Mônica Salmaso emerged as a significant new voice in MPB during the late 1980s. Her first stage appearance came in 1989 with the production O Concílio do Amor, directed by Gabriel Vilela. From that point forward she collaborated regularly in performance and on recordings with Paulo Bellinati, Edu Lobo, Eduardo Gudin, José Miguel Wisnik, Marlui Miranda, Música Ligeira, Guinga, Nelson Ayres, and the Orquestra Jazz Sinfônica de São Paulo, among additional partners.
Two children’s albums she recorded for Paulo Tatit and Sandra Peres—Canções de Ninar and Canções de Brincar—each received the Sharp award for Best Children’s CD, the first in 1995 and the second in 1997. Also in 1995 she served as principal soloist on Eduardo Gudin’s Notícias Dum Brasil and, alongside Paulo Bellinati, delivered the complete Baden Powell/Vinicius de Moraes song cycle Afro-Sambas, preserving the full output of the phase the composer and lyricist themselves referred to, somewhat inaccurately, as Afro-Sambas.
In 1996 her interpretation of Tom Jobim’s “Chovendo Na Roseira” was selected as the theme for the SBT telenovela Colégio Brasil. That same period found her contributing “A Felicidade” to the Songbook Tom Jobim and taking part in the Mundo São Paulo - Diferenças e Riquezas initiative. The following year brought a Sharp-prize nomination in the Revelation MPB category.
Salmaso released Trampolim in 1998 and became a member of the Orquestra Popular de Câmara; with that ensemble she made a further recording and toured internationally. In 1999 she received the Prêmio Visa MPB in the Vocal Edition. Her third album, Voadeira, earned her the APCA award for Best Singer of the Year, while critics also named it the finest solo album by a female artist released during that season.
