Naná Vasconcelos

Origin

Recife, PE

Also known as

Juvenal de Holanda Vasconcelos

Years Active

1960–2016

Genres

jazz, world music, MPB, maracatu, experimental music

Instruments

percussion, berimbau, drums, body percussion, bongo, maracas

Biography

Naná Vasconcelos was a legendary Brazilian percussionist whose innovative approach to rhythm transformed the landscape of world music and jazz. Born in Recife, he began his musical journey as a child, learning to play on household pots and pans before joining his father’s band at age twelve. By the 1960s, he had moved to Rio de Janeiro, where he collaborated with iconic figures like Milton Nascimento, a partnership that helped define the sophisticated sound of the era. He later joined the Quarteto Livre with Geraldo Azevedo, participating in the influential International Song Festivals of the period.

He became internationally renowned for his mastery of the berimbau, a single-string instrument traditionally used in capoeira, which he elevated to a symphonic level. His career spanned continents, leading to eight Grammy wins and being named the world's best percussionist by Down Beat magazine eight times. Vasconcelos was a pioneer in using body percussion and unconventional objects to create soundscapes, often blending the avant-garde with the traditional maracatu rhythms of his homeland.

Beyond his solo work, he was a prolific collaborator, working with Brazilian masters like Egberto Gismonti and Itamar Assumpção, as well as numerous international jazz stars. Even as he gained global fame, he remained deeply rooted in his Pernambucan heritage, famously leading the opening ceremony of the Recife Carnival for fifteen consecutive years. His final works included a collaboration with Zeca Baleiro and a posthumous project involving pianist Gil Jardim.

Discography

• El Increible Nana Con Agustin Pereyra Lucena (1971)
• The Incredible NANÁ (1971)
• Africadeus (1973)
• Amazonas (1973)
• Nana, Nelson Angelo, Novelli (1975)
• Manduka (1976)
• Perry Robinson - Nana Vasconcelos - Badal Roy – Kundalini (1978)
• Saudades (1979)
• Codona (1979)
• Jan Garbarek, Nana Vasconcelos, John Abercrombie – Eventyr (1981)
• Codona 2 (1981)
• The Brazilian Beat Of Guanabara (1982)
• Mara (32) Et Nana Vasconcelos – Ntsano (1983)
• Zumbi (1983)
• Codona 3 (1983)
• Rakebra / Nanatroniko (1984)
• Badal Roy, Mike Richmond, Naná Vasconcelos & Steve Gorn – Asian Journal (1985)
• Egberto Gismonti / Naná Vasconcelos – Duas Vozes (1985)
• Bush Dance (1987)
• Naná Vasconcelos / Antonello Salis – Lester (1987)
• Nana Vasconcelos & The Bushdancers – Rain Dance (1989)
• Gismonti / Vasconcelos – Jazzbühne Berlin '84 (1990)
• Arild Andersen, Ralph Towner, Nana Vasconcelos – If You Look Far Enough (1993)
• Jards Macalé convidado especial Naná Vasconcelos – Let's Play That (1994)
• Storytelling (1995)
• Tupahn Featuring Naná Vasconcelos – Foreshadows (1995)
• Andy Sheppard, Nana Vasconcelos, Steve Lodder – Inclassificable (1995)
• Jean-Marie Machado Featuring Nana Vasconcelos – Vibracordes (1995)
• Fragments - Modern Tradition (1997)
• Contaminação (1999)
• Pierre Barouh, Jacques Higelin, Mahjun, Nana Vasconcellos, Dominique Barouh, David McNeil, Jean-Roger Caussimon – Dites 33 ! Volume 1 - Vaison-la-Romaine / Carpentras 72 (1999)
• Minha Lôa (2002)
• Naná Vasconcelos e Itamar Assumpção – Isso Vai Dar Repercussão (2004)
• Chegada (2005)
• Vasconcelos _ Salis _ Consolmagno – Fandango Jazz Festival Rome Italy 15th July 2004 (2005)
• Trilhas (2006)
• Pablo Arrieta & Naná Vasconcelos – D'aquí pra Là (2008)
• Joyce, Nana Vasconcelos & Mauricio Maestro – Visions Of Dawn (2009)
• Naná Vasconcelos, Caito Marcondes, Marcos Suzano, Coração Quiáltera – Sementeira - Sons da Percussão (2010)
• Sinfonia & Batuques (2011)
• Mauricio Maestro Featuring Nana Vasconcelos And Special Guest Kay Lyra – Upside Down (2011)
• Fabiano Araújo, Arild Andersen, Naná Vasconcelos – Rheomusi (2012)
• Recife (2012)
• Murat Verdi Feat. Nana Vasconcelos – Shuara (2012)
• 4 Elementos (2013)
• Zeca Baleiro, Naná Vasconcelos, Paulo Lepetit – Café no Bule (2015)
• Don Cherry's New Researches Featuring Naná Vasconcelos – Organic Music Theatre (Festival de Jazz de Chateauvallon 1972) (2021)
• NU - Don Cherry, Edward Blackwell, Carlos Ward, Nana Vasconcelos, Mark Helias – Live In Glasgow (2021)