Maria Creuza earned acclaim as Vinicius de Moraes’ preferred interpreter while scoring multiple successes with compositions by her husband, Antônio Carlos Pinto, and his songwriting partner Jocafi. She also recorded and toured alongside Moraes, issuing the 1972 album Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar, and saw her recordings distributed throughout Europe and Japan, where she maintained a steady performance schedule. Among her most enduring recordings were “Apelo” (Baden Powell/Vinicius de Moraes), “Eu Disse Adeus” (Roberto Carlos), “Pois É” (Chico Buarque/Tom Jobim), “Feijãozinho Com Torresmo” (Walter Queiroz), “Festa no Terreiro de Alaketu” (Antônio Carlos Pinto), “Mas Que Doidice” (Antônio Carlos/Jocafi), and “Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar” (Jobim/de Moraes).
Local recognition first arrived when she served as lead vocalist for the group Les Girls, after which she moved into radio and television work, including a four-year stint hosting Encontro com Maria Creuza on TV Itapoã in Salvador, Bahia. Her association with Antônio Carlos Pinto, half of the duo Antônio Carlos & Jocafi, began in 1965; the following year she appeared at the festival O Brasil Canta on TV Excelsior, delivering “Se Não Houvesse Maria” (Antônio Carlos). In 1967 she performed “Festa no Terreiro de Alaketu” (Antônio Carlos) at the III Festival de Música Popular Brasileira/FMPB on TV Record, and the track was issued as a single.
At the 1969 IV Festival Universitário in Rio she earned the Best Interpreter award and finished third with “Mirante” (Aldir Blanc/César Costa Filho), while also presenting “Catendê” (Antônio Carlos/Jocafi) at the V FMPB that same year. In 1970 she joined Vinicius de Moraes and Dori Caymmi for a concert in Punta del Este, Uruguay, that was captured live and released as an LP. She toured France and Italy in 1972 and, two years later, took second place at the II World Festival of Popular Music in Tokyo, Japan, with “Que Diacho de Dor” (Antônio Carlos/Jocafi).
