Aracy de Almeida stands among the most celebrated voices of Brazilian radio’s Golden Age, celebrated above all for her command of sambas, carnival songs, and the songs of Noel Rosa in particular. Rosa himself once singled her out as the finest performer of his work, an accolade that critics have also extended to Marília Batista. Largely through her efforts, Rosa’s catalogue regained attention in the 1950s after a decade of neglect following the 1940s. She appeared in the 1955 film Carnaval em Lá Maior directed by Adhemar Gonzaga and maintained a steady presence on television throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Already as a youngster she sang in a Baptist church choir. In 1933 Custódio Mesquita, impressed by her voice, brought her to Rádio Educadora. Her debut recording came the next year with the carnival marchinha “Em Plena Folia” by Julieta de Oliveira. During 1935 she cut her first Noel Rosa composition, “Seu Riso de Criança,” followed by “Cansei de Pedir,” “Amor de Parceria,” and “Triste Cuíca” (the last with Hervê Cordovil), as well as Valfrido Silva’s “Tenho Uma Rival.” Her standing secured engagements at Rádio Cruzeiro do Sul, Mayrink Veiga, Ipanema, Cajuti, Philips (where she duetted with Sílvio Caldas on Programa Casé), Tupi, and Nacional.
In 1936 she introduced Rosa’s “Palpite Infeliz,” part of the storied exchange between Rosa and Wilson Batista, together with “O X do Problema.” The year Rosa died in May 1937 she recorded his “Eu Sei Sofrer” (with Vadico) and “Último Desejo,” plus “Tenha Pena de Mim” by Babaú and Ciro de Souza. The following year brought two more Rosa pieces, “Século do Progresso” and “Feitiço da Vila” (again with Vadico). In 1939 she delivered Ary Barroso’s enduring samba “Camisa Amarela.” Her 1940 carnival marchinha “O Passarinho do Relógio” by Haroldo Lobo and Milton de Oliveira became a major success, as did her 1942 interpretations of Assis Valente’s “Fez Bobagem,” “Caramuru” by B. Toledo, Santos Rodrigues, and Alfeu Pinto, and the pair “Tem Galinha no Bonde” and “A Mulher do Leiteiro” by Milton de Oliveira and Haroldo Lobo.
A 1948 recording of “Não Me Diga Adeus” by Paquito, Luís Soberano, and João Correia da Silva proved another hit, followed in 1949 by her first versions of Rosa’s “João Ninguém” and “Filosofia” (the latter credited to André Filho). Beginning after 1948 she spent four years presenting Rosa-centered programs at the Vogue nightclub, resulting in six 78-rpm discs arranged by Radamés Gnattali and issued by Continental in 1950 and 1951; among them was the first recording of “Três Apitos.” She shared a 1964 engagement at the Zum-Zum nightclub with Sérgio Porto and Billy Blanco, then joined the 1965 productions Samba Pede Passagem at Teatro Opinião and Conversa de Botequim. Elenco released her album Samba é Aracy de Almeida in 1966. In 1969 she appeared alongside Jorge Ben, Toquinho, and Paulinho da Viola in the São Paulo presentation Que Maravilha! at Teatro Cacilda Becker.
Throughout the 1970s she served regularly as a juror on television talent programs, continuing into the following decade. A 1980 concert at Teatro Lira Paulistana later appeared on the 1988 album Aracy de Almeida Ao Vivo. That same year Olívia Byington paid tribute with the CD A Dama do Encantado. Eduardo Wotzick dramatized her life in the 2001 musical Aracy de Almeida No País de Araca.
