Over the past three years, Brazilian saxophonist and composer Gaia Wilmer has reimagined the catalogues of her country’s virtuosos so radically that it’s become a signature art. Folia: The Music of Egberto Gismonti transformed his finger-picked melodics into an almost prog-influenced cacophony; Trem das Cores, celebrating tropicália pioneer Caetano Veloso, found the eerie tenderness in his lilting melodies. Now returning with the first part of a three-volume homage to singer Gilberto Gil, Wilmer and her 20-piece ensemble produce luscious new works from their deconstructions.

For listeners familiar with Gil’s music, hardly any of Wilmer’s arrangements are recognisable from the originals. Her Overture transforms the 25 seconds of strummed guitars and group vocals that open Gil’s 1985 album Dia Dorim Noite Neon into a slowly unfurling four minutes of breathy trumpet melody and twinkling piano accents. Oriente replaces Gil’s wavering, emotive vocal harmony from the 1972 original with flourishes of horn fanfares and jazz swing that bolsters singer Mônica Salmaso’s lightly tripping bossa nova vocalisations. Eu Vim da Bahia even slows one of Gil’s best-known tunes to experimental flute-heavy ambience, transmuting his sprightly melody through the brassy weight of a big-band horn section.

Rather than searching for similarities between Wilmer’s arrangements and Gil’s work, the beauty of Parabólico is Wilmer’s ability to reinvent and expand this music while retaining elements of its soul. Aqui e Agora enhances Gil’s trance-like mood with an undulating bass motif that anchors a keening saxophone solo, while Parabolicamará reframes his lively groove through beautifully delicate opening improvisations from pianist Vitor Gonçalves. Instead of covering work that has already been bested by Gil himself, Wilmer’s Ship of Theseus-style project celebrates the remarkable depth that remains to be explored and renewed in these decades-old works.

Also out this month

Latin ensemble Orquesta Akokán’s latest album América! (Daptone) is a heady blend of salsa, cha cha, boogaloo and jazz swing, perfect for playing on sweltering summer days. Singers Miriam Elhajli and Carolina Oliveros are a highlight, soaring through the lithe melodies on No Me Voy and Hace Tiempo. Jordanian-Palestinian singer Dana Salah releases her new album Bent Bladna (Empire), pairing her delicate Arabic vocals with everything from bassy hip-hop swagger to dancehall and dabke rhythms on standout tune Wedding Riddim. Dub producer Adrian Sherwood’s album with Ghanaian singer King Ayisoba, Pure Confusion (On-U Sound), finds the bass-weight in his two-string kologo lute playing and carves out reverb-laden space for raw vocals that reach an apex on the yearning screams of Leeda-Mampanga.