Caio Mesquita

Brazilian saxophone sensation Caio Mesquita, born June 14, 1990, grew up in Santos, Brazil, and began his musical journey at five after an aunt presented him with a compact keyboard. That instrument sparked structured lessons on piano, which continued until he turned ten and encountered Leandro y Leonardo's "Pense Em Mim," igniting a passion for the saxophone. His piano instructor, himself a saxophonist, guided the youngster into jazz and popular repertoire. Soon Mesquita was appearing at schools, parties, and local clubs. One such engagement led to an invitation for a duet on the nationally prominent Programa Raul Gil, a long-running Brazilian variety program whose host possessed more than forty years in entertainment and had propelled numerous careers. Multiple appearances on the broadcast earned the teenager devoted listeners and countered doubts regarding young listeners' appetite for instrumental music. His first album, Jovem Brazilidade, appeared on Luar Music—the label founded by Raul Gil—and surveyed an array of Brazilian styles while saluting key national figures; at the time Mesquita remained the imprint's sole instrumental act. In 2006 he followed with Natal, a robust and warmly received successor whose strong sales and full-bodied sound positioned the young artist as an emerging jazz talent worth watching.