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The seed of the solo record by Argemiro Patrocínio began to sprout in 1999 during the recording of Tudo Azul, producer Marisa Monte’s tribute to the Old Guard’s licensed samba, which she has known since the cradle, her father having been the school’s director during the 70’s, and even got a plaque at Portela’s hall. And her home, where Clara Nunes and Candeia reigned the gramophone, was frequented by “bigwigs” such as Monarco. But it was after the musical encounters with guitarist Raphael Rabello and Paulinho da Viola (who advised her to record "Doce Melodia"), that her relationship with the Old Guard was consolidated in the mid-90’s. When she started her record label, Phonomotor, she remembered that the group hadn’t recorded since 1988, and sent an invitation. The singer noticed that Seu Argemiro, as he is know with no small amount of respect, dodged the center stage among the composers of Tudo Azul’s repertoire, and at the same time lovingly kept a well-organized notebook of (over a hundred) lyrics and the chords of the sambas which he began composing quite late, in 1976, when he was already 56 years old. This mine of musical gems was the basis of this production, work was carried out "in rotating shifts" and undertaken by Marisa with the help of Paulão 7 Cordas, Mauro Diniz and the new revelation among samba singers, Teresa Cristina. "There were so many beautiful songs," recalls the singer with a glint in her eye. "What we did was try to obtain an internal balance of themes, topics and styles, guided by Seu Argemiro’s personal choices," she admits. The samba musician’s delicate voice and his subtle rhythmical lilt ruled out a rich orchestration, hence the minimalist choices coloring the foundations by arrangers Paulão (7-string guitar) and Mauro Diniz (cavaco), plus the light artillery of percussion (Marcelo Moreira, Felipe D'Angola) and drums (Marcelo Costa) and the additional timbres of special guests Jaquinho Morelembaum’s cello, Nicolas Krassik’s violin, Waldonys’ accordion, Rildo Hora’s harmonica, and Dirceu Leitte’s flute and clarinet. There were two months of recordings and mixing based on the musical treasure hunt begun in August last year. Singing duets with Seu Argemiro are his partner, Teresa Cristina, on Amém, the ace of spades of contemporary samba, Zeca Pagodinho ("he loves the late Alberto Lonato and chose a partnership with Argemiro, A Saudade me Traz", he recalls) and Moreno Veloso on Vou Me Embora Pra Bem Longe. "I like his young Rio
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