Anibal Augusto Sardinha
"GARÔTO"

Anibal Augusto Sardinha, better known as Garôto, (The Kid),
was born from Portuguese immigrant's Antônio Augusto Sardinha
and Adosinda dos Anjos Sardinha in downtown São Paulo on June 28,1915.

Who could guess that then Brazilian music would change its history
and the world would have in few years an opportunity to enjoy
listening to one of the most brilliant acoustic guitarists/composer ever?

Garôto started to work very early. At age eleven, he was a helper
in a music store in Brás (a neighborhood on São Paulo's East Side).
This same year the got his first instrument, a Banjo, a gift from his brother.
One can say that on that day, Garôto started his career.

Few months later, he was playing in a group, the Brothers Armani Regional,
and they started to call him O Moleque do Banjo. (The Banjo's Kid).

In an interview to the newspaper Correio Paulistano,
on December 1949, Garoto remembers:

'In 1929 at the Palácio das Industrias (The Industrial Palace),
I had my first opportunity, playing with Canhoto, Zezinho and Mota,
for General Motors programs. We were a big group. Long after that
we formed an orchestral group, with uniform, black little ties
and flannel trousers, and after that I started to play alone,
and with the late Pinheirinho Barreto and Aluisio Silva
we formed a new group. That is when we recorded
Zombando da Morte, (Making fun of death),
a samba wich became very popular.

Garoto in 1928 at the 1st General Motors Exhibit

Also in 1928 with the "Jazz Orchestra" Cruz Azul (Blue Cross)

From there on, Garôto started to work intensively, playing all over the
State of São Paulo im many different engagements.

Yet São Paulo became small for his talent, and he left to
Rio de Janeiro in 1938 with the firm intention to give new
directions to his career. He could not imagine that his staying in Rio
would be so short, and so intense.

He started to work at the Mayrink Veiga Radio Station, that
had a cast of big stars, including Carmen Miranda and Laurindo de Almeida.
With Laurindo, they formed the duo of the syncopated rhythm and the group
Cordas Quentes (Hot Strings). The duo took part in several recording sessions
for Henricão, Carmen Costa, Jararaca e Zé Formiga, Alvarenga e Ranchinho,
Dorival Caymmi, Ary Barroso and Carmen Miranda, among others.

By the end of 1939 the big surprise: America.

He accepted Carmen's invitation and on October 18, 1939
he embarked the ship Uruguay to the United States,
for a staying that rendered him among others, the tittle of
"The man of golden fingers" given by organist Jesse Crawford.

He became an extra atraction.
While Carmen attracted for herself a large audience
avid to find out what the Bahiana got that other women do not have,
a different audience made of big names of the jazz scene and its adepts
also came to the concerts marveled by a young modern and virtuoso musician
who came from a distant land.

He did not simply play for Carmen.
His ability at the instrument and personal style while interpreting the
Marchas and Sambas Carmen sung was what he needed to project himself.
Duke Ellington and Art Tatum were among the regulars in the audience.

When Carmen shows ended, Garôto used to play by himself, to an audience
avid to listen to the new ways of playing of this young man.

After eight months working for Carmen, in several American cities,
Broadway, movies and even playing for Presidend Roosevelt
at the White House, Garôto came back to Rio, to start
the longest journey of his life, one that lasted fitteen years.

In the last 15 years of his life, (Garôto died at age 39 on May 3, 1955),
he worked very hard, playing in recording sessions, doing concerts,
and composing some of the most wonderful songs Brazilians ever
listened to, some, selling over a million copies.

With his way of playing the Samba and Chôro on guitar
and writting music, Garôto was the man who gave new directions
to Brazilian Popular Music, influencing some of the next generation
greatest Brazilian artistsand also showing the path to what
few years later was called Bossa Nova.

Say Waldemar Henrique, who lived and understood very well that era:
"It was not a transformation. It was a long period of gestation, consious,
lucid composers who were looking for modernity, breaking rules,
influences, fighting against poverty and prejudice.

Since Pixinguinha (Carinhoso), Ary Barroso (Faceira) Dorival Caymmi (Dora),
Garôto (Duas Contas), Dolores Duran (Por causa de você), the "thing"
was being created, the flower blossoing toward the magnificent garden
we enjoy today. The true master, the modest guide, the strong figure
who prepare the approach of the Bossa Nova was Garôto.

Surrounding his marvelous guitar, it was Radames gnatali, Chiquinho
and some talented youngsters who were hustling day and night;
Donato, João Gilberto, Tom Jobim, Ed Lincoln, Vandre,
Luis Bonfá, Luiz Eça and Dolores Duran.

Later Tom Jobim got together with two excelent lyricists, Ismael Neto,
from Pará, and Vinicius de Moraes, taking Brazilian Music to a magistral
escalate that Garôto did not see, because death came to get him

In 1993, Brazilian Production Company "Projeto Memória Brasileira, sponsored by Violões Di Giorgio, released a CD, with the one and only recordings made by Garôto playing solo and never released before. It is the only register of his playing.

Here is a sample of some songs you will find on this CD.

Jorge do Fusa -(Garôto) - Real Audio

Inspiração - (Garôto) - Real Audio

Gracioso - (Garôto - Flute arr. Guilherme Vergueiro) - Real Audio

Lamentos do Morro - (Garôto) - Real Audio

Some information of this site came from the book
"Garôto, Sinal dos Tempos", written by Irati Angonio
and Regina Pereira - Funarte1982. Coleção MPB, 5.
We thank them for their love and beautiful work.

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