Baden Powell

When Brazilian jazz guitarist Baden Powell de Aquino died in 2000, braZZil magazine said, "The sounds he extracted from his guitar were magic and unique." Known as just Baden Powell, he was named for the founder of the Boy Scouts by his father, a keen scouter. In a career that took him from the poorer neighbourhoods in the state of Rio de Janeiro to international fame, he was known for his dedication to musical precision and his ability to place African roots in the bossa nova. More of a star in Europe than America, he made dozens of recordings and wrote songs that became jazz standards. He learned to play guitar as a child from renowned composer and guitarist Jaime Florence and later studied at the National School of Music in the city of Rio de Janeiro. First prize in a radio competition led to professional work and as a teenager he was allowed to play in nightclubs and on radio and television. The first song he wrote was titled 'Samba Triste' in 1956 with lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes and they went on to write hundreds of songs together including 'Deixa', 'Samba Em Prelúdio', 'Consolação', 'Formosa', 'Berimbau', and 'Samba da Bênção'. He made his album debut in 1959 with 'Apresentando Baden Powell e Seu Violão' and released albums almost every year until 1998 when 'Suíte Afro-Consolação' came out. Troubled by heavy drinking and ill health for most of his life, he remained a prodigious writer and performer until his death from pneumonia aged 63.

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