Sao Paulo
Celso Vecchione was known for composing iconic arrangements and solos on his gold Gibson Les Paul. In 1967, the musician founded one of the most traditional rock scenes in the capital São Paulo, Made In Brazil, together with his brother Oswaldo Vecchione. The 74yearold guitarist died this Saturday (21) from a sudden illness.
“Shy and cerebral,” as his group partners called it, Celso was the band’s true maestro. “Brazil has lost a great musician and I have lost the best brother it could have,” said Oswaldo, with whom he shared the stage for 56 years.
In the late 1970s, Celso was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The neurological, chronic and autoimmune disease causes the body’s own defense cells to attack the central nervous system itself. The musician was taking medication.
“He has miraculously lived with this disease all his life, because it is a serious illness,” says Guilherme Ziggy Mendonça, the band’s guitarist for 11 years.
Despite having lived with multiple sclerosis for so long, the death of his sister Lourdes Telma Vecchione in the middle of the pandemic in 2021 really hit Celso. “He lived with our youngest sister and when she died, it was very hard for him,” says Oswaldo. “Celso ended up living alone in our house in Pompeii. He began to suffer from loneliness and depression.”
Nevertheless, Celso did not move away from music. “He was always with us, even when he felt weak. His thing was playing guitar,” says Ziggy.
Made in Brazil has always been run by the Vecchione brothers and has gone through numerous official foundings. According to Guinness World, the record book, there were a total of 203. The band already included 126 different musicians.
Until Celso’s death, the band consisted of him on guitar, Oswaldo Vecchione (vocals and harmonica); Rick Vecchione, son of Oswaldo (drums), Guilherme Ziggy (guitar and acoustic guitar), Solange Blessa (backing vocals), Rubens Nardo (vocals) and Ivani Janes Venâncio (vocals). Octavio Lopes Breif (saxophone) and Marcelo Frisoni (bass) complement the instrumental supporting part in the shows.
With 15 albums, eight of them in the studio and seven live, Made in Brazil rose to prominence in rock history in 1974 with the release of their first album, the eponymous album “Made in Brazil”. The work known as “Banana CD” (a reference to the cover image) contains the group’s first big hit: “Anjo da Guarda”.
The band is set to release the documentary “Uma Banda Made In Brazil” about their story in November, recorded over eight years under the direction of filmmaker Aguirre Cordeiro.