Born on the 19th March 1960 in São Paulo, Brazil, Elias started learning to play the piano at the age of seven, and was transcribing solo portions of her parents’ jazz records by the age of twelve.
After studying for six years (and teaching by the age of fifteen) at Brazil’s prestigious Free Centre of Music Apprenticeship, she continued her classical education with Amilton Godoy and Amaral Vieria. She was also the protégé of Vinicius de Moraes, lyricist and songwriting partner of Antonio Carlos Jobim, a huge influence on Elias' work, and master of the Brazilian bossa nova movement. By the time she was seventeen years old she was touring with the best bossa nova composers and interpreters, composing her own pieces and performing at jazz clubs regularly.
Elias then moved to New York and studied privately with Olegna Fuschi at the Julliard School of Music, eventually joining jazz supergroup Steps Ahead (whose members included Eddie Gomez, Michael Brecker, Peter Erskine, and Mike Mainieri).
Her first live instrumental recording, Eliane Elias Plays Live, was recorded in Amsterdam on the 31st May 2002, and digitally released in the USA in 2010.
Elias lives in New York City with her husband, bassist Marc Johnson.
* Official site
The classical tradition meets the spontaneity of jazz through the virtuosic playing of Brazil-born and New York-based pianist Eliane Elias. A former member of jazz ensemble Steps Ahead, Elias has continued to explore two distinct musical streams through her solo recordings and her performances since the mid-'80s. In 1993, she became one of the few artists to release jazz and classical albums simultaneously. In a review of a concert in her homeland, Brazil magazine praised Elias for "her dazzling right-hand runs, executed often at frightening speeds. Her command of the keyboard was total. Her harmonic sensibility caused a sense of wonderment."
Elias may have inherited at least some of her musical talents from her mother, Lucy, a classical pianist who often played jazz records in the family home. After studying for six years at the Free Center of Music Apprenticeship in São Paulo, she continued to study classical technique with Amilton Godoy and Amaral Vieira. By her teens, Elias was composing her own pieces and performing in jazz clubs. While touring in Europe in 1981, she met jazz bassist Eddie Gomez and was encouraged to travel to New York. Arriving in the Big Apple the following year, she studied privately with Olegna Fuschi at the Juilliard School of Music. Elias' professional career received a boost when she was invited to join Steps Ahead, a jazz "supergroup" featuring Michael Brecker, Peter Erskine, Mike Manieri, and Eddie Gomez. She recorded one album with the group -- Steps Ahead -- in 1983. Shortly after leaving Steps Ahead, Elias began collaborating with trumpet player Randy Brecker, whom she subsequently married but later divorced. Their sole duo album, released in 1985, was named after their daughter Amanda. The following year, Elias launched her career as a bandleader. Since then, she's alternated tours with two different trios, one featuring drummer Jack DeJohnette and bassist Gomez and the other featuring drummer Erskine and her current husband, bassist Marc Johnson. Elias has also performed with a third trio, featuring Johnson on bass and Satoshi Takeishi on drums.
She signed with Blue Note in 1989, and released her debut for the label, So Far So Close, the same year with a slew of guests. While most of her recordings have been instrumental, Elias introduced her soft but coarse vocals on her 1990 album Eliane Elias Plays Jobim, and has employed vocals on occasion ever since. Her 1995 album Solos and Duets featured a brilliantly executed duet with Herbie Hancock. In addition to working periodically with Toots Thielemans' Brasil Project, Elias has served as musical director for Gilberto Gil's group. While she continued to record for the rest of the '90s, it was 2000's Impulsive! that proved one of the largest surprises in her career as she collaborated with conductor and arranger Bob Brookmeyer leading the Danish Radio Jazz Orchestra. In 2002 she left Blue Note for RCA's Bluebird label, where she debuted with Kissed by Nature, a primarily vocal album, and followed it up with the lovely Dreamer in 2004. Elias released Around the City in 2006, a collection of primarily vocal tracks that moved ever further into pop territory, covering music by Santana, Bob Marley, and even Beck. It was her final album for Bluebird.
She returned to Blue Note for 2007's Something for You: Elaine Elias Sings & Plays Bill Evans, fronting a trio with Johnson (who played with Evans) and drummer Joey Baron. In 2009, she issued what many have argued is her finest recording, Bossa Nova Stories, fully engaging her Brazilian heritage in bossa and samba and illustrating her singular jazz instincts as a pianist. In 2010, Savoy Records issued Timeless Eliane Elias, a compilation of tracks culled from her mid-'80s recordings Illusions and Cross Currents. In late 2010, Elias signed with Concord; in the late spring of 2011 she released Light My Fire, her debut set on the label. A year later, Elias paired with bassist Marc Johnson for the instrumental ECM date, Swept Away. In 2013, Elias paid homage to trumpeter/vocalist Chet Baker with I Thought About You: A Tribute to Chet Baker. ~ Craig Harris & Thom Jurek, Rovi
Garota de Ipanema
Eliane Elias Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
背が高くて日焼けしてる若くて美しいイパネマの娘が歩いていく
And when she passes, each one she passes goes "ah"
そして彼女とすれ違う人はみんな「ああ」って言う
When she walks, she's like a samba
That swings so cool and sways so gentle
That when she passes, each one she passes goes "ah"
彼女とすれ違う人はみんな「ああ」って言う
Oh,But I watch her so sadly
おお、しかし私は凄く悲しそうに彼女を見てる
How can I tell her, "I love you?"
どうすれば彼女に「あなたを愛してます」って伝えんだろう
Yes, I would give my heart gladly
自分の心を喜んで捧げるけど
But each day, when she walks to the sea
毎日、彼女が海へ歩いて行くとき
She looks straight ahead, not at me
彼女は私じゃないく真っ直ぐ前を見てる
Tall and tan and young and lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
背が高くて日焼けしてる若くて美しいイパネマの娘が歩いていく
And when she passes, I smile but she doesn't see, doesn't see
そして彼女とすれ違う時に私が笑顔を見せても彼女は私のことを見てない、見てない
The song "Garota de Ipanema" (The Girl from Ipanema) is a timeless classic that speaks of the beauty and allure of a young woman from the beach neighborhood of Ipanema in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The song starts by describing the girl's physical attributes - tall, tan, young, and lovely - as she goes for a walk on the beach. Her presence is so captivating that each person she passes admires her beauty and lets out a contented "ah."
As she walks, she moves like a samba, swaying her hips effortlessly and exuding coolness that makes people turn their heads. However, the singer's happiness is tinged with sadness as he watches her walk towards the sea each day, knowing that she will never notice him. He yearns to express his love for her but is too shy to speak up.
The lyrics of "Garota de Ipanema" invoke vivid imagery of the sunny beaches and warm, carefree Brazilian lifestyle, while also delving into the universal themes of unrequited love and unexpressed emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
Tall and tan and young and lovely
A beautiful girl with a tall and tan figure walked by.
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
A girl from Ipanema is walking down the street.
And when she passes, each one she passes goes "ah"
Everyone who passes her is in awe of her beauty, and they can't help but react with an 'ah.'
When she walks, she's like a samba
Her walk is so graceful, it resembles a samba dance.
That swings so cool and sways so gentle
Her movements are so cool and gentle, similar to how a samba dancer swings and sways.
Oh, but I watch her so sadly
I watch her so sadly because I am in love with her and can't have her.
How can I tell her "I love you?"
It is difficult to express my love for her.
Yes, I would give my heart gladly
I would give anything to be with her and make her happy.
But each day, when she walks to the sea
Every day she walks to the sea, and I am left alone with my thoughts.
She looks straight ahead, not at me
She doesn't notice me or my love as she walks by, which makes me feel lonely.
And when she passes, I smile but she doesn't see, doesn't see
I try to make her aware of me with a smile, but my efforts are unnoticed.
Writer(s): Antonio Carlos Jobim
Contributed by Callie G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@poleninaki2608
this version is refreshing
@mainsblanches8793
Great take on this classic!!...nice little twists and turn arounds here and there!!...
@luizantoniosacconi9723
Isto é uma joia! Uma grande interpretação e executação dessa canção consagrada no mundo.
@yurifritzarandaveramendi864
P
@yurifritzarandaveramendi864
Ío0pp0 Lincoln League YouTube video
@boobsax
Intro is the bridge starting on a BbM7 which moves to the
first A section in A major as expected. Then an abrupt modulation to BbM7 for the second A
. Then The bridge correctly starts on a BM7 with the last A section being in BbM7 as expected
Then crazy solo changes which I haven’t gotten to yet! Has anybody transcribe this?
@geraldsobel3470
She has a terrific voice, but I'm afraid the way they mixed this, or put it on YouTube, the instrumentals over power her voice.
@jourwalis-8875
Yes, it sounds like a bad mixing job.
@boobsax
I don’t hear that but I do notice the guitar being more dominant in the first half then the second half? I think?