Fernando de Oliveira

Origin

Recife, PE

Also known as

Fernando Otávio da Rosa Borges de Oliveira

Years active

1950

Genres

frevo, samba, ciranda

Biography

Fernando de Oliveira was born in Recife on March 1, 1932. The son of Valdemar de Oliveira and Diná de Oliveira, and brother of Reinaldo de Oliveira, he built a prominent career in the performing arts and Brazilian music, working as an actor, playwright, theater director, and composer. Before fully dedicating himself to theater and composition, he studied aviation and worked as a commercial pilot, in addition to working as a merchant and real estate developer.

Alongside his brother Reinaldo de Oliveira, Fernando actively collaborated in running the Teatro de Amadores de Pernambuco and the Teatro Valdemar de Oliveira. As a playwright, he wrote plays such as "Valdemar vivo", "Geninha 80 anos? Não acredito", "Paz, nossa arma", and "Frevo, Capoeira e Passo", the latter co-authored with his brother, with whom he also shared the creation of several works.

As a composer, he stood out in the creation of traditional Pernambucan genres, authoring sambas-enredos, frevos-canções, frevos de bloco, and cirandas. Among his best-known compositions are "Carnaval sensacional", "Onde andará Maria?" — made in partnership with his parents and brother —, "Tome frevo pela proa" with Demócrito Laurindo, and "Ela sabe" in partnership with Gildo Branco. Fernando de Oliveira passed away in his hometown, Recife, on November 23, 2020.