Paulinho da Costa

Paulinho da Costa (Portuguese pronunciation: [pawˈliɲu da ˈkɔʃtɐ], born Paulo Roberto da Costa on May 31, 1948) is a Brazilian percussionist born in Rio de Janeiro, considered one of the most recorded musicians of modern times.
Beginning his career as a samba musician in Brazil, he relocated to the United States in the early 1970s and worked with Brazilian bandleader Sérgio Mendes. He went on to perform with many American pop, rock and jazz musicians and participated in thousands of albums, with Down Beat jazz magazine naming him "one of the most talented percussionists of our time." He was an artist on Michael Jackson’s Grammy Award-winning Thriller, Madonna's True Blue, Celine Dion’s Let's Talk About Love, hit singles and movie soundtracks, including Saturday Night Fever, Dirty Dancing and Purple Rain and others. He has also toured with Diana Krall. He plays over 200 instruments professionally, and has worked in a variety of music genres including Brazilian, blues, Christian, country, disco, gospel, hip hop, jazz, Latin, pop, rhythm and blues, rock, soul, and world music. He was signed to Norman Granz’s Pablo Records for three of his solo albums, Agora, Happy People and Sunrise, as well as Breakdown on A&M Records. Da Costa is the recipient of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences’ “Most Valuable Player Award” for three consecutive years. He is also the recipient of the honorary “Musicians Emeritus Award.

Da Costa was born in Irajá,a neighboard in the city of Rio de Janeiro Brazil, and as a child began learning the pandeiro. He began performing in the samba parades in Rio de Janeiro and later joined the youth wing of Portela’s Bateria, the rhythm section of a samba school. He became one of the most internationally-known percussionist to emerge from the Samba Schools of Brazil (Escola de Samba).

As a teen, da Costa traveled extensively with samba trios and quartets, Brazilian ensembles and Carnaval orchestras. His association with these groups offered him the opportunity to participate in music festivals around the world, in a troupe led by Jorge Goulart and Nora Ney.

Da Costa further developed his musical ability after being exposed to jazz and Cuban music and expanded the range percussion instruments he could play. He later toured Europe and the Middle East with a Brazilian ensemble together with Waldir Maia e Alcione in 1970. In 1972, Paulinho participated in the Festival International da Canção in the Maracanãzinho, performing the song Fio Maravilha, written about the soccer player of the same name, with Maria Alcina.

In 1972, da Costa moved to Los Angeles and played with Sergio Mendes from 1973 until 1976. He was introduced to Norman Granz by Dizzy Gillespie and was signed to Granz' label, Pablo Records. Da Costa’s association with Granz and Pablo Records made it possible for him to receive permanent resident status in the US.

Da Costa toured with his band and performed at Montreaux Jazz Festival in 1977. In addition to working with numerous recording artists, Paulinho continues to be an important influence to scores of music aficionados, musicians and percussionists.

The All Music Guide to Jazz: The Definitive Guide to Jazz Music describes da Costa as one of the most in-demand session musicians in Los Angeles studios since the 1970s. He’s worked with more than 900 musical artists and bands, performing on over 200 drums, bells, whistles and other instruments. He played on Dizzy Gillespie’s albums including Free Ride, Dizzy's Party and Bahiana. He collaborated on Earth, Wind and Fire's albums, All 'N All, I Am, Faces, Raise!, Powerlight, Millenniumand In the Name of Love. Producer Quincy Jones chose da Costa to work on many projects, including the soundtrack for The Wiz, as well as Jones' albums The Dude, Basie & Beyond, Back on the Block, Q's Jook Joint and From Q with Love. Da Costa was a regular on the albums Jones produced, including The Brothers Johnson’s Light Up The Night, George Benson’s Give me the Night, Donna Summer’s Donna Summer, Barbra Streisand's Till I Loved You and USA for Africa’s We Are the World. Michael Jackson called on da Costa for Off the Wall, Thriller, Bad, Dangerous, HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I and Invincible.

In addition, da Costa contributed to these and other artists:

According to his website, da Costa is known to play conga drums, bongos, timbales, pandeiro, surdo, repenique, repique, cajón, claves, maracas, berimbau, atabaque, cuíca, reco-reco, tamborim, ganzá, chimes, wood percussion, cowbells, agogo bells, triangles, caixa, caxixi, tarol, snare drums, chocalho, bass drums, shekere, djembe, zabumba, log drums, whistles, samba whistle, guiro, rainmakers, tambourine, cabasa, afuché cabasa, cricket, flexatone, clad bells, cymbals, bar chimes, bell tree, finger cymbals, timba, tantan, tambora, bata drums, talking drums, wood blocks, kokiriko, vibraslap, jaw bone, temple blocks, castanets, spoons, udu, doum doum, bougarabou, kora, shakers, keg drum, okanga, gongs, vibra-tone, kettle drums and slapstick.

He endorses Paiste cymbals and Remo heads. He had a Vic Firth Paulinho da Costa signature timbale stick designed to be used on various percussion instruments and prominently endorsed Latin Percussion in the 1970s.

• Agora (Pablo, 1977)
• Happy People (Pablo, 1979)
• Tudo Bem! (Pablo, 1982)
• You've Got a Special Kind of Love (Pablo, 1984)
• Sunrise (Pablo, 1984)
• Breakdown (A&M, 1987)
• Real Love (A&M, 1991)

• 1973-1976 - Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’77
• 1977 - Montreux Jazz Festival (with da Costa’s band)
• 1984 - Playboy Jazz Festival (with the Yellow Jackets)
• 1987 - The 1st Annual Soul Train Music Awards (with George Duke, David Sanborn, George Benson)
• 1988 - Rosemary Clooney "Singers' Salute to the Songwriters" Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
• 1990 - Lee Ritenour and Friends - Live from the Cocoanut Grove
• 1990 - Rainforest Foundation Benefit Performance at Ted Child's House (Sting, Paul Simon, Don Henley, Bruce Springsteen, Bruce Hornsby, Herbie Hancock, Branford Marsalis)
• 1990 - Nelson Mandela - An International Tribute for a Free South Africa
• 1992 - Music Center, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, (Lalo Shifrin Conductor)
• 1993 - Montreux Jazz Festival (George Duke, Al Jarreau)
• 1994 - The Kennedy Center Concert of the Americas with Quincy Jones part of the Hemispheric Summit for all the Presidents of the Americas, 34 Countries, 150 performers
• 1995 - A Tribute to Tom Jobim, Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center ( Lee Ritenour, Joao Gilberto, Caetano Veloso)
• 1996 - Lalo Schifrin Big Band Schifrin's tribute to Dizzy Gillespie - “The Gillespiana Suite”
• 1997 - Songs And Visions Concert, Wembley Stadium (Tony Hollingsworth, Stewart Levine, Rod Stewart, Jon Bon Jovi Seal Mary J. Blige )
• 2001 - Eric Clapton Tour
• 2001 - Diana Krall, Live in Paris, Olympia
• 2006 - JC Penney Jam Concert For America’s Kids (Dr. Phil, David Foster)
• 2008 - Montreux Jazz Festival (Quincy's 75th Anniversary)
• 2008 - Diana Krall Live in Rio
• 2010 - Montreux Jazz Festival (Quincy Jones & The Global Gumbo All-Stars)
• 2010 - Herbie Hancock’s Seven Decades at the Hollywood Bowl
• 2012 - Mawazine Rhythms of the World Festival in Rabat, Morocco
• 2013 - Power of Love Gala, Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center, MGM (Stevie Wonder, Jennifer Hudson, Chaka Khan, Bono, ChrisTucker, Amy Poehler, Arsenio Hall, Whoopi Goldberg)

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• Gunderson, Edna (April 14, 2013). "Quincy Jones, Michael Caine toasted at birthday benefit". USA Today. Retrieved 3 February 2015. 

Da Costa, recognized for his musical versatility, has contributed to the scores and soundtracks of more than 150 films and TV. He’s worked on a variety of projects including animated movies, comedies, cartoons, drams to action/adventure movies. Da Costa also appears in the film The Color Purple as an African musician.