Biography
Elcides Carlos was born on July 23, 1985, in Maputo Province, Mozambique. He grew up in the suburbs of Maputo City, specifically in the neighborhood of Chamanculo “D.”
Music was always a part of his family life. His late father was a music enthusiast and a vinyl record collector. Elcides fondly recalls special days during his childhood when the family would gather to listen to these records. Through his father’s record player, he was exposed to a variety of music from around the world, including James Brown, Martinho da Vila, Manu Dibango, Steve Kekana, and Fany Mpfumo.
Outside of those special listening moments, his exposure to music came mainly from radio programs. By the age of 12, Elcides had developed a habit of tuning in to a local radio station every day after school, during lunch. This station regularly played songs from various jazz artists. On Sundays, he was particularly drawn to the program “Easy Jazz,” hosted by DJ Izidine Faquirá. His fascination with jazz was hard to explain; it was likely the genre’s harmonic beauty, intricate rhythms, and the freedom of improvisation that captivated him. The way the instruments conversed with each other left him wanting to hear more and more. It was through these radio programs that his love for jazz guitar was born.
At around 15, when his family finally got their first television, a new dimension of musical appreciation opened up for Elcides. Now, he could visually experience the music he was hearing. It was during this time that he discovered his older brother played guitar and was seeking a scholarship to study jazz performance. His brother knew exactly when and where jazz concerts would air on TV. It was common to see him watching these concerts with his guitar in hand, trying to play along as if he were a part of the band. Witnessing this was surreal, fun, and intriguing: “How does he manage to play with people he doesn’t even know?”
Whenever his brother was not home, Elcides would sneak into his room, take the guitar, and try to replicate the sounds he heard on TV, just like his brother did. He would carefully return the guitar to its place afterward. This continued until he was 16, when he accidentally broke a string on his brother’s guitar. To avoid trouble, he convinced his younger sister to take the blame, promising to do her chores for the entire year in exchange. His brother, already suspicious, eventually said, “Come here, grab a notebook and a pen… if you’re going to play my guitar, you should learn to play it properly!” And so, Elcides had his first guitar lesson.
When his brother received a scholarship to study jazz performance abroad, he took his guitar with him to university. Elcides had to find someone nearby who owned a guitar and would occasionally lend it to him. His cousin Henrique Seúla was kind enough to let him use his Yamaha classical guitar, with the condition that it be returned at the end of each day. Elcides enjoyed playing so much that he often forgot to return the guitar until his cousin visited him at home, not to reclaim the guitar but just to catch up.
When his brother returned home during a holiday break, he noticed Elcides’ growing interest and dedication to the guitar. Recognizing this, he promised to get Elcides his own guitar. A year later, at the age of 18, Elcides received a Cort guitar from his brother, from the Larry Coryell series. This gesture instilled in him a sense of responsibility to honor the trust his brother had placed in him. Elcides spent countless hours absorbing the study materials his brother shared from UCT (University of Cape Town), including jazz books, CDs, DVDs, and long jam sessions with him. As a self-taught musician, he constantly sought out new sources of knowledge.
In 2004, Elcides met Milton Chissano, a young man who offered free guitar lessons to various young people from different neighborhoods. Through these lessons, he met Terêncio Tovela, another self-taught musician with a keen interest in studying jazz. Elcides and Terêncio formed a study partnership focused on everything related to jazz. Whenever his brother returned from his studies, he brought new materials and insights about what was being taught and played at UCT. This is how Elcides was introduced to the music of Charlie Parker, Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, George Benson, Pat Martino, Lee Ritenour, and Biréli Lagrène. The message was clear: “Study the greats and aim to become even greater.”
Around the same time (2004/2005), the late bassist Filipe Nataniel Fumo (Filipinho), a friend of Elcides’ brother, visited their home and heard Elcides play. Impressed, he offered encouraging words and invited him to join jam sessions at the places he performed. Through these jam sessions, Elcides met drummer Cremildo Chitará, who invited him to join his jazz band, Just Jazz.
Performing at concerts and jam sessions piqued the interest of other musicians, who began inviting Elcides to join their projects. This led to collaborations with Professor Orlando da Conceição in the Malhangalene Jazz Quartet, with bassist Gil Júnior in the Yanga Project, and with saxophonist Timóteo Cuche in the UEM Youth Band, under the artistic direction of the renowned guitarist Jimmy Dludlu.
At 22, when he began receiving invitations to perform as a headliner under his own name at local venues, Elcides felt the need to create his own compositions. This planted the seed for his dream of one day recording these compositions as an album.
By age 36, amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictive measures imposed to contain the virus, Elcides decided to rekindle his dream of recording his debut album. With the experience he had gained from participating in various projects, he enlisted two co-producers, Vando Infante and João Cabral, to help realize his vision. Together, they worked on selecting compositions, arranging the pieces, and choosing both national and international artists to bring his album “Sense of Presence” to life. The album was presented to the public on October 27, 2022.
In promoting the album, Elcides held several concerts, including “In a Soulful & Vibrant Afro Jazz Night” (Galeria do Porto de Maputo, June 2023), “Jazz Aboard” (Centro Cultural Franco-Moçambicano, September 2023), and “Jazz Manifesto” (Galeria do Porto de Maputo, May 2024). He also performed at the Jazz Center at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban (October 2023), the Vinter Jazz Festival, and the Copenhagen Jazz Festival in Denmark (February and July 2024, respectively).
Elcides Carlos extends his efforts into philanthropy, bringing jazz to the communities. One such effort includes a performance at a nursing home in the Magoanine C neighborhood, marking International Day of Older Persons. He also reached out to the student community of Mumemo, in the Marracuene district. Elcides strongly believes that people easily develop a taste for what they know, which inspired him to launch his “Jazz in Communities” project in April 2024.
He holds a degree in Physics from Eduardo Mondlane University. For 12 years, he taught Physics and General Statistics at the Technical School of the General Union of Cooperatives (UGC). Since 2010, he has been a guitar instructor at the School of Communication and Arts (ECA) at Eduardo Mondlane University.