Edson Cordeiro (born February 9, 1967) is a Brazilian

sopranist A sopranist (also, sopranista or male soprano) is a male singer who is able to sing in the vocal tessitura of a soprano usually through the use of falsetto or head voice vocal production. This voice type is a specific kind of countertenor. In rar ...

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a s ...

and pop and jazz singer.

Life and career

Cordeiro was born in

Santo André, São Paulo Santo André (, ''Saint Andrew'') is a Brazilian municipality located in the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo. It is part of a group of municipalities known as the ABC Region. According to the most recent census, the population is estimated at ...

, Brazil. He began singing at 6 years old when he joined a church choir called "Cordeirinhos do Senhor". He became famous as a street singer. He had his first TV performance with his own version of the

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

of the " Queen of the Night" ( W. A. Mozart). In 1996, he won the Prêmio Sharp for the best Brazilian pop singer. Cordeiro first toured Europe in 1995. He was greatly acclaimed after his concerts, especially in Germany, where he also performed on national TV. His repertoire ranges from

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

and

lied In Western classical music tradition, (, plural ; , plural , ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music to create a piece of polyphonic music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German, but among English and French s ...

er to traditional Brazilian folksongs to 1970s disco music. It includes covers of

Nina Hagen Catharina "Nina" Hagen (; born 11 March 1955) is a German singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her theatrical vocals and rose to prominence during the Punk subculture, punk and New wave music, new wave movements in the late 1970s a ...

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known Rock music, rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage ...

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a model, singer and actress. Born in Jamaica, she and her family moved to Syracuse, New York, when she was a teenager. Jones began her modelling career in New York state, then in Paris, working for ...

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

and

Édith Piaf Édith Piaf (, , ; born Édith Giovanna Gassion, ; December 19, 1915– October 10, 1963) was a French singer, lyricist and actress. Noted as France's national chanteuse, she was one of the country's most widely known international stars. Pia ...

, along with medieval psalms. As a vocalist, Cordeiro is comparable to Peruvian singer

Yma Sumac Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chávarri del Castillo (September 13, 1922 (birth certificate) or September 10, 1922 (later documents) – November 1, 2008), known professionally as Yma Sumac (), was a Peruvian-American coloratura soprano. She was one ...

, who in her prime also had a four-octave range. Cordeiro covered one of Sumac's songs, "

Babalú "Babalú" is a Cuban popular afro song written by Margarita Lecuona, the cousin of composers Ernestina and Ernesto Lecuona. The song title is a reference to the Santería deity Babalú Ayé. Lyrics In the song's lyrics, originally written in S ...

". Cordeiro performs mainly in South America, with a recent brief stint in Germany. He has lived in Germany for over a decade due, he says, to the homophobic harassment he suffered in Brazil. He is married to German writer Oliver Bieber.

Discography

* 1991 Edson Cordeiro * 1994 Edson Cordeiro 2 * 1996 Terceiro Sinal * 1998 Clubbing * 1998 Disco Clubbing Ao Vivo * 1999 Disco Clubbing 2 – Mestre de Cerimônia * 2001 Dê-se ao Luxo * 2005 Contratenor * 2007 Klazz Meets the Voice, Klazz Brothers & Edson Cordeiro (Released only in Europe) * 2008 The Woman's Voice (A Homage To Great Female Singers) (Released only in Europe) * 2015 Paradiesvogel * 2017 Fado

References

External links

edsoncordeiro.com.br
official homepage
page on MySpace
* * 1967 births Brazilian opera singers Countertenors Gay musicians LGBT singers from Brazil Living people People from Santo André, São Paulo 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people LGBT people in Latin music {{Brazil-singer-stub