Taiguara

Taiguara
Background information
Birth name	Taiguara Chalar da Silva
Also known as	Taiguara
Born	October 9, 1945(1945-10-09)
Origin	Brazil, although born in Uruguay
Died	February 14, 1996 (aged 50)
Genres	MPB, Samba, Bossa Nova
Occupations	Musician, Composer, Songwriter, Singer, Orchestrator
Instruments	Voice, Piano, Acoustic Guitar
Years active	1965-1996
Labels	EMI/Odeon, Phillips, Continental, Movieplay
Associated acts	Hermeto Paschoal, Milton Nascimento, Vinicius de Moraes, Michel Legrand.
Website	www.taiguara.com
Notable instruments
Piano, Acoustic Guitar, Mellotron, several lesser known African instruments.

Taiguara Chalar da Silva (Montevideo, October 9, 1945 – São Paulo, February 14, 1996), whose stage name was Taiguara, was a Brazilian singer and songwriter.

Taiguara was born in Montevideo, Uruguay as his father toured the country as a musician, but grew up in Rio and later moved to São Paulo. While attending Law School at Mackenzie University, he became increasingly involved with student organized recitals and performances, eventually abandoning the course altogether to pursue a musical career full time. In 1964, he joined the Sambalanço Trio and started receiving media attention, which yielded his first offer from a record label. In 1965, Taiguara recorded his first of several albums, and in the following years won many awards.

Due to a series of disagreements with the military dictators in power, his career in Brazil was interrupted in the mid-1970s and he was forced to move abroad, settling in London, where he studied at Guildhall School of Music and Drama and recorded the album Let the Children Hear the Music, the first foreign recording by a Brazilian musician censored in Brazil (the same record was never released in England either, having been deemed "misplaced" by the studios). He also lived in a few African countries while in exile, mainly Tanzania, where he studied Journalism for a year.

Always troubled by the harsh reality of the less fortunate, he increasingly leaned towards leftist views, later becoming involved with militant activities which rallied for a fairer future and social and economical equality for all. Although he was never officially affiliated with any political parties, communist leader Luis Carlos Prestes became a great friend and mentor in his later years. Taiguara composed the song "O Calaveiro da Esperança" {The Cavalier of Hope} in his honor.

Thirteen years after performing in Brazil for the last time, Taiguara returned with the concert "Thirteen Octobers" and released two more albums: "Cançoes de Amor e Liberdade" {Songs of love and Freedom} (1984) and "Brazil Afri" {Afro Brasil} (1994) in the following years. On February 14, 1996, he died from bladder cancer. His last project, an album of songs that celebrated and examined the joys and hardships of the poor living on the slums of Rio de Janeiro, never came to completion.

Taiguara was one of the most censored Brazilian artists to date, having close to 100 songs vetoed throughout his career. Some of his biggest hits were "Universo No Teu Corpo" -- which contained a veiled celebration of atheism -- "Teu Sonho Não Acabou", "Viagem", "Berço de Marcela", "Que as Crianças Cantem Livres", "Hoje", "Amanda", "Carne e Osso", "Geração 70" and "Mudou". Not unlike many MPB artists, Taiguara composed his own music.

Discography

Partial Discography

• 1965 - Taiguara - Philips LP
• 1966 - Crônica da cidade amada - Philips LP
• 1966 - Primeiro tempo 5x0 - Philips LP
• 1968 - Taiguara, o vencedor dos festivais - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1969 - Hoje - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1970 - Viagem - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1971 - Carne e osso - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1972 - Taiguara, piano e viola - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1973 - Fotografias - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1974 - Let the children hear the music - KPM LP
• 1975 - Imyra, Tayra, Ipy, Taiguara - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1981 - Porto de Vitória/Sol do Tanganica (1981) Alvorada Continental - Compacto simples
• 1984 - Canções de amor e liberdade - Alvorada Continental Discos LP
• 1984 - Mais valia/Vos do leste/Guarânia Guarani/Anita - Alvorada Continental - Compacto duplo extraído do LP Canções de amor e liberdade.
• 1985 - Grandes sucessos de Taiguara - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1986 - Grandes sucessos de Taiguara volume 2 - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1987 - A paz do meu amor - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1988 - O talento de Taiguara - EMI-Odeon LP duplo
• 1989 - Teu sonho não acabou - EMI-Odeon LP
• 1989 - Teu sonho não acabou - EMI-Odeon CD
• 1994 - Brasil Afri - Movieplay CD

External links

• Taiguara Official Website (under construction)
• Imyra, Tayra, Ipy - Taiguara (Portuguese)
• Campanha de Repatriamento de uma obra prima ainda não disponível em solo Brasileiro (Portuguese)

References

• Allmusic.com - Taiguara (English)

See also

• Taiguara performing one of his greatest hits, "Universo No Teu Corpo".
• Taiguara performing another one of his popular compositions, "Teu Sonho Não Acabou".
• Taiguara performing "The Cavalier of Hope" song dedicated to Luis Carlos Prestes
• Taiguara performing "Imagine", by John Lennon.