Tania Maria

Tania Maria (born May 9, 1948) is a Brazilian artist, singer, composer, bandleader and piano player, singing mostly in Portuguese or English. Her Brazilian-style music is mostly vocal, sometimes pop, often jazzy, and includes samba, bossa, Afro-Latin, pop and jazz fusion.

Tania Maria
Tania Maria in 2013
Background information
Birth nameTania Maria Correa Reis[1]
Born (1948-05-09) May 9, 1948
OriginSão Luís, Maranhão, Brazil
GenresJazz, pop, MPB
Occupation(s)Musician, composer, bandleader
InstrumentsPiano
Years active1969present
LabelsConcord, Capitol, Blue Note, EMI, Universal
WebsiteTaniaMaria.net

Biography

Born in São Luís, Maranhão, northern Brazil, Tania Maria began playing the piano at the age of seven, became a leader at the age of 13, when her band of professional musicians, organized by her father, won first prize in a local music contest and went on to play for dances, in clubs and on the radio. Her father, a metal worker and a gifted guitarist and singer, had encouraged her to study piano so that she could play in his weekend jam sessions, where she first absorbed the rhythms and melodies of samba, jazz, pop music and Brazilian chorinho. Since then, she has never worked in anyone else's group. She has a degree in law, married early and had children.

Maria's first album, Apresentamos ("We Present"), was released in Brazil in 1969, followed by Olha Quem Chega ("Look Who's Here!") in 1971, but it was a move to France in the late 1970s that exploded her onto the international scene. At a concert in Australia, her formidable musical precision and freewheeling spirit caught the attention of the late American guitarist, Charlie Byrd, who recommended her to the late Carl Jefferson, founder of Concord Records.[2]

Tania's 1983 album Come With Me started her international breakthrough with the title song becoming a 1980's dance-floor classic that has since been covered frequently. The poppy 1985 album Made in New York increased her popularity worldwide.

Maria has played virtually every important jazz festival in the world and has appeared on countless television and radio programmes. She has recorded more than 25 albums[3] and in 1985 was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category "Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female".[4] She has performed at venues such as the Blue Note and festivals including the Monterey Jazz Festival in '81, '83 and '89, Saratoga Jazz Festival, JVC Jazz Fest 1991, Montreux Jazz Festival, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Puerto Rico Heineken Jazzfest 2001, Malta Jazz Festival 2003 at Maltese Islands, Novosadski Jazz Festival 2004, Belgium's Jazz Middelheim 2007. She performed at the annual North Sea Jazz Festival in The Hague in 1978 and has returned there at least 10 times. She has played with such greats as Steve Gadd, Anthony Jackson, Sammy Figueroa and Eddie Gómez.

Discography

Albums

Year Title Genre Label
1969 Apresentamos Brazilian jazz Continental
1971 Olha Quem Chega Brazilian jazz Odeon
1977 Via Brasil Brazilian jazz Sunny Side
1977 Via Brasil, Vol. 2 Brazilian jazz Sunny Side
1979 Live Brazilian jazz Accord
1980 Piquant Brazilian jazz Concord
1981 Taurus Brazilian jazz Concord
1983 Come with Me Brazilian jazz Concord
1984 Love Explosion Brazilian jazz Concord
1984 The Real Tania Maria: Wild! Brazilian jazz Concord
1985 Made in New York Brazilian jazz EMI
1986 Lady from Brazil Brazilian jazz EMI
1988 Forbidden Colors Brazilian jazz Capitol
1990 Bela Vista Brazilian jazz Blue Note
1993 Outrageous Brazilian jazz Concord
The Best of Tania Maria Brazilian jazz Blue Note
1995 No Comment Brazilian jazz TKM
Bluesilian Brazilian jazz TKM
1997 Europe Brazilian jazz TKM
2000 Viva Brazil Brazilian jazz Concord Records
2002 Happiness Brazilian jazz Recall Records UK
Tania Maria Live at the Blue Note Brazilian jazz Concord
2003 Outrageously Wild Brazilian jazz Concord
2004 Olha Quem Chega (reissue) Brazilian jazz Import
2005 Tania Maria in Copenhagen (with Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen) Brazilian jazz Stunt
Intimidade Brazilian jazz Blue Note
Brazil with My Soul Brazilian jazz Universal
2011 Tempo (with Eddie Gómez) Brazilian jazz Naïve Records
2012 Canto Brazilian jazz Naïve Records

Filmography

See also

References

  1. Fairweather, Digby. The Rough Guide to Jazz, Rough Guides, p. 6 (2004) - ISBN 1-84353-256-5
  2. About Tania Maria.
  3. Tania Maria, Nova Concerts International, April 12, 2012.
  4. Awards Database: Tania Maria
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