NEW YORK (CNN) -- The home life Diana Krall shares with husband (and fellow musical brain) Elvis Costello and their 2-year-old twin boys is a little nutty.



Diana Krall's new album, "Quiet Nights," was inspired by a trip she made to Brazil.



"It's zany in the most wonderful way," says the 44-year-old jazz singer-pianist. "You have two little boys leaping off the furniture who think they're Buzz Lightyear while we're practicing and playing. It's just a happy house."



Krall's domestic bliss -- "domestic" being a new concept for the ever-touring artist -- is suggested in the warm, intimate vibe of her latest album "Quiet Nights."



"It's a very natural process for me, making a record. It ends up being a reflection of where I am at that time. My life is just tremendous right now. It couldn't be better," she says.



No kidding. "Quiet Nights" debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 album charts last week, a career high for Krall.



A memorable trip to Brazil in 2007 inspired the Canadian chanteuse to take her 12th album in a bossa nova direction: The title track is the English version of the bossa nova classic "Corcovado." She also covers "The Girl from Ipanema" -- though naturally in her whispery rendition she flips "girl" to "boy" -- and gives a fresh spin on Frank Sinatra's "Where or When."  Watch Krall find bliss in Brazil »



"There was something about turning 'Where or When' into a bossa nova that changes the feeling for me of the song," Krall said. "It's much more emotional than if I sang it in a swing feeling. I've always experimented with that."



Krall brought arranger and conductor Claus Ogerman on board. He was a natural, having worked with Sinatra and Brazilian singer-songwriter Antonio Carlos Jobim who wrote both "Ipanema" and "Corcovado." And Krall co-produced the album with frequent collaborator Tommy LiPuma.



"One of the best parts of making a record is the dinner after where you all you go to the restaurant, you decompress, have some great wine and just tell stories and listen to Claus and Tommy and [engineer] Al Schmidt and all these people telling amazing stories," says Krall.



Diana Krall recently sat down with CNN to share some stories of her own about a teenaged letter to Oscar Peterson, idolizing Harry Connick Jr. and Mickey Mouse pancakes. The following is an edited version of the interview.



CNN: This is the first album you've made since becoming a mother. Does it feel different somehow?



Diana Krall: I think [this album reflects my present] state of mind. It's not about loss, it's not preparing for loss. I'm not peeling grapes. Life has changed a lot and it's not just about performing and touring. It's motherhood and having a home for the first time, because I've always been on the road. So it's an incredible thing to be making Mickey Mouse pancakes in the morning while you're doing your interviews.



CNN: You've been producing Barbara Streisand's new album. What has that been like?



Krall: Incredible. I just am so thrilled with her performance on this album. [She gives] one of the most incredible performances I think of her career on a song called "You Must Believe in Spring" with a great pianist from New York named Phil Charlap. It's just piano and voice and it's so incredibly stunning. She said to me, "Maybe it needs some strings or something." I said "Don't touch it! Just leave it! It's gorgeous!"



It's been great working artist to artist and we had a lot of fun. We played cards. So when there were moments in the studio where there was something technical that had to be fixed, we'd deal the cards and we'd play gin
What instrument does she play? Whose new album is she producing? What is Diana Krall's new album?
piano "Quiet Nights," "Quiet Nights,"
question: What instrument does she play?, answer: piano | question: Whose new album is she producing?, answer: "Quiet Nights," | question: What is Diana Krall's new album?, answer: "Quiet Nights,"