Heitor G. Garcia
I was born in the city of Belo Horizonte, state of Minas Gerais in Brazil. My first contact with music was at the age of four. At the age of seven I was given my first drums by my brother Paulinho Garcia.
A few years later in 1983, I started my music education as a drummer at the Milton Nascimento’s Música de Minas. From 1984 until 1989 I studied at the Music Conservatory of Minas Gerais and took private lessons with José Vaz in BH and Pascoal Meirelles in Rio de Janeiro.
During this period I performed on live T.V. shows, Radio programs, and theater. I traveled Brazil throughout Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Bahia, playing rock, jazz and Brazilian pop music (MPB).
My first professional recording experience as a drummer was with “Casa dos Sonhos” a rock band from Belo Horizonte. I was part of this band until early 1987 and in the late 1987 I joined the group “O Grande Ah!” an Avant-Garde rock band also from my city. Together we recorded an album that was released in 1988 with the title of “1989” having the participation of Claudio Venturine (Flavio Venturine’s brother) and Paulo Santos from Uakti.
Later in 1989 I performed at the “Melhor dos Festivais de Minas ano IV” and recorded live with Tato Fisher from Secos e Molhados.
From 1987 until 1991, I also worked with my wife Lourdes Garcia, performing Brazilian folk music and MPB on a number of festivals throughout Minas Gerais. Also during this time I gained my teaching experience by giving private lessons.
I moved to the US in 1991 and as soon as I arrived in Chicago I started playing and studying Brazilian and Latin percussions. My brother Paulinho Garcia again was a big influence in my musical career. With his inputs on how to play percussions, I was able to learn how to play many instruments used in Brazilian and general Latin music.
With the combination of the Brazilian influence and Latin Percussions, I began to play with various Jazz, Latin Jazz and Brazilian Jazz groups, around Chicago, on drums and percussions.
Among them, the ones with most highlights are Jazzmineiro (Paulinho’s septet), Ensemble Kalinda, Chicago Immigrant Orchestra, Ricardo Lorenz’s (Macondo Stew), I also performed and recorded with many musicians from the Chicago area and abroad, as Grazyna Auguscik, April Aloisio, Marshall Vente, Linda Tate, Francesco Crosara and his mother Lilian Terry, Matthew Skoller, Luciano Antonio, Joe Vasconcellos, etc…
I was part of the openings ceremonies of 1994 world cup, and of Immigrants Unsettle Solutions, a 2 weeks program created by WTTW Chicago public TV showed to the entire USA, Flavio Chamis (Tons of Nature a tribute to Antonio Carlos Jobim) with Luciano Antonio, and the inauguration of Chicago’s Millennium Park with the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra.
Most recently I performed for the “50th anniversary of Bossa Nova” at the Chicago’s MillenniunPark with Joao Donato, Robertinho Silva and Luis Alves and a group of the best jazz musicians in Chicago.
At the moment I am working on a few of my brothers projects including a new recording to be released at the end of 2011.
A few years later in 1983, I started my music education as a drummer at the Milton Nascimento’s Música de Minas. From 1984 until 1989 I studied at the Music Conservatory of Minas Gerais and took private lessons with José Vaz in BH and Pascoal Meirelles in Rio de Janeiro.
During this period I performed on live T.V. shows, Radio programs, and theater. I traveled Brazil throughout Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Bahia, playing rock, jazz and Brazilian pop music (MPB).
My first professional recording experience as a drummer was with “Casa dos Sonhos” a rock band from Belo Horizonte. I was part of this band until early 1987 and in the late 1987 I joined the group “O Grande Ah!” an Avant-Garde rock band also from my city. Together we recorded an album that was released in 1988 with the title of “1989” having the participation of Claudio Venturine (Flavio Venturine’s brother) and Paulo Santos from Uakti.
Later in 1989 I performed at the “Melhor dos Festivais de Minas ano IV” and recorded live with Tato Fisher from Secos e Molhados.
From 1987 until 1991, I also worked with my wife Lourdes Garcia, performing Brazilian folk music and MPB on a number of festivals throughout Minas Gerais. Also during this time I gained my teaching experience by giving private lessons.
I moved to the US in 1991 and as soon as I arrived in Chicago I started playing and studying Brazilian and Latin percussions. My brother Paulinho Garcia again was a big influence in my musical career. With his inputs on how to play percussions, I was able to learn how to play many instruments used in Brazilian and general Latin music.
With the combination of the Brazilian influence and Latin Percussions, I began to play with various Jazz, Latin Jazz and Brazilian Jazz groups, around Chicago, on drums and percussions.
Among them, the ones with most highlights are Jazzmineiro (Paulinho’s septet), Ensemble Kalinda, Chicago Immigrant Orchestra, Ricardo Lorenz’s (Macondo Stew), I also performed and recorded with many musicians from the Chicago area and abroad, as Grazyna Auguscik, April Aloisio, Marshall Vente, Linda Tate, Francesco Crosara and his mother Lilian Terry, Matthew Skoller, Luciano Antonio, Joe Vasconcellos, etc…
I was part of the openings ceremonies of 1994 world cup, and of Immigrants Unsettle Solutions, a 2 weeks program created by WTTW Chicago public TV showed to the entire USA, Flavio Chamis (Tons of Nature a tribute to Antonio Carlos Jobim) with Luciano Antonio, and the inauguration of Chicago’s Millennium Park with the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra.
Most recently I performed for the “50th anniversary of Bossa Nova” at the Chicago’s MillenniunPark with Joao Donato, Robertinho Silva and Luis Alves and a group of the best jazz musicians in Chicago.
At the moment I am working on a few of my brothers projects including a new recording to be released at the end of 2011.