Astrud Gilberto’s death was announced by her colleague and friend Paul Ricci. “She was an important part of Brazilian music around the world and changed the lives of many people with her energy,” he said. The information was confirmed by the singer’s granddaughter Sofia Gilberto.
The song wasn’t made for her, but she made “Girl from Ipanema” famous
Her most famous song was written in 1962, the music was written by Antonio Carlos Jobim and the lyrics of the song were written in Portuguese by Vinicius de Moraes (later Norman Gimbel wrote the English version). The title girl is Helô Pinheiro, who later became a model and businesswoman, and Ipanema is a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro.
The first version of the song was recorded in 1962 by Pery Ribeiro, but the one sung three years later by Gilberto broke through. “Girl from Ipanema” was recorded by her album “Getz/Gilberto”, on which the singer collaborated with then-husband João Gilberto, Stan Getz and Antonio Carlos Jobim. In 1965, the song won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year.
Later, the song was performed by many international stars. They were, among others Dionne Warwick, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Diana Krall, Ive Mendes and Amy Winehouse. A Polish version of the text was also created – it was written by Jacek Cygan. He decided to write Polish words when he heard Stan Getz playing the piece at the Warsaw Jazz Jamboree. He talks about it in the video below:
Who was Astrud Gilberto?
The singer was born in 1940 in Brazil, her father was German. In 1959, she married João Gilberto, who was the co-creator of bossa nova. They moved to the United States in 1963 and divorced a year later. She had two sons (also from her second marriage) – both later joined her team.
Gilberto not only sang, but also wrote songs. She recorded in Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, French, German and Japanese (her father was a professor of linguistics, he took care of her education in this field). The singer received the Latin Jazz USA Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1992. Ten years later, she announced a “break” from music – she never decided to officially inform fans about the end of her career.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
