Worlds of Music 2: Blog

Luiz Bonfá

Luiz Bonfá

Luiz Bonfá was a Brazilian born virtuoso guitarist and composer known for his contributions to the Bossa Nova style of Jazz that became popular from the 1950s-1970s. 

Bonfá was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1922.  At 11 he received his first guitar, and soon after met, and began studying with, Uruguayan classical guitarist Isaías Sávio.  Bonfá first gained widespread exposure in Brazil in 1947 when he was featured on Rio's Rádio Nacional, then an important showcase for up-and-coming talent.  It was around this time that he encountered the second great influence on his playing, guitarist Anibal Augusto Sardinha or Garoto (the Kid), as he was known.  The many hours spent jamming with Garoto in his small apartment in Rio, often with many other influential Brazilian musicians of the day, had a huge impact on Bonfá’s music.

Sometime after 1957, around the time when he made his first trip to the US, Bonfá was approached by the French filmmaker Marcel Camus to write some music for his new film “Black Orpheus”.  Bonfá composed a piece for him which would become his most well-known composition. To this day, "Manhã de Carnaval" ("Morning of Carnival" or "Black Orpheus") remains a standard of the genre and a classic piece of Brazilian popular music, performed and recorded throughout the world.

In 1959, highly influential audio engineer, Emory Cook took a trip through South America searching for music for his record label, Cook Records.  Cook, along with his wife Martha, produced some of the highest quality records in the world from 1952 to 1966.  In 1990 the Cooks donated their record company, master tapes, patents, and papers to the Smithsonian Institution.  Amongst these tapes was a recording that Cook had made one fateful night on that trip to South America.  With a few microphones and his battery operated Nagra III taper recorder, Cook had managed to capture Bonfá at the height of his powers.  The subsequent release of these recordings, in their entirety, 46 years after they were first recorded, stand as a testament to Bonfá’s genius, both as a composer and a solo guitarist. 

Listen to Solo in Rio 1959 and explore more recordings from Smithsonian Folkways at the Presser Music Library.