Wikipedia

Airto Moreira

Airto Guimorvan Moreira(born August 5, 1941)[1]is a Brazilian jazz drummer, composer and percussionist.[2]He is married to jazz singerFlora Purim,and their daughter Diana Moreira is also a singer.[2]Coming to prominence in the late 1960s as a member of the Brazilian ensembleQuarteto Novo,he moved to the United States and worked injazz fusionwithMiles Davis,Return to Forever,Weather ReportandSantana.

Airto Moreira
Moreira in concert in 2007
Moreira in concert in 2007
Background information
Birth nameAirto Guimorvan Moreira
Born(1941-08-05)August 5, 1941(age 83)
Itaiópolis,Santa Catarina,Brazil
GenresJazz,jazz fusion,Brazilian jazz,pop,baião
Occupation(s)Musician,bandleader,composer
Instrument(s)Drums, percussion
Years active1954–present
LabelsOne Way,CTI,Arista,Warner Music Japan
Websitewww.airto.com

Biography

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Airto Moreira at Paul Masson Harvest Jazz Festival, Saratoga CA 10/3/81

Airto Moreira was born inItaiópolis,Brazil,[1]into a family of folk healers, and raised inCuritibaandSão Paulo.Showing an extraordinary talent for music at a young age, he became a professional musician at age 13, noticed first as a member of thesambajazz pioneersSambalanço Trioand for his landmark recording withHermeto PascoalinQuarteto Novoin 1967.[2]Shortly after, he followed his wifeFlora Purimto theUnited States.

After moving to the US, Moreira studied withMoacir Santosin Los Angeles.[3]He then moved toNew Yorkwhere he began playing regularly with jazz musicians, including the bassistWalter Booker.Through Booker, Moreira began playing withJoe Zawinul,who in turn introduced him toMiles Davis.[1]At this time Davis was experimenting with electronic instruments and rock and funk rhythms, a form which was soon calledjazz fusion.[1]Moreira participated in several of the most important projects of this emerging musical form,[1]and stayed with Davis for about two years.[4]

Shortly after leaving Davis, Moreira joined other Davis alumni Zawinul,Wayne ShorterandMiroslav Vitousin their groupWeather Report,playing percussion on theirfirst album(1971).[1]He left Weather Report (replaced byDom Um RomãoandMuruga Bookerfor theirSweetnighteralbum) to join fellow Davis alumnusChick Corea's new bandReturn to Forever.[1]He played drums on Return to Forever's first two albums:Return to ForeverandLight as a Featherin 1972.

Moreira was a contributor to many ofGrateful DeadpercussionistMickey Hart's world music/percussion albums inRykodisc's The World collection, includingThe Apocalypse Now Sessions,Däfos,Supralingua,andPlanet Drum,which won a World Music Grammy in 1991.[2]He can be heard playing congas onEumir Deodato's 1970s space-funk hit "Also sprach Zarathustra"on the albumPrelude.

Moreira has also played with several jazz musicians, includingCannonball Adderley,Lee Morgan,Paul Desmond,Dave Holland,Jack DeJohnette,John McLaughlin,Keith Jarrett,Al Di Meola,Zakir Hussain,George DukeandMickey Hart.[2]

In addition to jazz concerts and recordings, he has composed and contributed music to film and television, played at the re-opening of theLibrary of Alexandria,Egypt[5](along with fellow professor of ethnomusicologyHalim El-Dabh[6]), and taught atUCLAand the California Brazil Camp.

In 1996, Moreira and his wifeFlora Purimcollaborated with P.M. Dawn on the song "Non-Fiction Burning" for the AIDS benefit albumRed Hot + Rio,produced by theRed Hot Organization.

In 2022, it was announced via the Flora Purim & Airto MoreiraFacebookpage that Airto was suffering severe health problems and that wife Flora was now his full-time caregiver. AGoFundMepage was set up by their daughter Niura with the aim of raising funds to provide Airto with funding for medical care.[7]

Awards

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  • Moreira was voted the number one percussionist in "Down BeatMagazine's Critics Poll "for the years 1975 through 1982 and most recently in 1993.[8]
  • In September 2002, Brazil's PresidentFernando Henrique Cardosoadded Moreira and Purim to the "Order of Rio Branco",one of Brazil's highest honors.

Discography

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As leader

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  • Natural Feelings(Buddah, 1970)
  • Seeds On the Ground(Buddah, 1971)
  • Free(CTI, 1972)
  • Fingers(CTI, 1973)
  • Virgin Land(Salvation, 1974)
  • In ConcertwithEumir Deodato(CTI, 1974)
  • Identity(Arista, 1975)
  • Promises of the Sun(Arista, 1976)
  • I'm Fine, How Are You?(Warner Bros., 1977)
  • Touching You...Touching Me(Warner Bros., 1979)
  • DäfoswithMickey Hart(Reference, 1983)
  • Misa Espiritual(Harmonia Mundi, 1983)
  • Latino/Aqui Se Puede(Sobocode, 1984)
  • Three-Way Mirror(Reference, 1985)
  • Humble PeoplewithFlora Purim(Concord Jazz, 1985)
  • The Magicianswith Flora Purim (Crossover, 1986)
  • The Colours of Lifewith Flora Purim (In+Out, 1988)
  • Samba de Flora(Montuno, 1989)
  • The Sun Is Outwith Flora Purim (Crossover, 1987)
  • Struck by Lightning(Venture, 1989)
  • The Other Side of This(Rykodisc, 1992)
  • Killer Bees(B&W Music, 1993)
  • Homeless(M.E.L.T., 2000)
  • Revenge of the Killer Bees(M.E.L.T., 2000)
  • Life After That(Narada, 2003)
  • The Boston Three PartywithChick Corea,Eddie Gomez (Stretch, 2007)
  • Aluê(Selo, 2017)
  • Eu canto assim(NoRPM, 2021)

WithSambalanço Trio

WithFourth World

  • Recorded Live At Ronnie Scott's Club(Ronnie Scotts Jazz House 1992)
  • Fourth World(B and W Music 1993)
  • Encounters of the Fourth World(B and W Music 1995)
  • Live in South Africa 1993(Bootleg.net 1996)
  • Last Journey(M.E.L.T. 2000)
  • Return Journey(Electro M.E.L.T. 2000)

As sideman

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WithCannonball Adderley

WithGato Barbieri

WithStanley Clarke

  • Stanley Clarke(Nemperor, 1974)
  • I Wanna Play for You(Nemperor, 1979)
  • Shieldstone(Bellaphon, 1987)

WithChick Corea

WithMiles Davis

WithPaul Desmond

WithGeorge Duke

WithDavid Friesen

  • Amber Skies(Palo Alto, 1984)
  • Other Times Other Places(Global Pacific, 1989)
  • Departure(Global Pacific, 1990)
  • Ancient Kings(Shamrock, 1994)

WithStan Getz

WithAstrud Gilberto

WithJohnny Hammond

WithMickey Hart

WithFreddie Hubbard

WithBob James

  • H(Tappan Zee, 1980)
  • Snowbird(Tappan Zee/Columbia, 1980)
  • Sign of the Times(Tappan Zee/Columbia, 1981)

WithAntonio Carlos Jobim

WithHubert Laws

WithDuke Pearson

WithFlora Purim

  • Butterfly Dreams(Milestone, 1973)
  • Stories to Tell(Milestone, 1974)
  • 500 Miles High(Milestone, 1976)
  • Open Your Eyes You Can Fly(Milestone, 1976)
  • Encounter(Milestone, 1977)
  • Nothing Will Be As It Was...Tomorrow(Warner Bros., 1977)
  • That's What She Said(Milestone, 1978)
  • Everyday Everynight(Warner Bros., 1978)
  • Carry On(Warner Bros., 1979)
  • The Midnight Sun(Venture, 1988)
  • Speed of Light(B&W Music, 1995)
  • Welcome Back '95(B&W Music, 1995)
  • Perpetual Emotion(Narada, 2001)
  • If You Will(Strut, 2022)

WithWayne Shorter

WithPaul Simon

WithStanley Turrentine

WithGrover Washington Jr.

With others

Filmography

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  • 2006:Airto & Flora Purim: The Latin Jazz All-Stars[9]

See also

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Sources

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  • Mei, Giancarlo (2017).Spiriti Liberi. L'Avventura Brasiliana Di Flora Purim & Airto Moreira (official biography)(in Italian).Rome,Italy:Arcana Jazz.ISBN978-8862319546.

References

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  1. ^abcdefgColin Larkin,ed. (1992).The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music(First ed.).Guinness Publishing.p. 1749.ISBN0-85112-939-0.
  2. ^abcdeYanow, Scott."Airto Moreira".AllMusic.RetrievedOctober 22,2011.
  3. ^Feather, Leonard (1987).The encyclopedia of jazz in the seventies.New York: Da Capo Press. p. 49.ISBN978-0-306-80290-4.
  4. ^"M.E.L.T. 2000 artist's bio".Melt2000.com. Archived fromthe originalon July 20, 2011.RetrievedOctober 22,2011.
  5. ^"Europe Jazz Network Bio".Ejn.it. September 30, 2003. Archived fromthe originalon September 27, 2011.RetrievedOctober 22,2011.
  6. ^Seachrist, Denise A. (2003).The Musical World of Halim El-Dabh.Kent, Ohio, United States: Kent State University Press 296 ppISBN0-87338-752-X
  7. ^Lebrecht, Norman (August 6, 2022)."A Brazilian Music Legend Needs Our Help".Slippedisc.RetrievedAugust 4,2024.
  8. ^"Archives: Down Beat Critics Poll".Down Beat.Archived fromthe originalon January 22, 2008.RetrievedOctober 22,2011.(see individual years linked from that page)
  9. ^"Airto & Flora Purim: The Latin Jazz All-Stars".View.com. Archived fromthe originalon February 23, 2012.RetrievedOctober 22,2011.
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