Nono

Accomplished as a pianist, Nonô provided accompaniment for numerous leading figures from the Golden Age of Brazilian song across both live performances and studio sessions. He also issued his own solo recordings, collaborated as a composer with Noel Rosa, and saw his works interpreted by various prominent artists, Rosa among them. Born into a musical family whose lineage produced the nephews Ciro Monteiro, Moacir Peixoto, Araquém Peixoto, and Caubi Peixoto, Nonô turned professional at the age of nine. In 1929 he entered the Brunswick recording company’s orchestra under the direction of J. Tomás. He further belonged to Bambas do Estácio, Gente Boa, Gente do Choro, Orquestra Copacabana, and additional ensembles, contributing to hundreds of releases as an accompanist for vocalists. By roughly 1932 he had become the preferred pianist for such contemporaries as Francisco Alves, Sílvio Caldas, and Mário Reis. On Rádio Philips’s Programa Casé he supported Luís Barbosa, Noel Rosa, and Marília Batista. That same year Nonô joined Noel Rosa, Mário Reis, and Francisco Alves on a tour of Porto Alegre RS, co-writing the samba “Vitória” with Rosa; Sílvio Caldas later recorded the piece for Victor in 1933. Also in 1932, Nonô cut the solo choro “Uma Farra em Campo Grande” for Columbia. His discography includes sessions with Mário Reis, Francisco Alves, Noel Rosa—who cut Nonô’s samba “Arranjei um Fraseado”—Sílvio Caldas, Luís Barbosa, and many more.

As a songwriter Nonô authored “Perto do Céu,” credited with Francisco Matoso and waxed by Silvinha Melo for Philips in 1935; “Vai-te Embora,” again with Matoso and recorded by Mário Reis in 1936; the valse “Cigana,” partnered with Paulo Roberto and issued by Sílvio Caldas on Odeon in 1937; and “Jardim das Flores Raras,” another Matoso collaboration, which Roberto Paiva recorded for Odeon in 1938. In 1957 Fats Elpídio released the LP Recordando Nonô on Victor.