collaboration of saxophonist Rick Margitza.

A sense of clarity and lightness emerges when listening to the album. The opening track, "Marimbas," presents a melody as clear as a blank canvas, while simultaneously playing with the complexity of the arrangements, featuring unexpected shifts in direction. A frenetic, ethereal vibraphone races before the brisk beat of the drums, followed by a moment of calm, with saxophone and vocals intertwined and interwoven, and the piano in ostinato weaving a dreamlike atmosphere.

Each track has its own color, its own palette of emotions, its own evocative power: a spring morning awakening in "Entre brasas," where the ample, clear sounds of the vibraphone dancing over the gentle rhythmic pulse give a certain sense of ecstasy. "C'est clair," like spring water, a soprano voice unfurling, the piano in limpid phrasing, and the expressive entrance of César Aouillé's electric guitar; together, a beautiful harmonic harmony of the instruments. Serenity in "Cometas," the kites, where Sébastián Muñoz's ethereal saxophone twirls against a backdrop of slow, sweeping brushes.

I particularly loved this album for its arrangements that touch on the essence of feelings, Mona Faruel's velvety voice, her soaring melodies in "Hiraeth," a form of minimalism and sophistication, and the sheer clarity of "Alors c'est là." "Etretat," where piano and voice intertwine, invites you on a journey, where the clear, full vibraphone and the soprano saxophone trills shape a sense of wonder. Let yourself be guided further with the following track, "Fusil Olìmpico"...

The last two tracks alone unleash a whirlwind of sensations: voice and saxophone in harmonic interplay introducing "Dados cargados," the sudden appearance of the electric guitar, a drum sequence, and the saxophone running free towards an incantatory finale. Finally, "Faros," a complete performance: that magnificent voice—listen to it, let yourself be carried away.