Philippe Baden Powell

Philippe Baden Powell de Aquino was born in Paris on April 15, 1978. He comes from a musical family: his grandfather was a violinist and his great-grandfather was a bandleader. At age 3, Philippe was already showing musical intuition and decided to become a musician. He started studying classical music at the age of 7, and later he became interested in improvisation, Brazilian music and jazz. His father was Brazilian guitar player and composer Baden Powell, who taught Philippe basics, such as music writing, harmony and improvisation. Philippe studied with Brazilian piano masters Sonia Vieira, Luiz Avellar, Antonio Adolfo and Edson Elias, and also participated in jazz masterclasses with pianists’ Lynne Arriale and Kenny Werner. In 2005, Philippe was awarded the 3rd-place prize at the Montreux Jazz Piano Solo Competition. His first album, “Estrada de Terra/Dirt Road,” has just been released by NYC label Adventure Music. At age 13, he started playing with his father and younger brother, guitarist Marcel Powell. They toured all over the globe, performing in many music halls, festivals, as The North Sea Festival, and clubs as le Petit Journal Montparnasse in Paris, and the Rio Jazz Club. His first record was also with his fam_ily in 1994, live in Rio, “Baden Powell e Filhos.” In 1997, he also participated as featured guest in his father’s recording, “Suite Afro-Consolação.” Since then, Philippe has worked as pianist, key_boardist, arranger and producer with many Brazilian artists, including actor/singer Seu Jorge, singer Maria Bethânia, Flora Purim and Airto Moreira, composer Roberto Menescal, rapper Marcelo D2, trumpetist Marcio Montarroyos and many others. In 2001, a collaboration with French singer Benjamin Legrand, son of the world-renowned composer Michel Legrand, became a Bossa Nova tribute album “Samba in Preludio/Quand tu t’en vas.” As a solo artist, Philippe has played in festivals, such as Festival d’été de Québec, Festival Musiques sur l’îsle in France, Cello Encounter in Rio, as well as clubs and music halls in Paris, Tokyo and New York City. He also has played in duos with multi-instrumentalist Carlos Malta, pianist Wagner Tiso and guitarist Victor Biglione. He has been living between Brazil and Europe ever since and it has allowed him to absorb the musical culture of both countries, which would influence his own musical approach, mixing classical music, jazz and Brazilian music.

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