From his youth, André Mehmari's
musical sensibility has known no borders, freely flowing between Chopin,
Scott Joplin, and Ernesto Nazareth. Now a renowned virtuoso pianist and
composer, he has forged a language of tremendous expressive power from the
resources of Brazilian, jazz, and classical music. This has earned him not
only the most prestigious awards in Brazil, but also invitations to
perform from some of the world's leading jazz presenters. Abroad these
have included the Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy and the Blue Note in
Tokyo; and in Brazil, he has been invited to perform in all of the
country's leading jazz festivals. Maria Schneider chose him to be the
Brazilian pianist in her orchestra's performance at the Ouro Preto Jazz
Festival, and his trio is sharing the bill with the Wynton Marsalis
Orchestra in this year's edition of the Brazil Jazz Festival in São Paulo.
A complete musician, his talent as an improviser and grasp of musical
narrative has been particularly appreciated by colleagues in the jazz
world.
