Beth Carvalho
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Santos Leal de Carvalho (born May 5, 1946 in Rio de Janeiro
) is a Brazilian samba
singer, guitarist
, cavaquinist
and composer.
's South Zone. Her father, João Francisco Leal de Carvalho, was a lawyer. She grew up influenced by different types of music. Her father used to take her to samba school
rehearsals, and her mother was a lover of classical music
who encouraged her to become a ballerina. She started playing the guitar as a teenager, and got involved with the emerging Bossa Nova
movement, winning a nationwide song contest on TV at the age of 19. Her first record was 1968's "Andança", carrying the song of the same name to victory in a larger festival, which brought her to prominence. Although she started her career with Bossa Nova, that was an ephemeral phase which lasted less than one year. Beth started dedicating herself entirely to samba
just as her fame began, working with legendary composers such as Nelson Sargento.
Carvalho is a very important artist in the history of samba, as she has celebrated and brought the spotlight to the work of legendary composers such as Cartola
, Nelson Cavaquinho
& Guilherme de Brito
when they weren't receiving the attention they deserved. Almost all of her records have songs by these composers, among other legendary sambistas such as Nelson Sargento and the Old Guard of Portela. Her samba school is Mangueira, but that didn't stop her from recording dozens of songs from composers of Portela
, the other great traditional samba school in Rio.
Later, in the late 1970s and early 80's, Beth helped bring to the public the work of other rising pagode
artists from Cacique de Ramos, such as Almir Guineto
, Jorge Aragão
and the Fundo de Quintal group. Then, in 1983, she introduced Zeca Pagodinho
who would become the major samba name of the 90's. Carvalho always tried to bring underrated composers the recognition they deserve, and she is regarded as madrinha do samba (the godmother of samba). She was a driving force in the modernization of samba in the 80s, and at the same time rejected commercial pop trends in samba arrangements, preserving tradition.
In the 1990s, Beth's popularity wasn't the strongest, but she was always popular. She recorded an album dedicated to the samba from São Paulo
, rejecting the famous axiom that São Paulo is the grave of samba. In 1998 she recorded an album dedicated entirely to the pagode
classics, Pérolas do Pagode (Pagode Pearls).
In the new millennium, Beth is working more than ever, releasing CDs and DVDs. With a career that spans 40 years, she is already a historical figure in Brazilian culture, and recognized as the female sambista with the most substantial opus in Brazil, without diminishing other, younger stars such as Clara Nunes
and Daniela Mercury
.
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
) is a Brazilian samba
Samba
Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...
singer, guitarist
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, cavaquinist
Cavaquinho
The cavaquinho is a small string instrument of the European guitar family with four wire or gut strings. It is also called machimbo, machim, machete , manchete or marchete, braguinha or braguinho, or cavaco.The most common tuning is D-G-B-D ; other tunings include D-A-B-E...
and composer.
Biography
Carvalho was raised in a middle class family in Rio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
's South Zone. Her father, João Francisco Leal de Carvalho, was a lawyer. She grew up influenced by different types of music. Her father used to take her to samba school
Samba school
A samba school is a club or dancing school. They practice and often perform in huge square-compounds devoted to practicing and exhibiting samba, an African-Brazilian dance. The schools are traditionally associated with a particular neighborhood, often shanty towns...
rehearsals, and her mother was a lover of classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
who encouraged her to become a ballerina. She started playing the guitar as a teenager, and got involved with the emerging Bossa Nova
Bossa Nova
Bossa Nova may refer to:*Bossa nova, a style of music*Bossa Nova , a dance form associated with the music*Bossa Nova , a 2000 film*Bossa Nova - album by John Pizzarelli...
movement, winning a nationwide song contest on TV at the age of 19. Her first record was 1968's "Andança", carrying the song of the same name to victory in a larger festival, which brought her to prominence. Although she started her career with Bossa Nova, that was an ephemeral phase which lasted less than one year. Beth started dedicating herself entirely to samba
Samba
Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...
just as her fame began, working with legendary composers such as Nelson Sargento.
Carvalho is a very important artist in the history of samba, as she has celebrated and brought the spotlight to the work of legendary composers such as Cartola
Cartola
Angenor de Oliveira, known as Cartola , was a Brazilian singer, composer and poet considered to be a major figure in the development of samba.Cartola composed, alone or with partners, more than 500 songs.-Biography:...
, Nelson Cavaquinho
Nelson Cavaquinho
Nelson Cavaquinho was one of the most important singer/composers of samba. He is usually seen as a representative of the tragic aspects of samba thematics, with many songs about death and hopelessness...
& Guilherme de Brito
Guilherme de Brito
Guilherme de Brito Bollhorst , known as Guilherme de Brito, was an important Brazilian sambista, singer, songwriter, and painter.-Biography:...
when they weren't receiving the attention they deserved. Almost all of her records have songs by these composers, among other legendary sambistas such as Nelson Sargento and the Old Guard of Portela. Her samba school is Mangueira, but that didn't stop her from recording dozens of songs from composers of Portela
GRES Portela
The Grêmio Recreativo Escola de Samba Portela is one of the most traditional samba schools of the city of Rio de Janeiro.- History :In the beginning of the 20th century, in Oswaldo Cruz, there was the carnivalesque group of dancers called Quem Fala de Nós Come Mosca , of Dona Ester...
, the other great traditional samba school in Rio.
Pagode
Pagode is a Brazilian style of music which originated in Salvador, Bahia , and quickly went down to Rio de Janeiro region, as a subgenre of Samba. Pagode originally meant a celebration with lots of food, music, dance and party...
artists from Cacique de Ramos, such as Almir Guineto
Almir Guineto
Almir Guineto is a Brazilian sambista, singer/songwriter and instrumentalist, working in the genres of samba and pagode.-Biography:...
, Jorge Aragão
Jorge Aragão
Jorge Aragão , birth name Jorge Aragão da Cruz) is a Brazilian musician, singer/songwriter, working in the genres of samba and pagode. He is a multi-instrumentalist, and plays the guitar, surdo, cavaco and banjo, among other instruments...
and the Fundo de Quintal group. Then, in 1983, she introduced Zeca Pagodinho
Zeca Pagodinho
Zeca Pagodinho is a Brazilian singer/songwriter working in the genres of samba and pagode.-Biography:...
who would become the major samba name of the 90's. Carvalho always tried to bring underrated composers the recognition they deserve, and she is regarded as madrinha do samba (the godmother of samba). She was a driving force in the modernization of samba in the 80s, and at the same time rejected commercial pop trends in samba arrangements, preserving tradition.
In the 1990s, Beth's popularity wasn't the strongest, but she was always popular. She recorded an album dedicated to the samba from São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
, rejecting the famous axiom that São Paulo is the grave of samba. In 1998 she recorded an album dedicated entirely to the pagode
Pagode
Pagode is a Brazilian style of music which originated in Salvador, Bahia , and quickly went down to Rio de Janeiro region, as a subgenre of Samba. Pagode originally meant a celebration with lots of food, music, dance and party...
classics, Pérolas do Pagode (Pagode Pearls).
In the new millennium, Beth is working more than ever, releasing CDs and DVDs. With a career that spans 40 years, she is already a historical figure in Brazilian culture, and recognized as the female sambista with the most substantial opus in Brazil, without diminishing other, younger stars such as Clara Nunes
Clara Nunes
Clara Nunes; August 12, 1943 – April 2, 1983) was a samba singer, regarded as one of the greatest of her generation. She became the first female singer in Brazil to sell over 100,000 copies, and her achievements in the samba genre earned her the title of "Queen of Samba".She had enormous...
and Daniela Mercury
Daniela Mercury
Daniela Mercury , is a Latin Grammy Award-winning Brazilian axé, samba-reggae and MPB singer, songwriter and record producer. Since her breakthrough, Mercury has become one of the best known Brazilian female singers, selling over 20 million albums worldwide...
.
Trivia
- Beth is a known supporter of both the BotafogoBotafogo de Futebol e RegatasBotafogo de Futebol e Regatas , also known as Botafogo and familiarly as Estrela Solitária, is a Brazilian sports club based in Botafogo, neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro, best known for its football team. They play in the Campeonato Carioca, Rio de Janeiro's state league, and the Campeonato...
and Clube Atlético MineiroClube Atlético MineiroClube Atlético Mineiro , are a Brazilian football club based in Belo Horizonte, the oldest in the city. Founded in 1908, they play in the Campeonato Mineiro and Campeonato Brasileiro Série A or Brasileirão. Atlético Mineiro have been Brazilian champions once, state winners a record 40 times and...
football teams - Beth is one of the main personalities of the samba schoolSamba schoolA samba school is a club or dancing school. They practice and often perform in huge square-compounds devoted to practicing and exhibiting samba, an African-Brazilian dance. The schools are traditionally associated with a particular neighborhood, often shanty towns...
MangueiraGRES Estação Primeira de MangueiraThe Grêmio Recreativo Escola de Samba Mangueira is one of the most traditional and best supported Samba schools in Rio de Janeiro. It was founded on April 28th, 1928 in Morro da Mangueira, near the region of Maracanã by Carlos Cachaça, Cartola, Zé Espinguela, Nelson Cavaquinho, among others... - Beth had a variety of hits in the 1970s, with her 1979 song Coisinha Do Pai being one of her biggest hits. The song was inserted into the Mars PathfinderMars PathfinderMars Pathfinder was an American spacecraft that landed a base station with roving probe on Mars in 1997. It consisted of a lander, renamed the Carl Sagan Memorial Station, and a lightweight wheeled robotic rover named Sojourner.Launched on December 4, 1996 by NASA aboard a Delta II booster a...
. - Her social music often concerns the poor and the Indigenous peoples in BrazilIndigenous peoples in BrazilThe Indigenous peoples in Brazil comprise a large number of distinct ethnic groups who inhabited the country prior to the European invasion around 1500...
Discography
- Beth Carvalho - 40 anos de Carreira - Ao Vivo no Theatro Municipal - Vol.1 (CD) - Andança/Sony - BMG - 2006
- Beth Carvalho - 40 anos de Carreira - Ao Vivo no Theatro Municipal - Vol.2 (CD) - Andança/Sony - BMG - 2006
- Beth Carvalho - 40 anos de Carreira - Ao Vivo no Theatro Municipal (DVD) - Andança/Sony - BMG - 2006
- Beth Carvalho - A Madrinha do Samba - Ao Vivo (DVD) - Indie - 2004
- Beth Carvalho - A Madrinha do Samba - Ao Vivo (CD) - Indie - 2004
- Beth Carvalho Canta Cartola - BMG - 2003
- Nome Sagrado - Beth Carvalho Canta Nelson Cavaquinho - Jam Music - 2001
- Pagode de Mesa Ao Vivo 2 - Universal Music - 2000
- Pagode de Mesa Ao Vivo - Universal Music - 1999
- Pérolas do Pagode - Globo / Polydor - 1998
- Brasileira da Gema - Polygram - 1996
- Beth Carvalho Canta o Samba de São Paulo - Velas - 1993
- Pérolas - 25 Anos de Samba - Som Livre - 1992
- Ao Vivo no Olympia - Som Livre - 1991
- Intérprete - Polygram - 1991
- Saudades da Guanabara - Polygram - 1989
- Alma do Brasil - Polygram - 1988
- Beth Carvalho Ao Vivo (Montreux) - RCA - 1987
- Beth - RCA - 1986
- Das Bençãos Que Virão Com os Novos Amanhãs - RCA - 1985
- Coração Feliz - RCA - 1984
- Suor no Rosto - RCA - 1983
- Traço de União - RCA - 1982
- Na fonte - RCA - 1981
- Sentimento Brasileiro - RCA - 1980
- Beth Carvalho no Pagode - RCA - 1979
- De Pé No Chão - RCA - 1978
- Nos Botequins da Vida - RCA - 1977
- Mundo Melhor - RCA - 1976
- Pandeiro e Viola - Tapecar - 1975
- Pra Seu Governo - Tapecar - 1974
- Canto Por Um Novo Dia - Tapecar - 1973
- Andança - Odeon - 1969