Paulo Moura (15 July 1932 – 12 July 2010) was one of Brazil's best-loved instrumentalists. A Grammy award-winning clarinettist, saxophonist and composer, he blurred the lines between classical and popular music, recording more than 40 albums which journeyed between dancehall, samba, bossa nova, jazz and orchestral music. He was a hero and friend to a younger generation of virtuoso musicians inspired by his rare talent, huge lungs and legendary charm.
Moura was born in São José do Rio Preto, in São Paulo state. Aged nine, he was given his first clarinet and by 1944 he was playing alongside his father, Pedro Moura, also a musician. In 1945, Moura's family moved to Rio de Janeiro, where the young clarinettist began studying at the National Music School (now the Escola de música da UFRJ) and performed with the Brazilian Symphonic Orchestra.
Moura's father reputedly urged his son to train as a tailor. Instead he quickly immersed himself in Rio's musical scene, simultaneously playing in orchestras, big bands and at the many samba dancehalls that proliferated during Rio's swinging 50s. By the age of 14 he was a professional musician.
His first solo recording, Moto Perpetuo, was released in 1956. By the late ’50s, Mr. Moura had also won a spot as lead clarinetist in the orchestra of the Municipal Theater in Rio; he played a Debussy rhapsody at his audition. But at the same time he was working as an accompanist to visiting American artists like Lena Horne, Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald and Sammy Davis Jr. That dual situation persisted until 1978, when he decided to quit the orchestra and dedicate himself exclusively to a solo career. Moura was heavily influenced by North American jazz and tried to "jazzify" the sounds of his homeland.
Moura had a long connection to the great Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim. During the bossa nova boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s he played with Jobim and other luminaries of the genre, among them Sergio Mendes. As a member of the group Bossa Rio, which also included Mendes, he participated in a bossa nova night at Carnegie Hall in November 1962, and played on the American saxophonist Cannonball Adderley’s album “Cannonball’s Bossa Nova” that same year.
Moura also wrote the soundtracks for several Brazilian films and television series, occasionally appearing as an actor, and arranged music for Milton Nascimento, Elis Regina, João Bosco and other singers. In addition, for two years in the 1980s he served as director of the Museum of Image and Sound in Rio. In 1996, he was also awarded with the Prêmio Sharp as Best Popular Instrumentalist. Other awards received by him include Prêmio José Sarney, Villa-Lobos, Brahma Extra Prizes, and Honorary Citizenship in Rio de Janeiro.
His 1998 album Rhapsody in Bossa, a tribute to George Gershwin, mixed tracks such as Summertime and Rhapsody in Blue with bossa nova standards. His CD Paulo Moura e Os Oito Batutas was listed by Barnes & Noble as one of the top 10 recommendations of the year for 1998.
His fame grew following his appearance in Brasileirinho (2005), an award-winning documentary about Brazilian choro music, directed by Mika Kaurismäki. In 2000, Moura became the first Brazilian instrumentalist to win the Latin Grammy for his tribute to the Brazilian composer Pixinguinha. His last album, AfroBossaNova, came out in 2009. He was on the State Council of Culture in Rio de Janeiro, a Councillor of the Federal Council of Music, and President of the Museum Foundation of Image and Sound.
Paulo Moura died on July 12, 2010, in the hospital he was treated since July 4 due to lymphoma. "No matter where he was playing, he always maintained the same posture and this just added to his elegance," said Gonçalves, who was at Moura's bedside as the clarinettist played the choro classic Doce de Coco shortly before his death. "I have the feeling that he was trying to say goodbye, and to give his friends a blessing. It was a farewell, but a farewell on a high."
(Edited from the Guardian,The New York Times & Wikipedia)