Photo Credits: Image Courtesy Of Calabash Music
Quarteto em Cy
The four sisters, Cyva, Cynara, Cybele, and Cylene, come from Ibirataia, Bahia, in northern Brazil. Using the first syllable of the girls' names (CY), poet Vinicius de Moraes and Carlos Lyra entitled the singing group Quarteto Em Cy.
On June 30, 1964, the beautiful voices and harmonies of the four girls were first heard at the Bottle's Bar. Throughout the '60s the group made several shows together with Vinicius de Moraes, Dorival Caymmi, Baden Powel and Oscar Castro Neves both in Brazil and in South America .
Next the four girls flew to the U.S.A., where they are known as "The Girls From Bahia" and where they recorded two albums produced by Sonny Burke and Aloysio de Oliveira. Quarteto Em Cy guested the Andy Williams (Coast to Coast) Show on NBC, in L.A., California , the Joey Bishop Show on ABC, and performed quite a few concerts at Saharás and Harrah's in Lake Tahoe, at San Jeronimo Hilton Hotel in Puerto Rico and at Shamrock Hilton Hotel in Houston, Texas, to name but a few.
The group took part in the famous Festivals of Brazilian Popular Music in the '60s, performing standards like "Samba Do Crioulo Doido," "Apelo," "Pedro Pedreiro" penned by Sergio Porto, Vinicius de Moraes and Baden Powel and Chico Buarque de Holanda respectively.
The four members of the CY pride themselves on their live performances. Thanks to shows like: "Resistindo" written by Aldir Blanc and directed by Benjamim Santos , "Em Mil Kilohertz" under the baton of Túlio Feliciano, "Cobra de Vidro"( with MPB 4) , "Vinicius & Caymmi no Zum-Zum" directed by Aloysio de Oliveira , "O Rio Amanheceu Cantando" (with Elizeth Cardoso) directed by Carlos Machado and most recently "Vinicius, A Arte Do Encontro" directed by Ruy Faria... Quarteto Em Cy have for almost four decades warmed the hearts of millions of fans.
The current Quarteto Em Cy consists of Cyva, Cynara, Cybele and Sonya, who joined the other three sisters back in 1968.
The four have traveled the world and have had their CDs released in many countries such as: Portugal, France, Spain, Chile, Mexico, Argentina, the U.S.A. and Japan. Some of their CD producers include: Aloysio de Oliveira, Paulinho Tapajós, Edu Lobo, Roberto Menescal, Durval Ferreira and Esdras Pereira.
In 1989, Quarteto Em Cy participated in the Festival of Bossa Nova held in Tokyo and sang at Kay Nightclub to packed houses. They also made a special for the Japanese TV with Carlos Lyra, Leila Pinheiro, Grupo Uákti and Célia Vaz, their musical director since 1980.
In 1992, the group headed for Spain (invited by the Spanish Government) to perform at the 500th Anniversary of the Discovery of America in Madrid, as well as in various other cities with Carlos Lyra, Gilson Peranzetta and Maria Creuza on the bill.
In 1997, Quarteto Em Cy was voted the Best Vocal Group of the year and carried off the "SHARP"Award.
In 1997 and 1998, the group returned to Japan for a series of shows at Sabbath's and for the launching of the group's latest CD.
In January 2001 a new CD was made available. Entitled Quarteto Em Cy & Luis Claudio Ramos – Live, voices and guitar blend in perfect harmony . CID (the recording company) is proud to present this CD, recorded live at the Paiol Theatre in Curitiba back in 1981, as the group's first show dedicated to Vinicius de Moraes one year after the great poet had passed away.
In 2001 the group also released a new CD dedicated entirely to children. Hora da Criança has well-known songs as well as never-released ones that the four used to sing in Bahia before becoming professionals. This latest outing has the participation of Angélica, MPB 4, Gilberto Gil and Chico Faria.
The beautiful voices and touching renditions of Quarteto Em Cy transcend all language barriers as the four women sing from the heart.
— Courtesy Calabash Music
