Henrique Cazes

Dedicated to the rootsy genres of samba and choro, Henrique Cazes has pursued an active role in Rio de Janeiro’s music scene as researcher, musician, arranger, and professor. He began playing the violão (acoustic guitar) at the age of six. A self-taught musician, Cazes went on to master the cavaquinho, mandolin, banjo, and viola. His professional career opened in 1976 when he joined the group Coisas Nossas. Throughout the ’80s he performed with the Camerata Carioca, where he encountered mandolinist Joel Nascimento and composer/conductor/orchestrator Radamés Gnattali, both of whom exerted a profound influence on his work. In subsequent years he served as accompanist to Nara Leão and Elizeth Cardoso. Launching a solo career on cavaquinho in 1988, Cazes released the album Henrique Cazes, the first of several. He later founded and continues to direct the Orquestra Pixinguinha, devoted to adapting the master’s arrangements. Cazes also composes soundtracks for cinema, theater, and television.