Martinho da Vila (born February 12, 1938) is a Brazilian singer and composer who is considered to be one of the main representatives of samba and MPB. He is a prolific songwriter, with hundreds of recorded songs across over 40 solo albums. He also has many songs that were recorded by singers from different musical genres.

Internationally celebrated artists such as Nana Mouskouri (Greece), Ornella Vanoni (Italy), Katia Guerreiro (Portugal), Rosario Flores (Spain) have put their voices to Martinho’s songs and lyrics.

As a singer, he is considered by critics as one of the top exponents of samba to have ever lived. Among his many national collaborations, a few notable names are Zeca Pagodinho, Arlindo Cruz, Chico Buarque, Beth Carvalho, Noel Rosa, Alcione, among others. Furthermore, Martinho composed some of the most important samba enredos (samba school themed songs) and has forged a solid partnership with the Vila Isabel samba school.

In spite of being a self-taught singer / songwriter with no academic background, Martinho has a great connection with classical music. He participated in the symphonic project "Samba Classics" under the baton of the late Maestro Silvio Barbato, which went on to be performed by several classical orchestras such as the Belo Horizonte, Brasilia, and Espirito Santo Orchestras, as well as the Orquestra Petrobras and the Orfeônica of Denmark. He also devised, in partnership with Maestro Bruno Leonardo, the Black Concert, a Symphonic performance that focuses on the participation of black musicians in classical music.

In addition to being a celebrated singer and songwriter, Martinho is also a writer and author of 13 books: Notable works include Os Lusófonos, republished in Portugal, as well as Joanna and Joanes - A Fluminense Romance, and Ópera Negra, which was later translated into French. At the Book Fair in Paris in 2015, Martinho released his novel Os Lusófonos.

As a journalist, Martinho writes articles for O Globo, Folha de São Paulo and O Estadão newspapers, several magazines, and, for two years, he was a weekly columnist of the newspaper O Dia.

He is also politically active and a prominent figure and spokesperson for Afro-Brazilian issues as well as for the Communist Party of Brazil. He is the author of six books, and has been a recording artist since 1969.

Apart from his own interpretations, Simone stands out as one of his greatest interpreters, with a whole album dedicated to him, entitled Café com leite. ...

Source: Article "Martinho da Vila" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Martinho José Ferreira, ou Martinho da Vila, né le 12 février 1938 à Duas Barras, est un chanteur et compositeur brésilien de samba.

Il est affilié à l'école de samba Vila Isabel d'où est issu son surnom et, depuis 2005, il est membre du Parti communiste du Brésil (PCdoB).

Source: Article "Martinho da Vila" de Wikipédia en français, soumis à la licence CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Martinho José Ferreira é um cantor, compositor e escritor. Ele está entre os mais celebrados artistas brasileiros vivos.

O artista nasceu em Duas Barras (Rio de Janeiro) no dia 12 de fevereiro de 1938.

Infância

Filho de lavradores (Josué Ferreira e Teresa de Jesus Ferreira), Martinho nasceu em um sábado de carnaval. Martinho veio ao mundo no interior do Estado do Rio de Janeiro - mais precisamente na Fazenda do Cedro Grande - e se mudou para a capital quando tinha apenas 4 anos.

O garoto foi criado na Serra dos Pretos Forros (em Lins de Vasconcelos, subúrbio carioca) e cursou a escola primária no Engenho de Dentro.

Carreira

O futuro artista começa a compor para a escola Aprendizes da Boca do Mato em 1958. Como não conseguia viver só de música atuou como Auxiliar de Químico Industrial, como contador e datilógrafo no Exército entre 1956 e 1969. Participa dos festivais da TV Record em 1967 e 1968 com os sambas Menina Moça e Casa de Bamba. É na década de 70 que a sua carreira decola de vez. Na década de 80 seu principal projeto foi incentivando o intercâmbio cultural com Angola. Martinho organizou o show Canto Livre de Angola gravado em 1983. O artista grava uma série de discos ao longo da carreira como Conto das Lavadeiras (1989), Martinho da Vida (1990), Tá Delícia, Tá Gostoso (1995), Lusofonia (2000) e o Do Brasil e do Mundo (2007). Produz também os DVDs Conexões (2004) e Brasilatinidade (2005).