Leo Gandelman

With his talents cultivated by his mother, a concert pianist and his father, an orchestra conductor, Rio de Janeiro-born Leo Gandelman grew up in a home where the tradition of European classical music exerted a strong influence. ItÆs not surprising that by the tender age of 15, Leo had gained enough skill on his first instrument to be featured as a flutist with RioÆs highly regarded Orquestra Sinfonica Brasileira (Brazilian Symphonic Orchestra). One of the first Brazilian instrumentalists to pursue a formal music education abroad, Leo attended BostonÆs internationally famed Berklee College of Music, where he refined his budding talents as a saxophonist, composer and arranger. Graduation signaled an immediate return to the heady cultural environment of Rio, where he quickly established himself as a first-call soloist and session player in BrazilÆs frenetic recording scene. With seven solo albums to his credit, Leo has all but defined a style that, while unmistakably Brazilian at the core, masterfully blends carefully selected portions of jazz, funk, R&B and pop to create an effervescent new hybrid that shimmers with tropical passion as it burns with the urban energy of a new global music language.