Francisco Buarque de Hollanda (born 19 June 1944), popularly known simply as Chico Buarque, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, composer, playwright, writer, and poet. He is best known for his music, which often includes social, economic, and cultural reflections on Brazil. The firstborn son of

Sérgio Buarque de Hollanda Sergius is a male given name of Ancient Roman origin after the name of the Latin ''gens'' Sergia or Sergii of regal and republican ages. It is a common Christian name, in honor of Saint Sergius, or in Russia, of Saint Sergius of Radonezh, and ...

, Buarque lived at several locations throughout his childhood, though mostly in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaW ...

, and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. He wrote and studied literature as a child and found music through the

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovat ...

compositions of Tom Jobim and João Gilberto. He performed as a singer and guitarist in the 1960s as well as writing a play that was deemed dangerous by the Brazilian military dictatorship of the time. Buarque, along with several Tropicalist and MPB musicians, was threatened by the

Brazilian military government The military dictatorship in Brazil ( pt, ditadura militar) was established on 1 April 1964, after a coup d'état by the Brazilian Armed Forces, with support from the United States government, against President João Goulart. The Brazilian dict ...

and eventually left Brazil for Italy in 1969. However, he came back to Brazil in 1970, and continued to record, perform, and write, though much of his material was suppressed by government censors. He released several more albums in the 1980s and published three novels in the 1990s and 2000s. In 2019, Buarque was awarded the Camões Prize, the most important prize for literature in the Portuguese language.

Early life and career

Buarque was born in

on 19 June 1944. He came from an intellectually privileged family background—his father Sérgio Buarque de Holanda was a well-known historian, sociologist and journalist and his mother Maria Amélia Cesário Alvim was a painter and pianist. He is also brother of the singer Miúcha and politician

Ana de Hollanda Anna Maria Alvim Buarque de Hollanda (born 12 August 1948) was the Minister of Culture of Brazil from 2011 to 2012. She worked as a singer before, and is the sister of singer-songwriter Chico Buarque Francisco Buarque de Hollanda (born 19 June ...

. As a child, he was impressed by the musical style of

, specifically the work of Tom Jobim and João Gilberto. He was also interested in writing, composing his first short story at 18 years old and studying European literature, also at a young age. One of his most consuming interests, however, was playing football, beginning at age four, and he still played regularly in his 60s. During his childhood, he lived in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Rome. Before becoming a musician, Buarque decided at one point to study architecture at the

University of São Paulo The University of São Paulo ( pt, Universidade de São Paulo, USP) is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian public university and the country's most prestigious educational institution, the bes ...

, but this choice did not lead to a career in that field; Buarque often skipped classes. He made his public debut as musician and composer in 1964, rapidly building his reputation at music festivals and television variety shows when

came to light and Nara Leão recorded three of his songs. His eponymous debut album exemplified his future work, with catchy

samba Samba (), also known as samba urbano carioca (''urban Carioca samba'') or simply samba carioca (''Carioca samba''), is a Brazilian music genre that originated in the Afro-Brazilian communities of Rio de Janeiro in the early 20th century. Havi ...

s characterized by inventive

wordplay Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phon ...

and an undercurrent of nostalgic tragedy. Buarque had his first hit with " A Banda" in 1966, written about a marching band, and soon released several more singles. Although playing bossa nova, during his career, samba and Música popular brasileira would also be widely explored. Despite that, Buarque was criticized by two of the leading musicians at the time, Caetano Veloso and

Gilberto Gil Gilberto Passos Gil Moreira (; born 26 June 1942), is a Brazilian singer-songwriter and politician, known for both his musical innovation and political activism. From 2003 to 2008, he served as Brazil's Minister of Culture in the administration ...

as they believed his musical style was overly conservative. However, an existentially themed play that Buarque wrote and composed in 1968, ''Roda Viva'' ("Live Circle"), was frowned upon by the military government and Buarque served a short prison sentence because of it. He left Brazil for Italy for 18 months in 1970, returning to write his first novel in 1972, which was not targeted by censors.

At this time his thinly veiled protest single "Apesar de Você" ("In spite of You" – in reference to the military dictatorship) was also produced. "Apesar de Você" was overlooked by the military censors, becoming an important anthem in the democratic movement. After selling over 100,000 copies, the single was eventually censored and removed from the market. At one point in 1974, the censors banned any song authored by Chico Buarque. Then, he created a pseudonym, naming himself "Julinho da Adelaide", complete with life history and interviews to newspapers. "Julinho da Adelaide" authored songs such as "Jorge Maravilha" and "Acorda amor" before he was outed in a ''

Jornal do Brasil ''Jornal do Brasil'', widely known as ''JB'', is a daily newspaper published by Editora JB in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The paper was founded in 1891 and is the third oldest extant Brazilian paper, after the '' Diário de Pernambuco'' and ''O Est ...

'' news story. Buarque also wrote a play named ''Calabar'', about the Dutch invasion of Brazil in the seventeenth century, drawing parallels with the military regime. Despite the censorship, songs such as "Samba de Orly" (1970), "Acorda amor" (1974, as "Julinho da Adelaide") manifested Buarque's continuing opposition to the military regime. During the 1970s and 1980s, he collaborated with filmmakers, playwrights, and musicians in further protest works against the dictatorship. Buarque approached the 1983 Concert for Peace in Nicaragua as a valid forum to vocalize his strong political views. Throughout the decade, he crafted many of his songs as vehicles to describe the re-democratization of Brazil. The Concert for Peace in Nicaragua was one in a concert series known as the "Central American Peace Concerts." These concerts featured various

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-e ...

artists. The political turmoil that plagued this era were expressed in many of Buarque's songs. He later wrote ''Budapeste'', a novel that achieved critical national acclaim and won the Prêmio Jabuti, a Brazilian literary award comparable to the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

. His 2017 album '' Caravanas'' was elected the 3rd best Brazilian album of that year by the Brazilian edition of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

''.

"Cálice"

Following the

Brazilian military coup of 1964 Brazilian commonly refers to: * Something of, from or relating to Brazil * Brazilian Portuguese, the dialect of the Portuguese language used mostly in Brazil * Brazilians, the people (citizens) of Brazil, or of Brazilian descent Brazilian may al ...

, Buarque avoided censorship by using cryptic analogies and wordplay. For example, in the song "Cálice" ("Chalice"), a duet written in 1973 with

and released with Milton Nascimento in 1978, he takes advantage of the homophony between the Portuguese imperative ''cale-se'' ("shut up") and ''cálice'' ("chalice") to protest government censorship, disguised as the Gospel narrative of Jesus' Gethsemane prayer to God to relieve him of the cup of suffering. The line "''Quero cheirar fumaça de óleo diesel''" ("I want to sniff diesel fumes") is a reference to the death of political prisoner Stuart Angel, who reportedly had his mouth glued to a jeep's exhaust pipe during a torture session. Buarque was close to Stuart's mother,

Zuzu Angel SNI document on Stuart, 1971 Zuleika Angel Jones (June 5, 1921 – April 14, 1976), better known as Zuzu Angel, was a Brazilian-American fashion designer, who became famous for opposing the Brazilian military dictatorship after the forced d ...

Awards and recognitions

*2010

São Paulo Prize for Literature The São Paulo Prize for Literature ( pt, Prêmio São Paulo de Literatura) is a Brazilian literary prize for novels written in the Portuguese language and published in Brazil. It was established in 2008 by the Secretary of Culture for the State ...

— Shortlisted in the Best Book of the Year category for '' Leite Derramado'' *2013 Casa de las Américas prize for Spilt Milk (Leche derramada, Leite derramado), winner of narrative fiction. *2019 Camões Prize.

Discography

*1966: '' Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 1) *1966: ''Morte e Vida Severina'' *1967: ''Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 2) *1968: ''Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 3) *1969: ''Umas e outras – compacto'' *1969: ''Chico Buarque na Itália'' *1970: ''Apesar de você'' *1970: ''Per un pugno di samba'' *1970: ''Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 4) *1971: '' Construção'' *1972: ''Quando o carnaval chegar'' *1972: '' Caetano e Chico - juntos e ao vivo'' *1973: ''Chico canta'', mildly edited by the censors of the

both in lyrics and title, it was originally called "Chico Canta Calabar". *1974: ''Sinal fechado'' *1975: ''Chico Buarque & Maria Bethânia ao vivo'' *1976: ''Meus caros amigos'' *1977: ''Cio da Terra compacto'' *1977: ''Os saltimbancos'' *1977: ''Gota d'água'' *1978: '' Chico Buarque'' *1979: ''

Ópera do Malandro ''Ópera do Malandro'' (), from 1979, is a Brazilian musical play, written by Chico Buarque and directed by Luiz Antônio Martinez Corrêa. The play is inspired by the classic ''Beggar's Opera'' of John Gay and the '' Threepenny Opera'', of Bertol ...

'' *1980: ''Vida'' *1980: ''Show 1º de Maio compacto'' *1981: ''Almanaque'' *1981: ''Saltimbancos trapalhões'' *1982: ''Chico Buarque en espanhol'' *1983: ''Para viver um grande amor'' *1983: ''O grande circo místico'' *1984: ''Chico Buarque (Vermelho)'' *1985: ''O Corsário do rei'' *1985: ''

'' *1985: ''Malandro'' *1986: ''Melhores momentos de Chico & Caetano'' *1987: ''Francisco'' *1988: ''Dança da meia-lua'' *1989: ''Chico Buarque'' *1990: ''Chico Buarque ao vivo Paris le Zenith'' *1993: ''Para Todos'' *1995: ''Uma palavra'' *1997: ''Terra'' *1998: ''As cidades'' *1998: ''Chico Buarque da Mangueira'' *1999: ''Chico ao vivo'' *2001: ''Chico e as cidades'' (DVD) *2001: ''Cambaio'' *2002: ''Chico Buarque – Duetos'' *2003: ''Chico ou o país da delicadeza perdida'' (DVD) *2005: ''Meu Caro Amigo'' (DVD) *2005: ''A Flor da Pele'' (DVD) *2005: ''Vai passar'' (DVD) *2005: ''Anos Dourados'' (DVD) *2005: ''Estação Derradeira'' (DVD) *2005: ''Bastidores'' (DVD) *2006: ''O Futebol'' (DVD) *2006: ''Romance'' (DVD) *2006: ''Uma Palavra'' (DVD) *2006: ''Carioca'' (CD + DVD with the documentary ''Desconstrução'') *2007: ''Carioca Ao Vivo'' *2011: '' Chico Buarque'' *2012: ''Na Carreira'' (DVD) *2017: '' Caravanas'' *2018: "Caravanas - Ao vivo"

Other works

Books

* 1966: '' A Banda'' (Songbook) * 1974: ''Fazenda Modelo'' * 1979: ''Chapeuzinho Amarelo'' * 1981: ''A Bordo do Rui Barbosa'' * 1991: ''Estorvo'' * 1995: ''Benjamin'' * 2003: '' Budapeste'' * 2009: '' Leite Derramado'' * 2014: ''O Irmão Alemão'' * 2019: ''Essa Gente'' * 2021: ''Anos de Chumbo''

Plays

* 1967/8: ''Roda Viva'' * 1973: ''Calabar'' (coauthored with Ruy Guerra) * 1975: ''Gota d'água'' * 1978: ''

'' (based on John Gay's '' Beggar's Opera'' and Bertolt Brecht's ''

Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a "play with music" by Bertolt Brecht, adapted from a translation by Elisabeth Hauptmann of John Gay's 18th-century English ballad opera, ''The Beggar's Opera'', and four ballads by François Villon, with music b ...

'') * 1983: ''O Grande Circo Místico''

Film

* 1972: ''Quando o carnaval chegar'' (coauthor) * 1983: ''Para viver um grande amor'' (coauthor) * 1985: ''

'' * 2009: ''Budapeste'' (based on his book)

In popular culture

The cover art of the Buarque's 1966 album '' Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' became a viral

internet meme An Internet meme, commonly known simply as a meme ( ), is an idea, behavior, style, or image that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms. What is considered a meme may vary across different communities on the Internet ...

with "happy" Chico and "sad" Chico.

Notes

References

External links

* * * * * * *
annotated Chico Buarque discography
on Slipcue.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Buarque, Chico 1944 births Living people Latin Grammy Award winners Bossa nova singers Bossa nova guitarists Samba musicians Música Popular Brasileira singers Brazilian male guitarists 21st-century Brazilian male singers 21st-century Brazilian singers Brazilian male poets Brazilian socialists Musicians from Rio de Janeiro (city) Wrasse Records artists 20th-century Brazilian novelists Brazilian male novelists Brazilian expatriates in Italy Spanish-language singers of Brazil Latin music composers Latin music songwriters 20th-century Brazilian musicians 21st-century Brazilian musicians 20th-century composers 21st-century composers 20th-century guitarists 21st-century guitarists 20th-century Brazilian male singers 20th-century Brazilian singers Male jazz musicians 21st-century Brazilian novelists 20th-century Brazilian male writers 21st-century Brazilian male writers 20th-century Brazilian poets 21st-century Brazilian poets Brazilian male singer-songwriters Camões Prize winners