#6 29/06/2016

Naná Vasconcelos From: Brazil Lived: 1944-2016 Instrument: Percussion (including drums and berimbau) Style: Jazz, avant-garde, Brazilian traditional, orchestral, world fusion

Naná Vasconcelos was a genius of percussion, who could play virtually all percussion instruments, including the drum kit, many African drums, orchestral percussion and an Afro-Brazilian instrument called the berimbau. He recorded as a soloist and also worked with many different artists as a backing musician. Born in the north of Brazil, he moved to Rio de Janeiro in the 1960s where his career took off. He also contributed to film soundtracks, and set up an organisation that brought artists to work with homeless children in Brazil.

Example album: Saudades (1980)