 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source .(September 2021) |
 | |
| Industry | Music & entertainment |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1963 by Aloysio de Oliveira |
| Headquarters | Brazil |
Elenco is a Brazilian record label established in 1963 by Aloysio de Oliveira. It was a major factor in the development of the bossa nova style, also releasing samba, jazz, and spoken word recordings. It is often considered one of the most influential labels in the bossa nova and MPB genres. [1]
Producer Aloysio de Oliveira, a key figure in the internationalization of Brazilian popular music, founded Elenco in 1963. While the label is renowned for its output of bossa nova, Elenco's first releases were early MPB and Latin jazz, reflecting the tastes of its founder, who was also a musician.
Musicians such as Baden Powell de Aquino (commonly known as Baden Powell), Astrud Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Maysa, Lúcio Alves, and Sylvia Telles recorded stellar albums for Elenco, which are today considered masterpieces of their genres. The most significant records were released between 1963 and 1968 and are instantly recognizable by their minimalistic sleeve artwork, designed by Brazilian photographer Chico Vilella, which often consists of a monochrome photograph or painting scattered with small red dots. According to critics such as Zuza Homem de Mello and Ruy Castro, the characteristic Elenco sleeve designs were heavily inspired by jazz labels such as Blue Note.
These records are also noteworthy for the high-quality recording techniques used at RioSom studios in Rio de Janeiro by engineer Norman Sternberg. In the beginning, Elenco was a small label, based in Rio de Janeiro. During the mid-1960s a number of factors, including problematic distribution, caused the label to slide into insolvency; it was purchased by Companhia Brasileira de Discos in 1968.
Many Elenco records have been reissued on CD, most notably in Japan. LPs are harder to find and are considered today to be highly-priced collector's items.
Edu Lobo, Nara Leão, Vinícius de Moraes, Maria Bethânia, Dorival Caymmi, Sérgio Mendes, Roberto Menescal, Tamba Trio, Odette Lara, Sérgio Ricardo, Aracy de Almeida, Sidney Miller, Ciro Monteiro, Quarteto Em Cy, Rosinha de Valença and Lennie Dale.
Bossa nova is a relaxed style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovative syncopation of traditional samba from a single rhythmic division. The "bossa nova beat" is characteristic of a samba style and not of an autonomous genre. The bossa nova wave became popular around the world; this increased popularity helped to renew samba and contributed to the modernization of Brazilian music in general.
João Gilberto was a Brazilian guitarist, singer, and composer who was a pioneer of the musical genre of bossa nova in the late 1950s. Around the world, he was often called the "father of bossa nova"; in his native Brazil, he was referred to as "O Mito" . In 1965, the album Getz/Gilberto was the first jazz record to win the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. It also won Best Jazz Instrumental Album – Individual or Group and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Nominated at the Grammy 1978 in the category Best Jazz Vocal Performance, album Amoroso, and winner category in Grammy 2001 with João voz e violão Best World Music Album.
Baden Powell de Aquino, known professionally as Baden Powell, was a Brazilian guitarist. He combined classical techniques with popular harmony and swing. He performed in many styles, including bossa nova, samba, Brazilian jazz, Latin jazz and MPB. He performed on stage during most of his lifetime. Powell composed many pieces for guitar, such as Abração em Madrid, Braziliense, Canto de Ossanha, Casa Velha, Consolação, Horizon, Imagem, Lotus, Samba, Samba Triste, Simplesmente, Tristeza e Solidão, and Samba da Benção. He released Os Afro-sambas, a watershed album in MPB, with Vinicius de Moraes in 1966.
Jorge Duílio Lima Menezes is a Brazilian popular musician, performing under the stage name Jorge Ben Jor since the 1980s, though commonly known by his former stage name Jorge Ben. Performing in a samba style that also explored soul, funk, rock and bossa nova sounds, Ben has recorded such well-known songs as "Chove Chuva", "Mas, que Nada!", "Ive Brussel" and "Balança Pema". His music has been interpreted by artists such as Caetano Veloso, Sérgio Mendes, Miriam Makeba, Soulfly and Marisa Monte.
Lisa Ono is a Brazilian Japanese bossa nova singer.
Quarteto em Cy is a Brazilian girl group originally composed of four sisters hailing from Ibirataia, a town located in the Brazilian state of Bahia: Cybele, Cylene, Cynara and Cyva – their real first names.
"Manhã de Carnaval", often referred to as "Black Orpheus", is a song by Brazilian composer Luiz Bonfá and lyricist Antônio Maria.
Silvia D'Atri Telles was a Brazilian jazz Samba and Bossa Nova singer and composer of the 1950s and 1960s, considered one of the major artists of Bossa Nova and MPB. Most of her original recordings are out of print, though occasional compilations are released.
Heloísa Maria Buarque de Hollanda, whose artistic name was Miúcha, was a Brazilian singer and composer.
Moacir Santos was a Brazilian composer, multi-instrumentalist and music educator. Musicians such as Baden Powell, Bola Sete and Wilson das Neves studied under him. As a composer, Santos worked with Nara Leão, Roberto Menescal, Sérgio Mendes and Lynda Laurence, among others. His music was highly respected by musicians in Brazil and the United States, despite never achieving wider recognition.
The Swinger from Rio is a 1966 album by Sérgio Mendes. Recorded over three days in December 1964 for the Atlantic label, it features guest artists Phil Woods, Art Farmer, and Hubert Laws, plus Antônio Carlos Jobim on rhythm guitar. It has also been released under the title Bossa Nova York.
Ed Lincoln was a Brazilian musician, composer and arranger known for a wide variety of styles. As a bassist, he was present at the earliest moments of bossa nova and as a Hammond organ player, he was foundational in establishing the sound of Brazilian jazz and space age pop.
Ugo Marotta is a Brazilian musician, conductor, arranger, composer, keyboardist and vibraphonist. He took part at the Brazilian music movements Bossa Nova and Musicanossa.
Maria Rosa Canelas, better known as Rosinha de Valença, was a Brazilian composer, arranger and musician. She is considered one of the best acoustic guitarists in Brazilian music and played with many famous artists, including Baden Powell, Sérgio Mendes, Sylvia Telles and Sivuca.
MPB4 is a vocal and instrumental Brazilian group formed in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, in 1965, and has been active since. The group's main genres are sung samba and MPB, and they are considered among the best vocal interpretation group in Brazil. They have frequently collaborated with Quarteto em Cy, Toquinho and Chico Buarque. In 2001, MPB-4 completed a 36-year career with the same formation.
Aloísio or Aloysio de Oliveira, also known as Louis Oliveira, was a Brazilian record producer, singer, actor and composer. A key figure in the internationalization of Brazilian popular music, he contributed to Carmen Miranda's career abroad with his own musical ensemble: Bando da Lua, which he founded in 1929 with Hélio Jordão Pereira, Afonso Osório, Stênio Osório, Armando Osório, Osvaldo Éboli, Ivo Astolfi, Diego Astolfi and some other cousins of the latter for a total of 12 people. With the death of Miranda in August 1955 the group disbanded. Back in Brazil, Aloísio directed the command of Odeon Records, then created his own record label: the Elenco, producing dozens of discs and launching important names of bossa nova as Tom Jobim.
Do the Bossa Nova with Herbie Mann is an album by American jazz flautist Herbie Mann recorded in 1962 for the Atlantic label.
Latin Fever is an album by American jazz flautist Herbie Mann recorded for the Atlantic label and released in 1964. The album features tracks from the 1962 sessions that produced Do the Bossa Nova with Herbie Mann with more recent recordings.
"Só Danço Samba" is a bossa nova song composed in 1962 by Antônio Carlos Jobim, with lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. English lyrics were later written by Norman Gimbel. On occasion, it has also been known as "Jazz Samba" and "I Only Dance Samba", an English translation of the original Portuguese title.
Alaíde Costa Silveira Mondin Gomide, known as Alaíde Costa, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter.
