Fans are mourning the death of Brazilian singer Astrid Gilberto, who has died at the age of 83.
He made “The Girl from Ipanema” a worldwide sensation in the 1960s and greatly promoted the emerging bossa nova genre.
In a statement released on social media, her granddaughter Sofia Gilberto said, “I bring this sad news that my grandmother became a star today and my grandfather is equal to Joao Gilberto.”
The singer was born in 1940 in Salvador, the capital of Brazil’s northeastern state of Bahia, and was married to bossa nova pioneer Joao Gilberto, who died in 2019.
Astrid Gilberto recorded 19 albums in her career, but became a global sensation when she made “The Girl from Ipanema” – a song by Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Moris – singing the English verses with American saxophonist Stan. Getz
This version made Gilberto the first Brazilian to be nominated for a Grammy — which she won in 1965 for Song of the Year.
She left her husband for Getz and moved to America.
But this tumultuous period in his life produced some of the best recordings ever made, including a live album of the three friends’ concerts at New York’s Carnegie Hall in October 1964.
At just 24 years old, Gilberto developed stage fright, which he overcame by taking theater classes at the Stella Adler Acting Academy.
The beautiful young brunette wowed audiences with her satin voice, which she toured with Getz. She earned the nickname “Queen of Bossa Nova,” bringing the harmonious, laid-back Brazilian music style to the world.