Girl from Ipanema: Discover the story of one of the most famous songs from the golden age of Brazilian Popular Music. “Look what a beautiful thing, more full of grace, she is, girl, who comes and goes, in a sweet swing on the way to the sea”. Anyone who has heard this famous song knows that its inspiration came from the beautiful Ipanema Beach.
Actually, part of the inspiration comes from the “Girl from Ipanema” herself, the Rio de Janeiro native Helô Pinheiro, who walked towards the coastal waters.
In fact, the inspiration was so great that the moment was immortalized by Tom Jobim and Vinícius de Moraes in the 60s. This song, to this day, records a nostalgic period in that region of the South Zone of Rio, when the world was calmer. and people contemplated the little beauties of life.
World famous for its beauty, Ipanema carries, even today, the fame and reputation of being one of the noblest and most stunning neighborhoods in the capital of Rio. It is considered the second most performed song in the history of world music, after “Yesterday”.
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Girl from Ipanema: A brief history of the song
It was in 1962 that musicians Tom Jobim and Vinícius de Moraes were walking calmly along Ipanema beach and came across an apparently ordinary scene. A beautiful girl walked along the sand and made her way to the sea.
Despite it being a normal thing, as other people shared the place, the young woman’s stunning beauty caught the attention of the composers, who promptly decided to compose a song to record the moment.
Undoubtedly, one of the greatest Brazilian songs was born there. And to think that it was conceived by the simple walk of a beautiful young woman in the Ipanema neighborhood, one of the best scenes on the Rio coast!
First version of Girl from Ipanema
At the request of businessman Oscar Ornstein, Vinícius and Tom Jobim got together to create the song that would be part of the musical piece “Dirigível” (airship), a work that was in progress but never premiered. Thus, the song was first conceived as part of a play.
The original title was “Menina que Passa” (Girl who passes by) and was rejected for overemphasizing the melancholic aspect of the scene. Composer Jobim recorded the song for the first time in the United States. Musicians understood the style as emphasizing the ancient forms of samba. The scores for Garota de Ipanema are quoted in 2/4 measures, used in most Latin American rhythms.
Tom Jobim, Vinicius de Moraes and João Gilberto performed at the famous Rio nightclub Au Bon Gourmet, in Copacabana. At that time, at the height of Rio’s bohemia, Vinicius released “Garota de Ipanema” right there. The first version of the song was recorded in the United States in 1962, but only the 1964 version became an international success.
Tom Jobim and Vinícius de Moraes
Antônio Carlos Jobim is considered, to this day, one of the exponents of MPB, as well as one of the great forces of Bossa Nova, a style widely appreciated in Brazil and abroad. The artist had a very solid career at the time, sharing the stage with Frank Sinatra, one of the greatest artists on the planet.
Vinícius de Moraes, on the other hand, had a career dedicated to writing Brazilian songs. As a composer, he scored several hits with his partners Tom Jobim, Toquinho, Pixinguinha, Ângela Maria, among other famous people. Poetry, another talent of his, allowed him to see the world in a more delicate way. This greatly contributed to the great partnership with Tom Jobim.
Girl from Ipanema: Helô Pinheiro
The eternal Girl from Ipanema, on the other hand, achieved fame only two years after writing the song. But after the musical explosion, her national and international modeling career was guaranteed.
Heloísa Eneida Menezes Paes Pinto Pinheiro, or simply Helô Pinheiro, worked as a model for commercials and magazines. In addition, she participated in soap operas and presented the program “Ela” (She) in 1984.
Apart from her television career, the artist also worked as a businesswoman and writer of her autobiography entitled “The Eternal Girl from Ipanema”. Currently, she lives in the city of São Paulo.
Ipanema beach immortalized
With such brilliant people involved in this well-known song, it is clear that Ipanema beach was immortalized in the country’s history. To this day, not only does the beach attract visitors curious to know more about music, but the Garota de Ipanema bar also receives many visits from those trying to relive that era a little.
Ipanema will certainly never cease to enchant tourists or local residents. Therefore, with so many leisure options in Ipanema, it is practically impossible not to fall in love with the place that gave us the song of Tom Jobim and Vinícius de Moraes.
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