Carlos Althier de Souza Lemos Escobar, better known as Guinga, was born June 10, 1950 in Madureira, Rio de Janeiro. Guinga’s former neighbor was Candeia, whom Guinga used to accompany on the guitar. Guinga heard essential sambas, composed by Candeia and guests, such as Cantoni, Walter Rosa and many others. “It was with Candeia that I listened for the first time to Dave Brubeck. Guinga also tells us that Candeia was crazy about Paul Desmond, the saxophonist.”
With a childhood torn between soccer and the guitar, it was always straight from the soccer field to the house of his friend Haroldo. “Haroldo could have been one of the top Brazilian guitar players, but he never wanted to become a professional.”
It was Haroldo that introduced him to Garoto’s music which changed Guinga’s life forever. When listening to Garoto’s guitar he discovered that he too had the desire to play and to compose music. Sharing his adolescence between the districts of Vila Valqueire and Jacarepagua, Guinga cohabited with what is the most pure of the Brazilian music: the choro, the waltz, the samba. He listened to everything: Jacob, Pixinguinha, Candido das Neves, Custodio Mesquita, Ary Barroso, Noel, Tom Jobim, Chico Buarque de Holanda, Dorival Caymmi, Vinicius de Moraes, Baden, Edu Lobo.
For nearly 16 years Guinga practiced his profession of dentist. At that time he made a lot of money, but he feels happier making music. He was amazed and blessed to have a daily relationship with great musicians like Helio Delmiro, Turibio Santos and many others. Having embraced such a valuable musical school, he was shaped into a sensitive musician and a great composer with huge melodious and harmonious resources. Great influences like these, drove him to the stage where he now is a partner with great creators like Paulo Cesar Pinheiro, Aldir Blanc, Chico Buarque and loved by artists from such diverse musical areas like Ed Motta and Ney Lopes. In 1997, the Suíte Leopoldina CD was regarded by the music critics of O Globo and Jornal do Brasil as the best MPB (Brazilian Popular Music) of the year.
Discography:
Simples e Absurdo (Velas, 1991)
Delírio Carioca (Velas, 1993)
Cheio de Dedos (Velas, 1996)
Suíte Leopoldina (Velas, 1999)
Cine Baronesa (Velas, 2001)
A Música Brasileira deste Século por seus Autores e Intérpretes: Guinga (Sesc, 2002) Sesc
Noturno Copacabana (Velas, 2003)
Graffiando Vento, with Gabriele Mirabassi (Egea, 2004)
Dialetto Carioca (Egea, 2007)
Casa de Villa (Biscoito Fino, 2007)
Saudade do Cordão, with & Paulo Sérgio Santos (Biscoito Fino, 2009)
Rasgando Seda, with Quinteto Villa-Lobos (Sesc, 2012)
Francis e Guinga, with Francis Hime (Biscoito Fino, 2013)
Roendopinho (2014)
Mar Afora, with Maria João (2015)
Porto da Madama, with Maria João, Esperanza Spalding, Maria Pia de Vito and Mônica Salmaso (Sesc, 2015)
Canção da Impermanência (2017)
Avenida Atlântica, with Quarteto Carlos Gomes (2017)
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.
