Biography All Music Guide Wikipedia
All Music Guide:
A native of Rio de Janeiro, Ithamara Koorax became a major name in Brazilian pop-jazz in the 1990s. The singer comes from a family of Polish Jews, who fled Europe during World War II. Born in Rio in 1965, Koorax was only a child when she began studying classical music. But when she reached adulthood, Koorax realized that Brazilian pop-jazz would be her focus -- the vocalists she admired ranged from Flora Purim and Elis Regina to Shirley Horn, Ella Fitzgerald, and Carmen McRae. At 18, Koorax found that singing background vocals for various artists and providing jingles for Brazilian ad agencies could be very lucrative -- and she enjoyed a great deal of exposure when her recording, "Iluminada," was used in a popular Brazilian soap opera in the early 1990s. Koorax's first album, Luiza: Ithamara Koorax Live was released in Japan on JVC in 1994, and several releases on the Japanese Paddle Wheel label followed, including Rio Vermelho in 1995, Ithamara Koorax Sings the Luiz Bonfá Songbook in 1996, Wave 2000 in 1997, and Bossa Nova Meets Drum'n'Bass in 1998. Koorax's first U.S. release came in 2000, when Fantasy licensed Serenade in Blue (recorded in 1997 and 1998) from the Jazz Station label.
Wikipedia:
Ithamara Koorax (born 23 May 1965 in Rio de Janeiro) is a popular Brazilian pop-jazz singer. Ithamara Koorax has worked with such artists as Antonio Carlos Jobim, Luiz Bonfa, Ron Carter, Larry Coryell, Elizeth Cardoso, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, John McLaughlin, Sadao Watanabe, Hermeto Pascoal, Marcos Valle, Peter Scharli, Jay Berliner, Edu Lobo, Martinho da Vila, Jürgen Friedrich, Claus Ogerman, Dave Brubeck, João Donato, Dom Um Romão, Thiago de Mello, Mario Castro-Neves, Raul de Souza, Chris Conway, Eumir Deodato, Lou Volpe, Laudir de Oliveira, Rodgers Grant, Gil Goldstein, Art Farmer, Eddie Gomez, the groups Azymuth, Gazzara and Os Cariocas, the big bands Amazon and Rio Jazz Orchestra, and the Symphony Orchestras "Petrobras" and "Jazz Sinfonica." She has recorded solo albums for the IRMA, Milestone, Mercury, EMI, JVC, King, Huks and Motema labels, besides fourteen soundtracks for movies and TV series, and also took part in more than 200 special projects and compilations.
In 2009, "Bim Bom - The Complete Joao Gilberto Songbook," a duo session with guitarist Juarez Moreira, received rave reviews in the New York Times, Cashbox, Billboard, Jazz Hot, Jazz 'n' More, All Music Guide, and many other magazines, websites and newspapers.
Another recent CD, "O Grande Amor," recorded during an European tour with the Peter Schärli Trio in 2010, was also released with critical acclaim, receiving a 4 and 1/2 star review in the May 2011 issue of DownBeat magazine and 5-star ratings in several other magazines like Jazz 'n' More. Later on, "O Grande Amor" was elected one of the "Best CDs of 2011" in the January 2012 issue of DownBeat.
Ithamara Koorax has performed in the USA, Japan, Korea and many European countries (England, France, Germany, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Finland, Bulgaria, Serbia, Portugal etc), appearing at jazz festivals in London, Seoul, Belgrade, Funchal, Helsinki, Indijja and many other cities. Koorax has also performed classical and fusion concerts backed by Symphony Orchestras.
Her recordings have been remixed by DJs from all over the world. Among them: Tom Novy, Parov Stelar, Cargo, Tetsu Shibuya/Brisa. During 2010, Ithamara performed 47 concerts in Brazil and 51 abroad, having toured Europe and Asia. In her latest Korean tour, in August 2010, Ithamara recorded an all-star project, "Arirang," alongside many pop Korean artists (like the pop group MIJI) and such jazz musicians as guitarist Lee Ritenour & pianist/arranger Alan Broadbent, Diana Krall's conductor.
Koorax's latest CD, "Got To Be Real," was released in March 2012.
