Silvio Cesar

Sílvio César earned recognition for composing a wide array of songs that found their way to interpreters including Elis Regina, Sérgio Mendes, Elizeth Cardoso, João Donato, Ângela Maria, Roberto Carlos, Alcione, Os Cariocas, Cauby Peixoto, Emílio Santiago, Elza Soares, Hermeto Pascoal, Leny Andrade, Jair Rodrigues, and Nana Caymmi. He also figured prominently in the circle that reshaped samba throughout the 1960s, sharing duties with Orlandivo, Ed Lincoln, and Pedrinho Rodrigues. Beyond his own releases, he supplied music and performances for both television and cinema.

He entered the profession in 1959 as lead vocalist with the Waldemar Spillman orchestra. Engagements at Rio’s storied Beco das Garrafas, then a focal point for jazz and bossa, led to his meeting Ed Lincoln; the pair went on to create such successes as “Olhou Pra Mim” and “Nunca Mais.” His first single appeared the following year, coupling “Máxima Culpa” by Sérgio Ricardo with “Manhã Sem Adeus” by Luís Bonfá, and his debut album, Amor Demais, followed in 1961.

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s César performed on leading variety programs such as Jovem Guarda, O Fino da Bossa, and Essa Noite se Improvisa. He likewise contributed to motion pictures, serving as co-composer with Lincoln and appearing as an actor in Na Onda do Iê-iê-iê while writing the score for Mineirinho/Vivo ou Morto. The tracks “Mônica” and “Se Tiver De Ser,” both written with Lincoln, were placed on the soundtrack of Na Onda do Iê-iê-iê, directed by Aurélio Teixeira. In 1974 Roberto Carlos recorded César’s “O Moço Velho.”

César placed additional compositions on Rede Globo telenovela soundtracks, among them “Levante Os Olhos” for Duas Vidas in 1975, “Agarre Seu Homem,” created with Ronaldo Bôscoli, for Te Contei? in 1978, and “A Mais Antiga Profissão” for O Jogo da Vida in 1981. His albums Aos Mestres Com Carinho, issued in 1992, and Aos Mestres Com Carinho/Vol. 2, released two years later, surveyed MPB standards with guest appearances by Tom Jobim, Chico Buarque, Leny Andrade, Emílio Santiago, Nonato Luiz, and Quarteto em Cy.