Biography
José Roberto Bertrami earned recognition as a Brazilian composer, keyboardist, and arranger chiefly through his central position in the MPB-cum-jazz fusion ensemble Azymuth, the originators of samba doida, or crazy samba. Across intervals preceding, coinciding with, and succeeding his tenure in Azymuth, he maintained steady output both as a sideman and as a solo performer. His flexible technique, rich in melody and attuned to rhythm, graced hundreds of sessions for leading artists across Brazil and the United States. From 1967 to 1970 he guided an earlier configuration known as Projeto III, which produced two albums. Within Azymuth his ventures on Fender Rhodes piano and synthesizers, coupled with his enthusiasm for funk and disco, shaped later directions. The group’s trailblazing Milestone releases, beginning with Light as a Feather in 1979 and extending through Carioca in 1989, continue to find buyers. Bertrami released the solo Blue Wave in 1981 and Things Are Different in 2001. Azymuth persisted with well-received Far Out titles that included 2002’s Partido Novo and 2009’s Aurora, his last recording with the band; he issued Aventura that same year.
Born on February 21, 1946, in the Tatui district of São Paulo, Bertrami was the oldest of seven siblings, four of whom became musicians. His father, classical violinist and Tatuí conservatory professor Lázaro, placed him in formal piano lessons at age seven, yet the studies ended two years afterward. School soccer and encounters with the jazz of Miles Davis and Bill Evans sustained his interest at the keyboard. At thirteen he resumed structured training, auditioning successfully for the conservatory despite its near-exclusive classical emphasis. He later stated that he completed seven years of work in only two. Expulsion followed violations that included convening a jazz jam session on campus grounds, an act still forbidden. During his early teenage years he absorbed the rising bossa nova movement, drawn especially to the playing and writing of pianist Luiz Eça of the Tamba Trio; the elder musician served as mentor.
Once outside school walls, Bertrami prepared to enter the workforce, traveling covertly by train to São Paulo to connect with associates such as pianist Mario Edson, who performed in various clubs of questionable reputation. His initial solo engagement occurred at the Cancan club. He established the sextet Os Tatuis alongside brother and bassist Claudio Bertrami, recording a self-titled album for local Farroupilha in 1965. The next year the duo issued Jose Roberto Trio, a Latin-jazz-cum-bossa session on the same imprint; both albums have since been reissued.
A pivotal opportunity arose in 1967 when Bertrami encountered singer Flora Purim at São Paulo’s João Sebastião Bar. He joined the ensemble she was forming with husband and percussionist Airto Moreira plus trombonist Raul de Souza, yet the project dissolved once Purim and Moreira relocated to New York and Bertrami transferred to Rio. There in 1967 he assembled Projeto III, an early Azymuth lineup featuring bassist Alex Malheiros and drummer/percussionist Ivan “Mamão” Conti. The unit released two now-classic Equipe albums: Equipe: O Trio in 1968 and Encontro in 1970. Bertrami also recorded Organ Sound, Um Nôvo Estilo as José Roberto e Seu Conjunto for Polydor.
Over the ensuing five years Bertrami, Mamão, and Malheiros collaborated and worked independently, solidifying their reputations as premier session musicians both together and apart. Still operating as Projeto III, they supplied soundtracks for Marcos Valle’s Fly Cruzeiro and Som Ambiente in 1972 and for O Fabuloso Fittipaldi in 1973. Bertrami additionally spent two years in singer Elis Regina’s touring band while composing, performing, and arranging for Tim Maia, Erasmo Carlos, Clara Nunes, Ana Mazzotti, and further artists. In mid-1974 the trio reconvened as Azimuth, taking its name from a Valle composition, and delivered a self-titled Polydor album with additional session players in 1975; the title was later adjusted to match the revised spelling of the group name. Their signature fusion of Fender Rhodes, synth, samba, bossa, MPB, funk, and jazz emerged fully on that set, which contained the widely recognized “Linha Do Horizonte.”
Azymuth toured alongside Airto and Purim as well as independently. They resurfaced in 1977 with Águia Não Come Mosca for Atlantic. Signing with San Francisco’s Milestone label, their 1979 debut Light as a Feather included a charting cover of the Purim/Stanley Clarke piece first made famous by Return to Forever in 1973, plus the foundational jazz-funk and fusion tracks “Jazz Carnival” and “Existe Isto.” That year Bertrami joined a roster of Brazilian studio veterans—brother Claudio, Dorival Caymmi, Nelson Angelo, Wilson Das-Neves, Milton Nascimento, and others—backing jazz legend Sarah Vaughan on the Pablo album I Love Brazil. He also appeared on Airto’s charting 1979 release Touching You, Touching Me. In 1980 Azymuth delivered the landmark Outubro, which elevated their global profile in jazz-funk and fusion. A sequence of popular and influential recordings followed over the next five years—Telecommunication, Cascades, Rapid Transit, Flame, and Spectrum—cementing the band’s legendary standing.
Whenever not engaged in their own recording or touring, the members pursued abundant session work. Bertrami remained constantly active, playing, writing, and arranging for numerous artists; he released the solo Blue Wave in 1983. Additional collaborations encompassed Jim Capaldi, Quarteto Em Cy, Gal Costa, Milton Nascimento, Valle, and Jorge Ben, among many others. In 1987 Azymuth joined jazz vocalist Mark Murphy, saxophonist Frank Morgan, and trumpeter Claudio Roditi on the singer’s Night Mood, an album devoted to songs by Brazilian Ivan Lins.
Azymuth unveiled the pivotal Crazy Rhythm in 1987, then Tudo Bem in 1988 and Carioca in 1989, their final Milestone projects. Bertrami departed the group amicably for the first time in 1988 yet performed on and produced those last two albums. Azymuth continued with Jota Moraes while Bertrami concentrated on session and production assignments.
Bertrami issued Dreams Are Real in 1990 and All My Songs in 1991. The following year he contributed to Malheiros’ solo album Zenith. In 1994 he began an enduring association with Brazilian jazz and pop vocalist Ithamara Koorax, both live and in the studio. Their initial joint album, Rio Vermelho, appeared in 1995, followed by the star-studded Red River in 1996; he continued working with her until his death.
He rejoined Azymuth that year. The ensemble signed with London’s Far Out Recordings and released Carnival, which achieved dance-club success across Europe on the strength of the single “Jazz Carnival.” The label followed with the remix collection Misturada 2 in 1997. Fresh from a European tour, Azymuth recorded Woodland Warrior in 1998; a second remix set, Misturada 3, appeared the next year. The band closed the century with the Euro and Brazilian club hit Pieces of Ipanema in 1999.
Opening the new millennium with Azymuth Before We Forget, Bertrami played on Grupo Batuque’s Africa Brazil and Koorax’s Serenade In Blue. He also released the widely acclaimed solo album Things Are Different in 2001 and contributed to Koorax’s Cry Me a River that same year. In 2002 Azymuth delivered the seminal Partido Novo, an album that revisited the deep fusion-jazz sensibilities of their earliest work while retaining samba, funk, and electro elements. The following year Bertrami rejoined Koorax for Love Dance: The Ballad Album.
In 2005 Azymuth returned to MPB, samba, and bossa nova on Brazilian Soul, a recording that integrated contemporary digital and keyboard technology while remaining faithful to song forms and evoking echoes of their 1974 self-titled Polydor debut. Far Out licensed, remastered, and reissued that debut in 2007 as a two-disc edition containing additional remixes by Peanut Butter Wolf, 4Hero, and others. That year the band and Lins appeared as co-billed collaborators on Arthur Verocai’s Encore. Bertrami also performed on Koorax’s Tributo to Stellinha Egg. Azymuth’s 2008 album Butterfly adhered to the breezy, summery approach of Brazilian Soul and reached the European charts.
Following a tour, Azymuth re-entered the studio to record Aurora, Bertrami’s final album with the group; he left amicably once more. That same year he released his last solo album, Aventura, credited to Jose Roberto Bertrami & His Modern Sound and employing two bassists plus drummers Conti and his son Victor Bertrami. He also appeared on Valle and Celso Fonseca’s Apresentam Página Central and on Jazzanova’s Of All the Things. In Los Angeles he performed with Verocai and an international cast—including Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Madlib, Airto, Conti, Justo Almario, and more than a dozen others—for the recording and filming of Mochilla Presents Timeless: Arthur Verocai. He and Conti further contributed to the Ipanemas’ Que Beleza on Far Out.
Aurora finally surfaced and charted in Europe in 2011 while Bertrami recorded Caçador De Mim with Milton Nascimento and worked with Koorax on her standards collection Got to Be Real. He completed two additional albums with the singer: Ecstasy, an extended conceptual three-part jazz-house suite, and Ithamara Koorax Sings Getz/Gilberto. These proved his final recording sessions. Bertrami fell ill and entered the hospital in June 2012; he died on July 8 from liver failure at age 66.
Born on February 21, 1946, in the Tatui district of São Paulo, Bertrami was the oldest of seven siblings, four of whom became musicians. His father, classical violinist and Tatuí conservatory professor Lázaro, placed him in formal piano lessons at age seven, yet the studies ended two years afterward. School soccer and encounters with the jazz of Miles Davis and Bill Evans sustained his interest at the keyboard. At thirteen he resumed structured training, auditioning successfully for the conservatory despite its near-exclusive classical emphasis. He later stated that he completed seven years of work in only two. Expulsion followed violations that included convening a jazz jam session on campus grounds, an act still forbidden. During his early teenage years he absorbed the rising bossa nova movement, drawn especially to the playing and writing of pianist Luiz Eça of the Tamba Trio; the elder musician served as mentor.
Once outside school walls, Bertrami prepared to enter the workforce, traveling covertly by train to São Paulo to connect with associates such as pianist Mario Edson, who performed in various clubs of questionable reputation. His initial solo engagement occurred at the Cancan club. He established the sextet Os Tatuis alongside brother and bassist Claudio Bertrami, recording a self-titled album for local Farroupilha in 1965. The next year the duo issued Jose Roberto Trio, a Latin-jazz-cum-bossa session on the same imprint; both albums have since been reissued.
A pivotal opportunity arose in 1967 when Bertrami encountered singer Flora Purim at São Paulo’s João Sebastião Bar. He joined the ensemble she was forming with husband and percussionist Airto Moreira plus trombonist Raul de Souza, yet the project dissolved once Purim and Moreira relocated to New York and Bertrami transferred to Rio. There in 1967 he assembled Projeto III, an early Azymuth lineup featuring bassist Alex Malheiros and drummer/percussionist Ivan “Mamão” Conti. The unit released two now-classic Equipe albums: Equipe: O Trio in 1968 and Encontro in 1970. Bertrami also recorded Organ Sound, Um Nôvo Estilo as José Roberto e Seu Conjunto for Polydor.
Over the ensuing five years Bertrami, Mamão, and Malheiros collaborated and worked independently, solidifying their reputations as premier session musicians both together and apart. Still operating as Projeto III, they supplied soundtracks for Marcos Valle’s Fly Cruzeiro and Som Ambiente in 1972 and for O Fabuloso Fittipaldi in 1973. Bertrami additionally spent two years in singer Elis Regina’s touring band while composing, performing, and arranging for Tim Maia, Erasmo Carlos, Clara Nunes, Ana Mazzotti, and further artists. In mid-1974 the trio reconvened as Azimuth, taking its name from a Valle composition, and delivered a self-titled Polydor album with additional session players in 1975; the title was later adjusted to match the revised spelling of the group name. Their signature fusion of Fender Rhodes, synth, samba, bossa, MPB, funk, and jazz emerged fully on that set, which contained the widely recognized “Linha Do Horizonte.”
Azymuth toured alongside Airto and Purim as well as independently. They resurfaced in 1977 with Águia Não Come Mosca for Atlantic. Signing with San Francisco’s Milestone label, their 1979 debut Light as a Feather included a charting cover of the Purim/Stanley Clarke piece first made famous by Return to Forever in 1973, plus the foundational jazz-funk and fusion tracks “Jazz Carnival” and “Existe Isto.” That year Bertrami joined a roster of Brazilian studio veterans—brother Claudio, Dorival Caymmi, Nelson Angelo, Wilson Das-Neves, Milton Nascimento, and others—backing jazz legend Sarah Vaughan on the Pablo album I Love Brazil. He also appeared on Airto’s charting 1979 release Touching You, Touching Me. In 1980 Azymuth delivered the landmark Outubro, which elevated their global profile in jazz-funk and fusion. A sequence of popular and influential recordings followed over the next five years—Telecommunication, Cascades, Rapid Transit, Flame, and Spectrum—cementing the band’s legendary standing.
Whenever not engaged in their own recording or touring, the members pursued abundant session work. Bertrami remained constantly active, playing, writing, and arranging for numerous artists; he released the solo Blue Wave in 1983. Additional collaborations encompassed Jim Capaldi, Quarteto Em Cy, Gal Costa, Milton Nascimento, Valle, and Jorge Ben, among many others. In 1987 Azymuth joined jazz vocalist Mark Murphy, saxophonist Frank Morgan, and trumpeter Claudio Roditi on the singer’s Night Mood, an album devoted to songs by Brazilian Ivan Lins.
Azymuth unveiled the pivotal Crazy Rhythm in 1987, then Tudo Bem in 1988 and Carioca in 1989, their final Milestone projects. Bertrami departed the group amicably for the first time in 1988 yet performed on and produced those last two albums. Azymuth continued with Jota Moraes while Bertrami concentrated on session and production assignments.
Bertrami issued Dreams Are Real in 1990 and All My Songs in 1991. The following year he contributed to Malheiros’ solo album Zenith. In 1994 he began an enduring association with Brazilian jazz and pop vocalist Ithamara Koorax, both live and in the studio. Their initial joint album, Rio Vermelho, appeared in 1995, followed by the star-studded Red River in 1996; he continued working with her until his death.
He rejoined Azymuth that year. The ensemble signed with London’s Far Out Recordings and released Carnival, which achieved dance-club success across Europe on the strength of the single “Jazz Carnival.” The label followed with the remix collection Misturada 2 in 1997. Fresh from a European tour, Azymuth recorded Woodland Warrior in 1998; a second remix set, Misturada 3, appeared the next year. The band closed the century with the Euro and Brazilian club hit Pieces of Ipanema in 1999.
Opening the new millennium with Azymuth Before We Forget, Bertrami played on Grupo Batuque’s Africa Brazil and Koorax’s Serenade In Blue. He also released the widely acclaimed solo album Things Are Different in 2001 and contributed to Koorax’s Cry Me a River that same year. In 2002 Azymuth delivered the seminal Partido Novo, an album that revisited the deep fusion-jazz sensibilities of their earliest work while retaining samba, funk, and electro elements. The following year Bertrami rejoined Koorax for Love Dance: The Ballad Album.
In 2005 Azymuth returned to MPB, samba, and bossa nova on Brazilian Soul, a recording that integrated contemporary digital and keyboard technology while remaining faithful to song forms and evoking echoes of their 1974 self-titled Polydor debut. Far Out licensed, remastered, and reissued that debut in 2007 as a two-disc edition containing additional remixes by Peanut Butter Wolf, 4Hero, and others. That year the band and Lins appeared as co-billed collaborators on Arthur Verocai’s Encore. Bertrami also performed on Koorax’s Tributo to Stellinha Egg. Azymuth’s 2008 album Butterfly adhered to the breezy, summery approach of Brazilian Soul and reached the European charts.
Following a tour, Azymuth re-entered the studio to record Aurora, Bertrami’s final album with the group; he left amicably once more. That same year he released his last solo album, Aventura, credited to Jose Roberto Bertrami & His Modern Sound and employing two bassists plus drummers Conti and his son Victor Bertrami. He also appeared on Valle and Celso Fonseca’s Apresentam Página Central and on Jazzanova’s Of All the Things. In Los Angeles he performed with Verocai and an international cast—including Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Madlib, Airto, Conti, Justo Almario, and more than a dozen others—for the recording and filming of Mochilla Presents Timeless: Arthur Verocai. He and Conti further contributed to the Ipanemas’ Que Beleza on Far Out.
Aurora finally surfaced and charted in Europe in 2011 while Bertrami recorded Caçador De Mim with Milton Nascimento and worked with Koorax on her standards collection Got to Be Real. He completed two additional albums with the singer: Ecstasy, an extended conceptual three-part jazz-house suite, and Ithamara Koorax Sings Getz/Gilberto. These proved his final recording sessions. Bertrami fell ill and entered the hospital in June 2012; he died on July 8 from liver failure at age 66.