Bola Sete
Encyclopedia
Bola Sete (July 16, 1923 – February 14, 1987) was a Brazil
ian guitarist
. Sete played jazz
with Vince Guaraldi
as well as with Dizzy Gillespie
. His song "Bettina" was featured on the "Tribe Vibes" breakbeat
compilation, as it had been sampled by the musical group A Tribe Called Quest
.
Born in Rio de Janeiro
, Bola Sete's name means "Seven Ball". In Brazilian billiards
, the seven ball is the only black ball on the table, and Bola got this nickname when he was the only black member of a small jazz group. He studied guitar at the Conservatory of Rio and he started performing with his own sextet and local samba groups while he was still a student. His early influences were guitarists Django Reinhardt
, Charlie Christian
, Barney Kessel
, and Oscar Moore
(of the Nat King Cole
Trio), while he was also captured by the sound of the big bands that were touring South America at that time (Dizzy Gillespie, Tommy Dorsey
, Woody Herman
). His career started in Italy, where he played in various clubs and hotels for four years (1952–1956). Then, he returned to Brazil and started touring all of South America, during which time the manager of the Sheraton hotels noticed him and decided to bring him in the US to play in the hotels (1962). He played for a while in New York's Park Sheraton, later moving to San Francisco to play in the Sheraton Palace. Dizzy Gillespie was staying there at the time and listening to Bola Sete playing every day. When Gillespie decided to bring his pianist Lalo Schifrin
to the hotel, he discovered that Lalo and Bola had already met and played together in Argentina. This meeting was the beginning of Bola's success in the US. In the fall of 1962, Gillespie took the guitarist to the Ninth Annual Monterey Jazz Festival
, where he enjoyed a huge success. After that, he toured for a while with Gillespie and finally returned to San Francisco, where he joined the Vince Guaraldi
trio. Bola was already well-known in the US, and his partnership with Guaraldi was another huge success for both of them. After staying for a couple of years with Guaraldi, Bola formed his own trio with his fellow Brazilians Sebastian Neto (bass) and Paulinho (drums). With his own trio, he appeared once more in Monterey (1966) with equal success.
In the 1970s, he became friends with guitarist John Fahey
, who released an album of Sete's solo guitar compositions on his Takoma label.
He died in Greenbrae, California
, from lung cancer
, on February 14, 1987.
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
. Sete played jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
with Vince Guaraldi
Vince Guaraldi
Vincent Anthony "Vince" Guaraldi was an Italian American jazz musician and pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip...
as well as with Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
. His song "Bettina" was featured on the "Tribe Vibes" breakbeat
Breakbeat
In 1992, a new style called "jungalistic hardcore" emerged, and for many ravers it was too funky to dance to. Josh Lawford of Ravescene prophesied that the breakbeat was "the death-knell of rave" because the ever changing drumbeat patterns of breakbeat music didn't allow for the same zoned out,...
compilation, as it had been sampled by the musical group A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest
A Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006...
.
Born in Rio de Janeiro
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...
, Bola Sete's name means "Seven Ball". In Brazilian billiards
Billiards
Cue sports , also known as billiard sports, are a wide variety of games of skill generally played with a cue stick which is used to strike billiard balls, moving them around a cloth-covered billiards table bounded by rubber .Historically, the umbrella term was billiards...
, the seven ball is the only black ball on the table, and Bola got this nickname when he was the only black member of a small jazz group. He studied guitar at the Conservatory of Rio and he started performing with his own sextet and local samba groups while he was still a student. His early influences were guitarists Django Reinhardt
Django Reinhardt
Django Reinhardt was a pioneering virtuoso jazz guitarist and composer who invented an entirely new style of jazz guitar technique that has since become a living musical tradition within French gypsy culture...
, Charlie Christian
Charlie Christian
Charles Henry "Charlie" Christian was an American swing and jazz guitarist.Christian was an important early performer on the electric guitar, and is cited as a key figure in the development of bebop and cool jazz. He gained national exposure as a member of the Benny Goodman Sextet and Orchestra...
, Barney Kessel
Barney Kessel
Barney Kessel was an American jazz guitarist born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, USA. Generally considered to be one of the greatest jazz guitarists of the 20th century, he was noted in particular for his vast knowledge of chords and inversions and chord-based melodies...
, and Oscar Moore
Oscar Moore
Oscar Moore was an American swing jazz guitarist.Moore was an integral part of the Nat King Cole Trio during 1937–1947, appearing on virtually all of Cole's records during the period. A superb and influential guitarist, Moore was himself influenced by Charlie Christian...
(of the Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
Trio), while he was also captured by the sound of the big bands that were touring South America at that time (Dizzy Gillespie, Tommy Dorsey
Tommy Dorsey
Thomas Francis "Tommy" Dorsey, Jr. was an American jazz trombonist, trumpeter, composer, and bandleader of the Big Band era. He was known as "The Sentimental Gentleman of Swing", due to his smooth-toned trombone playing. He was the younger brother of bandleader Jimmy Dorsey...
, Woody Herman
Woody Herman
Woodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...
). His career started in Italy, where he played in various clubs and hotels for four years (1952–1956). Then, he returned to Brazil and started touring all of South America, during which time the manager of the Sheraton hotels noticed him and decided to bring him in the US to play in the hotels (1962). He played for a while in New York's Park Sheraton, later moving to San Francisco to play in the Sheraton Palace. Dizzy Gillespie was staying there at the time and listening to Bola Sete playing every day. When Gillespie decided to bring his pianist Lalo Schifrin
Lalo Schifrin
Lalo Schifrin is an Argentine composer, pianist and conductor. He is best known for his film and TV scores, such as the "Theme from Mission: Impossible". He has received four Grammy Awards and six Oscar nominations...
to the hotel, he discovered that Lalo and Bola had already met and played together in Argentina. This meeting was the beginning of Bola's success in the US. In the fall of 1962, Gillespie took the guitarist to the Ninth Annual Monterey Jazz Festival
Monterey Jazz Festival
The Monterey Jazz Festival is one of the longest consecutively running jazz festivals. It debuted on October 3, 1958 and was founded by San Francisco jazz radio broadcaster Jimmy Lyons.-History:...
, where he enjoyed a huge success. After that, he toured for a while with Gillespie and finally returned to San Francisco, where he joined the Vince Guaraldi
Vince Guaraldi
Vincent Anthony "Vince" Guaraldi was an Italian American jazz musician and pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip...
trio. Bola was already well-known in the US, and his partnership with Guaraldi was another huge success for both of them. After staying for a couple of years with Guaraldi, Bola formed his own trio with his fellow Brazilians Sebastian Neto (bass) and Paulinho (drums). With his own trio, he appeared once more in Monterey (1966) with equal success.
In the 1970s, he became friends with guitarist John Fahey
John Fahey (musician)
John Fahey was an American fingerstyle guitarist and composer who pioneered the steel-string acoustic guitar as a solo instrument. His style has been greatly influential and has been described as the foundation of American Primitivism, a term borrowed from painting and referring mainly to the...
, who released an album of Sete's solo guitar compositions on his Takoma label.
He died in Greenbrae, California
Greenbrae, California
Greenbrae is a small community in Marin County, California. It is located south-southeast of downtown San Rafael, at an elevation of 33 feet , located adjacent to U.S. Route 101 at the opening of the Ross Valley. Part of Greenbrae is an unincorporated community of the county while the remaining...
, from lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
, on February 14, 1987.
Partial discography
- Bola Sete e 4 trombones (1958)
- Bossa Nova (1962)
- Vince Guaraldi, Bola Sete and Friends (1963)
- Tour de Force (1964)
- From All Sides (with Vince Guaraldi) (1964)
- The Solo Guitar of Bola Sete (1965)
- The Incomparable Bola Sete (1965)
- Live at El Matador (with Vince Guaraldi) (1966)
- Autentico (1966)
- At the Monterey Jazz Festival (1966)
- Shebaba (1969)
- Goin' to Rio (1973)
- Working on a Groovy Thing (1976)
- Ocean (1981)
- Jungle Suite (Dancing Cat) (1985)
- Ocean Memories (Samba Moon) (1999)
- Shambhala Moon (Samba Moon) (2001)
- Live at Grace Cathedral (Samba Moon) (2003)
- "Windspell" (Samba Moon) (2008)
As sideman
- New WaveNew Wave (Dizzy Gillespie album)-Track listing:# In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town # Careless Love # Chega de Saudade # Taboo # Gee Baby Ain't I Good to You # One Note Samba # Manhã de Carnaval# Pergunte ao Joao-Personnel:* Tracks 1, 2, 5:Dizzy Gillespie - trumpet...
(1963) - Dizzy GillespieDizzy GillespieJohn Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
, feat. Lalo SchifrinLalo SchifrinLalo Schifrin is an Argentine composer, pianist and conductor. He is best known for his film and TV scores, such as the "Theme from Mission: Impossible". He has received four Grammy Awards and six Oscar nominations...