Caetano Veloso and Teresa Cristina have brought their world tour to the United States for four shows in the days ahead. The concerts begin with a sold-out show at The Town Hall in New York City tonight, followed by a second night there on Thursday and shows at Symphony Center in Chicago on Sunday and Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Tuesday. The performances, in which Cristina's opening set includes songs from her just-released live album and DVD, Canta Cartola, are the culmination of an international tour that made stops in France, Portugal, Brazil, Korea, and Japan. Veloso and Cristina will bring the music back home to Brazil in November, with newly added shows in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.

Canta Cartola was recorded at a concert at Theatro Net in Rio de Janeiro last November and features acoustic performances by Cristina and guitarist Carlinhos Sete Cordas. The album, which comprises songs by Brazil's beloved samba-ist Angenor de Oliveira, known as "Cartola" (Portuguese for top hat), “feels fully embodied, as if Ms. Cristina had written the songs herself,” says the New York Times in its review. “There's no sentimental distancing or fetishizing of the songs. She's totally engaged in them; she laughs while singing them, and she dredges the beauty out of them."

Veloso, who was at that performance, says: “"With Cartola's songs, Teresa's artistry really shows. Her elegance on stage, the simultaneous spontaneity and decorum of every gesture, the humor, the tone, impeccable intonation—all combine in this true creator-singer, a genuine artist … All Brazilians should see and listen to what happened at Theatro Net Rio that night."

Earlier this year, Veloso released a live album with his lifelong friend and fellow Brazilian singer, songwriter, and guitarist Gilberto Gil. The album, Dois Amigos, Um Século de Música: Multishow Live, documents a historic reunion from the legendary musicians. NPR says: "It's almost startling to encounter music like this—refined to an essence, simple, graceful and complete."