The most high-profile percussionist of the 1970s and still among the most famous, Airto Moreira (often simply known by his first name) helped make percussion an essential part of many modern jazz groups; his tambourine solos can border on the amazing. Airto originally studied guitar and piano before becoming a percussionist. He played locally in... [+] Read More

Yes No

Naná Vasconcelos is one of the cluster of endlessly inventive Brazilian percussionists who were changing the direction and sounds of Brazilian jazz in the post-bossa nova 1970s. Vasconcelos is an especially inventive virtuoso of the berimbau, the weird yet expressive instrument shaped like an archer's bow, and he is also adept at the... [+] Read More

Yes No

The Brazilian-born Paulinho Da Costa, an endlessly adaptable percussionist with a knack for hitting precisely the right isolated beat at the right time, became one of the most in-demand sidemen in Los Angeles' busy recording studios in the late '70s and early '80s. He started playing his instruments at age seven, eventually accumulating over 200... [+] Read More

Yes No