Elza Soares, who has died aged 91, was one of the finest, best-loved singers in Brazil, a glamorous, spirited performer who triumphed over personal tragedy and never forgot her hungry childhood in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. She was an exponent of the many different forms of samba, Brazil’s most enduring and ever-evolving style, and constantly on the lookout for new experiments and fusions. And she was a bravely outspoken campaigner for women’s rights, and against racism. As a black musician she experienced racism in the industry first-hand – despite her remarkable talent, record companies were slow to sign her.
Two albums, recorded 54 years apart, demonstrate her extraordinary range. She began recording in the early 1960s, just as João Gilberto, Antônio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes were pioneering the cool new fusion of samba cançao, jazz and classical styles known as bossa nova. Soares had very different ideas. On her second album, A Bossa Negra (The Black Bossa, 1961) she matched sensual, delicate and husky vocals against swinging big band brass backing in songs that would suddenly change direction as she switched to furious growled scat singing worthy of Louis Armstrong on Perdäo (Forgiveness), or an ecstatic scream at the end of Beija-Me (Kiss Me). These were fresh, exciting songs to match the optimism of Brazil in the early 60s, and established Soares as a major force.
