Tião Carreiro

Origin

Monte Azul, MG

Also known as

José Dias Nunes

Years Active

1950–1993

Genres

música sertaneja, pagode de viola, moda de viola

Instruments

viola caipira, violão

Biography

Tião Carreiro, stage name of José Dias Nunes, was born in Monte Azul on December 13, 1934 and passed away in São Paulo on October 15, 1993. He was a renowned Brazilian singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, widely recognized as one of the greatest exponents of the viola caipira and a pioneer of the "Pagode de Viola" rhythm. Self-taught in his childhood, he moved with his family to the interior of São Paulo state while still young, where he began his artistic career performing in circuses and local radio programs.

Throughout his career, he formed several duos until consolidating, in 1954, his famous partnership with Antonio Henrique de Lima, forming the duo Tião Carreiro & Pardinho. Together, they recorded fundamental classics of caipira and sertaneja music, such as "Pagode em Brasília" and "Rei do Gado", having as major musical references names like Florêncio, of the duo Raul Torres and Florêncio. The musician also had prominent stints alongside composers and partners like Teddy Vieira and Lourival dos Santos, in addition to traversing genres such as cururu, cateretê, guarânia, and moda de viola.

Tião Carreiro revolutionized sertaneja music by adapting innovative instrumental techniques to the viola and by transferring the genre from the radios to large stages, theaters, and television programs. He left behind an expressive legacy composed of dozens of vinyl records, 78 rpm recordings, and hundreds of compositions. He passed away in 1993 at the age of 58, due to complications caused by diabetes, leaving his name immortalized in the history of Brazilian popular culture.

Discography

• É Isto que o Povo Quer (1976)
• Em Solo de Viola Caipira (1979)
• Sua Majestade (2018)