The son of a Lebanese father and a Sicilian mother, Gismonti was born in 1947 in the small Brazilian town of Carmo. He studied piano from the age of five and learned, initially, to play and compose music in the European tradition. In Paris, he studied with Nadia Boulanger and with composer Jean Barraqué (1928-1973) whose severe and fanatically-complex serial music is far removed from the joyous energies of Gismonit’s subsequent work. Boulanger encouraged him to make musical use of his heritage.
Back in Brazil, he turned his attention to local choro music and the guitar.Coming late to the guitar, Gismonti brought to the instrument the virtuosity that characterized his piano playing. Two-handed interweaving of independent lines, fast runs, dramatic bass registers and rapid ostinati are part of his technique. Originally playing classical guitar, he switched to an 8-string instrument in 1973, gradually working his way up to a 10 and 14 string instruments that he designed himself.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Gismonti was involved in many cross-cultural projects with musicians of other nationalities, of which the trio albums with Haden and Garbarek are the most enduring.
Better known as a jazz guitarist outside of Brazil, Gismonti recorded several innovative keyboard based albums in the 1980s. In some cases it was pure electronic music. In others, he combined advanced technology with acoustic instruments. Some of these outstanding recordings, Fantasia, Cidade Coracao, have not been available outside of Brazil
In the 1990s, however, he recommitted himself wholeheartedly to the Brazilian cause. “In the end you have to decide whether you want to be involved forever in ‘cultural exchange’ or if you want to try and develop your own culture.”
In the late 1990s, Gismonti composed symphonic pieces. He worked with the Lithuanian Symphony Orchestra for the recording of his Meeting Point album.
In 2009, Egberto Gismonti released the double album Saudações. Egberto Gismonti explained: “Saudações means greetings, salutations, saludos, saluti. The greetings followed a long absence on record, marking his first appearance on ECM Records in 14 years. Although he had been active as a touring musician in the interim and continued to produce recordings by other artists for his Brazilian Carmo label (Saudações was a co-production of ECM and Carmo). On disc one, Gismonty presented the seven-part suite “Sertões Veredas,” recorded in Havana with the acclaimed Camaerata Romeu, and disc two, a program of guitar duets and solos, recorded in Rio de Janeiro with Egberto and his son Alexandre.
Discography
Egberto Gismonti (Elenco, 1969)
Sonho ’70 (Polydor, 1970)
Orfeo Novo (MPS, 1970)
Água e Vinho (EMI-Odeon, 1972)[5]
Egberto Gismonti (EMI-Odeon, 1973)
Árvore (Decca/ECM, 1973)
Academia de Danças (EMI, 1974)
Corações Futuristas (Odeon, 1976)
Carmo (EMI, 1977)
Dança das Cabeças (ECM, 1977) with Naná Vasconcelos
Nó Caipira (Odeon, 1978)
Sol do Meio Dia (ECM, 1978)
Solo (ECM, 1979)
Mágico (ECM, 1979) with Charlie Haden and Jan Garbarek
Circense (1980)
Folk Songs (ECM, 1981) with Charlie Haden and Jan Garbarek
Sanfona (ECM, 1981) solo and with Academia de Dancas
Em Família (EMI, 1981)
Fantasia (1982)
Cidade Coração (1983)
Bandeira do Brasil (1984)
Duas Vozes (ECM, 1984)
Trem Caipira (ECM, 1985)
Live at Berlin Jazzbühne Jazz Festival (1984)
Alma (1986)
O Pagador de Promessas (1988)
Dança dos Escravos (ECM, 1989)
Feixe de Luz (1988)
Presents a Musical Childhood with Infância (1990)
Amazônia (ECM, 1991)
Kuarup (Carmo, 1991)
Casa das Andorinhas (1992)
Música de Sobrevivência (1993)
Brasil Musical (1993)
Zig Zag (ECM, 1995)
Forrobodó (Carmo, 1996)
Violão (Carmo, 1996)
Meeting Point (ECM, 1997)
In Montreal (ECM, 2001) with Charlie Haden
Corações Futuristas (EMI, 2001)
Retratos (EMI, 2004)
Saudações (ECM, 2009)
Mágico: Carta de Amor, with Jan Garbarek and Charlie Haden (ECM, 2012)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
