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Through his percussionist father, Benji started playing Dumbek at age 6 in which he demonstrated a highly sophisticated sense of rhythmic creativity. He began playing guitar professionally at the age of 15. He has traveled and played in Rio, Sao Paulo, and the Brazilian Northeast(Recife, Olinda, and Fortaleza). Benji Has received accolades for his intricate guitar compositions and in particular is admired by Guinga, one of the most recognized composer post-Jobim."
- " I think he is the greatest composer of Brazilian music to come from the United States"
-Guinga
"A guitar player with impeccable technique and fluency. Meditacoes no Violao (guitar meditations) is a collection of poetic and refined compositions, played with a perfect balance of intellect and emotion".
- JazzTimes
"A New York kid with Brazil in his blood and what appears to be a lightning mind"
-MIDWEST RECORD REVIEW
Supporting musician
Rita Figueiredo
The musical vein of multiartist Rita Figueiredo began it’s pulse early on. At age 14, the São Paulo native began to study voice. Graduating in 1995
from University Livre de Música (ULM) where she studied classical technique. (Linked to the Sao Paulo State Music School of Tom Jobim) (EMESP).
To further hone in her skills as a musician, she moved from classical to popular style vocal training. The first opportunity to launch her original work came in 2011, when she won the Cultural Action Program (ProAC) Award from the Secretary of Culture in Brazil, which fully funded the creation of her first record.
Refining the stories she lived throughout her career, Rita Figueiredo released her debut album, Brasilis, in February of 2013. Through this release, Figueiredo developed a theatrical approach to performing, that portrays stories of typical everyday people of rural as well as greater metropolitan areas in Brazil.
Rita’s album was soon featured on some very
important lists as one of the best records released in Brazil in 2013. Before revealing her gift as a great storyteller through music, Rita Figueiredo had long imagined, created and reworked several other artistic projects as director of animation films. From small play chronicles to publicity ad campaigns.
More than 20 years of Rita’s work in the area of design and animation include periods through broadcasting networks such as MTV and TV Cultura as well as several film producer companies. Her love of music brought her work as a videographer and animator/illustrator closer to many Brazilian artists and musicians. Rita has directed music videos, made video/animations for live concerts of many world renowned artists in Brazil such as Marisa Monte, Ed Motta, Badi Assad, Simoninha, Cássia Eller, Palavra Cantada among many others. Currently as video maker and animator, Rita has produced and directed all the music videos of Benji Kaplan and for their duo Benji & Rita, which have been selected/won prizes by several festivals such as NYC Indie Film Awards, Cinemafest, India Music video Awards, Munich Music Video Awards, London Best Music awards among many others.
In 2015 Rita moved to New York and has since been intensely dedicated to music. Currently Rita has dedicated herself to studying piano, percussion and trumpet, in addition to her skills as a singer, guitarist and songwriter. In the last 3 years she has played in several cities in the USA, Brazil and Europe and several great festivals such as Brasil Summerfest in NYC, and Musikfest in Bethelem, Pensylvannia. In 2019 Rita released her second album titled "Benji & Rita" with 14 songs in partnership with New York composer, arranger, singer and guitarist Benji Kaplan. The album Benji & Rita was acclaimed by American and Brazilian critics and listed by Downbeat magazine as one of the best albums of 2019.