Jazz is Dead: Arthur Verocai

General Admission Standing Room w/ Limited Seating

With Full Orchestra

On August 19, 2023, ArtDontSleep and The UC Theatre present Jazz Está Morto to celebrate the genius of Arthur Verocai with a 30 piece orchestra and Special Guests at The UC Theatre in Berkeley. Bringing to life his self titled, 1973, debut album. This album has been sampled by MF Doom, Ludacris & Common, Little Brother, Action Bronson, Curren$y and countless others and is a staple amongst hip hop producers from every era. "I could listen to the album everyday for the rest of my life" - Madlib. "A true master conductor. Just as incredible live as recorded" - MF DOOM This will be a once in a life time moment with one of the greatest Brazilian Arranger/Composers to ever walk the face of the earth.

In 1972, producer, arranger and guitar player Arthur Verocai released a self-titled album on Brazilian based Continental Records that challenged the musical conventions of the day. A complete album masterpiece in every sense of the word, considered by many people to be one of the greatest ever made, regardless of genre. Recorded in Rio De Janeiro in 1972, the album was produced, arranged and directed by the self-taught, Arthur Verocai. Previously he had worked on many records in various capacities, with artists including Jorge Ben, Elis Regina, Erasmo Carlos, Ivan Lins, Gal Costa and Celia, but this album gave him the chance to do his own thing in its most pure form. The 29 minute masterpiece, perfect in it’s arrangement and fusion of sonics, epitomises the sound of Brazil at the time; strings, guitars, pianos, break beats, bass lines, synthesizers, vocals from the wonderful Célia, Carlos Dafe and Oberdan (Banda Black Rio), plus percussion from Pedro Santos and Paulo Moura on sax. Bossa nova, samba, jazz, MPB, psychedelics and funk sit side by side effortlessly. The album transcends the genre of Brazilian music, and infact all genres. Highlighted in part by the number of artists that have sampled from it; MF Doom, Ludacris & Common, Little Brother, Action Bronson amongst others. The original Continental version of the album now fetch around $10,000.

Arthur Verocai Biography:
Brazilian folk-jazz composer and arranger Arthur Verocai was born in Rio de Janeiro on June 17, 1945. The product of a classical music education, he first earned widespread attention in 1966, when Leny Andrade recorded his song "Olhando o Mar" for her LP We Are There. Embracing the contemporary pop, soul, and jazz sounds emerging from both sides of the equator, Verocai gradually honed a sweeping orchestral psych-funk sensibility not far removed from American producers like David Axelrod and Charles Stepney. Despite collaborations with artists including Paulinho Tapajós, Elis Regina, and Creuza Maria, he nevertheless was forced to maintain a civil engineering position until 1969, when he scored the theatrical production Is the Greater and arranged sessions for Gal Costa, Marcos Valle, Quarteto Em Cy, Erasmo Carlos, Jorge Ben and others. After producing a pair of LPs for singer Célia as well as Ivan Lins' 1971 effort Agora — as well as scoring a series of Brazilian television series — Verocai contracted with the Continental label to record a self-titled solo LP, a stunningly innovative effort that effectively bridges the divide between the Tropicalia of the late '60s and the deep-groove funk of the decade to follow. Released in 1972, a period marked by the Brazilian military government's opposition to creative expression, the album fared poorly and Verocai turned to advertising, writing and producing music for clients from all walks of industry. Shockingly considering its brilliance, upon release the album came and went with little fanfare, causing Verocai to essentially give up and pivot his career to advertising.