Authors

ROBERT WILLEY is a pianist, composer, and multimedia artist, and holds graduate degrees in computer music and theoretical studies from the University of California, San Diego. He played in a wide variety of styles before falling in love with Brazilian music. He worked for five years for a computer music exchange program between UCSD, Stanford University, and LIPM, a studio in Buenos Aires. During that time he helped develop a national organization for computer music in Brazil. He lived there for two years, first as a Fulbright scholar in 1996 teaching computer music and performance at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, and then as a visiting professor at the Carlos Gomes Conservatory and Federal University of Pará, giving him the opportunity to become familiar with the language and culture. He presently teaches music media and theory at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he wrote co-wrote a method book/DVD on Creole fiddle, and produced a DVD about Creole and zydeco music. Willey mixed the play-along CD and realized its MIDI tracks.

ALFREDO CARDIM studied jazz piano at the Berklee College of Music during the first half of the 1970’s, and later continued advanced studies with Don Sebesky and at the Juilliard School of Music. His knowledge of Brazilian music comes from the love and experience of playing around the world with many musicians related to the bossa nova, such as Astrud Gilberto, Joe Lovano, Naná Vasconcelos, Paquito D’Rivera, Edison Machado, Raul de Souza, Toninho Horta, Milton Banana, and lately with the Jobim/Morelenbaum Quartet. Over the last 30 years Cardim has recorded more than 50 bossa novas with artists such as Cláudio Roditi (with whom he played on Red on Red), Fogueira Três (Bossa Nova Vol. 1 and Bossa Nova Vol. 2), Edison Machado (with whose quartet he recorded Obras), Joe Hunt and Barry Smith (Bossa Blues), Duduka da Fonseca and Nilson Matta (Bossa Nova & MPB), Paulinho Trumpete (Um Sopro do Brasil), Mônica Hatch (If You Never Come to Me), and Joyce (Áqua e Luz and Joyce Live). Mr. Cardim organized the studio recording of this book’s play-along CD, on which he played piano.

 

Musicians on CD

ALFREDO CARDIM, producer/piano/percussion

RENATO MALAVAZI (drums) graduated from the Berklee College of Music in 2000, and has gone on to share the stages of the New England area with some of the most unique musicians. His performances range from accompanying jazz singers to instrumental jazz trios, quartets, quintets, and big bands. Other experiences include projects with Brazilian and Afro Cuban groups, blues, pop, and gospel bands. Before coming to Boston in 1997, Renato was involved in other instrumental projects as a performer and student of Brazilian music and culture, and performed extensively throughout Brazil accompanying folk singers.

BARRY SMITH (bass, pandeiro) was born in England and moved to the U.S. in 1972 to study at Berklee College of Music. Upon moving to New York City in the mid 70's, He toured with Thad Jones/Mel Lewis, Lionel Hampton, Gerry Mulligan, Woody Herman, and the Red Rodney/Ira Sullivan Quintet. He has degrees in double bass from the Manhattan School of Music and Juilliard. Since returning to Boston in 1986, he has been teaching bass at Berklee College of Music and gigging and recording in the New England area.

ALBERTO NETTO (percussion) began playing drum set and percussion at age 14 in his hometown of Santos, Brazil. Within five years he was  performing and recording with the Luis Arruda Paes Big Band, David Costa, Jornal do Brasil Chico Gomes, and Grupo Quartzo, among others. In Brazil he studied with Realcino "Nenê" Lima and Zé Eduardo Nazário among others. He is currently Assistant Professor in the Percussion Department at Berklee College of Music. The author of Brazilian Rhythms for Drums Set and Percussion published by Berkee Press, he is active as a performer, clinician, and educator. He tracked the acoustic portion of this book’s play-along CD in his own Artdrums Studios.

BILL WARD (guitar) has been playing and teaching in the Boston Area since 2003. An accomplished singer, pianist, and guitarist, he plays a mix of classic Brazilian sounds and swing era jazz standards. He has performed at WGBH's "Eric In The Evening”, the North Sea Jazz Festival, Montreax Jazz Festival, Vienne Jazz Festival, The White House, Ryles Jazz Club, Gargoyles On The Square, Club Toast, and various venues throughout the United States, Brazil and South Africa. He has performed and recorded with artists such as Alfredo Cardim, Mike Turk, José Pienasola, Vinicius Pienasola, Anna Borges, and John Pierce, and Fernando Brandao.

JOHN PIERCE (trombone) is an active performer on both trombone and acoustic bass. He came to Boston in 1978 to study trombone at Berklee College of Music and earned his Masters of Music from New England Conservatory in 2000 in Jazz Studies, and Performance on acoustic bass. As a free-lance performer, John has performed with various artists including Tony Bennett, Lou Rawls, Cab Callaway, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Joe Beck, J. Geils, Alfredo Cardim and various groups in the New England area. A faculty member at Berklee for the past 25 years, John is an Associate Professor, teaching ensembles and ear training, and is one of the directors of the Berklee Summer Performance Program.

 

CD Production

RECORDING: Alberto Netto / Artdrums (Boston) - ensemble tracks. Robert Willey - MIDI tracks.

MIXING: Ivan Klisanin and Robert Willey (Lafayette)