Hermeto Pascoal

Geoffrey Dean

Hermeto Pascoal was born in Olho dAgua Brazil on July 22, 1936 to father Pascoal Jose
da Costa and mother Vergelina Eulialia de Oliveira. Hermeto gravitated towards the sound he
heard in nature from an early age. He created a pumpkin mammon pipe to make a fife to play for
the birds. He played with the sounds in nature everywhere he could before trying his fathers 8bass accordion around the age of 7. Soon he and his brother played receptions and parties
alternating on accordion and tambourine.
Pascoal spent much of these early years practicing in part due to his albinism. His
inability to work outside was substituted with intense indoor practice during these years as he
developed his musicianship. He would continue to apply the sounds of nature in his future career.
I played frevo for people to dance to at the local parties in Lagoa di Canoa, Alagoas. Frevo,
forr, I played a lot of styles. In fact it was more forr than anything, but I also played frevo.
Forr is a style from northeast Brazil, it's a rhythm. Today, in my group, the majority of
musicians play forr, but with a universal language.1 Pascoal was already performing on
accordion when he was invited to play at the Delfim Verde Night Club by guitar player Heraldo
do Monte where he discovered piano. He spent the latter half of the 1950s learning and

1 Interview: Hermeto Pascoal on Making Universal Music and Boxing Miles Davis.
Accessed April 4, 2014. http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/magazine/hermeto-pascoalinterview

performing on piano with the Fafa Lemos band before deciding to pursue his fortune in the
music business.2
He moved to Sao Paulo in 1961 and played the night club scene. Around this time
Hermeto began to study the flute. Bossa nova hadn't started yet. When I moved to So
Paulo, bossa nova really began. I mean, it might have existed, but nobody knew
what it was yet. Bossa was beautiful... It was a combination of erudite music,
classical music and also jazz. All music has its influences. 3 Pascoal cycled through a

number of bands during this period. First the Som Quatro band then the Sambrasa trio which
primarily played Samba and Brazilian folk songs. Next Hermeto created the Quartelo Novo.
With Novo Pascoal was able to explore television and radio work, further expanding his
horizons. At this time Hermeto Pascoal was rigorously composing and arranging. His notoriety
grew when he appeared on Miles Davis Live-Evil album which featured three of his
compositions. Highly influenced by folk music from rural brazil.4
Pascoal is important in his development of post-bossa Brazilian music. He is credited for
taking it in previously undiscovered directions. His tendencies to use anything at his disposal as
an instrument and his talents as an arranger and composer caused him to emerge as one of the
most important Brazilian musicians of the second half of the 20th century.

2 Official Website Of Hermeto Pascoal. Accessed April 2, 2014.

http://hermetopascoal.com.br/english/index.asp

3 Interview: Hermeto Pascoal on Making Universal Music and Boxing Miles Davis.
Accessed April 4, 2014. http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/magazine/hermeto-pascoalinterview

4 Official Website Of Hermeto Pascoal. Accessed April 2, 2014.

http://hermetopascoal.com.br/english/index.asp

The album Slaves Mass serves as a representation of the diversity found in Pascoals music. It
seems fitting that the first tune on the album is called Mixing Pot. The tune is just that, with
Pascoal on Fender Rhodes, Clavinet, and doubling a melody on Flute. The way Pascoal mixes
the electric funky instruments within the Brazilian samba rhythms and percussion exemplifies his
cosmopolitanism. The second and title track Slaves Mass presents a much different sonic
environment. It contrasts an acoustic guitar with audio of a pig oinking and squealing. This
importation of real world sound is one of the main elements of Pascoals individuality. A few
tracks deeper into the album, a further culmination of styles and instruments is demonstrated in
the track Cannon (Dedicated to Cannonball Adderly). The name of this track alone
acknowledges Pascoals appreciation for jazz in recognizing the great saxophonist Adderly in the
title. The tune however is not in swing feel or does it resemble jazz in any way. In fact there is no
steady beat throughout the tune at all. Cannon opens with a rubato flute solo before chipmunk
like voices creep into the mix. The high pitched vocal samples are contrasted with normal male
voices saying barely sentence fragments. There is what sounds like a heartbeat emerging and
disappearing through the seven minutes of sound. It is more a sonic experiment than a strict
song form. Lastly the fifth track on the album titled Just Listen is a demonstration of Pascoals
virtuosity on the piano. It is a free piano piece very reminiscent of Cecil Taylor, showing yet
another influence on the multifaceted highly technical performing Pascoal is capable of. These
three isolated tracks only scratch the surface of the versatility that has made Pascoal what some
call the greatest musician in the world.

Sources:
Pascoal, Hermeto. Official Website Of Hermeto Pascoal. Accessed April 2, 2014.
http://hermetopascoal.com.br/english/index.asp
Smadja, Jez. Interview: Hermeto Pascoal on Making Universal Music and Boxing Miles
Davis. Accessed April 4, 2014. http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/magazine/hermetopascoal-interview