For many of us in the U.S., bossa nova is the music of Brazil. Even though he passed away in 1994, Antonio Carlos Jobim looms large in the music’s origins, both in his Brazilian homeland and abroad. Jobim is bossa nova’s Duke Ellington, George Gershwin and Mozart rolled into one. He helped to invent that singular bossa nova rhythm, wrote some of its greatest songs, and created classic arrangements that appeared on his own albums as well as on collaborations with legends like Joao Gilberto and Frank Sinatra.

Marking the 1958 release of Joao Gilberto’s hit version of Jobim’s “Chenga De Saudade,” generally regarded as the first example of bossa nova’s emergence, 2008 is considered the 50th anniversary of the genre. There have been several tributes this year, but none more beautiful and important than Novas Bossas, a new album by Milton Nascimento and The Jobim Trio. It should be noted that this trio comes by its name honestly: the maestro’s son Paolo and grandson Daniel are members of the group. On October 26th, NJPAC hosts an exclusive area engagement of the group’s first North American tour.

The members of The Jobim trio have worked on lots of albums and performed in many outstanding groups (including those of the master), but the big news here is the NJPAC debut of singer-songwriter Nascimento, who regularly performs to packed houses internationally and, in his own country, to packed stadiums. Since his start in the 1960s, Nascimento has recorded dozens of albums, many bona fide classics of Brazilian music, and he’s written songs for plenty of other singers, most notably Brazilian pop legend Elis Regina.

The idea for Novas Bossas was to both mark bossa nova’s anniversary and to honor one of its founders. Nonetheless, the musicians walked into the new project with open minds, and have been pleasantly surprised by the results. “None of us had a very good idea of what the album would be,” Nascimento admits. “We got together to make an album dedicated to Jobim, but it went beyond that and turned out much better than we originally imagined.”

According to the singer, the album came together organically. With Paulo Jobim on guitar, Paulo Braga on drums, Daniel Jobim on piano, Rodrigo Villa on bass, and Nascimento behind the mic, the group felt no pressure as it worked. “We were all in the same vibe,” Nascimento says of the sessions that took place at his home studio. “There was no schedule or anything – just us playing and enjoying what we were doing.”

Along with several Jobim-penned classics, the group also dug into their own repertoire and drew upon the songs of a few friends to fill out the CD of 14 songs. Two Nascimento’s classics, “Cais” and “Tarde,” are included here in imaginative new arrangements. Daniel Jobim’s “Dias Azuis” also made the cut (thanks to his father playing it for Milton when its composer wasn’t around), and there’s a samba as well in the form of “Velho Riacho.” And, happily for Jobim’s legion of fans, there are new version of some of his biggest hits, including “Chegu De Saudade,” “Brigas Nunca Mais,” and “Samba Do Avião.”

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