Waldemar Bastos
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Waldemar Bastos

Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal | INDIE

Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal | INDIE
Band World Acoustic

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Discography


„Estamos Juntos“, 1983, EMI, Brazil

„Angola minha Namorada“, 1990, EMI-Valentim de Carvalho

„Pitanga Madura“, 1992, EMI-Valentim de Carvalho

„Pretaluz/Blacklight“, 1997, Luaka Bop, Warner Brothers

„Renascence“, 2005, World Connection

„Classics of my Soul“ 2012, Enja

featured songs:

„Telling stories to the Sea - Adventures in Afropea 3“, Luaka Bop, Warner Brothers, 1995

„Tierra Session 02“, S.G.A.E. , 1998

„Greenpeace Brasil“, MCD World Music, 1999

„Primeiro Canto“ – Dulce Pontes, Polydor 1999

„ World Music Season Sampler 1999/2000“, Ryko/World Music, 1999

„Scratch that Itch - Slow Jams“, Luaka Bop, Virgin, 2000

„Global Transmissions - a World Music Sampler“, Narada World 2000

„Moyo“ – Keiko Matsui, Shout Factory, 2007

„In the Name of Love – Africa Celebrates U2“ , Shout Factory 2008

Photos

Bio


Waldemar Bastos was born near the
border with Zaire in NBanza Congo, a little town which was the first capital
city of the ancient kingdom of Angola. He started singing at a very early age. One
day, my father arrived home and found me playing his concertina. In the
following Christmas he gave me an accordion as a gift...
From then on, a
young Waldemar dedicated his heart and soul to music. Since money was scarce,
the little kid chose music lessons over the possibility of getting a bicycle. For
many years, since I was a kid, I was in various bands, and travelled throughout
Angola playing all kinds of music: pop, rock, blues, tangos, waltzes. My music
is defined by my own life experiences, praise for Angolan identity, and a call
for universal brotherhood. It is gratifying for me to hear critics say, as it
recently happened in the USA, that my music is universal. That it is not a
regional music, but instead for people everywhere.


In the meantime, Angola won its
independence and followed the long socialist road. Bastos went to Portugal and later to Berlin and
from there to
 Brazil,
where he became acquainted with some well known musicians, such as Chico
Buarque, Joo do Vale, Elba Ramalho, Djavan and Clara Nunes who had been in Angola
in the late seventies. Waldemar finds EMI-Odeon, and records his first album,
Estamos Juntos. He recorded his second album, the highly praised Angola
Minha Namorada, five years later. In 1990 
he visited Angola, and did a concert in front of 200.00 people in
Luanda. While travelling through Lisbon, David Byrne, the mastermind of Luaka
Bop record label, and ex-leader of the Talking Heads, bought, by chance, a
record of the Angolan singer in a downtown Lisbon shop.  Soon after that Waldemar
would be featured in the album Afropea Telling Stories to the Sea, an
anthology of Lusophone artists issued by Luaka Bop. Afterwards there was Pretaluz/Blacklight,
recorded in NYC, produced by Arto Lindsay, and issued by Luaka Bop. The New
York Times described it as one of the best World music records of the decade.
In the aftermath of Pretaluz/Blacklight, Waldemar won the Award for the
Emerging Artist of the Year (1999). In 1998, Waldemar was discovered by the
European audience and media. After his successful tours in Europe as the opening
act at the UNESCO Festival Dont forget Africa in June 2000 in the Canary
Islands. Later in the year he was invited by Mr. Ruichi Sakamoto to take part
in the Zero-Landmine project in cooperation with international artists like
Arto Lindsay, Brian Eno, David Sylvian, Jacques Morelenbaum.  Bastos is included in Tom Moons legendary
book 1000 recordings to hear before you die, and three of his compositions
were featured in the Hollywood movie The
Sweepers
.  He received several
invitations by Prince Ernst  August von
Hanover and Princess Caroline von Hanover in the course of which he also gave a
private concert  for Rainier III. Another
highlight was the Bal de Roses in Monaco in 2004.


Classics of my Soul, is his latest production, recorded in
Los Angeles and London, produced by Derek Nakamoto and  it features his light hearted music full of
optimism and joy. www.waldemarbastos.com