It’s a testament to the power of Brazilian vocalist Maucha Adnet, who opened the Jazz Port Townsend concerts in McCurdy Pavilion on Friday (July 24), that she sang her entire set in Portuguese but the crowd still gave her a standing ovation.
Adnet’s performance was one of several at the festival with a world music flavor, including programs by Trio Da Paz (led by Adnet’s husband, Duduka Da Fonseca) and by violinist Regina Carter, who ranged all over the atlas.
Adnet sang Friday like Cezanne painted — in purples and oranges that surprised you with their blunt, unarguable honesty and quiet, organizational grace, often doing tunes unfamiliar to the crowd — Vinicius de Moraes’ “Pra Que Chorar,” Gilbert Gil’s “Eu Vim da Bahia” — yet still communicating.