MARCOS SILVA Multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and educator Marcos Silva performs worldwide. Nominated for a Grammy, he has toured with many world-renowned artists, including Paquito D’Rivera, Bud Shank, Dori Caymmi, and many others. He was musical director for Flora Purim and Airto Moreira for 23 years. Marcos has written arrangements for Dizzy Gillespie’s band and replaced Gil Evans as arranger-composer of Airto’s Spiritual Mass in Germany. He is sought after as a producer of CDs, including two of his own. Marcos heads the Brazilian Music Department at the California Jazz Conservatory in Berkeley.
Born: September 8, 1954 Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
Training: 1968 – 1971 Piano, classical guitar, bass, drums
Museu da Imagem e do Som (Museum of Image and Sound) in Brazil
Composition Style: melodic Jazz-Fusion, flavored with the rhythms and harmonics of Brazil
Original compositions and arrangements have been recorded by Bud Shank, Herbie Mann, Toninho Horta, Romero Lubambo, New York’s Trio da Paz, Duduka da Fonseca as well as Flora and Airto
Professional Career:
1973 – Present Professional keyboardist, composer, arranger, and producer
1980 – 1990 Leny Andrade, Emilio Santiago, Marcio Montarroyos, Jon Lucien, Claudio Roditi
1982 – 2008 Music Director, arranger, keyboards for Flora Purim, Airto Moreira
1984 Toninho Horta
1984 – 1986 Paquito D’Rivera, Bud Shank
1998 – 2008 Dori Caymmi, Nana Caymmi, Flora & Airto (as Musical Director), Danilo Caymmi, Edu Lobo, and Joyce
Special Projects:
1983 replaced the late composer/arranger Gil Evans as arranger and co-composer of Airto’s “Missa Espiritual,” (Harmonia Mundi, 1983). Köln, Germany, conducted and recorded the mass with a 63-piece orchestra and choir.
1984 Marcos formed his group Intersection
Tours: Europe, United States, South America, Asia.
Teaching and Recognition:
1986 arranged Milton Nascimento’s “Esquinas” earned Flora Purim a 1986 Grammy nomination.
1988 arranged for the legendary Dizzie Gillespie.
1992 – 1999 California Arts Council’s Touring Roster and Artist in Residence for San Jose High School’s Music programs.
1997 – Present: Faculty – California Jazz Conservatory, Berkeley, CA; Faculty of Brazil Camp Program, CA
2001 special guest on Ivan Lins’ recording Jobiniando
2013 Nominated for the Grammy Foundation and The Recording Academy’s first-ever Music Educator Award.
Recording, Producing, Arranging:
Marcos and Intersection White & Black – (1988) and Here We Go – (1989) on
Concord Records’ Crossover label.
Bud Shank’s Tomorrow’s Rainbow.
Ricky Encarnacion’s (1991) One People, One Country, One Music;
Viva Brasil’s (1992) Festa; (2000) Viva Brasil’s Messages.
Claudia Gomez’s (1992) Salamandra, a first generation direct master CD;
(1995) Tierradentro;
Madeleine Eastman’s (1994) Art Attack;
Claudia Villela’s (1995) Asa Verde;
Claudia Villela & Ricardo Peixoto’s (2001) Inverse Universe.
Terra Sul’s (1995) MoJazz release Kindness of Strangers;
Harvey Wainapel’s (1996) Ambrosia – The Music of Kenny Baron;
Damien Masterson’s (1997) Intercambio;
Sandy Cressman’s : (1998) Homenagem Brasileira. (Produced)
(2005) Sempre no Coração.
Eddie Pasternak/Joel Evans project (2001) A Dozen Roses Ago. (Produced)
Airto’s Missa Espiritual, Struck by lightning,
Flora & Airto’s The Sun is out, The Magicians, Midnight Sun,
The Colors of Life, Queen of the Night, Speak no Evil 2003,
Flora’s Song 2005),
MaryFettig’s (Brazilian Footprints, 2008)
Dee Bell (Silva. Bell.Elation, 2013)
Sherie Friedlander (10 Degrees South, 2014)
Mary D’Orazi: (2016) To Brasil and Bacharach, A Tribute (Produced)
World-wide venues: All over Europe, South America and Asia.
In the US – Kimball’s,
The Great American Music Hall,
Yoshi’s Jazz Spot in Oakland and San Francisco,
Concord Jazz Festival,
Monterey Jazz Festival,
Russian River Jazz Festival,
San Francisco Jazz Festival,
San Jose Jazz Festival,
Kuumbwa Jazz in Santa Cruz,
Bach Dancing Dynamite Society,
Vacaville Performing Arts Series,
Crocker Museum’s Jazz Series in Sacramento,
De Young Museum’s Jazz series in San Francisco,
House of Blues,
At My Place in Los Angeles,
Le Cafe in Los Angeles,
Valhalla Music Festival in Lake Tahoe,
Jazz Alley in Seattle
Bottom Line – N.Y.
Village Vangard – N.Y.
7th Avenue South – N.Y.
Filoli – CA
The “Blue Note”chain in Japan & USA and many others.