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Vinícius de Moraes

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Vinícius de Moraes was born in 1913 in Rio de Janeiro and was above all a poet. He studied law, wrote his first collections of poems as early as 1933 and later became a diplomat, among other places in Los Angeles, Paris and Montevideo. His nickname was Poetinha, the little poet. He was a bohemian who married nine times and liked to talk about whisky.

Music and breakthrough

His breakthrough in popular music came with the play Orfeu da Conceição from 1956, a Rio version of the Orpheus myth set against the backdrop of carnival. The pianist Antônio Carlos Jobim wrote the music for this play. The story was filmed as Black Orpheus, which in 1959 won an Oscar for best foreign-language film. De Moraes himself thought the film a failure. Together with Jobim he wrote songs that shaped bossa nova, including Garota de Ipanema. The album Canção do Amor Demais by Elizete Cardoso, full of songs by both, is regarded as a foundation of the genre.

Influence

In the 1960s he worked with Baden Powell on the Afro-sambas, the album Os afro-sambas from 1966. With Edu Lobo he wrote Arrastão for Elis Regina. In the 1970s came the regular collaboration with guitarist Toquinho, with whom he made many records and gave many performances. De Moraes had no great singing talent, a nasal baritone, but his lyrics made bossa nova into poetry. His work brought Brazilian song art to the world.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Garota de Ipanema in a version with Portuguese lyrics and notice the soft, almost whispered singing and the rhythm of the guitar. Can you hear how the melody moves calmly along with the poet's words?

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists