Nilza Lessa Music

I was born in Sao Paulo, Brasil and I started singing in local radio stations at the age of twelve. My formal education was at Academia Paulista de Musica in Sao Paulo. When I was in my 20’s, I moved to Los Angeles, CA and performed with my own band…”Sambin” which included Federico Ramos – guitarist and arranger; Taquinho Araujo – guitarist, arranjer, composer; Eduardo del Signore – bass; Glen Garret – reeds, and Ron Wagner – drums. My next band was called “Samba West” which included members of “Sambin” and the great drummer Claudio Sloan. Shortly after arriving in California, I went to hear the great “maestro” Moacir Santos performing at “Pasquales” in Malibu and I was captivated with the beauty of his music. We exchanged phone numbers and I called him. I sang a song on the phone for him and he immediately invited me to join his band. As I studied and performed with Moacir, this became a life changing experience for me, musically and spiritually. Now I make my home in the Seattle area and perform regularly at local venues (which includes “Tempero do Brasil Restaurant”) with Habib Khalfallah – guitar. I have performed in the past with Kiko Freitas – guitar, and I am planning to continue with him in the future. I am a former host of “Raizes” on KBCS FM, a Brazilian music radio show. During the early 80’s I starred and co-wrote a song for the motion picture “School Spirit”. My greatest accomplishment is being a mother to Caete Nicholson who is also a musician and composer with the band “NINTHGATE”. I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4 I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4 I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4 I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4