The tempo and feel shift dramatically for Lee Morgan's bossa nova composition at 131 BPM, providing a smooth contrast with the driving opener. Tarantino leads with two choruses on alto saxophone over the 32-bar AA' form, Greenblatt follows with three on trumpet, and Cohen adds two on piano. The nearly ten-minute performance lets the three soloists explore Morgan's warm, Brazilian-influenced harmonic language at a conversational pace. Morgan composed Ceora for his 1965 Blue Note album Cornucopia, and its singable melody and gentle chord movement have made it a favorite among jazz musicians seeking lyrical material. The bossa nova feel is the only non-swing groove in the first half of the program, giving the rhythm section a different rhythmic foundation to work with. The set then returns to uptempo swing with Arthur Schwartz's Alone Together.
