Alceu Valença is the winner of The sixth edition of the UBC Awards.
The honor will be held in a ceremony with tributes to the artist,
with presentations by great artists, on November 8, in Rio de Janeiro.
“You come, you come, I already hear your signs”. Os immortal verses by Alceu Valença will set the tone for a well-deserved tribute to one of Brazil’s greatest artists. The Brazilian Union of Composers (UBC) will hold the sixth edition of the UBC Prize, in a ceremony full of surprises for Alceu. The author of more than 300 songs recorded, the artist will receive the Brazilian composer’s award on November 8, in a ceremony at the entity’s headquarters in Rio de Janeiro.
“With great joy I accept the honor from the Brazilian Composers Union. It is a prize I give to the singers, aboiadores, versizadores and violeiros of deep Brazil, who constitute the raw material of my music. What I often do is to plug these references into what Luiz Gonzaga defined as an electric band. First I am from São Bento, then from Pernambuco, Brazilian and citizen of the world. This is the recognition that UBC gives me and the whole source of identity that my work translates.” says Alceu Valença.
The União Brasileira de Compositores, the country’s largest copyright collective management society, created the UBC Award in 2017. In its debut, the honoree was Gilberto Gil. In the following years, Erasmo Carlos, Milton Nascimento, Herbert Vianna and Djavan received the honor. Now, the Brazilian composer’s award will be in good hands.
Marcelo Castello Branco, CEO of UBC, lists some of the artist’s many outstanding characteristics. “Alceu is a visionary author, a born revolutionary, sweet. His music has the brilliance of many Brazilians, it is strolling in its seemingly simple yet generous genius. No wonder it continues to fascinate new generations and audiences. We are honored to have Alceu in the UBC Award, in its sixth edition”, he says.
Paulo Sérgio Valle, CEO of UBC, agrees: “Alceu Valença is one of the most important artists in Brazilian music. The União Brasileira de Compositores is proud to give this great artist its ‘Annual UBC Award'”, adds the author of over a thousand compositions and hundreds of hits such as “Evidências”, “Samba de Verão”, “Essa tal Liberdade” and “If I didn’t love you so much.”
At the age of 76, Alceu preserves in the poetry of each verse and in the energy he gives in each performance, the spirit of the creative and restless young man who, at the age of 23, gave up his career as a lawyer and journalist. in Recife, to devote himself completely to music, his greatest profession. After moving to Rio de Janeiro, in 1971, the artist recorded his first album the following year, “Quadrafônico”, inaugurating a partnership with Geraldo Azevedo. But it was in 1980, with the release of the enchanting “Coração Bobo”, that Alceu won radio stations throughout Brazil, entered the MIA pantheon and never left.
Since then, in addition to the unique style of interpretation of his songs, Alceu’s authorial talent has also won the voices of performers such as Elba Ramalho, Maria Bethânia, Luiz Gonzaga, Ney Matogrosso, Alaíde Costa, Lenine and Os Paralamas do Sucesso. Among the composer’s great hits are songs that entered the imagination of Brazilian popular culture such as “Annunciação”, “La Belle de Jour”, “Tropicana”, “Girassol”, “Coração Bobo” and “Táxi Lunar”.
The author of 311 songs recorded at UBC, Alceu Valença turned his songbook into a veritable encyclopedia of sounds, artistic and aesthetic expressions of northeastern music, especially Pernambuco. His work not only brings together, but also represents a good part of Brazil, elements of frevo, maracatu, baião, cocos and pentes. Combining tradition and modernity, Alceu built a work that is both simple and sophisticated, bringing the diversity of Brazilian culture to the world. With 54 published albums, 31 of which are studio albums, 11 live and 12 compilations, Alceu is known not only by thousands of fans, but also by the music industry. The artist was nominated four times for the Latin Grammy, in the category of Best Brazilian Roots Music Album (2001, 2014, 2016 and 2022). In addition to being the winner of several awards such as the prestigious Brazilian Music Award (2002 and 2015). A multifaceted artist, Alceu was also a pioneer in the world of cinema, signing the direction, the script and the musical score of the feature film “Luneta do Tempo”, a story of cangaços with dialogues in cordel rhythm. 42nd Gramado Film Festival.
The 2022 UBC Award celebrates the entity’s 80th anniversary with live performances from more than 10 big names in Brazilian music, curated by Zé Ricardo
UBC Awards Night 2022 promises to be one of the many thrills for Alceu. The party for 150 guests will bring together a great team of Brazilian music at Casa UBC. On this occasion, Alceu will see his compositions, in unpublished versions, performed live by more than 10 big names of different generations of Brazilian music. The presentations are closed and will be a surprise for the guests and even for the honoree. The musical direction and the choice of the repertoire are in charge of the artistic director Zé Ricardo, who is the curator of the Sunset Stage at Rock in Rio. After the ceremony, the presentations and testimonials will be made available on UBC’s social networks.
The 2022 UBC Prize is part of the 80th anniversary celebrations of UBC, which has more than 50,000 artists among its members. With a huge, star-studded and carefully curated lineup of honorees, there’s no doubt that the 2022 UBC Awards will be a feast of the heart.
