Editing Carlos Paredes

{{short description|Portuguese guitarist and composer (1925–2004)}}
{{About|1=the musician|2=the footballer|3=Carlos Humberto Paredes}}
{{Infobox musical artist  <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject Musicians -->
| name              = Carlos Paredes 
| honorific_suffix  = [[Order of St. James of the Sword|ComSE]]
| image             = Carlos Paredes in the studio.jpg
| caption           = Paredes in the studio, photographed by [[Augusto Cabrita]]
| image_size        = 
| background        = 
| birth_name        = 
| alias             = 
| birth_date        = 16 February 1925,
| birth_place       = [[Coimbra]], Portugal
| death_date        = {{Death date and age|df=y|2004|7|23|1925|2|16}}
| death_place       = [[Lisbon]], Portugal
| origin            = 
| instrument        = {{flatlist|
*[[Portuguese guitar]]
}}
| genre             = [[Fado]], [[Coimbra fado]], classical
| occupation        = 
| years_active      = 1939–1993
| label             = {{flatlist|
*[[Valentim de Carvalho]]
*[[Columbia Records|Columbia]]
*[[Decca Records|Decca]]
*[[Philips Records]]
}}
| associated_acts   = 
| website           = 
}}
'''Carlos Paredes''' {{Post-nominals|list=[[Order of St. James of the Sword|ComSE]]}} ({{IPA|pt|ˈkaɾluʃ pɐˈɾeðɨʃ}}; 16 February 1925 &ndash; 23 July 2004) was a virtuoso Portuguese guitar player and composer. He is regarded as one of the greatest players of [[Portuguese guitar]] of all-time.

Born in [[Coimbra]], [[Portugal]], in a family with a long tradition of guitar playing, he was taught to play the Portuguese guitar by his father, [[Artur Paredes]]. He composed numerous soundtracks for cinema and theatre, such as the soundtrack for the Portuguese film [[Os Verdes Anos|''Os'' ''Verdes Anos'']] (1963), which contains his famous piece "Canção Verde Anos". He released several recordings as a solo artist and performed in numerous countries worldwide.

Besides his music career, Paredes also worked in the [[public service]] for most of his life. In 1958, during Portugal's dictatorial [[Estado Novo (Portugal)|Estado Novo]] regime, he was imprisoned for 18 months for joining the [[Portuguese Communist Party]], at the time an illegal organization.

==Biography==

=== Early life ===
Carlos Paredes was born in [[Coimbra]] on 16 February 1925. His father was [[Artur Paredes]], an acclaimed player of Portuguese guitar from Coimbra. His grandfather Gonçalo Paredes, his great-uncle Manuel Paredes and his great-grandfather António Paredes were also guitar players.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=Carlos Paredes comemora hoje 77 anos|url=https://www.publico.pt/2002/02/16/culturaipsilon/noticia/carlos-paredes-comemora-hoje-77-anos-65656|access-date=2020-12-28|website=PÚBLICO|date=16 February 2002 |language=pt}}</ref>

Around 1934, aged 9, Paredes and his family moved to [[Lisbon]]. He did his primary education at the João de Deus School, and afterwards attended the Passos Manuel Lyceum. While attending the lyceum, he had violin and piano lessons. In 1943, he entered the Chemical-Industrial Engineering Course in [[Instituto Superior Técnico]], but was enrolled for only one year.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Carlos Paredes|url=https://www.museudofado.pt/fado/personalidade/carlos-paredes|access-date=2020-12-28|website=[[Museu do Fado]]}}</ref>

He started playing guitar when he was 4 years-old, taught by his father. At age 9, he began accompanying his father on the guitar, in his father's concerts. At age 14, Carlos and Artur Paredes started participating on a weekly show in the [[Emissora Nacional de Radiodifusão]], Portugal's public national radio broadcaster, a show that was created by Artur Paredes himself.<ref name=":0" />

In 1949, he became a [[public service]] worker, a job he would retire from only later in life, in November 1986. He worked in the [[radiography]] archive of the [[Hospital de São José]], in Lisbon, while maintaining his musical career.<ref name=":0" />

=== Political affiliation and imprisonment ===
Paredes grew up in an environment of discreet resistance and political opposition to [[António de Oliveira Salazar|António Salazar]]'s [[Estado Novo (Portugal)|Estado Novo]] regime. In 1958, he became a member of the [[Portuguese Communist Party]], which at the time was an illegal organization in Portugal.<ref name=":0" />

In the morning of 26 September 1958, he was arrested by [[PIDE]] agents in his workplace in Hospital de São José, on the accusation of belonging to an illegal political party opposing the government. He was kept imprisoned for 18 months. During his time in prison, he composed music in his head.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=BLITZ – Carlos Paredes, mestre da guitarra portuguesa, morreu há 10 anos|url=https://blitz.pt/principal/update/carlos-paredes-mestre-da-guitarra-portuguesa-morreu-ha-10-anos=f93082|access-date=2020-12-28|website=Jornal blitz|language=pt-PT}}</ref> According to some sources, people in the prison thought that Paredes was going insane, walking around his cell pretending to play the guitar, when in fact he was composing.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Carlos Paredes - Biografia|url=https://www.fnac.pt/Carlos-Paredes/ia24963/biografia|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027213125/https://www.fnac.pt/Carlos-Paredes/ia24963/biografia |archive-date=2020-10-27 |access-date=|website=Fnac}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web|date=2005-10-01|title=Carlos Paredes: a voz de uma guitarra|url=https://espiraldotempo.com/carlos-paredes-a-voz-de-uma-guitarra/|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Espiral do Tempo|language=pt-PT}}</ref>

After his release from prison, he was suspended from his job in the hospital and worked for some years as a delegate of medical propaganda.<ref name=":0" />

After the [[Carnation Revolution]] in Portugal, like others who had been [[political prisoner]]s during the Estado Novo regime, Paredes was seen as a hero. He disliked this status and preferred not to talk about his time in prison, saying that there were people who suffered more than him.<ref name=":3" /> He was reinstated to his previous job in the Hospital de São José shortly after the revolution.<ref name=":3" />

Paredes remained a member of the Portuguese Communist Party until his death.<ref>{{Cite web|title=PCP expressa profundo pesar pela morte de Carlos Paredes|url=https://www.pcp.pt/pcp-expressa-profundo-pesar-pela-morte-de-carlos-paredes|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Partido Comunista Português|date=24 July 2004 |language=pt-pt}}</ref>

=== Music career ===

==== 1950s and 1960s ====
Paredes' first release was a self-titled [[Extended play|EP]] in 1957.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":1" /> He was accompanied by Fernando Alvim on the classical guitar. After this first record, the musical partnership between Paredes and Alvim would last for more than 20 years.<ref name=":0" />

During the 1960s, Paredes composed the soundtracks for numerous Portuguese films. He composed the soundtrack for the 1963 film [[Os Verdes Anos|''Os'' ''Verdes Anos'']], directed by [[Paulo Rocha (film director)|Paulo Rocha]]. The piece "Canção Verdes Anos", which is part of this soundtrack and was also included in his first studio album, became one his most recognizable works. He also composed the soundtracks for the film ''Fado Corrido'' (1964), by [[Jorge Brum do Canto]], the film ''Mudar de Vida'' (1966), by Paulo Rocha, and contributed to the soundtrack of several short-films: ''Rendas de Metais Preciosos'' (1960)'','' by Cândido Costa Pinto; ''P.X.O.'' (1962), by [[Pierre Kast]] and Jacques Valcroze; ''As Pinturas do Meu Irmão Júlio'' (1965), by [[Manoel de Oliveira]]; ''Crónica do Esforço Perdido'' (1966), by [[António Macedo|António de Macedo]]; ''À Cidade (The City)'' (1968) and ''The Colombus Route'' (1969), by [[José Fonseca e Costa]]; and ''Tráfego e Estiva'' (1968), by [[Manuel Guimarães]].<ref name=":0" />

In theatre, he collaborated with [[José Cardoso Pires]] and Fernando Gusmão in 1964, with Carlos Avillez in the play ''Bodas de Sangue'' and performances of [[Federico García Lorca|García Lorca's]] ''[[The House of Bernarda Alba]]'' by Teatro Experimental de Cascais.<ref name=":0" />

His first studio album, ''Guitarra Portuguesa'', was released in 1967. That same year, he played alongside [[Amália Rodrigues]] in her show at the [[Olympia (Paris)|Olympia]] in Paris, by her invitation.<ref name=":2" /> Amália, who was very impressed with his talent, wished to have Paredes accompany her in her touring band, but Paredes declined, citing his father's advice: "If you want to be soloist, you must accompany no-one". Still, the two remained lifelong friends.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-07-23|title=Tal como há uma guitarra antes e depois de Paredes, há um Fado antes e depois de Amália|url=https://www.tsf.pt/portugal/cultura/tal-como-ha-uma-guitarra-antes-e-depois-de-paredes-ha-um-fado-antes-e-depois-de-amalia-12456468.html|access-date=2020-12-29|website=TSF Rádio Notícias|language=pt}}</ref>

In 1968 he released three EPs: ''Porto Santo'', ''Divertimento'' and ''Variações em Ré menor''.

==== 1970s ====
In 1970 he released a collaboration album with Cecília de Melo, titled ''Meu País.''<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|last=Infopédia|title=Carlos Paredes - Infopédia|url=https://www.infopedia.pt/$carlos-paredes|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Infopédia - Dicionários Porto Editora|language=pt}}</ref> In 1971, he released his second solo album, ''Movimento Perpétuo''.<ref name=":0" />

Between 1971 and 1977, he composed the music for [[Agustín Cuzzani|Agustin Cuzzani]]'s play ''O Avançado Centro Morreu ao Amanhecer,'' performed by the Campolide Theatre Group. He also selected the soundtrack for the group following shows.<ref name=":0" />

After the [[Carnation Revolution]] of 1974 in Portugal, he toured Europe. He participated in several events promoted by the [[Portuguese Communist Party]], playing shows in Portugal and Eastern Europe.<ref name=":0" /> His music was used in the television coverage of the country's first democratic elections for the [[Assembly of the Republic (Portugal)|Assembly of the Republic]], in 1975.<ref name=":0" /> In 1975 he released the album ''É Preciso um País'' with poet [[Manuel Alegre]].<ref name=":6" />

Around 1975, Paredes was working on the successor for ''Movimento Perpétuo.'' The recording sessions were interrupted and resumed several times because of Paredes' dissatisfaction with his recordings. Eventually, the initial plans for the album were abandoned, but some of the recordings from these sessions were selected by Paredes for a release named ''O Oiro e o Trigo.'' However, his record label Valentim de Carvalho did not agree with it, and this was the basis for his breakup with Valentim de Carvalho.<ref name=":6" /> ''O Oiro e o Trigo'' was ultimately released in [[East Germany]] in 1980.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=Magalhães|first=Fernando|title=Quando o Carlinhos aparecia para tocar, era um deus|url=https://www.publico.pt/2004/07/24/jornal/quando-o-carlinhos-aparecia-para-tocar-era-um-deus-191208|access-date=2020-12-29|website=PÚBLICO|date=23 July 2004 |language=pt}}</ref>

==== 1980s ====
In 1982 his piece "Danças Para Uma Guitarra" was choreographed by Vasco Wellenkamp for the Gulbenkian Ballet.<ref name=":4" />

In 1983 Paredes released the live album ''Concerto em Frankfurt,'' recorded in a concert at the [[Frankfurt Opera]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Carlos Paredes - Concerto Em Frankfurt|url=https://www.discogs.com/Carlos-Paredes-Concerto-Em-Frankfurt/release/3269686|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Discogs|date=1983 |language=en}}</ref>

In 1986 he released a collaboration album with Portuguese composer [[António Victorino de Almeida]], titled ''Invenções Livres''.

In 1987 he released a new solo album, ''Espelho de Sons'', which reached 3rd place in the Portuguese weekly album charts.<ref name=":0" /> It was followed by ''Asas Sobre o Mundo,'' in 1989.

==== 1990s ====
In 1990 Paredes released an album with American jazz bassist [[Charlie Haden]], titled ''[[Dialogues (Carlos Paredes & Charlie Haden album)|Dialogues]].''

His last show was in October 1993 at the Aula Magna, in Lisbon, accompanied by Luísa Amaro.<ref name=":0" />

After retiring from music and public life, he release two more albums from previously unreleased material: ''Na Corrente'' (1996), containing pieces recorded between 1969 and 1973 at the Valentim de Carvalho studios,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Carlos Paredes - Na Corrente|url=https://www.discogs.com/Carlos-Paredes-Na-Corrente/master/639004|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Discogs|date=1996 |language=en}}</ref> and ''Canção para Titi'' (2000)'','' with recordings from 1993.

=== Illness and death ===
{{Quote box
|width = 23em
| quote = ''When I die, the guitar dies also. My father used to say that, when he died, he would like his guitar to be broken and buried with him. If I have to die, my guitar will also die with me.'' 
|source=— Carlos Paredes
}}
In December 1993, Paredes was diagnosed with [[myelopathy]]. The disease forced Paredes to stop playing guitar, thus ending his career as a musician. He was interned at the Fundação-Lar Nossa Senhora da Saúde, in [[Campo de Ourique]], Lisbon, until his death.

Paredes died on 23 July 2004, in Lisbon. Following his death, the Portuguese government declared one day of [[National day of mourning|national mourning]] in his honour.<ref>{{Cite web|last=PÚBLICO|title=Decretado dia de luto nacional pela morte de Carlos Paredes|url=https://www.publico.pt/2004/07/23/culturaipsilon/noticia/decretado-dia-de-luto-nacional-pela-morte-de-carlos-paredes-1199727|access-date=2020-12-28|website=PÚBLICO|date=23 July 2004 |language=pt}}</ref> He lays buried at the [[Prazeres Cemetery]], in Lisbon.
[[File:Lapide Carlos Paredes.JPG|thumb|300x300px|Paredes' grave at the [[Prazeres Cemetery]], in [[Lisbon]]]]

== Personal life ==
Carlos Paredes was married two times. He married Ana Maria Napoleão Franco, in 1960. His second marriage was with Cecília de Melo.<ref name=":0" /> He had six children.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Lusa|title=Luísa Amaro: Carlos Paredes morreu com "a tranquilidade de missão cumprida"|url=https://www.publico.pt/2004/07/23/culturaipsilon/noticia/luisa-amaro-carlos-paredes-morreu-com-a-tranquilidade-de-missao-cumprida-1199679|access-date=2020-12-28|website=PÚBLICO|date=23 July 2004 |language=pt}}</ref>

He is remembered for his humbleness by those who knew him.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite news|last=Pinto|first=Margarida|date=2004-07-23|title=Carlos Paredes, compositor y virtuoso guitarrista portugués|language=es|work=El País|url=https://elpais.com/diario/2004/07/24/agenda/1090620007_850215.html|access-date=2020-12-28|issn=1134-6582}}</ref> He refused to solely make a living as a musician and kept his job in the [[radiography]] archive of the [[Hospital de São José]] until the age of 61, stating that he "loved music too much to live from it".<ref name=":5" />

== Legacy ==
Carlos Paredes is regarded as one of the greatest Portuguese guitarists of all-time and a genius of the [[Portuguese guitar]].<ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Carlos Paredes. "Sou um homem que toca guitarra ... que tem isso?"|url=https://ionline.sapo.pt/artigo/549653/carlos-paredes-sou-um-homem-que-toca-guitarra-que-tem-isso-?seccao=Mais_i|access-date=2020-12-28|website=ionline|language=pt}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=BLITZ – Os 30 melhores guitarristas portugueses [Lista]|url=https://blitz.pt/principal/update/2015-11-27-Os-30-melhores-guitarristas-portugueses-Lista-1|access-date=2020-12-28|website=Jornal blitz|language=pt-PT}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2004-07-25|title=Carlos Paredes, 79; Was a Master of the Portuguese Guitar|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jul-25-me-passings25.1-story.html|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=23 de julho: a data que une Amália Rodrigues, Carlos Paredes e Maria João Pires|url=http://observador.pt/2014/07/23/amalia-carlos-e-maria-joao-tres-dos-nossos-maiores-talentos-partilham-uma-data-23-de-julho/|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Observador|language=pt-PT|archive-date=2014-07-25|archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20140725015354/http://observador.pt/2014/07/23/amalia-carlos-e-maria-joao-tres-dos-nossos-maiores-talentos-partilham-uma-data-23-de-julho/|url-status=bot: unknown}}</ref> He is frequently called "The master of the Portuguese guitar" (Portuguese: ''O mestre da guitarra portuguesa'') <ref name=":2" /> and "The man with the thousand fingers" (Portuguese: ''O homem dos mil dedos'').<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=BLITZ – 101 canções que marcaram Portugal #15: 'Verdes Anos', por Carlos Paredes|url=https://blitz.pt/principal/update/2020-04-08-101-cancoes-que-marcaram-Portugal-15-Verdes-Anos-por-Carlos-Paredes|access-date=2020-12-29|website=Jornal blitz|language=pt-PT}}</ref> Acclaimed [[fado]] singer [[Amália Rodrigues]] said that Paredes was "a national monument, like the [[Jerónimos Monastery]]".<ref name=":2" />

Several buildings in Portugal are named after Paredes.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Auditório Carlos Paredes|url=https://www.jf-benfica.pt/servicos/auditorio-carlos-paredes/|access-date=2020-12-29|website=www.jf-benfica.pt}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Auditório Municipal Carlos Paredes|url=http://cm-vnpaiva.pt/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=105&Itemid=148|access-date=2020-12-29|website=cm-vnpaiva.pt}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Escola Básica Carlos Paredes|url=http://www.cm-odivelas.pt/autarquia/contactos/escolas/agrupamentos/agrupamento-de-escolas-pedro-alexandrino/poi/escola-basica-carlos-paredes|access-date=2020-12-29|website=www.cm-odivelas.pt|language=pt-PT}}</ref> The Carlos Paredes Prize, an award for Portuguese musicians given by the [[Vila Franca de Xira]] municipality since 2003, is named after him.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Prémio Carlos Paredes|url=http://www.cm-vfxira.pt/pages/1257|access-date=2020-12-29|website=www.cm-vfxira.pt|language=pt-PT}}</ref>

== Awards and honors ==
In 1992, Carlos Paredes was awarded the title of Commander of the [[Military Order of Saint James of the Sword]] by the [[President of Portugal]].<ref name=":0" />

==Discography==

===Studio albums===
* ''Guitarra Portuguesa'' (1967)
* ''Movimento Perpétuo'' (1971)
*''O Oiro e o Trigo'' (1980, [[East Germany]] release)<ref name=":0" />
* ''Espelho de Sons'' (1987)
* ''Asas Sobre o Mundo'' (1989)
* ''Na Corrente'' (1996)
* ''Canção para Titi: Os Inéditos 1993'' (2000)

=== Extended plays ===
*''Carlos Paredes'' (1957) <ref name=":1" />
*''Guitarradas Sob o Tema do Filme "Verdes Anos"'' (1963)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Carlos Paredes, Fernando Alvim - Guitarradas Sob O Tema Do Filme "Verdes Anos"|url=https://www.discogs.com/Carlos-Paredes-Fernando-Alvim-Guitarradas-Sob-O-Tema-Do-Filme-Verdes-Anos/master/968924|access-date=2020-12-28|website=Discogs|date=1963 |language=en}}</ref>
*''Romance Nº 2'' (1968) 
*''Fantasia'' (1968)
*''Porto Santo'' (1968)
*''António Marinheiro - Tema da Peça'' (1972)

===Collaboration albums===
*''Meu País (''1970), with Cecília Melo
*''É Preciso um País'' (1975), with [[Manuel Alegre]]
*''Invenções Livres'' (1986), with [[António Vitorino d'Almeida]]
*''[[Dialogues (Carlos Paredes & Charlie Haden album)|Dialogues]]'' (1990), with [[Charlie Haden]]

=== Live albums ===

* ''Concerto em Frankfurt'' (1983)

===Compilation albums===

* ''Meister Der Portugiesischen Gitarre'' (1977, [[East Germany]] release)

==See also==
*[[Coimbra fado]]
*[[Portuguese guitar]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paredes, Carlos}}
[[Category:1925 births]]
[[Category:2004 deaths]]
[[Category:Deaths from kidney failure]]
[[Category:Portuguese activists]]
[[Category:Portuguese anti-fascists]]
[[Category:Portuguese classical guitarists]]
[[Category:Portuguese male guitarists]]
[[Category:Portuguese communists]]
[[Category:Portuguese composers]]
[[Category:Portuguese male composers]]
[[Category:Portuguese fado guitarists]]
[[Category:Portuguese prisoners and detainees]]
[[Category:Musicians from Coimbra]]
[[Category:20th-century guitarists]]
[[Category:20th-century Portuguese male musicians]]