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"I come bearing the sad news that my grandmother became a star today and is next to my grandfather Joao Gilberto," Sofia Gilberto wrote on social media early Tuesday. The singer died at home in Philadelphia, in the United States, where she had lived since the 1960s. Gilberto was born in Salvador, capital of Brazil's northeastern state of Bahia, in 1940 and was married to Joao Gilberto, a pioneer of the bossa nova genre who died in 2019. Astrud Gilberto recorded 19 albums in her career, but she had little professional music experience when she turned "The Girl from Ipanema"...

Astrud Gilberto, the Brazilian singer, songwriter and entertainer whose off-hand, English-language cameo on “The Girl from Ipanema” made her a worldwide voice of bossa nova, has died at age 83. Musician Paul Ricci, a family friend, confirmed that she died Monday. He did not provide additional details. Born in Salvador, Bahia and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Gilberto became an overnight, unexpected superstar in 1964, thanks to knowing just enough English to be recruited by the makers of “Getz/Gilberto,” the classic bossa nova album featuring saxophonist Stan Getz and her then-husband, singer-songwriter-guitarist João Gilberto. “The Girl from Ipanema,” the wistful...

Monday is not only Labor Day in America and Labour Day in Canada but also Independence Day in Brazil, marking the moment when Prince Pedro was persuaded by the country's leaders to declare himself free of Lisbon. To be honest, it always depresses me to see various charmless presidents preside like mob bosses over Independence Day observances, as nothing makes me pine more for the old Empire of Brazil: South America does not do republics well. Be that as it may, there is no doubt that in global pop music Brazil punches above its weight, its contributions to the repertoire...

João Gilberto: Brazilian 'father of bossa nova' dies aged 88 Influential Brazilian musician João Gilberto has died aged 88. The singer and composer was known best as a pioneer of the bossa nova genre, which found international popularity in the 1960s. Reports say Gilberto died at home in Rio de Janeiro after a period of illness. His son confirmed the news of his death in a Saturday Facebook post. "His fight was noble, he tried to maintain dignity," Marcelo Gilberto said. Born in the north-east state of Bahia in 1931, Gilberto began singing aged 18. ◾João Gilberto BBC music page...

“Tall and tan and young and lovely…” You’ve heard of her. The Girl From Ipanema. You might have come across the bossa nova classic while on hold on the phone, during a long elevator ride, or in a cafe in Beirut or Bangkok _ but you’ve heard it. It’s been recorded by everyone from Frank Sinatra to Amy Winehouse, and survived bad lounge singers and Muzak incarnations to become, according to Performing Songwriter magazine, the second most recorded song in the world. The quintessential bossa nova tune, inspired by a young woman who passed the songwriters in a beachside bar...