NEW YORK, Oct. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- This November, American trombonist and composer Ryan Keberle joins instrumental group Urbem for a series of performances in New York and the surrounding region, presenting Pantanal JAM, a contemporary jazz project developed through improvisation and environmental recordings made in Brazil’s Pantanal. The project brings the sounds of the wetland into an original musical collaboration while connecting audiences with conservation initiatives working to protect the biome.
The tour includes four dates across the New York region:
- November 7 — Tusten Theater, Narrowsburg, New York: Performance as part of the Narrowsburg Jazz Festival.
- November 10 — Hunter College, New York City: Workshop and live performance.
- November 11 — Smalls Jazz Club, Manhattan, New York City: Live jazz performance.
- November 13 — Culture Lab, Queens, New York City: Performance at the Long Island City cultural venue.
“I wanted to make something that puts people in the place rather than just telling them about it,” Keberle says. “The birds, the wind, and the water were part of the music while we played, so the album is as much a record of that place as it is a jazz record.”
When the landscape becomes part of the music
The collaboration began when Keberle met Urbem at the Campo Grande Jazz Festival in 2023. The musicians connected through their shared interest in instrumental music, opening the way for a project that would bring contemporary jazz into direct conversation with the Pantanal’s natural soundscape.
For Pantanal JAM, the musicians traveled into the biome to record environmental sounds and develop nine original compositions informed by the surrounding landscape. Released in 2025, the album features tracks including “Barro,” “Entre Folhas,” “Espiral,” “Suspiro da Terra,” and “Canção do Ninho.” Birds, flowing water, wind, and other sounds captured in the Pantanal became part of the musical material, shaping an album that combines improvisation with recordings made in the field.
“What drew me in was the idea of removing the line between performer and environment. Usually the setting is a backdrop, but here we were improvising with it,” Keberle explains. “Recording with inspiring musicians, with caimans right behind us and monkeys moving through the trees overhead, is something I’ll never forget.”
The project also includes audiovisual material documenting the musicians’ experience in the Pantanal, offering a visual account of the environment and the creative process behind the album.
For the live performances, Keberle and Urbem will bring the project to different settings across the New York region. The program will also include selections from Keberle’s album Here Is Donato!, adding another dimension to the musical exchange between the American artist and the Brazilian group.
“The music was composed and recorded in the Pantanal, and it’s a pleasure to bring it to people who haven’t been there,” Keberle says. “I’m curious to see how the music changes from room to room. A theater and a small jazz club ask different things of a band, and the workshop is a chance to talk about how this music got made instead of just playing it.”
The November program spans a festival, a jazz club, a cultural venue, and a college workshop, giving audiences different ways to experience the project and explore how the music was created.
The Pantanal: a landscape with a voice of its own
Pantanal is the world’s largest tropical wetland. Its seasonal flood cycles shape a landscape of rivers, grasslands, forests, and wetlands that supports a rich diversity of wildlife. The sounds of this environment shift with the water, weather, and movement of animals, creating a distinctive natural soundscape.
In Mato Grosso do Sul, the Pantanal is central to the state’s natural heritage and an important setting for ecotourism and conservation. By incorporating field recordings into original jazz compositions, Pantanal JAM translates elements of this environment into a musical form, offering audiences a way to encounter the biome through sound.
Music as a pathway to conservation
For Pantanal JAM, music is also an invitation to help protect the environment that inspired it. The project’s official website frames each track heard and shared as an action toward keeping the Pantanal’s “melody” alive, connecting the album with conservation initiatives working on the ground.
The project highlights four organizations: Onçafari, which works on biodiversity conservation and responsible ecotourism; SOS Pantanal, dedicated to protecting the biome and supporting local communities; the Arara Azul Institute, recognized for its work conserving the hyacinth macaw and its habitat; and the Homem Pantaneiro Institute (IHP), focused on the sustainable management and protection of the Pantanal territory.
Through the project’s website, visitors can learn more about each organization and access links to make direct donations. This gives listeners a way to move beyond the musical experience and engage with efforts to protect one of South America’s most distinctive ecosystems.
The importance of natural heritage to tourism in Mato Grosso do Sul extends beyond the Pantanal. The state is also home to Bonito, one of Brazil’s leading ecotourism destinations, known for its clear rivers, caves, and biodiversity.
In December 2022, Bonito became the world’s first ecotourism destination to receive carbon-neutral certification. The recognition was awarded by Green Initiative following an assessment of carbon emissions associated with the municipality and its tourism activities, according to the Mato Grosso do Sul State Tourism Foundation.
Against this backdrop, Pantanal JAM brings Mato Grosso do Sul’s natural and cultural identity to international audiences through music, drawing attention to the region’s heritage and the importance of conservation.
As Keberle and Urbem bring the project to the stage this November, Pantanal JAM offers a meeting point between Brazilian and American artists and contemporary jazz improvisation shaped by the Pantanal’s environment.
Listen, watch, and learn more
- Listen to the album: Pantanal Jam on Spotify
- Official project website: pantanaljam.com
- Watch the documentary: Pantanal JAM on YouTube
- Project background: Pantanal JAM: Music born from nature
- Official information on Bonito’s carbon-neutral certification: Mato Grosso do Sul State Tourism Foundation
Media contact
GVA USA / Brasil DNA
Caio Dalbem – caio@globalvisionaccess.com
Ana Carolina Lack - anasouza@globalvisionaccess.com
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