Biography
Marília Medalha launched her professional path in the early 1960s by appearing alongside Tião Neto and Sergio Mendes in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, yet her decisive breakthrough arrived when she captured first prize at the III Festival de Música Popular Brasileira/FMPB on TV Record in 1967 with the song “Ponteio,” written by Edu Lobo and Capinam. Two years earlier she had joined the cast of the stage production Arena Conta Zumbi by Augusto Boal and Gianfrancesco Guarnieri, an engagement that earned her the Revelation Actress of the Year award from the Association of Theater Critics of São Paulo. During 1967 she also shared a season at Rio’s Zum Zum nightclub with Edu Lobo and appeared on the TV Excelsior program Ensaio Geral together with Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Maria Bethânia, and Sérgio Ricardo. The triumph of “Ponteio” brought her nationwide attention, prompting the release that same year of her debut LP, simply titled Marília Medalha.
At the IV FMPB in 1968 she secured second place with “Memórias de Marta Saré” (Edu Lobo/Gianfrancesco Guarnieri), while at the I Bienal do Samba she took third place with “Pressentimento” (Elton Medeiros/Hermínio Bello de Carvalho), a track later included on her second album, also named Marília Medalha. In 1970 she performed in Salvador, Bahia, and Buenos Aires, Argentina, alongside Vinicius de Moraes and Toquinho; the live recording made at the La Fusa nightclub in the Argentine capital became the album Como Dizia o Poeta/Vinicius, Toquinho e Marília Medalha. She continued to tour internationally with Moraes and Toquinho throughout the following two years. In 1972 the songs she composed to lyrics by Moraes appeared on the album Encontro e Desencontro/Marília Medalha e Vinícius de Moraes. Two years later she took part in the historic production Opinião (Oduvaldo Viana Filho/Paulo Pontes/Armando Costa) with Zé Kéti and João do Vale, assuming the role previously played by Nara Leão and Maria Bethânia. Although she never regained the widespread popularity of the late 1960s and early 1970s, she remained active in São Paulo and released the 1992 album Bodas de Vidro, featuring both her own collaborations with various songwriters and material by other composers.
At the IV FMPB in 1968 she secured second place with “Memórias de Marta Saré” (Edu Lobo/Gianfrancesco Guarnieri), while at the I Bienal do Samba she took third place with “Pressentimento” (Elton Medeiros/Hermínio Bello de Carvalho), a track later included on her second album, also named Marília Medalha. In 1970 she performed in Salvador, Bahia, and Buenos Aires, Argentina, alongside Vinicius de Moraes and Toquinho; the live recording made at the La Fusa nightclub in the Argentine capital became the album Como Dizia o Poeta/Vinicius, Toquinho e Marília Medalha. She continued to tour internationally with Moraes and Toquinho throughout the following two years. In 1972 the songs she composed to lyrics by Moraes appeared on the album Encontro e Desencontro/Marília Medalha e Vinícius de Moraes. Two years later she took part in the historic production Opinião (Oduvaldo Viana Filho/Paulo Pontes/Armando Costa) with Zé Kéti and João do Vale, assuming the role previously played by Nara Leão and Maria Bethânia. Although she never regained the widespread popularity of the late 1960s and early 1970s, she remained active in São Paulo and released the 1992 album Bodas de Vidro, featuring both her own collaborations with various songwriters and material by other composers.
Albums
