Vitor Gonçalves

Vitor Gonçalves is a well-traveled, New York-based jazz pianist, accordionist, composer, and arranger from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. His highly individual voice blends the many musics of his native country with progressive jazz. In addition to leading his own quartet, he has played in and traveled with the Anat Cohen Tentet and worked with countryman Vinicius Cantuaria, Anthony Wilson, and Yotam Silberstein. His self-titled debut as a bandleader was released in 2017 by Sunnyside. Gonçalves was born in Mina Gerais and raised in Rio de Janeiro. He began his musical studies on the acoustic guitar -- almost a requirement for Brazilian musicians -- and began flirting with rock. As a teen, he discovered the beauty and mystery of the Great Brazilian Songbook, and began acquainting himself with bossa nova, samba, MPB, choro, baião, and jazz. He switched to piano after claiming an unused keyboard his father purchased for his sister. A fundamental part of Gonçalves' musical development was the nine-year period he spent in the workshops and ensembles of Itiberê Zwarg, Hermeto Pascoal's bassist. The intense rehearsal and performance schedule of the workshop was a crash course in what Pascoal called "universal music." Gonçalves soon created his own ensemble with some fellow disciples, called Bamboo. They performed his original compositions and arrangements. While with Zwarg, Gonçalves met American guitarist Todd Neufeld, who attended one of the workshops and with whom Gonçalves traded ideas and contacts. He earned a spot in iconic singer Maria Bethânia's road band and spent the next four years traveling the globe. During a stop in New York, Neufeld procured a club gig for Gonçalves with bassist Thomas Morgan and drummer Joey Baron. The experience resulted in the pianist's resolution to move to New York in order to pursue jazz full-time. After migrating in 2012, Gonçalves enrolled in the jazz performance program at City College of New York in pursuit of his master's degree. During his educational tenure, he further developed his own compositional style and was increasingly influenced by contemporary classical, avant-garde jazz, and free improv musicians and music. In addition, he kept meeting musicians who had deep affinities for Brazilian music but were not deeply versed in its traditions. He decided to make it a personal aspiration to inject elements of his musical background in his new projects and compositions. He concurrently works in four different projects. He plays accordion in Regional de NY, a five-piece traditional choro group, and in SanfoNYa Brasileira, a trio with Eduardo Belo on upright bass and Vanderlei Pereira on drums, who wed jazz to forro, choro, and frevo. Gonçalves plays piano and electric keyboards in the aforementioned Bamboo, a funky electro-acoustic world dance music group, and in his own jazz quartet with Neufeld on guitar, Morgan on bass, and drummer Dan Weiss. After signing to Sunnyside Communications, Gonçalves released his self-titled debut as a leader with the latter group in January of 2017. The recording showcased his methods for combining modern progressive and avant jazz improvisation and composition with classical harmony and counterpoint as well as Brazilian rhythms and melodies.
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