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Angenor de Oliveira, known as Cartola (
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
for
top hat A top hat (also called a high hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditionally made of black silk or ...
), (; October 11, 1908 – November 30, 1980) was a Brazilian singer, composer and poet considered to be a major figure in the development of
samba Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, It is a name or ...
. Cartola composed, alone or with partners, more than 500 songs.


Biography

Angenor de Oliveira was born in 1908 in the Catete neighborhood, in the city of
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
. He was the oldest of eight children of the couple Sebastião Joaquim de Oliveira and Aída Gomes de Oliveira. Although he was given the name Agenor, he was registered as Angenor - a fact that he would only discover many years later, when he was preparing the papers for his marriage to Dona Zica in the 1960s. In order not to have to arrange for a name change at the notary, from then on he officially signed his name as Angenor de Oliveira. His maternal family was from
Campos dos Goytacazes Campos dos Goytacazes () is a city located in the northern region of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, with a population of 483,540 inhabitants. It is the largest city in Rio de Janeiro (state) outside of the Greater Rio de Janeiro metropolitan ar ...
, and his ancestors were slaves of the first Baron of Carapebus. His maternal grandfather, Luís Cipriano Gomes, a famous cook, worked in
Macaé Macaé () is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, 180 km northeast of the state capital. It is the birthplace of the 13th president of Brazil, Washington Luís. Geography Location Macaé is generally consider ...
, until he was recruited and sent to Rio de Janeiro to serve the President
Nilo Peçanha Nilo Procópio Peçanha (; 2 October 1867 – 31 March 1924) was a Brazilian politician who served as the seventh president of Brazil. He was governor of Rio de Janeiro (1903–1906), then elected the fifth vice president of Brazil in 1906. H ...
at the
Catete Palace The Catete Palace (, ) is an urban mansion in the Flamengo neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The property stretches from ''Rua do Catete'' (Catete Street) to ''Praia do Flamengo'' ( Flamengo Beach). Construction began in 1858 and ended in ...
. When he was eight years old, his family moved to
Laranjeiras Laranjeiras (, ''orange trees'') is an upper-middle-class neighborhood located in the South Zone of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Primarily residential, It is one of the city's oldest neighborhoods, having been founded in the 17th century, with the ...
, where he came into contact with the carnival ranches "União da Aliança" and "Arrepiados" - in the latter he played the
cavaquinho The cavaquinho (pronounced in Portuguese) is a small Portuguese string instrument in the European guitar family, with four wires or gut strings. A cavaquinho player is called a ''cavaquista''. Tuning A common tuning in Portugal is C G& ...
, a musical instrument given to him by his father when he was only 8 or 9 years old, which he also did in the
Epiphany Epiphany may refer to: Psychology * Epiphany (feeling), an experience of sudden and striking insight Religion * Epiphany (holiday), a Christian holiday celebrating the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ ** Epiphany seaso ...
parades. He was so enthusiastic about the "Arrepiados" that later, when he participated in the foundation of the samba school
Estação Primeira de Mangueira Grêmio Recreativo Escola de Samba Estação Primeira de Mangueira, or simply Mangueira, is a samba school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The school was founded on April 28, 1928, by , Cartola, Zé Espinguela, among others. It is located in the Ma ...
, he suggested that the colors of this ranch - green and pink - be the same as those of the nascent organization, which would become one of the most revered symbols in the world of samba. On the other hand, Carlos Cachaça, another founder of Mangueira, said that there had been an old ranch on Mangueira hill called Caçadores da Floresta, which colors were exactly green and pink. In 1919, driven by financial difficulties, the Oliveiras moved to
Mangueira Mangueira (''Mango Tree'') is a shantytown neighborhood (favela) in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, centered on the Mangueira hill or ''morro''. It is most famous for its samba school, the Estação Primeira de Mangueira (First Mangueira rainS ...
, then a small, growing favela with less than fifty shacks. Soon, another resident of Mangueira, Carlos Cachaça, six years older than Cartola, would become, besides a lifelong friend, his most constant partner in dozens of sambas. When he was 15, he abandoned his studies in the fourth grade to work, while at the same time leaning toward the bohemian life. As a teenager, he worked as a printer apprentice, but soon became a bricklayer. While working in construction sites he earned the nickname with which he would become recognized as one of the great names in Brazilian popular music. To keep the cement from falling on his hair, he decided to wear a bowler hat, which his colleagues said looked more like a little hat, and thus he began to be called "Cartola". He was 17 when his mother died. Soon after, the growing conflicts with his father, an enemy of his bohemian life, led him to be expelled from home. He led a life of vagrancy for some time, drinking and dating, frequenting prostitution houses and contracting venereal diseases, roaming the nights and sleeping in suburban trains. These habits led him to become physically weak, sick and malnourished in the bed of a small shack. A neighbor from his shack, named Deolinda, who was seven years older, married, and had a two-year-old daughter, took care of him and the two ended up getting involved. He was only 18 at the time they decided to live together and Deolinda left her husband, keeping their daughter, whom the composer would raise as his own. Cartola became popular in the 1930s, recording many sambas, but prestige didn't translate into financial reward; to support his growing family, he worked as a bricklayer, fishmonger and cheese-seller, and his wife occasionally worked as a cook. By the late 1940s, things had become worse. At 38, Cartola had a long illness, and shortly after he recovered, his wife died from heart problems. One of his greatest hits, sung by many artists, "Sim (Yes)", was written during his grief. Cartola stopped playing and composing; he moved with his new wife, Donária, into a slum in
Nilópolis Nilópolis (, , ) is a municipality in Brazil, located in the Rio de Janeiro state's southwestern region, bordering São João de Meriti, Mesquita and Rio de Janeiro. It is the smallest municipality in Rio de Janeiro state, with a total area o ...
, where he worked as a handyman. In 1952, he met and fell in love with
Dona Zica Euzébia Silva de Oliveira, better known as Dona Zica, (1913 –2003), was a Brazilian samba Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro ...
, with whom he spent the rest of his life, and who persuaded him to return to music. In 1956, while working as a car-washer in Ipanema, he was rediscovered by the journalist
Sérgio Porto Sérgio Marcus Rangel Porto (January 11, 1923 – September 30, 1968) was a Brazilian columnist, writer, broadcaster and composer. He was better known by his pen name Stanislaw Ponte Preta. Porto was born in Rio de Janeiro, and began his journali ...
, who brought him back to the music world. Porto publicized Cartola's return, inviting him to radio shows and promoting his work with new partners. However, samba's popularity had waned, so he again worked in several other jobs. In 1963, eager to bring the favelas' samba to a broader audience, Cartola — with Zica and Eugênio Agostine — opened the famous Zicartola bar and restaurant in downtown Rio de Janeiro; it became the most important samba establishment of that time, providing a link between the traditional sambistas and the incipient Bossa Nova movement. Cartola invited people such as Nélson Cavaquinho,
Pixinguinha Alfredo da Rocha Viana Filho (May 4, 1897 – February 17, 1973), better known as Pixinguinha, () was a Brazilian composer, arranger, flutist, and saxophonist born in Rio de Janeiro. He worked with Brazilian popular music and developed the '' c ...
,
Nara Leão Nara Lofego Leão (; January 19, 1942 – June 7, 1989) was a Brazilian bossa nova and MPB (popular Brazilian music) singer and occasional actress. Leão was married twice, to Ruy Guerra and subsequently Carlos Diegues, both film directors. ...
,
Paulinho da Viola Paulinho is a Portuguese nickname for people named ''Paulo'' ( Paulo - inho, little Paulo). People known as Paulinho include: Music * Paulinho da Costa (born 1948), Brazilian percussionist * Paulinho da Viola (born 1942), Brazilian sambista * Paul ...
, and Zé Keti to sing the "low-value" music, as sambistas ironically referred to their work. Cartola's commercial success started in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when he became quite popular and a lot of samba classics were released, such as "O Sol Nascerá", "O Mundo é Um Moinho", "As Rosas não Falam", "Corra e Olhe o Céu", and "Quem me vê Sorrindo", with support from singers
Elizeth Cardoso Elizeth Moreira Cardoso (sometimes listed as Elisete Cardoso) (July 16, 1920 – May 7, 1990), was a singer and actress of great renown in Brazil. Biography Cardoso was born in Rio de Janeiro; her father was a serenader who played guitar, a ...
,
Clara Nunes Clara Nunes (, August 12, 1942 – April 2, 1983) was a Brazilian samba and MPB singer, considered one of the greatest of her generation. She was the first female singer in Brazil to sell over 100,000 copies of a record,
,
Paulinho da Viola Paulinho is a Portuguese nickname for people named ''Paulo'' ( Paulo - inho, little Paulo). People known as Paulinho include: Music * Paulinho da Costa (born 1948), Brazilian percussionist * Paulinho da Viola (born 1942), Brazilian sambista * Paul ...
and especially
Beth Carvalho Elizabeth "Beth" Santos Leal de Carvalho (May 5, 1946 – April 30, 2019) was a Brazilian samba singer, guitarist, cavaquinist and composer. Biography Carvalho was raised in a middle-class family in Rio de Janeiro's South Zone. Her fathe ...
. He released his first record at age 66, in 1974; although he had financial difficulties, he composed and sang until his death, at age 72. The 2007 documentary film "Música Para os Olhos", directed by Lírio Ferreira and Hilton Lacerda, is a profile of the life of Cartola. A biography of Cartola, ''Divino Cartola – Uma Vida em Verde e Rosa'', by Denilson Monteiro, was published in January 2013. Cartola and Zica appeared briefly in the 1959 film
Black Orpheus ''Black Orpheus'' ( Portuguese: ''Orfeu Negro'' ) is a 1959 romantic tragedy film directed by French filmmaker Marcel Camus and starring Marpessa Dawn and Breno Mello. It is based on the play '' Orfeu da Conceição'' by Vinicius de Moraes, ...
as a couple at the city hall when the main characters register to get married.


Work

Cartola composed melodies, harmonies, and lyrics. His lyrics are notable for their very correct use of
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
, especially considering his lack of formal higher education. His poetry binds in an effective manner elegance and emotion, while keeping a relatively low level of complexity, which made his work accessible to larger layers of the population. With regard to
tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...
, Cartola's music had a strong tendency towards calmer, slower sambas in contrast to the faster, brisker ''sambas de terreiro'' seen in samba schools and to other composers' music. Some say his sambas had a tendency towards
samba-canção Samba-canção (; literally 'song samba') is, in its most common acceptance or interpretation, the denomination for a kind of Brazilian popular songs with a slow-paced samba rhythm. History It appeared after the World War II, at the end of the ...
. The
cavaquinho The cavaquinho (pronounced in Portuguese) is a small Portuguese string instrument in the European guitar family, with four wires or gut strings. A cavaquinho player is called a ''cavaquista''. Tuning A common tuning in Portugal is C G& ...
s in his records had a certain
choro ''Choro'' (, "cry" or "lament"), also popularly called ''chorinho'' ("little cry" or "little lament"), is an instrumental Brazilian popular music genre which originated in 19th century Rio de Janeiro. Despite its name, the music often has a fa ...
mood, which was less percussive than usual, with the exception of his last records where Alceu Maia was the cavaquinist. As a musician, Cartola made use of many modulations, some of which were not common in samba at that time. Some of his modulating tunes are "Quem me vê Sorrindo" and "Sim" (), "Aconteceu" and "Amor Proibido" (), "Inverno do Meu Tempo" () and "A Cor da Esperança" (). Furthermore, he made use of non-trivial figures such as
tritone substitution The tritone substitution is a common chord substitution found in both jazz and classical music. Where jazz is concerned, it was the precursor to more complex substitution patterns like Coltrane changes. Tritone substitutions are sometimes used ...
s and extensive tritone resolutions to the , as can be observed, e.g., in "Alvorada", "Inverno do Meu Tempo" and "Disfarça e Chora".


Discography


Albums

* 1974 – ''Cartola'' * 1976 – ''Cartola II'' * 1977 – '' Verde Que Te Quero Rosa'' * 1978 – '' Cartola 70 Anos'' * 1982 – '' Cartola - Ao Vivo'' * 1982 – '' Cartola - Documento Inédito''


Contributor

* 1942 – ''"Native Brazilian Music"'' –
Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British-born American conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra. H ...
* 1967 – ''"A Enluarada Elizeth"'' –
Elizeth Cardoso Elizeth Moreira Cardoso (sometimes listed as Elisete Cardoso) (July 16, 1920 – May 7, 1990), was a singer and actress of great renown in Brazil. Biography Cardoso was born in Rio de Janeiro; her father was a serenader who played guitar, a ...
(''"Seleção de Sambas da Mangueira"'') * 1968 – ''"Fala Mangueira!"'' – Odete Amaral, Cartola,
Clementina de Jesus Clementina de Jesus (February 7, 1901 – July 19, 1987) was a Brazilian samba singer. Biography Born in Carambita, a district on the outskirts of Valença,Nelson Cavaquinho Nelson Antônio da Silva (October 29, 1911 – February 18, 1986), better known by the stage name Nelson Cavaquinho, was one of the most important singer/composers of samba. He is usually seen as a representative of the tragic aspects of samba t ...
, Carlos Cachaça * 1970 – ''"História da música popular brasileira"'' – with Nelson Cavaquinho * 1974 – ''"História das escolas de samba: Mangueira"'' -Various * 1975 – ''"MPB – 100 ao vivo"'' -Various * 1980 – ''"E Vamos À Luta"'' –
Alcione Alcione may refer to: * ''Alcione'', a 1638 literary work by Pierre du Ryer * ''Alcione'', a 1787 musical drama by João de Sousa Carvalho * ''CANT Z.1007 Alcione'', World War II Italian bomber aircraft * ''Alcione'' (opera), a 1706 opera by Ma ...
(''"Eu Sei"'') * 1993 – ''"No Tom da Mangueira"'' –
Tom Jobim Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name. Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tom'' (1973 film), or ''The Bad Bunch'', a blaxploitation film * ''Tom'' (2002 film) ...
e Velha Guarda da Mangueira (including his recording of ''"Não quero mais amar a ninguém"'')


Tributes

* 1984 – ''"Cartola, Entre Amigos"'' – Various * 1987 – ''"Cartola – 80 Anos"'' – by
Leny Andrade Leny de Andrade Lima (25 January 1943 – 24 July 2023), known professionally as Leny Andrade, was a Brazilian singer and musician. Both Andrade's first and last names are sometimes misspelled in English as "Lenn", "Leni", and "Adrade". She had ...
* 1988 – ''"Cartola – Bate outra vez..."'' – Various * 1995 – ''"Claudia Telles Interpreta Nelson Cavaquinho e Cartola"'' – by Claudia Telles * 1998 – ''"Sambas de Cartola"'' – Grupo Arranco * 1998 – ''"Só Cartola"'' – by Élton Medeiros and
Nelson Sargento Nelson Sargento (born Nelson Mattos) OMC (25 July 1924 – 27 May 2021) was a Brazilian composer, singer, Brazilian popular music researcher, visual artist, actor, and writer. Having lived in Mangueira since the age of 12, Nelson became known ...
* 1998 – ''"Cartola – 90 Anos"'' – by Élton Medeiros and Márcia * 2002 – ''"Cartola"'' – by
Ney Matogrosso Ney de Souza Pereira (born 1 August 1941), known professionally as Ney Matogrosso (), is a Brazilian singer who is distinguished for his uncommon countertenor voice. He was ranked by ''Rolling Stone'' as the third greatest Latin American singer ...
* 2003 – ''"Beth Carvalho canta Cartola"'' – by
Beth Carvalho Elizabeth "Beth" Santos Leal de Carvalho (May 5, 1946 – April 30, 2019) was a Brazilian samba singer, guitarist, cavaquinist and composer. Biography Carvalho was raised in a middle-class family in Rio de Janeiro's South Zone. Her fathe ...
* 2008 – ''"Viva Cartola! 100 Anos"'' – Various


See also

*
Afro-Brazilian Afro-Brazilians (; ), also known as Black Brazilians (), are Brazilians of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Most multiracial Brazilians also have a range of degree of African ancestry. Brazilians whose African features are mo ...
*
Samba Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, It is a name or ...


References


External links


Netsaber
{{Authority control 1908 births 1980 deaths Samba musicians 20th-century Brazilian male singers 20th-century Brazilian singers 20th-century Brazilian composers Latin music songwriters