Francisco de Morais Alves (August 19, 1898 – September 27, 1952), better known as Francisco Alves, Chico Alves or Chico Viola, was a Brazilian singer, one of the most popular in the first half of the 20th century, and considered by many to be the greatest in the country. The quality of his work earned him in 1933, by broadcaster César Ladeira, the nickname "Rei da Voz" (Voice King). He recorded more than 500

78 rpm A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog signal, analog sound Recording medium, storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove ...

albums, among them the first electrical recording made in Brazil. He performed songs composed by musicians such as

Cartola Angenor de Oliveira, known as Cartola (Portuguese for top hat), (; October 11, 1908 – November 30, 1980) was a Brazilian singer, composer and poet considered to be a major figure in the development of samba. Cartola composed, alone or with pa ...

Heitor dos Prazeres Heitor dos Prazeres (23 September 1898 — Rio de Janeiro, 4 October 1966) was a Brazilian composer, singer and painter. He was a pioneer samba composer and participated in the first samba schools in Brazil. Later in life he became known by his pai ...

and

Ismael Silva Ismael Silva may refer to: * Ismael Silva (musician) (1905-1978), Brazilian samba musician * Ismael Silva (footballer) (born 1994), Brazilian footballer {{hndis, Silva, Ismael ...

; and several songs became famous in his voice, like "Ai! que saudade da Amélia", or the first recording of samba "

Aquarela do Brasil "Aquarela do Brasil" (, 'Watercolor of Brazil'), written by Ary Barroso in 1939 and known in the English-speaking world simply as "Brazil", is one of the most famous Brazilian songs. Background and composition Ary Barroso wrote "Aquarela do Bras ...

" by

Ary Barroso Ary de Resende Barroso (1903–1964), better known as Ary Barroso, was a Brazilian composer, pianist, soccer commentator, and talent-show host on radio and TV. He was one of Brazil's most successful songwriters in the first half of the 20th centur ...

. Alves died in a car accident at the

Rodovia Presidente Dutra The Rodovia Presidente Dutra, (BR-116 – or SP-060 in the state of São Paulo), colloquially known as Via Dutra is a federal highway which runs through the eastern part of the state of São Paulo and southwestern region of the state of Rio ...

, near

Pindamonhangaba Pindamonhangaba is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the Federative units of Brazil, state of São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Brazil, located in the Paraíba Valley, between the two most active production and consumption regions in the co ...

, on September 27, 1952.

References

External links

Free recordings by Francisco Alves
on International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP) {{Authority control 20th-century Brazilian male singers 20th-century Brazilian singers 1952 deaths 1898 births