Raphael Rabello...
Richard
if anyone had some anecdotes/info on him. Scouting around the web
reveals little on him. I do know that Rabello is regarded as something
of a genius amongst brazilian guitarists, but that he died young ( his
30's). I also know he was friendly with De Lucia.
On RMMCG his name has cropped up occasionally and someone there has
stated authoratively that Raphael used fingerpads and no nails in his
playing. In listening to the little of his music that I have this
seems wrong, as I clearly hear the sound of his nails at times in the
recordings. Am I wrong?
What do people here (who have heard him) think of his playing? How
would you compare Baden Powell and Rabello's playing?-- Bola Sete?
Richard
Nazodesu
<richard...@ozemail.com.au> wrote:
> Raphael's name has come up here a little of late, and I was interested
> if anyone had some anecdotes/info on him. Scouting around the web
> reveals little on him. I do know that Rabello is regarded as something
> of a genius amongst brazilian guitarists, but that he died young ( his
> 30's). I also know he was friendly with De Lucia.
He had a car accident and as a result of his hospitalization he both
contracted a HIV and an addiction to pain-relieving drugs of what kind
I don't know. When he actually died it was apparently due to the
complications from the HIV/AIDS.
He ate and smoked like a fiend.
When a teenager, he and cavaquinho-playing syster Luciana were
instrumental in the revival of Choro in Brazil. There were phenoms at
a very young age.
Early in his career he had to save a lot of money to buy his Ramirez
guitar from--Jobim! That's right, he bought Jobim's guitar and played
it for many years. He loved it. It was his pride and joy. His wife
(perhaps he) thought it so critical he was BURIED with the damn thing!
Sheesh. I figure there is another young guitarist out there for whom
owning it could be an inspiration to greatness. Not in this world.
> On RMMCG his name has cropped up occasionally and someone there has
> stated authoratively that Raphael used fingerpads and no nails in his
> playing. In listening to the little of his music that I have this
> seems wrong, as I clearly hear the sound of his nails at times in the
> recordings. Am I wrong?
I think he played both ways at different times. One of his albums is a
tribute to Dilermando Reis. From my recordings of Reis he not only
played with his fingers but also on steel strings--at least at times.
Perhaps thats why Rabello took different approaches, and perhaps the
statement was in reference to this tribute album.
> What do people here (who have heard him) think of his playing? How
> would you compare Baden Powell and Rabello's playing?-- Bola Sete?
I like peaches best, but others like apples. I think Powell is an
incredible composer, I think Rabello plays killer 7-string (check his
side with Paulo Moura "Does Irmaos". Powell played brilliant classical
and Bossa, Rabello knew samba (and choro) inside and out, but also
playes these other styles brilliantly. Sete is a little unkempt for me.
Rabello has a fire that Powell does not, also a bit on the edge. I
think Rabello was for more given to and capable of complete
improvisation, and I think Powell was more inclined to the injection of
"variations" on specific pieces. I think Rabello came much closer to
what we traditionally think of as a jazz player relative to invention.
I've never heard a bad album out of him, and he his working his almost
always ear-perking even in the background.
He recorded an album for GSP, "Cry My Guitar", I'm not sure if it was
released or not--but the point is that he intended to provide
transcriptions of all the pieces for their publication. In much the
same way as Bellinati did the Garoto works and Paschoito did the
Nogueira works. GSP can be slow and plodding but they eventually get
there:
Guitar Solo Publications
Vc: (415) 896-1144
Fx: (415) 896-1155
Email: g...@sirius.com
Web: http://www.gspguitar.com
---
Retail: 1411 Clement St.,
San Francison, CA 94118
Vc: (415) 386-0395
Fx: (415) 668-2816
Here's an interesting tidbit. I note that amg mispells his name! As
Rabelo with a single "L". Probably because the person who wrote this,
clearly a Brazilian mispells (mostly) it throughout. Brazilian's don't
seem to care a lot about double-consonants.
Also in their listing for his album with Romero Lubambo they spell it
Rubelo. Go figure. That may be on reason you can't find the following,
cut and pasted for general amusement from
<http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=Bwnk9keptjq7n~C>
The don't even START to list his recordings, as is frequently the case
among Brazilian stuff.
=== paste begins ===
In spite of his short life, Rafael Rabelo was acknowledged
internationally by his virtuosity. His mastery can be checked out on 16
released solo albums, on more than 400 he recorded as a sideman, and
several solo tracks still unreleased. He worked with such artists as
Paulo Moura, Elizete Cardoso, Turíbio Santos, Canhoto da Paraíba, and
Paul Simon among many others. A flamenco-style proponent (he played
with his fingertips, not with fingernails) within the Brazilian popular
roots and always foreseeing the classical tradition on the horizon, he
was celebrated by many first-class musicians and critics worldwide. Pat
Metheny, for example, said about him: "He is the most prominent
guitarist of our generation and one of the greatest of all times."
His grandfather, José de Queirós Batista, a violonista himself, was a
strong influencein Rabelo's family, heavily bent over the musical side.
Rabelo's sisters, Luciana and Amélia, are also professional
distinguished musicians, a cavaquinista and a singer, respectively.
Rabelo, a self-taught violonista, started to learn music at age seven.
Influenced by Dino Sete Cordas, he was taught later by Meira (Jayme
Florêncio). At 12, he was already playing professionally. At 14, he
formed his first choro regional, Os Carioquinhas, in which Luciana also
took part. In 1977, Os Carioquinhas recorded their first LP, Os
Carioquinhas no Choro (Som Livre), playing the seven-stringed Brazilian
guitar. In 1979, together with mandolin virtuose Joel do Nascimento, he
formed the group Camerata Carioca. The group specialized in playing
music in the choro tradition and aimed at a synthesis of the erudite
sophistication that was displayed both by the group's name and by its
members' technical proficiency.
The group caught the attention of distinguished composer, arranger, and
orchestrator Radamés Gnatalli, who was personally dedicated to put down
any segregation between classical tradition and popular Brazilian
music. It was natural that Rabelo would later become one of the main
interpreters of Radamés' violão production. In 1984, he and Radamés
recorded the album Tributo a Garoto through Funarte, with Garoto's
compositions and Gnatalli's "Concertino No. 2." In that same year, he
recorded for Polygram his first solo album, Rafael Sete Cordas, with
compositions by Tom Jobim, Augustin Barrios, Jacó do Bandolim, João
Pernambuco, and others.
In 1986, he presented himself, together with singer Ney Matogrosso, in
the show Pescador de Pérolas, which, out of the solid acclamation
received, became a national tour and a recorded album, Pescador de
Pérolas. In that same year, Rabelo recorded Rafael Rabelo Interpreta
Radamés Gnatalli through Vision. In 1988, he recorded Rafael Rabelo,
again for Vision. In 1989, he broke his right arm in a car accident,
but that didn't stop him from accompanying Elizete Cardoso just four
months later in her show Todo Sentimento, released in 1991 as a CD
through BMG/RCA. In 1990, his duet with Ney Matogrosso yielded another
show, À Flor da Pele, recorded and released by Som Livre as À Flor da
Pele. In 1991, he recorded a great album with his first idol, Dino Sete
Cordas. The album, through Caju Music, brought his name as Raphael for
marketing purposes. Raphael Rabello & Dino Sete Cordas has several
classic choros by João Pernambuco, Pixinguinha, and Ernesto Nazareth;
sambas by Noel Rosa and Lamartine Babo; and the virtuosistic valse
"Desvairada," by Garoto. With Paulo Moura, he recorded the album Dois
Irmãos in 1991, through Caju Music/Milestone, with sambas, choros, and
Tom Jobim' valse "Luísa." This CD would be awarded with the Prêmio
Sharp in the next year as Best Instrumental Album. But in the same
year, Rabelo was awarded with a Prêmio Sharp for his duo album with
Carlão.
In 1992, he released through BMG/RCA his album Todos os Tons, with his
arrangements and transcriptions of Tom Jobim' compositions. The album
had as guests Jobim himself, Paco de Lucia, Paulo Moura, Luiz Avelar,
Nico Assumpção, and other distinguished musicians. In 1993, he recorded
with Romero Lubambo for the album Shades of Rio (BMG/RCA). A more
diversified mix, it has compositions by him, Dori Caymmi, Jobim, Ary
Barroso, Pixinguinha, Gnattalli, and others, exploring not only the
choro, but other languages such as samba-canção. In that same year, he
recorded for the same label Delicatesse, with another choro master, Déo
Rian, in which the only popular composition was by Jacó do Bandolim,
all the rest being classical music. In 1994 and 1995, he was awarded
again with a Prêmio Sharp as Best Soloist. In 1994, he displayed his
arranging skills, transcribing important pieces recorded and/or
composed by the virtuoso violonista Dilermando Reis for his own
performing style. This album yielded him another Prêmio Sharp award as
Best Instrumental Album.
In 1994, he moved to California, where he lectured at the Los Angeles
Music University and also recorded two more albums there. In 1995, he
released his Back to Life album in Los Angeles. He then returned to
Brazil to engage in a project with a foundation maintained by the state
bank Banco do Brasil. The project, entitled Orgulho do Brasil (Brazil's
Pride), consisted of a series of records dedicated to several Brazilian
composers. It began with the composer Capiba. This would be the last
effort of Rabelo's and he committed himself to it. Unfortunately, the
Banco do Brasil Foundation decided to abandon the project just as it
was almost finished, offering no explanation. A 1997 release, Em
Concerto (With Armandinho) by Spotlight, was of a live recorded show of
Rabelo's and also brings another live show, by mandolinist Armandinho
(and not a show with both of them, as the title suggests). It was
unauthorized by Rabelo while he was still alive as he thought it wasn't
good enough to be released, due to technical problems. The project
under which those shows was developed, Música Viva, was denounced by
Rafael's sister Luciana (she was a regular Rabelo accompanist whenever
he played or recorded with a regional). According to her, all musicians
involved in that show, including her, not only hadn't authorized its
release on CD, but also hadn't received any rights for it. -- Alvaro
Neder
=== paste ends ===
thomas
Paulinho Nogueira is the guy who plays without nails. Rabello
is much more modern in his harmonic conception than the two 1960s
bossa guys you mentioned. They're all great musicians.
Thomas
i think you're right, that he's playin' with nails. Take a look at the
picture:
http://users.compulink.gr/micmic/rrabello/rrabello.htm
and get some other infos there (if you don't know this page.
I didn't know that he died in 1995, it's a misery.
I know his recordings "Todos os Tons", "Dilermando Reis" and the
recording with Dino 7 cordas. They are all very different (modern,
classical and "brazilian folk" (different styles)) and very personal
and fine recordings.
Thomas
Richard
Thanks for all the interesting info re Raphael. Knowing that you are
currently on a gtr trio kick, and that you have an interest in the
brazilian nylon string players, I must recommend an incredible record
to you...
The guitar player is Sylvain Luc, and the record is "Sud".
This is nylon (Godin) gtr trio at the highest level. Sylvain has GREAT
time and a wonderful lyricism to his playing, and the music the trio
plays is adventurous and virtuosic. Luc is one of the best players
around today, check him out!
BTW, are you primarily a nylon string player? What bag are you playing
out of?
Richard
Nazodesu
> The guitar player is Sylvain Luc, and the record is "Sud".
> This is nylon (Godin) gtr trio at the highest level. Sylvain has GREAT
> time and a wonderful lyricism to his playing, and the music the trio
> plays is adventurous and virtuosic. Luc is one of the best players
> around today, check him out!
Duly noted.
> BTW, are you primarily a nylon string player? What bag are you playing
> out of?
I played folk, then rock, then blues in the mid-60's to early 70's.
Then jazz through the seventies with a heavy focus on Brazilian musics.
In the early 80's got a day job, focused primarily on Brazilian and
Latin musics, and switched to nylon around 87, which I played
exclusively for about 10 years. I started getting back into jazz more
deliberately a couple of years ago, though I'd always played it a fair
amount, regardless of instrument; I picked up accordion, trombone, sax,
chromatic harmonica, bass, and keyboards, and most latin percussion
along the way--just for fun.
All in all, I'm more a jazz player than anything. Nylon string is just
so hard to play gracefully than electric. On electric I can close my
eyes forget the tune and the key completely and just blow on guitar,
whereas with nylon I'm always wrestling a bear. That complete ease of
playing has never been the same.
Along the way I've wrecked any possible right hand "style" from
emerging. I play with my fingers, or with a pick, and with both of
them I have 2-3 different modes of playing. So that will never get
unraveled in this lifetime. As such I sometimes sound like a rock,
blues or folk player as much as anything else...
In sum: who knows?
JB Sack
7c902b59.0203...@posting.google.com, "Thomas" <top...@web.de>
wrote:
There is no way you can tell if he is playing with or without nails from
this picture. You are fooling yourself or are blind. He is (was) a
tremendous player player however.