Eliane Elias
BrowseBiography.com, 20 November 2011; retrieved 10 September 2014. is a Brazilian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

pianist, singer, composer and arranger.

Biography

Elias was born in São Paulo, Brazil on 19 March 1960. She started studying piano when she was seven, and at age twelve she was transcribing solos from jazz musicians. She began teaching piano when she was fifteen, and began performing at seventeen with Brazilian singer-songwriter

Toquinho Antônio Pecci Filho (born July 6, 1946), better known as Toquinho (), is a Brazilian singer and guitarist. He is well known for his collaborations, as composer and performer, with Vinicius de Moraes. Childhood and musical studies Toquinho was b ...

and touring with the poet

Vinicius de Moraes Marcus Vinícius da Cruz e Mello Moraes (19 October 1913 – 9 July 1980), better known as Vinícius de Moraes () and nicknamed O Poetinha ("The little poet"), was a Brazilian poet, diplomat, lyricist, essayist, musician, singer, and playwright ...

. In 1981 she moved to New York City, where she attended

The Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

of Music. A year later she became part of the group

Steps Ahead Steps Ahead is an American jazz fusion group. History The group arose out of spontaneous sessions at Seventh Avenue South, a jazz club in New York City owned by saxophonist Michael Brecker and trumpeter brother Randy Brecker. The first three al ...

. In 1993 Elias signed with

EMI Classics EMI Classics was a record label founded by Thorn EMI in 1990 to reduce the need to create country-specific packaging and catalogues for internationally distributed classical music releases. After Thorn EMI demerged in 1996, its recorded musi ...

to record classical pieces, which were released on ''On the Classical Side''. In 2001, ''Calle 54'', a documentary film by Spanish director

Fernando Trueba Fernando Rodríguez Trueba (born 18 January 1955), known as Fernando Trueba, is a Spanish book editor, screenwriter, film director and producer. Between 1974 and 1979, he worked as a film critic for Spain's leading daily newspaper '' El País' ...

, included Elias performing "Samba Triste." In 2002 she recorded ''The Lost Days'' with

Denyce Graves Denyce Graves (born March 7, 1964) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer. Early life Graves was born on March 7, 1964, in Washington, D.C., to Charles Graves and Dorothy (Middleton) Graves-Kenner. She is the middle of three children and w ...

, for whom she wrote a composition entitled "HaabiaTupi." In 2002, Elias signed with RCA/Bluebird, which issued ''Kissed by Nature''. ''Dreamer'' was released in 2004 and received the Gold Disc Award, as well as being voted Best Vocal Album in Japan. It reached No. 3 on the pop charts in France and No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' magazine charts in the U.S. ''Around the City'' was released by RCA Victor in August 2006. In 2007, Elias released ''Something for You'', which won Best Vocal Album of the Year and the Gold Disc Award in Japan. ''Something for You'' reached No. 1 on the U.S. jazz charts, No. 8 on ''Billboard'', and No. 2 on the French jazz charts. In 2008, she recorded ''

Bossa Nova Stories ''Bossa Nova Stories'' is the nineteenth studio album by Brazilian jazz artist Eliane Elias, released on 24 June 2008 by Blue Note Records. The album is a tribute to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the bossa nova music style. Reception Crist ...

'' to celebrate the 50th anniversary of bossa nova. In 2009, EMI Japan released ''Eliane Elias Plays Live''. ''Light My Fire'', released in 2011, features four compositions written or co-written by Elias and includes covers of songs by the Doors, Stevie Wonder, and Paul Desmond. In September 2011, her song "What About the Heart (Bate Bate)" was nominated for a Latin Grammy in the category of Best Brazilian Song. In 2012 she collaborated with bassist Marc Johnson on the album ''Swept Away'', the Editor's and Critic's choice in 2012 ''Downbeat'' and ''Jazztimes'' magazines, respectively. Her 2013 release, ''I Thought About You'', reached No. 1 on the U.S. and French Amazon.com websites; No. 2 on iTunes U.S., France and Brazil; and No. 4 on ''Billboard''. ''Made in Brazil'', was followed by ''Dance of Time'', which debuted at No. 1 on two ''Billboard'': jazz and world music. Both ''Made in Brazil'' and ''Dance of Time'' debuted at No. 1 on iTunes in seven countries and won Grammy awards for Best Latin Jazz Album of the Year. Her 2019 album ''

Love Stories Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of meanings is that the lov ...

'' reached the #1 position as Best Seller Amazon.com Latin Jazz, #1 Best Seller Amazon.com Brazilian Jazz and #2 Best Seller Amazon.com Orchestral. Her 2021 album ''Mirror, Mirror'', which she recorded with

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

and Chucho Valdès, won the

Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album The Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works (songs or albums) in the Latin jazz ...

Personal life

Elias is Brazilian of Italian and Spanish descent. She was married to American trumpeter

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was born on Nov ...

, with whom she has a daughter, the singer/songwriter Amanda Elias Brecker, born in 1984. She is married to Marc Johnson, who plays bass in her band and co-produces her recordings.

Awards

* 1995: Grammy nomination, Best Jazz Solo Performance, ''Solos and Duets'' with Herbie Hancock * 1997: Best Jazz Album, ''DownBeat'' magazine Readers' Poll, ''The Three Americas'' * 1998: Grammy nomination, Best Large Jazz Ensemble, ''Impulsive'' with Bob Brookmeyer and The Danish Radio Jazz Orchestra * 2002: Grammy nomination, Best Latin Jazz Album, ''Calle 54'' * 2011: Latin Grammy nomination, Best Brazilian Song, ''What About the Heart (Bate Bate)'' * 2015: Latin Grammy nomination for Best Engineered Album, ''Made in Brazil'' * 2016: Grammy Award winner for Best Latin Jazz Album, ''Made in Brazil'' * 2017: Latin Grammy nomination for Best Engineered Album, ''Dance of Time'' *

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

: Latin Grammy Award winner for Best Latin Jazz/Jazz Album, ''Dance of Time'' *2018: Winner of the Edison Lifetime Achievement Award (Holland) *Five times Gold Disc Awards (Japan) * 2019 Masterpiece award "Love Stories" (5 stars by "DownBeat" magazine) * 2021 Masterpiece award "Mirror Mirror" (5 stars by "DownBeat" magazine) * 2022: Grammy Award winner for Best Latin Jazz Album, ''Mirror Mirror''

Discography

As leader

* '' Amanda'' with Randy Brecker ( Passport Jazz, 1985) * ''

Illusions An illusion is a distortion of the senses, which can reveal how the mind normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation. Although illusions distort the human perception of reality, they are generally shared by most people. Illusions may oc ...

'' (

Denon is a Japanese electronics company started in 1910 by Frederick Whitney Horn, an American entrepreneur. Denon produced the first cylinder audio media in Japan and players to play them. Decades later, Denon was involved in the early stages of de ...

, 1987) * '' Cross Currents'' (Denon, 1988) * '' So Far So Close'' (

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical co ...

, 1989) * '' Eliane Elias Plays Jobim'' (Blue Note, 1990) * '' A Long Story'' (

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, 1991) * ''

Fantasia Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...

'' (Blue Note, 1992) * '' On the Classical Side'' (

, 1993) * '' Paulistana'' (Blue Note, 1994) * '' Solos and Duets'' with Herbie Hancock (Blue Note, 1995) * ''

The Three Americas ''The Three Americas'' is the eleventh studio album by Brazilian jazz artist Eliane Elias. The record was released in 1996 via Blue Note label. The name of the album is explained by Elias in the notes:"My intention for this recording is not onl ...

'' (Blue Note, 1997) * '' Impulsive!'' with

Bob Brookmeyer Robert Edward "Bob" Brookmeyer (December 19, 1929 – December 15, 2011) was an American jazz valve trombonist, pianist, arranger, and composer. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Brookmeyer first gained widespread public attention as a member of Ge ...

& Danish Radio Jazz Orchestra (

Stunt A stunt is an unusual and difficult physical feat or an act requiring a special skill, performed for artistic purposes usually on television, theaters, or cinema. Stunts are a feature of many action films. Before computer generated imagery spec ...

, 1997) * '' Eliane Elias Sings Jobim'' (Blue Note, 1998) * ''

Everything I Love Everything I Love may refer to: * ''Everything I Love'' (Alan Jackson album), 1996 ** "Everything I Love" (Alan Jackson song), this album's title track * "Ev'rything I Love", a 1941 song from Cole Porter's '' Let's Face It!'' * ''Everything I Lo ...

'' (Blue Note, 2000) * '' Kissed by Nature'' (

Bluebird The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. ...

, 2002) * ''

Brazilian Classics ''Brazilian Classics'' is a compilation album by Brazilian jazz pianist Eliane Elias. It was recorded from December 1989 to October 1997 and initially released on September 16, 2003 by Blue Note. The release contains 16 songs taken from her previ ...

'' (Blue Note, 2003) * '' Dreamer'' (Bluebird, 2004) * ''

Around the City ''Around the City'' is the seventeenth studio album by Brazilian jazz pianist and singer Eliane Elias. It was released on August 22, 2006 by RCA Victor. The track list below is for the European release, which is different from that in the US. Re ...

'' (

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...

, 2006) * '' Something for You: Eliane Elias Sings & Plays Bill Evans'' (Blue Note, 2007) * ''

'' (Blue Note, 2008) * '' Eliane Elias Plays Live'' (Blue Note, 2009) * ''

Light My Fire "Light My Fire" is a song by the American rock band the Doors. It was recorded in August 1966 and released in January 1967 on their eponymous debut album. Released as an edited single on April 24, 1967, it spent three weeks at number one on t ...

'' (Concord Picante, 2011) * '' Swept Away'' with Marc Johnson (ECM, 2012) * ''

I Thought About You "I Thought About You" is a 1939 popular song composed by Jimmy Van Heusen with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Background It was one of three collaborations Van Heusen and Mercer wrote for the Mercer-Morris publishing company started by Mercer and f ...

'' (

Concord Jazz Concord Jazz is a record company and label founded in 1973 by Carl Jefferson, the former owner of Jefferson Motors Lincoln Mercury dealership in Concord, California. The label was named after the city in the East San Francisco Bay area, and the j ...

, 2013) * '' Made in Brazil'' (Concord Jazz, 2015) * '' Dance of Time'' (Concord Jazz, 2017) * ''

Music from Man of La Mancha ''Music from Man of La Mancha'' is a studio album by Brazilian jazz pianist and singer Eliane Elias. The album was recorded in 1995 but released by Concord only on April 13, 2018. Background ''Music from Man of La Mancha'' is Elias' 26th full-le ...

'' (Concord Jazz, 2018) * ''

'' (Concord Jazz, 2019) * '' Mirror Mirror'' with Chick Corea and Chucho Valdés (Candid, 2021) * '' Quietude'' (Candid, 2022) With

* ''

'' (Elektra Musician, 1983) * ''Holding Together'' (NYC, 2002)

As guest

Brecker Brothers The Brecker Brothers were a jazz fusion music duo consisting of siblings Michael Brecker, Michael and Randy Brecker, Randy. Michael played saxophone, flute, and EWI (musical instrument), EWI, and Randy played trumpet and flugelhorn. The brothers ...

, '' Out of the Loop'' (GRP, 1994) *

Urszula Dudziak Urszula Bogumiła Dudziak-Urbaniak (born 22 October 1943) is a Polish jazz vocalist. She has worked with Krzysztof Komeda, Michał Urbaniak (her ex-husband), Gil Evans, Archie Shepp, and Lester Bowie. In 2007, her 1970s song "Papaya" gained wid ...

, ''Sorrow Is Not Forever...But Love Is'' (Keytone, 1983) *

Peter Erskine Peter Erskine (born June 5, 1954) is an American jazz drummer who was a member of the jazz fusion groups Weather Report and Steps Ahead. Early life and education Erskine was born in Somers Point, New Jersey, U.S. He began playing the drum ...

, ''Motion Poet'' (Denon, 1988) * Michael Franks, ''

Abandoned Garden ''Abandoned Garden'' is an album by American vocalist Michael Franks. Released in 1995 by Warner Bros. Records, it was Franks' thirteenth studio album and his final album of new material with Warner Bros. Background The album is a dedication to ...

'' (Warner Bros., 1995) *

, ''The Lost Days'' ( BMG, 2002) *

Joe Henderson Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day and recorded for several prominent l ...

, '' Double Rainbow: The Music of Antonio Carlos Jobim'' (Verve, 1995) *

Toninho Horta Antônio Maurício Horta de Melo (born December 2, 1948) is a Brazilian jazz guitarist and vocalist. In addition to composing and performing his own work, Horta has worked for many years as arranger or sideman for Brazilian artists such as El ...

, ''Moonstone'' (Verve Forecast, 1989) * Marc Johnson, '' Shades of Jade'' (ECM, 2005) *

Ivo Perelman Ivo Perelman (born January 12, 1961) is a Brazilian free jazz saxophonist born in São Paulo. Career In his youth, Perelman learned to play guitar, cello, clarinet, trombone, and piano, concentrating on tenor sax since age 19. He attended the Be ...

, ''Ivo'' (King, 1989) *

Andy Summers Andrew James Summers (born 31 December 1942), is an English guitarist who was a member of the rock band The Police. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a band member in 2003. Summers has recorded solo albums, collaborated w ...

, ''

World Gone Strange ''World Gone Strange'' is a 1991 solo album by Andy Summers. It was his first solo album which did not involve producer David Hentschel, and the last one recorded for the jazz fusion label Private Music. The title track presents a distinct descend ...

'' (Private Music, 1991) *

Toots Thielemans Jean-Baptiste Frédéric Isidor, Baron Thielemans (29 April 1922 – 22 August 2016), known professionally as Toots Thielemans, was a Belgian jazz musician. He was mostly known for his chromatic harmonica playing, as well as his guitar and whistl ...

, ''The Brasil Project'' (Private Music, 1992) * Toots Thielemans, ''The Brasil Project Vol. 2'' (Private Music, 1993) *

Ornella Vanoni Ornella Vanoni (; born 22 September 1934) is an Italian singer-songwriter and actress. She is one of the longest-standing Italian artists, having started performing in 1956. She has released about 112 works between LP, EPs and greatest hits alb ...

, ''Ornella &...'' (CGD, 1986)

References

External links

* – official site *
Eliane Elias on
''

Piano Jazz ''Piano Jazz'' is a weekly one-hour radio show produced and distributed by National Public Radio (NPR). It began on June 4, 1978, and was hosted by jazz pianist Marian McPartland (1918–2013) until 2011. It is the longest-running cultural pro ...

'' * – interview, along with her husband Marc Johnson {{DEFAULTSORT:Elias, Eliane 1960 births Living people Brazilian jazz singers Latin jazz pianists Post-bop pianists Brazilian people of Lebanese descent Brazilian jazz pianists Grammy Award winners Musicians from São Paulo Women jazz pianists Concord Bicycle Music artists Latin music composers Latin Grammy Award winners 21st-century pianists Steps Ahead members Women in Latin music 21st-century women pianists

Biography

Personal life

Awards

Discography

As leader

As guest

See also

References

External links