Mauro Diniz (born 1952) is a Brazilian professional cavaquinist. He also has a career as a songwriter and singer.

Biography

Born in 1952 in one of the most traditional neighborhoods of

carioca Carioca ( or ) is a demonym used to refer to residents of the City of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil and their culture. Like other Brazilians, ''Cariocas'' speak Portuguese. The ''carioca'' accent and sociolect (also simply called "''carioca''", ...

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 ...

Oswaldo Cruz Oswaldo Gonçalves Cruz (; August 5, 1872 – February 11, 1917), was a Brazilian physician, pioneer bacteriologist, epidemiology, epidemiologist and public health officer and the founder of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Oswaldo Cruz Institute. ...

, at the age of 4 he stayed between his father's legs, stunning everyone with his ability on the first

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& ...

chords. At the age of 8, besides having written a parody for one of his father's sambas, for the

samba-enredo Samba-enredo, also known as samba de enredo, is a sub-genre of modern samba made specifically by a samba school for the festivities of Brazilian Carnival. It is a samba style that consists of a lyric and a melody created from a summary of the them ...

of the Bloco da Alegria

carnival block Carnival blocks, carnaval blocos or blocos de rua are street bands that mobilize crowds on the streets and are the main popular expression of Brazilian Carnival. These parades fall under the term "street carnival", and happen during a period of ab ...

, he was presented with a guitar by his mother Thereza, ''pastora'' of the

samba school A samba school () is a dancing, marching, and drumming (Samba Enredo) club. They practice and often perform in a huge square-Compound (enclosure), compounds ("quadras de samba") and are devoted to practicing and exhibiting samba, an Afro-Brazili ...

Portela. Therefore, Mauro Diniz made his first steps towards music guided by the Old Guard of Portela. He had his dreams rocked by antologic sambas from his greatest idol, his father, known by some as the "Extraordinary Monarco from Portela". Mauro Diniz was an enviable

autodidact Autodidacticism (also autodidactism) or self-education (also self-learning, self-study and self-teaching) is the practice of education without the guidance of schoolmasters (i.e., teachers, professors, institutions). Overview Autodi ...

, for a long while. At the age of 24 he bought his first

, never letting go of the instrument until exchanging it for one which had belonged to "Master

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 ...

", which accompanies him to this day. In 1982, he started attending Physical Education College, not finishing the course due to the frequent trips he took integrating singer

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 ...

's band. Mauro Diniz studied music with people such as the late Copinha, maestro Joaquim Nagle and, indicated by producer Rildo Hora, went on to study classical piano, harmony and perception. Some time later he enrolled in CIGAM, one of the best music courses in

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 ...

, where he concluded the course of Harmony, Improvisation and Arrangement. Mauro was also a student of Ian Guest, who he considers one of his greatest masters.

Achievements

Today, Mauro Diniz is among the most praised cavaquinists in Brazil, and is one of the most studious. Mauro developed, as does every cavaquinho player, his own style, which was one of the most influential and which is already part of the history of

. His strumming patterns are among the most unpredictable and surprising in the samba world, and a lot of the patterns which are part of the standard repertoire of

players in the current samba scene were introduced by him. Mauro has recorded with all major samba names; his recordings with

Almir Guineto Almir de Souza Serra (12 July 1946 – 5 May 2017), better known by his stage name Almir Guineto, was a Brazilian sambista, singer and songwriter and instrumentalist, working in the genres of samba and pagode. Biography Guineto was director of t ...

are specially known for cavaquinho rhythm virtuosity; not the least, his recordings with

Zeca Pagodinho Jessé Gomes da Silva Filho, known professionally as Zeca Pagodinho (, born February 4, 1959), is a Brazilian singer-songwriter working in the genres of samba and pagode. Biography Born in the neighborhood of Irajá, Rio de Janeiro, Zeca Pagodin ...

and

are registered as the foundation for new generations of ''sambistas''. Some others with whom Mauro has recorded (the list would encompass almost every known sambista) include: Moacyr Luz, Monarco,

Jorge Aragão Jorge Aragão (, (b. March 1, 1949 in Rio de Janeiro), birth name Jorge Aragão da Cruz) is a Brazilian musician, singer/songwriter, working in the genres of samba and pagode. He is a multi-instrumentalist, and plays the guitar, ''surdo'', '' ca ...

Wilson Moreira Wilson Moreira (12 December 1936 – 6 September 2018) was a Brazilian ''samba, sambista''. Biography Moreira was born in the neighborhood of Realengo, in Rio de Janeiro. As a teenager he was associated with the samba school Mocidade Independent ...

, Luiz Carlos da Vila and the Old Guard of Portela.

References

Mauro Diniz at the Agenda do Samba & Choro

Article with interviews with Portela sambistas
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diniz, Mauro 1952 births Living people 20th-century Brazilian male singers 20th-century Brazilian singers