Marcelo Fromer (December 3, 1961 – June 13, 2001) was the guitarist of Brazilian rock band

Titãs Titãs () are a Brazilian rock band from São Paulo. Though they basically play pop/alternative rock, their music has touched a number of other styles throughout their 30-year career, such as new wave, punk rock, grunge, MPB and electronic mu ...

. One of the founding members and also the band's manager, he died in 2001, after being hit by a

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruisin ...

while jogging.

Early life and youth

Marcelo Fromer grew up in São Paulo in a house frequently visited by friends like Branco Mello, whom he met in 1974, in the Hugo Sarmento school. When he was 15 years old, he discovered

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...

, Chico Buarque and the Tropicália, and started having guitar lessons with Luiz Tati, of the group Rumo. While studying at Equipe school, he met

Tony Bellotto Antonio Carlos Liberalli Bellotto (; born June 30, 1960) is a Brazilian musician and writer, best known as the lead guitarist of Brazilian rock band Titãs. He has also written and released several books. Childhood Bellotto spent his childhoo ...

and formed the Trio Mamão with him and Mello. As he hated singing, he was the only one dedicated exclusively to the acoustic guitar. Also at Equipe school, he, Mello and other classmates created the "Papagaio" magazine, featuring comics, poetry and texts about the internal decisions of the school. But he would never stop composing and playing. Soccer would also play an important role on his life. Trusty supporter of

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 Ga ...

, he managed to train for the young team of the club. Once he finished school, he entered Linguistics at USP together with Mello, but both quit it two years later.

Works with Titãs

In 1981, Titãs made their first performance (under the name Titãs do Iê-Iê) at the event “A Idade da Pedra Jovem”. Fromer became a little excited and decided to play the electric guitar like an acoustic one, without a

pick Pick may refer to: Places * Pick City, North Dakota, a town in the United States * Pick Lake (Cochrane District, Ontario), a lake in Canada * Pick Lake (Thunder Bay District), a lake in Canada * Pick Mere, a lake in Pickmere, England People wit ...

. At the end of the night, his fingers were seriously injured and there was blood all over his white Giannini. In 1984, with the releasing of Titãs first album, Fromer showed that he could work as a businessman, and he was chosen to be the manager the band. Another passion of Fromer, which appeared mostly during the first tours of the band, was the

gastronomy Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well versed in gastr ...

. He would always choose the restaurants were the group should eat throughout the country. This passion would be the subject of the song "As Aventuras do Guitarrista Gourmet Atrás da Refeição Ideal", featured at '' Como Estão Vocês?''. His "business-gourmet" lives would join each other at Rock Dog (word play with Hot Dog), a snack bar specialized in hot dogs that he opened in 1989, in São Paulo, in a partnership of his brothers Thiago and Cuca, and the band members Mello and Bellotto. In 2000, he became a partner of the Campana, a Pizza shop also located in São Paulo. A year before, he released the book ''Você Tem Fome de Quê?'', in which he listed cookery recipes from many restaurants of Brazil, along with tablatures and curiosities of Titãs main hits.

Other works

Fromer left unfinished a biography of former football player and TV commentator Walter Casagrande, his personal friend. The project was resumed in 2008 by Gilvan Ribeiro and released in 2013.

Death

On June 11, 2001, a day before the start of the recording of the band's 13th album,''

A Melhor Banda de Todos os Tempos da Última Semana ''A Melhor Banda de Todos os Tempos da Última Semana'' (''Last Week's Best Band Ever'') is the eleventh studio album released by Brazilian rock band Titãs. It is the first album composed entirely of new material since 1995's ''Domingo''; the fir ...

'', Fromer was crossing Europa Avenue in southern São Paulo when a red Honda CG125 motorcycle, driven by Erasmo Castro da Costa Jr., struck him. Erasmo called an ambulance, but fled the scene when the police arrived, as his driving license was no longer valid. Two days later, Fromer died in hospital. Presumably, his head struck Erasmo's helmet. In July 2002, Erasmo was found by the police. He stated he did not know the man he struck was Fromer until his death. He also alleged that Fromer was to blame for the accident, as there was a crosswalk 15 meters away; Fromer decided to cross the avenue between the cars, making it impossible for Erasmo to see Fromer. Fromer's family authorized the donation of his organs. His

heart The heart is a muscular organ found in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon diox ...

liver The liver is a major organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for digestion and growth. In humans, it ...

pancreas The pancreas is an organ of the digestive system and endocrine system of vertebrates. In humans, it is located in the abdomen behind the stomach and functions as a gland. The pancreas is a mixed or heterocrine gland, i.e. it has both an en ...

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, and his

cornea The cornea is the transparent front part of the eye that covers the iris, pupil, and anterior chamber. Along with the anterior chamber and lens, the cornea refracts light, accounting for approximately two-thirds of the eye's total optical ...

s were all donated. On September 7, 2001, a

skyway A skyway, skybridge, skywalk, or sky walkway is an elevated type of pedway connecting two or more buildings in an urban area, or connecting elevated points within mountainous recreational zones. Urban skyways very often take the form of encl ...

named after him was inaugurated over

Avenida Juscelino Kubitschek Avenue or Avenues may refer to: Roads * Avenue (landscape), traditionally a straight path or road with a line of trees, in the shifted sense a tree line itself, or some of boulevards (also without trees) * Avenue Road, Bangalore * Avenue Road, Lon ...

, in São Paulo.

Personal life

Fromer lived in São Paulo. By the end of the 1980s, he was in a relationship with actress Betty Gofman. His first marriage with Martha Locatelli Fromer brought along his first child, Susy. His second marriage to Ana Cristina Martinelli, also known as "Tina", resulted in the birth of children Alice and Max.

References

Fromer’s page at Titãs official web site

Folha’s news about Fromer’s death

External links

Titãs official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fromer, Marcelo 1961 births 2001 deaths Brazilian composers Brazilian guitarists Brazilian male guitarists Brazilian Jews Brazilian rock musicians Brazilian songwriters Pedestrian road incident deaths Musicians from São Paulo Road incident deaths in Brazil Titãs members Acoustic guitarists University of São Paulo alumni Rhythm guitarists 20th-century guitarists 20th-century male musicians