In my opinion Manha de Carnival is one of the great melodies of the 20th century. It is a Brazilian Bossa Nova classic and a staple in the jazz repertoire. It is an original composition by Luiz Bonfa and is the theme song from the 1959 Academy Award film Black Orpheus. Luiz was born on October 17, 1922, in Rio de Janeiro and began studying guitar with the Uruguayan classical guitarist Isaías Sávio at the age of 11. Luiz is best known for his involvement with Antonio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes and the development of Bossa Nova in the late 1950s. …. wikipedia
Stephanie Jones is a young classical guitarist originally from Perth Western Australia. “From a very young age her childhood resonated with the sound of music.She played many instruments, beginning first with the piano, and progressing to the violin, viola, saxophone and flute. However, it was the guitar with its captivating range of sounds and great versatility that especially appealed to her, and it quickly became her first love. She is a world-renowned soloist and chamber musician who specializes in classical guitar performance. Stephanie received her undergraduate degree with First Class Honours at the Australian National University under the guidance of Tim Kain and Minh le Hoang, as well as a Masters degree at the University of Music Franz Liszt Weimar with Prof. Thomas Müller-Pering. She is currently based in Germany and now studying Konzertexamen.
Stephanie continues to perform extensively around the globe in multiple tours and festivals, and has also released three solo albums; “Open Sky” (2020), “Colours of Spain” (2015), and “Bach, the Fly, and the Microphone” (2009). She is also a member of the acclaimed Weimar Guitar Quartet, releasing their debut album in 2019.
She has also won numerous awards in prestigious competitions, including first prize at the Hannabach Guitar competition, Uppsala International Guitar Festival Competition, and Fine Music Network Young “Virtuoso of the Year” Competition.” …. Stephanie Jones website.
Over the past 50 years a number of versions of Manha de Carnival have made their way into the Classical Guitar repertoire. This is an outstanding arrangement by Stephanie Jones.
She plays a number of traditional Classical Guitars including a 2012 spruce top guitar by Perth luthier Paul Sheridan, a 2020 crossover guitar by Daniel Zucali, and a double top spruce guitar by Altamira. On this recording she is using a TransAcoustic & Silent Guitar manufactured by Yamaha. Essentially it is an electric travel guitar but as this video demonstrates it has a “true” acoustic Classical sound.
- Nylon Strings, Natural Finish. Body and neck material is mahogany
- The SLG is the perfect instrument for practice, travel or stage use – any time an acoustic guitar just won’t do.
- Near-silent performance makes discrete practice simple
- Yamaha’s exclusive SRT-Powered pickup system gives incredibly natural acoustic tone through headphones or line-out
- Studio-quality on-board effects enhance playing to perfection and line-in functionality makes jamming easy
In performance Stephanie also uses a GuitarLift. This is an innovative device that enable the guitarist to hold the instrument in the most desirable stable configuration.
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Here is another Bossa Nove tune from Stephanie…
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