Xangai

Xangai absorbed the rugged vocal approach of regional vaqueiros and cantadores directly from his grandfather, the master accordionist Avelino. Those same Northeastern folk currents of Bahia’s hinterland remained audible throughout his output, whether in original compositions or reworked traditional material, and his consistently non-commercial ventures began incorporating classical collaborators such as Arthur Moreira Lima and Turíbio Santos from the 1980s onward. He relocated to Rio de Janeiro in 1973, and CBS issued his debut album, Acontecimento, three years later; every subsequent release appeared on smaller or independent imprints.

In 1980 he joined Elomar, Arthur Moreira Lima, and additional partners for Parceria Malunga, an atypical recording in which varied regional accents intertwined with Lima’s world-class virtuosity. Four years afterward, Xangai performed a memorable concert at Salvador’s Castro Alves Theater alongside Elomar, Geraldo Azevedo, and Vital Farias; the event was captured live and issued as the paired albums Cantoria 1 and Cantoria 2. He next shared the 1988 album Concerto Sertanez with Elomar, Turíbio Santos, and João Omar, then recorded the live set Aguaterra with Renato Teixeira in 1996. The following year Cantoria de Festa earned Xangai the Sharp prize for Best Album of the Year. Additional contributors to his discography have included Vital Farias, Cátia de França, Pedro Osmar, Cumeno Cum Cuentro, Jacques Morelenbaum, and Hélio Contreras.